I had one of the best meals of my life (that I didn't cook myself...) this Saturday at Southwark Cafe. If you haven't yet tried this restaurant, run - don't walk to the phone and make a reservation! This small but charming cafe is located on the southeast corner of 4th and Bainbridge. The dark wood barroom and tiny dining room are simply but elegantly decorated. For a dining room so small the tables are nicely spaced. The staff was friendly and helpful. But the food - OMG! My husband, Joe and I each ordered appetizers, entrees and, although we usually don't, dessert. We shared everything for maximum tasting coverage. Nothing was disappointing. We started with a grilled partially boned quail serverd over a jicama and watercress salad with a simple red wine vinaigrette and a pickled quail egg. The bird was perfectly cooked, with just enough char on the crispy skin. The piping-hot flesh was juicy and succulent, which was nice because it's easy to dry out a bird so small. The nutty jicama and peppery watercress played a great supporting roll for the delicate meat. Our other appetizer was just plain amazing: a grilled baby wild boar loin and chop served over a mix of baby beets, braised endive, and prunes, spiked with a little armagnac and sprinkled with toasted hickory nuts. I'm drooling with the memory of this dish. The adorable little chop (think lamb chop-sized) packed an intense pork flavor like I had never tasted. It was perfectly seasoned, and the saute beneath it offered something for every tastebud: sweetness from the beets and prunes, bitter endive, tangy armagnac, nutty/earthy hickory nuts and the intense slightly gamey umami (with a sprinkle of sea salt) from the wild meat. I had heard good things about the veal cheeks on this menu so I opted for that dish. The cheek meat had been braised and pulled, and made into an amazing melt-in-your-mouth ragout. A hint of tomato brightened the fatty richness of the intensely marbled cheeks, and a drop of cream smoothed all of the flavors together. This heavenly mixture was served over house-made pappardelle that was as light and thin as satin ribbon. The sauce clung to the pasta like a lover. Joe ordered one of the tempting specials - a shad and sea scallop combination that embodied a full seafood flavor spectrum. The shad was pan-seared, dark, salty and oily - everything that shad should be. The inch-wide diver scallops were seared to a caramelized crust on the outside but sweet, tender and meltingly medium rare on the inside. This delicious duo was served on a bed of slightly wilted baby frisee with a light citrus dressing peppered with crimson beads of briney tilefish roe. The flavors were all tied together with wafer-thin slices of dried key lime - chewy, tangy, zesty and amazing with a bite of shad. Having had such tremendous success with our first two courses we decided to order dessert. The just-right porion sizes on appetizer and entree left us with just enough room. Still in sharing mode we ordered the mascarpone and honey crepes, and the sorbet du jour, apple cider & brandy. The sorbet was clean and light with a great apple flavor, a hint of lemon and brandy in the finish, and not too boozey or sweet. The crepes were unbelievable. (I've never seen Joe swoon over a dessert before.) Etherially light and tender, with a sweet-salty-eggy flavor (but not too sweet, salty or eggy) these crepes were filled with just a schmear of buttery mascarpone, drizzled lightly with honey, and sprinkled with toasted hazel-and pinenuts. The end result was creamy melt-in-the-mouth harmony so perfect I almost ordered one more. All this, three beers and a bottle of Pinot Noir rang in at just over $100, and one of the best Franklins we've ever spent. Go to Southwark. Now.
