Insieme

[BryanZ]

I figure this thread should be started. I'd say this opening falls under the semi-big deal category, yet no one has commented yet.

The info.:

777 Seventh Avenue (51st Street)

at The Michelangelo Hotel

New York, New York 10019

Phone:212.582.1310

Insieme Website

Insieme is by Marco Canora of Hearth. Two sides to the menu, one traditional, one contemporary. Plays into the relatively casual trend with no tablecloths. I don't think the two sides to the menu will meet much of a problem as the disconnect isn't so severe. In fact the tasting menu seems to draw a couple of dishes from each side, at least philosophically.

Would love to hear reports.

[Luckylies]

I can't wait to go. My friend works in the kitchen an she's a hell of a cook. I really love Chef Canora's cooking, i'll be in in the next few weeks. LLLLLLLaaaasagna......

[AndrewG]

Had dinner there during its first week. We came away impressed with the food - on par with Hearth. I had fish crudo to start and lamb as main (supposed to be lamb 4-ways but they forgot the sausage so it was only lamb 3-ways). My wife had a salad and the bass "saltimbocca." we shared the black olive fettuccine as a middle course and the gianduja bar and espresso sorbet for dessert. they served a couple of amuses that were pretty good too though i can't remember what they were. service still needed a little polishing but overall not bad for a first week. wine list was also still a work in progress but looks like it will be similar to Hearth's when its complete. only major complaint is the decor. its sooooooooo bland. will definitely go back, especially since we live nearby.

andrew

[Pan]

Jason Perlow has a great writeup with copious photos. Here's an excerpt:

One restaurant that has gotten my attention recently is Insieme, the brainchild of the very talented Marco Canora, formerly of Hearth (which he still owns) Craft and Gramercy Tavern. So when I heard that it was going to be opening up, I jumped at the chance to eat there, even if it was going to be rough around the edges its first several weeks or months of operation. Rachel, Spamwise and I headed over there last night and had an exceptional meal.

Check it out:

http://offthebroiler.wordpress.com/?s=insieme (click "Read the rest of this entry »" below)

[Sneakeater]

I'm not going to go wild about Insieme, but I really enjoyed my meal there.

The food part, anyway.

Let me get the non-food stuff out of the way:

Bland, Midtown-modern room.

Staff almost entirely obviously Downtown people, out of place in these quintessentially Midtown surroundings.

Unfair complaint about slow/uncoordinated service in a restaurant open only a couple of weeks (ignore it)

YOU CAN'T EAT AT THE BAR! WHAT'S UP WITH THAT?

Now that that's out of the way, on to the food:

As is well known, the menu is divided into the "traditional Italian" side, and the "modern Italian-American" side. What was interesting to me was that I wanted to focus on the "modern" side, thinking it would show more of what Chef Canora is up to these days, but I, for one, found the traditional side more compelling.

I ended up ordering an antipasto and a primo from the traditional menu, and an entree from the modern menu.

The antipasto was a veal tartare. Nothing startling, but extremely delicious.

The primo was the now-famous lasagna verde, which deserves all its accolades. The meat was perfect: almost nutty, and crunchy at the margins.

Segundo was sable with uni. Tiny portion, but also very good.

I enjoyed the dessert -- a gianduja bar -- very much.

By-the-glass wine list wasn't extensive, but was consistently interesting.

Both wine and food prices will strike Hearth regulars as high.

I'd put Insieme exactly on a level with A Voce. They both feature very well-prepared traditional Italian food with contemporary twists. (Insieme takes that farther, of course, with its split menu conceit.) To be sure, I think A Voce is slightly overrated, so this isn't the highest of high praise. But I nonetheless enjoy the food at both these places, and respect the care with which it's both conceived and executed.

There's enough that I still want to taste on the menu at Insieme* that I know I'll be back.

______________________________________________________

* How did I not order the antipasto that essentially consists of a plate of fried offal? That's a dish that has "Sneakeater" written all over it. I just thought it was too obviously directed at me, I guess.

Edited May 4, 2007 by Sneakeater (log)

[oakapple]

I agree with a lot of what Sneak wrote. There's a full review on my blog, but I have a few comments:

Bland, Midtown-modern room.

I agree: no interior design awards here.

Staff almost entirely obviously Downtown people, out of place in these quintessentially Midtown surroundings.

I'm afraid I just don't get this.

YOU CAN'T EAT AT THE BAR!  WHAT'S UP WITH THAT?

Oh, it's worse than that. You can't drink at the bar either. I have to think it's part of his deal with the hotel: where the hotel has its own bar, often the hotel restaurant does not.

I also agree with Sneak that the wine list is a work in progress.

Both wine and food prices will strike Hearth regulars as high.

They'll strike you that way, because they are: by my estimate, about $10pp higher for a 3-course meal. Canora is clearly aiming at a higher level here. It'll remain to be seen whether he's succeeded. For the record, I gave it the same 2½ stars I gave Hearth.

I'd put Insieme exactly on a level with A Voce.

It's interesting that Sneak compares it to A Voce, as the very same comparison occurred to me too. The food at Insieme is probably about comparable to A Voce (based on one meal, anyway). But I found the space at A Voce distinctly unpleasant, and the service very spotty. Service at Insieme was pretty close to flawless. Edited May 4, 2007 by oakapple (log)

[rancho_gordo]

I want to hear about the bean dishes!

[BryanZ]

Wait, are you "the" Rancho Gordo?

[rancho_gordo]

Wait, are you "the" Rancho Gordo?

←

I like to think so!

[Steve R.]

Wait, are you "the" Rancho Gordo?

←

I like to think so!

←

We'd all like to think that there couldn't possibly be 2 of you

[rancho_gordo]

Wait, are you "the" Rancho Gordo?

←

I like to think so!

←

We'd all like to think that there couldn't possibly be 2 of you

←

I wouldn't wish that on my enemies!

I checked out oakapple's site, and perlows, too, and I've heard good things about the beans, especialy the runner cannellini in the tomato sauce. If it's done right, it should make you swoon. Even though huge Gigande beans are the rage, I think the slightly smaller runner beans have a more buttery, less potato flavor. I normally don't like to mix my beans but Jason's shot of the pork on a bed of mixed beans looks beyond fine.

FWIW, Marco and his chef Edward are great guys and seem to be on the top of their game.

[tupac17616]

Just got back from dinner at Insieme with a friend. Pretty solid overall.

The sea risotto from the "modern" side was kind of weak and one-dimensional. It tasted essentially like seaweed risotto, and perhaps that was the intent, but the advertisement of sea urchin as an ingredient had led me to expect more of the creamy richness that ingredient often lends. Of course, a dish of uni risotto was even a disappointment at Masa, so maybe that is a combination that just isn't meant to be.

The lasagne verdi bolognese from the traditional side was good, not great, in my opinion. The meat was very flavorful, but I would've liked two additions. For one thing, more bechamel to create a more cohesive dish. And even more importantly, some kind of textural contrast for the top. Even something as simple as toasted bread crumbs would have been great to prevent the monotony of eating the soft, (clearly housemade fresh, thus not al dente) lasagne.

The asparagus soup, though...wow. Really, really nice. I would order this again in a heartbeat. Far and away the best dish of the night.

My friend also had the lamb four ways, which I did not try, but he certainly seemed to enjoy, leaving nothing but the morels (is he crazy? ) on the plate.

Desserts were both nice. Bomboloni were tasty, if a bit pricey considering what you get. The surprise for me, though, was the gianduja, which my friend and I both thought to be quite tasty. The texture, especially, was wonderful. It actually seemed to get better and better as we kept eating it.

Not an incredible meal by any means, but undoubtedly the best Italian food in the immediate area. I think the comparison to A Voce is a very appropriate one. Neither produces any real fireworks, but you could do a lot worse than a meal at either one.

[Sneakeater]

I agree with you that the gianduja bar is a pleasant surprise. I ordered it because I wanted some dessert to absorb all the wine I had with dinner, but with no real expectation of anything very good. But, just as you said, it got better as I ate it.

I don't remember the name of the pastry chef here, but I think he may be on to something.

(FWIW, I think the rest of your review was spot on.)

[Luckylies]

This post is too long. I got carried away.

I went to Insieme last Thursday and had a very fun, relaxing and rejuvenating meal. Firstly the dining room that has met such a cool reception was, to me, light, airy, and peaceful. I arrived half an hour early for my reservation (what? I was excited) and planned to wait at the bar… um not possible as there is no seating (or leaning) at the bar, it’s a service bar. Well, I was graciously seated upon arrival and allowed to sip sherry until my date arrived. I see the comparison to A Voce; I think the Insieme dining room is a lot more graceful. It holds the early evening light and glows.

As I’ve fallen into a perpetual state of food hangover, I really didn’t want to just order an appetizer and a main- or do the tasting. I wanted a bit of control over my dinner and this menu really gave me the option to customize. There are a lot of small plates (just like Hearth) and a lot of raw fish (just like Hearth) perfect for the perpetually food-worn types.

We ordered only antipasti/appetizers and small middle courses no mains! kids... I was just not up to “big meat”

Anyhow we started with the sea bream carpaccio, which other than tasting clean and fresh and delightful was served at the perfect temperature. I hate to quibble but there is nothing worse than being served thinly sliced raw fish fridge chilled. It was much cooler than room temperature, but warm enough to show off the texture and flavor of the fish… texture good, flavor mild, but the pepper leaves are really interesting. I had never had a pepper leaf and it was surprisingly citrusy I thought it was some sort of lemonherb or something.

Looking across the table you’d think I would have been jealous of all the bells and whistles going off on my dates plate (for this course he had the fish crudo- actually we shared everything but whenever something placed in front of him looks not as good as what was placed before me, I always refer to it as his) but this did indeed look as good. Actually, It was visually stunning, lots of color, and a glass made of ice! (am I easily impressed? no…I just really like things made of ice) anyhow, the crudo hit all the notes, but what made the dish was the little balls of yellow beet! What a nice surprise to go with the oyster…beets and seafood. Who woulda thunk it?

Then onwards to the lamb carpaccio and the fritto misto. To both of these I say “hmm” The carpaccio, while tasty, was too big of a portion for me (and Ian) to share I guess if we hadn’t ordered so much it might have been nice but I don’t ever really want that much raw meat. Half of that order would have been fine, it didn’t help that it was a touch over seasoned. I liked the bread crisps that came with, but would have been happier with softer bread (for that quantity of meat).

We also had the Raviolini in broth. What silky broth, and tasxty ravioli. It didn't change my perception of the universe, but it was excellent. The kind of things older food snobs really like...you know? because of the flawless execution...to me I can't eat a whole bowl of flawless...so I could only get through a few bites...see my notions on "eating light"

I was not wild about the frito misto. The coating was eggy and not particularly crisp. It was liver, sweetbreads, veal cutlet, and tongue. The sweetbreads worked best with the coating. It’s funny I had veal brains the other day at Enoteca Barbone and the coating was exactly (or almost) the same. I had the same issue and convinced Alberto to try it differently…he added some parmesan cheese and voila! Crispy. Anyhow, I’m starting to think that this eggy batter is an authentic preparation, which I had yet to try until two weeks ago…it was on the “classic” side of the menu. This was my least favorite dish, which is saying alot because it was fine.

Lastly was the lasagna the sable and the risotto. Everything everyone said about these dishes is true. They were all very good. The lasagna was a bit under seasoned for me but really, better than any other I’ve had in a very long time.

I wanted more uni in the risotto. It had the biggest lobe I’ve ever seen sitting in the center of my dish but the actual rice could have used a bit more.

The sablefish (black cod) was delicious and the bruleed uni was a very nice gild for the lily. All of the sugar was not melted on mine, again a nitpick, because the fish was cooked perfectly.

Desserts were:

The best desert in the entire world, ever. Ever. In history. Someone give the pastry chef a medal.

The canolli (updated) I really don’t know what to say except, if you like good things in your mouth. Run don’t walk and order this creamy, perfectly crisp, light as air bit of perfection- that is the canolli at Insieme. Do it for you. I mean frikkin rhubaarb jel! and compote! holy fucking shit. meeeeeow.

The donuts were good. Fried bread always is. I’m not sure if they were meant to be cream filled but if they were, there wasn’t (any?) much? Cream. I can’t remember. I was tipsy by then.

The wine list looks great. It looks like things I would choose for myself if I knew more about wine. Whoever is building the cellar is not a big red snob, they love their whites too…and ports..and... sherries… Wine service was very good. the somollier is an affable chap with zero condescention (we whippersnappers can be sensitive)

ah Insieme!

I actually feel like it's a better value propsition that Hearth. Finer room, similar food. similar prices, soignee service.

too long post. sorry. Just go.

[BryanZ]

Just came back for a surprisingly strong meal at Insieme. I really don't have anything negative to say about the restaurant, well, except for its location. Convenient to the boys and girls at Lehman, but that's about it. For context, there's a TGI Friday's effectively next door (but then again Le Bernardin is but a stone's throw away too).

My sister and I weren't particularly moved by the tasting menu itself so we created tasting menus for ourselves, sort of. All together, we tried the fritto misti, asparagus soup, sea risotto, lasagna, a calves liver and veal ravioli with pesto special, the lamb, and the seafood stew. The staff was quite accomodating in offering to split portions, so those not fond of plate switching can go without fear and still try a lot. With that said, we just passed to make things go more quickly.

I must say the dishes were really quite satisfying. As Emma noted, the frito misti batter is more eggy and bready like than light and crispy. It's a very simple dish, comprised of the four meats, some lemon, and grilled asparagus. The sweetbread was by far my favorite, as I thought it actually worked with the eggy batter. The sea risotto isn't nearly as unappealing as I think others have made it sound. I think sea urchin just raises foodie expectations much like the mention of pork belly or foie gras. With that said, I felt this dish was more about the various salty notes of the seaweed, with the urchin acting as a creamy burst of flavor when present. I do wish there were a couple more tongues on the dish to amplify this effect. The pastas were uniformly very strong, and I particularly enjoyed the silky softness of the lasagna. It's soft and smooth and subtle, like haute lasagna that's not that haute after all. The asparagus soup was excellent, as everyone else has said.

I really, really enjoyed the lamb and seafood stew mains, too. The lamb dish was slightly too salty, but was redeemed by the fact that each of the four preparation had a distinct flavor and texture. If they tone down that broth just slightly you'd have a truly excellent dish. The seafood stew may have been my favorite dish of the evening. It was very simple, perhaps second only to the frito misti in that regard, but very compelling. Each of the pieces of seafood was of excellent quality and the tomato gravy/sauce was just right in assertiveness and texture. The mussels and octopus were absolutely standout. Hell, the head-on prawns also were noteworthy. I was able to convince my sister to suck juices out of the head without much protest. Everyday is a new battle, and I think she enjoyed it

Desserts were the highly recommended giadunja bar and cannoli. My sister liked the latter, I preferred the former. My favorite part about the chocolate bar was its texture. It's like a Kit-Kat, just much, much, much more refined.

Service was quite polished throughout the evening. The runners don't explain the dishes, so if you're server isn't in the immediate area then you're kind of left in the cold as to what exactly you're eating. With that said, the front waiters knew the food very well. We hit one somewhat slow point in the meal, but it's hardly worth noting. I also really appreciated the "tastes" of wine via the 3 oz. portions. A great idea that more restaurants should offer. The recommended wines were tasty and relatively inexpensive.

A really strong experience through and through. Total came to about $110/person after tax and tip with two half glasses of wine. A very strong two stars, and if Bruni gave A Voce three, I don't see why the same couldn't happen here. The room also doesn't suck as bad as everyone says it does, though the entrance to the dining room from the hotel is awkward as hell. Stick to the street entrance for sure.

[Sneakeater]

Although if you come through the street entrance, watch out for the unexpected step. Especially if it's very bright out and your eyes haven't yet adjusted to the dimmer lighting.

[BryanZ]

Actually, yes, good point. The faint yellow strip there is hardly warning enough and it is rather dim.

[BryanZ]

Some friends of mine went to Insieme this weekend and remarked, "It was fine, but $125 for four or five courses..." I didn't believe that the price was so high.

So I looked at the online menu, and, indeed, the five-course tasting menu is $125. This seems quite steep for so few courses. The main course is Australian wagyu with black truffles so in some respects I can see the $40 premium over the $85 they usually charge. Anywho, the price was striking when I heard it. Of course, I've read reports that the restaurant is best experienced a la carte, but in the end $125 seems nearly insulting for five, tasting-sized portions.

[Nathan]

the spring menu is very good.

(btw, the only tasting menu currently offered is $65)

we had...a tasting of crudi...each nicely prepared.

then they sent out an additional app of hamachi that had been smoked with a take on bread as well as some mustard. kind of a play on a pastrami sandwich. this was very very nice.

then an excellent lasagne verde...superb pasta and a flavorful ragu.

a well-prepared beef heart risotto with perfect spring peas...

then black porgy in a morel consomme with morels (and spring onions?). excellent cooking here.

the cocktail program is actually quite respectable.

friendly service at the bar.

Edited May 5, 2008 by Nathan (log)

[Nathan]

oh, and a fun dessert -- a playful take on celery and peanut butter.

[ulterior epicure]

the spring menu is very good...

Sadly, the only thing you (Nathan) raved about that was offered at a recent lunch was the Lasagna Verde alla Bolognese (because it's their "signature" primi). The lasagna pasta was wonderful. The bolognese, however, was bland, if not thoroughly boring.

You can read my entire review at the ulterior epicure. You can see photos of my entire meal on my Flickr account.

Here are some excerpts:

Although I had every intention of going easy (given my packed dining schedule), over-ordering was unavoidable, if not inevitable. Thankfully, I was with two hungry friends, one of whom, the size of a small hand puppet, dubbed herself a “haute cuisine trash can.” Together, they handily finish anything I left behind.

We shared three antipasti. I ordered an additional two vegetable-themed antipasti.

...

I did not find the Primi, which we prudently ordered half-portions of, to be as great as the Antipasti.

For one, that highly anticipated Beef Heart Risotto (”Contemporary”) was over-salted and undercooked. They hadn’t coaxed enough starch out of the rice (this being especially frustrating given that it was a traditional red wine-based risotto and not one that relies on dairy for added binding and creaminess), which probably contributed to some grittiness in the rice. Given how great, in theory, it could have been, this dish was deflating. Thankfully, the nuggets and slices of beef heart were appropriately cooked, and the emerald beads of peas were very lovely.

...

The Tuna “Carbonara” was probably my favorite of the three primi. But it wasn’t perfect. The menu indicated that there was sea urchin in this carbonara, a creative (contemporary) stand-in for egg yolk. But I didn’t detect any sea urchin. This lack of creaminess really detracted from its billing as a carbonara.

It did, however, get the smoky element down. My friend and I had a brief exchange about the fact that tuna bottarga (which I had noticed on the menu) is not smoked. Yet I detected smoke. I mentioned something about there possibly being bacon in the dish, although my friends seemed not convinced. This was resolved after our meal, when a review of the menu revealed that this pasta included tuna bacon.

Secondi were good, but like the rest of the meal, failed to present anything terribly inspiring.

...

The Gulf Shrimp (a special listed under “Traditional”) was probably my favorite of the three secondi, more for the flavor than the shrimp itself. Maybe it was the hit of vinegary tartness in the background (that helped cut some of the greasiness).

More probably, it was the giant heads that were left on the prawns; filled with “noggin” cream that I eagerly sucked out. This dish’s success certainly wasn’t due to the corona beans, which though perfectly-cooked, were making a third appearance on someting I ordered (they had also appeared on my Octopus Carpaccio and Antipasti di Verdure).

...

Insieme offers a fine eating experience. It’s good for what it is: traditional and creative Italian cuisine presented in a contemporary fashion and setting. For its neighborhood (Midtown West, which, apparently, is so reprehensible that I had to work extra hard to convince my friends to go near), Insieme is probably nothing short of a God-send.

It’s also reasonably priced. Considering that I (alone) ordered, effectively, 3 antipasti, 1 primi, 1 secondi, and 1 dessert, a $90+change tab (including tax and tip) seemed somewhat reasonable. And, it could have fed two.

Admittedly, I had built up slightly great expectations around Insieme based on how the menu read and, to a lesser extent, what trusted friends had said about it. Both Hearth and Terroir (and Canora) have an ardent core of groupies.

Were these expectations seriously defeated? No. All of the proteins were expertly-cooked and everything was gorgeously plated. I discovered the wonderfulness of tuna bacon, the novelty of Parmesan soup (what is that they say about no cheese with seafood in Italian cooking?), and the possibility of pasta as soufflé. Service, despite the minor hiccups, was quite helpful and efficient. And, although it’s not the most dazzling dining room, the semi-sunken space is rather pleasant; there’s lots of natural light and those low-back velour chairs are really quite comfy.

But, as discussed, an outlying uneveness - over and under-seasoning maimed a number of potentially killer dishes; under-cooked risotto is never cool; maybe I should have been more explicit in requesting a “lettuce salad;” and what if I had been allergic to peanut (butter gelato)? (Well, then, I probably would have said something.) - prevented Insieme from living up to the potential that I had allowed the restaurant to inhabit.

I was expecting an overall boldness and excitement that didn’t quite appear. Perhaps it’s not surprising that the most successful dishes for me were the ones with the most “body:” the Octopus Carpaccio, Rouget, Tuna Carbonara, and Gulf Shrimp. These highlights will lure me back to the restaurant before than anything else the restaurant has to offer.

Again, read my entire review at the ulterior epicure. You can see photos of my entire meal on my Flickr account.

Edited June 20, 2008 by ulterior epicure (log)

[Nathan]

oh there are several Italian restaurants that I prefer to Insieme. but next to Esca it's the best thing going in midtown.

[markk]

After some helpful suggestions (and pm's) about my search for a restaurant in the Theater District, we decided to try Insieme.

First and foremost, we had an experience there that I honestly can only remember having twice before (in my 35 years of dining out as an adult)- service that was primarily non-existent, and condescending and rude when there was any service. And strangest of all, there was only one other table dining in the entire restaurant, yet at no time during the meal could we get a server for anything we needed. It was so bad that when my partner's pasta course arrived and he couldn't get anybody's attention to order another glass of wine from, he just took his glass up to the bar. We had the wine list open in front of us and tried to get the attention of our waiter as he passed by, and then tried to get the attention of anybody we could, and at that point, so as not to let his food get cold, he went up to the bar. At which point the waiter came running over to scold him that "we take care of that!" and my partner simply said "I've been trying to get somebody's attention for the last fifteen minutes!"

However, he was convinced to return to our table, and a minute later the extremely pleasant woman who had seated us (I don't know if she was the hostess or the manager) came over with the bottle and said that she was very sorry and that the wine was on them (and she actually came two more times, once to fill his glass and once to top it off) - but we told her that we had been unable to get anybody's attention when we wanted more bread, and that when we had finally requested it of someone it never came, and that the service was both non-existent and hateful.

(We considered whether it could have been the camera, but we weren't using flash, and considering the tiny size of the camera, I doubt if anybody could have even noticed, and of course there was nobody else dining there except one table at the opposite end of the room.)

And that experience didn't help with the feeling we had that the room really is cold and austere, and did nothing to enhance the dining experience.

We started with the Veal Sweetbreads with Lemon and Capers, which was a truly excellent dish indeed. (We had just had some magnificent roasted sweetbreads at Craft, and while these were totally different in their preparation, they also truly were delicious.):

Next came the "Lasagna Verde alla Bolognese":

Which we both enjoyed very much. The pasta was indeed light and fluffy, which we found to be a plus, and really couldn't fault the dish. (We have many memories of eating it repeatedly in the town in Emilia-Romagna where Giuseppe Verdi was born, and where every pasta is green, and while it didn't live up to those memories, it was still a most acceptable and enjoyable rendition.)

For the main course I had the "Lesso Misto" (which I know as "Bollito Misto) which in this case was (boiled) chicken thigh, beef cheek, veal tongue, and Cottechino sausage in broth:

I found the dish underwhelming. Only the Cottechino was of any interest. The woman who had solved the wine crisis kept coming over to check on us and when she did after the arrival of the main courses, I commented that I was a bit disappointed by the incredibly small piece of tongue (when I used to eat it off the trolley in Modena, I'd generally just let them give me my body weight in tongue and Zampone) - and a few minutes later she appeared with a supplemental piece of tongue, which indeed was extremely sweet of her to do. But there was really nothing special to the dish.

My partner had the "Arista di Maiale" (Pork Roast):

Which, while nicely flavored, had the consistency not of a crispy slow-roasted piece of pork, but rather of a section of loin that had been cooked to order.

Dessert was a truly exceptional warm apple tart with vanilla ice cream:

and the lady, whoever she was, also brought us one of the "contemporary" desserts, whose description I can't remember well enough to repeat, and it wasn't anything that appealed to either of us - but in truth, we really mostly eat apple tarts in any (and every) form we find them in, and not much else for dessert.

Again, I don't know if she was the hostess or the manager, but she was truly delightful and knowledgeable, and cared enough to turn the experience around, and lingered in-between courses when she came to check up on us, for some most enjoyable food conversations.

But at the end of the meal came the question we ask ourselves, "would we want to return here to eat?", and the answer was "no" from both of us. There was really nothing special about the meal that would call us back, nor entice us to try other things from the menu.

Edited November 1, 2008 by markk (log)