The inside of the restaurant was beautiful. It wasn't overly fancy, but very classy and elegant. At first, I loved the netting and the lights. But when I looked a little more carefully, I realized that they were fishing nets. And then I just didn't get it. Or maybe they were mosquito nets. Either way, very odd.
We went with their prie fixe dinner entitled Sex in the City. Below the menu was the famous Madonna quote, "Express yourself, don't repress yourself." Boy did that take me back to the summer of '95. And wow, did that just make me feel old, that I can walk down memory lane over a decade ago. Anyway, the funny quote aside, the descriptions of the four courses sounded absolutely amazing, and with all of the choices (an entire vegetarian menu!), I was overwhelmed. I have to say, I'm not at all used to having multiple choice, and it's not easy for me at all. Usually there is one vegetarian item, or if there are a few, they're generally pasta-based dishes and therefore not difficult to decide. But to have the menu consist solely of vegetarian items? It's insane, and way too much pressure. It was much nicer just going with the fixed menu and having them bring the food out to me. Plus our super nice waitress recommended it highly.
Jim decided to add the wine pairing recommendations, which I tried all of and was pleasantly surprised. The only difference between our meals was that we each got different main entrees (there was a choice of two, and it only seemed logical that we get one of each and share).
Words cannot describe how good this food was. I thought Greens Restaurant (Fort Mason) was a sublime dining experience, but Millennium topped it. Not that Greens isn't amazing. The dishes served at Millennium were simply more me. Likely it was just pure luck, so I would have to be a regular at both (which isn't going to happen) before truly making a decision.
In many ways, I think Millennium was more Jim's taste as well, starting with the bread, which didn't exist at Greens. Okay, I need to stop comparing the two, and it ends right now! The bread was probably stone ground and tasty very earthy, although it wasn't whole wheat. They served it with a garlic tofu spread that was quite possibly the best spread I've ever eaten. I had to ask what it was because I couldn't tell at first, but as soon as the waitress said so, I definitely tasted the tofu. But the blend of herbs was very pleasant and the spread was quite creamy. It was no substitute for butter of course, but it was very good all the same.
They brought our grilled avocado salads out very quickly, which surprised me. It was paired with some sort of white wine that was extremely light and didn't cause me to wince when I tasted it. I actually tried several sips before and after taking a bite of salad because I wanted to see if it made a difference with the taste of the food. Apparently my tastebuds are woefully lacking, because there was no enhancement of flavor for me. But the wine was not half bad. I'm not a big fan of microgreens, but the grilled avocado was surprisingly delicious and rich. It helped that they used a very sweet and fresh avocado in the first place. The grilling gave a nice texture contrast between the creaminess of the inside and the slightly crisp outside. There was such an interesting blend of spices on top (zataar, cumin, and oregano) that I could recognize (with the help of the menu of course) and I really enjoyed the first course. Even Jim ate his, which is monumental considering he a) doesn't like salad and b) doesn't like avocado that's not been made into guacamole (and even then sometimes it's a problem). He did give me an extra piece of avocado, but he said it was because he knew I liked it.
The remaining courses came out very slowly, but the service in between them was impeccable. The water glasses were never empty, our plates were cleared very quickly and the table re-set in between each course in record time. The second course grabbed my attention the most because it was a chantarelle mushroom gratin. Due to my love of all things mushroom-y, I couldn't wait for it. It came out in a dessert-sized white ramekin with a light crispy crust on top. And wow. It was creamy, sinfully rich, and so flavorful. They could have brought me out an entree-sized portion and I'd have been happy right there. It was that good. And Jim, who isn't the biggest mushroom fan, cleaned out his ramekin completely. There was a wafer-thin crostini topping the gratin which was perfect dipping into the gratin sauce. The wine selected for this dish was a Chardonnay. I didn't like it at all, although it wasn't strong or shudder-inducing. It just had a very woodsy, almost smoky flavor. Jim thought it was very pine-like. For the first time ever, I understood how wine could be paired with a dish, because it simply seemed to go. I can't explain why or how, but it was a perfect match. I do admit that it did taste better with the gratin.
By the time they brought out the third and main course, I was already starting to feel full. One of the dishes came with a Riesling and the other with a Merlot. I was wondering which wine they would bring out since Jim was the only one who got the wine pairing. I hoped it would be the Merlot, since Jim prefers red wine. Luckily they read our minds, so out came the merlot, and Jim was given the lentil dish. I got the tempeh skewers with the king oyster tempura. The tempeh had some sort of Asian-style glaze with peanut halves. It was SO good. The skewers topped a base of risotto, which was perfectly al dente and creamy. And there was a pineapple relish on the side, which strangely enough, matched the rest of the dish perfectly.
Jim's lentil dish was earthy, rustic, and dense. It was lightened up by a nice olive oil-based crust. The lentils were accompanied by a potato and artichoke "gratin," which wasn't really a traditional gratin but still delicious all the same. I actually liked the artichokes, which was a second (the first being Giada's artichoke gratinata recipe). The potatoes were perfectly tender and just so flavorful. Jim mistook the grilled endive for onion, which I was surprised, since it tasted nothing like onion in my opinion. It was slightly bitter and smoky from the grilling and matched well. While it was quite yummy, my main course was preferable to my taste buds. Jim preferred his original, so it was perfect. The accompanying sauce to Jim's meal had too strong of a merlot flavor for me to love it, but as long as I didn't eat the sauce, it was great.
I was a little disappointed with the dessert. I was hoping that they'd offer a choice, so that we could swap again, but it was an orange bundt cake with a brown sugar pecan glaze topping and mint julep ice cream. There was some sort of sauce which was very yummy, but the surprise for me was the ice cream, which I very much liked. Usually I like the fake mint or more peppermint-based mint flavoring, but this was real mint. And it was yummy. I found it a surprisingly good match for the orange bundt, which was a little too dry for my tastes but so delicious with the pecans. It took some effort for me not to just eat the pecan glaze. The last drink was a hot brandied cider, which Jim liked and I didn't due to the strong brandy flavor.
I was so stuffed by the end of the meal but couldn't stop. My tastebuds were so happy. It was truly one of the most amazing meals I've ever had in my life, truly one of those dining experiences that I will always remember. Oh, it was amazing.
No comments:
Post a Comment