Deja vu

For lunch, I met with JMC, his associate E, and his wife R for lunch at the Athenian Grill. The problem was that I didn't know they were going to come along. Slightly awkward to conduct a potential job change in front of an audience.

I got a falafel pita, which was pretty good. I've been wanting to try the place, so it was nice to finally get to do so. The tzatziki wasn't as good as I hoped, and I was glad I got it on the side. I prefer it milder with more cucumber in it, and this stuff was more like ranch, so I guess it was more me than the restaurant itself. E loves the stuff. To me, it's much more refreshing for it to have a stronger cucumber-iness. The prices were very decent, and I think I'll have to come back with Jim sometime.

In an odd coincidence, Jim and I went to the city again tonight for another piano recital. It wasn't at Davies Hall this time, but rather around the corner at Herbst Theater. I've never been there before, so I was pretty excited. The performer's name was Jeanne Stark-Iochmans, and while she's no Andras Schiff, is an accomplished pianist in her own right. Jim got the tickets complimentary through work, and while they were the cheapest ones available, we had a nice view of her hands and were probably about the same distance away as we were last night.

I got off work late, and so we rushed to get to SF just like we did yesterday. Thankfully Jim drove tonight, which alleviated my stress tenfold. Then on top of that, we hit essentially no traffic and arrived at Jardiniere only half an hour late. On our way there, I contacted the restaurant and were told it was no problem to accommodate us. When we finally arrived, the hostess welcomed us as warmly as if we had actually been on time and immediately had someone escort us to our table upstairs.

Jardiniere is a completely different restaurant during the week. The downstairs was full of business people just getting off work and enjoying a cocktail. Upstairs, the dining area was sparsely filled and we sat at an "inner circle" table overlooking the downstairs bar. Our server was absolutely fantastic, immediately getting our menus to us, taking our drink order, and assuring us that she would work within our time constraints. She quickly explained the menu and we put in our order, splitting the soup of the day (creamy garlic), me with the risotto, and Jim with the halibut.

Once again, we each got an individual roll, which was lightly toasted, warm, and fresh. Our soup came out almost instantly, and we dug right in. They weren't kidding when it came to the garlic flavor, which was extremely pronounced in both taste and smell. It was drizzled with a bit of basil oil and topped with their super yummy croutons. I macked on the croutons, ate a bit of soup, and gave the rest to Jim. Yes, for me, the soup is all about the croutons. Not that the soup itself wasn't good--it's just that anything would pale in comparison to those golden, light, buttery bits of heaven.

The main dishes took a little while longer, but I expected that since risotto is made cooked to order and risotto of course takes time. And believe me, it was worth it! It was even better this time because it was perfectly cooked. This time it had goat cheese, which made it super creamy, and an assortment of finely shaved asparagus, celery, and parsley, which lightened it up and gave a nice freshness to the over taste. Throw in the shavings of Parmigiano-Reggiano, and it was perfection. I was so happy with the dish. Like last time, it came with tons of foam, but it was prettier this round.

Likewise, Jim was much happier with his halibut--it was way less salty than last time's chicken, and on top of that, it was cooked all the way through, unlike last night's tuna. I thought the fish was so beautiful, with a delicate white texture that reminded me of silken tofu. Jim told me to try it to see if it tasted like tofu, but I politely declined. His dish came with "Delta Asparagus, Sunchoke Purée and Fingerling Potatoes, Sorrel Beurre Blanc." I don't know what a Beurre Blanc is, but I think it was the white sauce that created a bed for the fish.

For dessert, we were torn between the dulce de leche flan (which I wanted last time) and the strawberries and pizzelle. I asked our waitress what she recommended and she instantly said the strawberries, so that's what we went with. She was soo right. First of all, the plating was beautiful. I really wished I had my camera, because it really was exquisite. On one side of the square white plate was "toasted yogurt sherbet." It didn't look or taste toasted, but it came on a bed of pizzelle crumbs and was shaped like a slightly pointy egg. An artistic "river" of strawberry sauce separated the sherbet from the whipped cream bed topped with sliced strawberries and two pizzelle cookies, which were standing up thanks to the whipped cream. Underneath the whipped cream was a darker, richer strawberry syrup mixed with just a drizzle of honey. On top of the sherbet was a sugar sculpture of very thin ribbon in the shape of a wing. The pizzelle was awesome. It reminded me that I think Giada made 'em, but that they required a special pan. The sherbet was extremely delicious and slightly tart. And how much more can I rave about strawberries and cream? It was a very light and perfect ending to our amazing meal.

On top of it all, the service was impeccable. My water glass was never empty. Every time Jim finished his bread, he was offered another one (which he accepted). Our plates were cleared almost instantaneously. And true to her word, she got us out of there with time to spare.

Last time I went, it was more about the experience than the food. While the food was yummy, I wasn't raving (except for the dessert). Tonight I got it all--the ambiance, service, and food. What a great dining experience. Plus tonight marked 10,000 Open Table points. It was poetic how it all worked out. Seriously!

Herbst Theater is located right around the corner from Jardiniere on Van Ness. We arrived a little after 7:30 and got in the insanely long line to pick up our tickets. We were still standing in line when the warning bells starting chiming, but we sat down with about 5 minutes to spare. I was quite excited to see the program, mostly because of the familiarity. She opened with my Schubert Impromptu Op. 90 No. 3, followed by No. 4. I thought she did a fantastic job with No. 3, but I was disappointed with No. 4. See, the thing is that I loved number 4. I was dying to play it, but I got stuck with #3. But her interpretation of the piece made it unendingly looong and almost boring. Unfortunately, the same thing happened with Debussy's Moonlight on the Water, which is a piece I really would like to learn someday. I was a little let down at that point. I wasn't familiar with the next Debussy piece, the second one from Estampes, but of course I knew the last song of the first half: Jardins sous la Pluie. She definitely redeemed herself, because I very much enjoyed her performance of it.

The second half had only two pieces: Beethoven's 31st Sonata and the monstrous Chopin Ballade No. 4, which my friend M played. I thought she did a great job with the final movement of the sonata and the Ballade was very well executed. Overall, I was very happy and so touched that Jim got us tickets. She's not the most exciting performer out there, but she has a beautiful touch and an impressive ease to her playing.

The drive back home was endless, since Jim had to go into work and I drove his car back from South SF. But it was well worth it. Unfortunately, I'm on the brink of getting super sick, so I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that I can recover with a buttload of vitamins, Airborne, and anything else I can take.