Anyway, we drank our diet Sobe and ate our food there before dropping off Jim's dad's sandwich at his workplace. I went back to church and practiced my duet with A. I can't wait to perform next week, actually--the Dvorak Slavonic Dance No. 7 is so much friggin' fun to play. I was having a blast.
Afterwards, Jim and I headed up to Yountville and were only a few minutes late for our late lunch. Bouchon is absolutely adorable, and very French. It's what I would imagine a little bistro in Paris to be like. If it hadn't been so dang windy and cold, I would have loved to have eaten outside. So we settled for an indoor table right by the window instead. Even though it was about 3:45 pm, the place was still packed, although it cleared out somewhat during the course of our meal. There was a gorgeous arrangement of fresh flowers in the entryway that I loved, and the bar doubled for alcohol and seafood consumption. Thankfully, we were seated some distance away, and I didn't have a great view of the crabs and oysters on ice at the eating side of the bar.
Our server, dressed in an ankle length apron, was very fastidious and proper. I appreciated that he didn't look down on our choosing regular ice water, instead saying "excellent" and immediately filling our order. I hate it when waiters get snooty when you don't order the bottled water or a bottle of wine.
French food isn't usually vegetarian-friendly, but Bouchon offered a mushroom crepe that I was all about. Plus, the soup of the day was a vegetable-stock based cream of potato and leek, which was very nice. We shared the soup along with an order of the Macaroni Gratin, and Jim got a Croque Madame. For beverages, Jim ordered a glass of Cabernet blend and I went with an iced tea.
The bread boy brought us some knots with butter, and we dug right in. Bouchon bread is so good and super fresh. Again, it's what I picture French bakery bread to be like. We got one replacement knot and then the napkin it came on was whisked away (much to our disappointment). The bread was crusty on the outside and very flaky and tender on the inside. So yummy.
Our soup came out drizzled with olive oil and some sort of crispy bits which I mistakenly took for shallots. I put a bit in my mouth and chewed, and immediately realized that it wasn't a vegetable. I wasn't sure WHAT it was, only that it wasn't very good and awfully chewy. So I spat it out and the masticated bit was clearly some sort of fried animal part. Jim tried a piece of his own and determined it to be a pig. I was quite upset that this fabulous vegetarian soup was ruined by the topping of pig parts, but it's not like they were mixed into the dish. I thought the soup was very good and decadently creamy. There was no stringiness at all, and only a slight hint of leek to it. It was mostly just a simple, smooth, and delicious potato soup.
Jim's wine was actually quite mild. In fact, I actually almost liked it! There was no cringing sour aftertaste at all to it, and even though it was slightly tart, it wasn't at all a bad thing. Of course, I much preferred my iced tea, which came in a little Bouchon-labeled carafe and was some sort of herbal variety.
Over the course of the meal, I realized that they treated our time there as an experience. We weren't just there to eat. We were there to savor the afternoon, each other's company, and of course, the food. Even though I'm sure they were setting up for dinner, we weren't rushed or bothered in any way with the exception of a votive candle delivered to our table.
My Crepe aux Champignons was absolutely delicious, stuffed with forest mushrooms, spinach, hazelnuts, and goat cheese. It lay on top of a bed of mornay sauce and was topped with frisee that had been lightly dressed with some sort of vinaigrette. Jim's Croque Madame had a side salad and a fried egg on top of his brioche ham and cheese sandwich. The gratin came in a small cast iron rectangle and topped with the light sprinkling of bread crumbs.
The crepe was, in a word, amazing. I'm already partial to them, but the combination of flavors was so unique and out of the ordinary that I had to think about whether they actually went together. Really, it came down to the hazelnuts, because spinach and mushrooms are a common pairing. But I did like the addition of hazelnuts for both the flavor and the texture contrasts that they offered. The mushrooms were warm and hearty, the goat cheese creamy and tangy, and the hazelnuts crunchy and rich. And the spinach was the neutral canvas that brought all of the other strong flavors together into this incredible dish. I definitely liked the frisee on top, because it lightened up the otherwise heavy dish. Even though the crepe was on the small size, it was bursting with filling and as a result, flavor.
Jim wasn't sure what to make of his sandwich, mostly because of the fried egg. I guess it was more raw than he was used to, but I love runny yolks, personally. He asked me if anyone actually liked salad or if they ate it only because it was good for them. I assured him that I did enjoy salad and that yes, most other people also liked the stuff. But overall he liked his meal, especially the macaroni gratin, which had some sort of white, nutty sauce. I guessed Gruyere and nutmeg for the unusual flavors. We have been on a total mac n' cheese kick lately, especially Jim. I still can't get over the fact that he ate a pound of the stuff in two days.
We skipped dessert, opting instead to go over to the bakery to see what sort of goodies they had to offer. We totally scored with a Nutter Butter, which the girl behind the counter gave to us because it was broken. She is my hero, because it was the ONLY one left in the shop. Yeah, her co-workers can thank our tip because of her assistance. I am obsessed with those Nutter Butters. Soo good. We expanded our horizons with a chocolate chunk cookie which was still slightly warm and gooey from the oven (the best way to enjoy a cookie in my opinion). Oh yeah, we also got a loaf of sourdough bread for dinner. But while the bread is amazing, it really is all about the desserts there.
On our way back into town, we went to Whole Foods. I ended up spending $85 on a ton of different foods. We are quite an interesting mix. There was everything from creme brulee (they were giving out samples and after trying it, I couldn't resist) to chicken to seitan. Throw in some whole wheat pastry flour and beer, and you've pretty much got the gamut. I was so excited about the blue cornmeal--now I can try Bobby's corn muffins! Although the organic food will kill you on the price, overall, the store itself isn't insanely expensive and actually offers good deals on certain items. And it's probably the best place for Jim to get meat. We ended up getting some "air-chilled chicken," which I didn't really understand the process of, but it seemed to be a big deal. I guess the chickens are cooled with air instead of ice water, and that makes a difference in the taste and texture. Something about them not absorbing any water into the flesh and therefore the skin being able to get crispier. Since it was the only offering of boneless breasts, I was sold. I also snagged some ground lamb, so I can make some lamb burgers later on this week.
We dropped by Jim's parents' house before heading back to Jim's. We had gotten them some Maine wild blueberry jam and we also shared samples of the Bouchon goodies. In exchange, we got a pot for the corned beef and the recipe.
Corned beef is one of those weird things for me. I can't imagine how processed, boiled Bessie can be at all appetizing, but Jim loves the stuff, so here we were. The pot was filled with water and set to boil. The cow went in, along with a couple of bay leaves, the included seasoning packet, some diced onion, and a couple cloves of garlic, and that was it. It simmered covered for 2 1/2 hours.
We watched The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford while the thing cooked. It was kind of interesting, but I was so tired that it was hard to concentrate on the movie. Yes, even Brad Pitt is hard to watch when I'm exhausted. Anyway, I sliced up a small head of cabbage into six wedges, diced three potatoes, and cut up a few carrots, threw them into the pot and took out Bessie. I put Dijon mustard on her fat side (I think--Jim picked out the fat side since I had no idea) and sprinkled a brown sugar/clove mixture on top, then threw her into the oven for 15 minutes.
The corned beef turned out perfectly unlike last time, where all the water boiled off and burned everything. Jim made garlic bread out of the Bouchon loaf, which is what I ate for dinner. I was mostly just happy that the corned beef worked this time. On top of that, between Bouchon, Whole Foods, and my Nutter Butter cookie, I was a happy camper.
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