48 Nights

Went to 48 nights last night. Made these reservations months ago, thinking it was the last seating for the last night. Apparently not. A couple of weeks ago they announced that they were adding another week AND will be doing a finale. hmpf. Oh, well. So glad I went anyway. The team from Parigi was in the kitchen and they made one heck of meal.

Here we go, course by course. The theme was "street food." The menu was all over the place so wine pairings we thought were going to be a challenge. We lucked out though and somehow managed to pick the right wine for each course.

First course. Pan seared foie gras with a bacon funnel cake, raspberry jam, and cotton candy.

The cotton candy add more color and fun than taste because the raspberry jam (which I think had some sweet onions in it) had more than enough sweetness. It was a small piece of foie gras but it was cooked well and added a nice texture to the dish. Really enjoyed the bacon funnel cake. The bacon flavor was quite subtle but definitely added to the dish. J brought an 02 Brut for this course. I'm not a huge champagne girl but it was a nice complement.

Second course.
House Smoked Sockeye Salmon with Maple-Soy Glaze, Crispy
Corn Tostada, Anthony’s Micro Mizuna, Cilantro, and Napa
Slaw Sides: Farms 5 Spice Refried Beans, Elote with Home
Grown Basil Butter and Jalapeno Salt

Yum, yum, yum, yum, yum. I could eat this every day. The beans and corn (elote) weren't really sides as they were all on top of the tostada and thank goodness because they made the dish. Sockeye salmon (especially smoked) tends to be a little fishy to me but the strong fish taste combined with the creaminess of the beans and sweetness of the corn made this my favorite course of the night. At the recommendation of a sommelier friend, L brought a hearty viognier (which name escapes me). We all agreed that we probably wouldn't drink this viognier at home because it didn't have that citrusy flavor we like in our viognier. It had a more buttery flavor and that turned out to be the perfect complement to the tostada!

Third Course
Chicken n’ a Dumplin’
Housemade Asian Dumpling stuffed with Chicken, Peas,
Carrots, Onions and Celery, Veloute Sauce


Ok, I LOVE chicken and dumplings. One of my favorite southern comfort foods. So I was really looking forward to this dish. It did not disappoint. Still scratching my head as to where "asian" came in to play. The dumpling did not really have that Asian flare to me. But it was soooo good. Imagine all the goodness of chicken and dumplings IN the dumpling itself. You got just the slightest bite of carrot, celery and onion in every bite. And the veloute sauce had cracked peppercorns that added the perfect amount of spice. I wanted seconds. and thirds. And definitely wanted something to sop the sauce up with. Would have licked my plate but didn't want to embarrass myself. J brought a Del Dotto Cab for this course. Bottle was signed by Mr. Del Dotto himself. Again, a perfect complement to the meal especially when you had a little bit of that pepper taste still in your mouth.

Fourth Course
Crispy Pani Puri
stuffed with Mr. Lemley’s Peach Chutney and Rocky’s
Watercress, Coconut Vinaigrette

eh. Just didn't wow me and I thought it was a tad bit too sweet so close to dessert. Did taste the coconut at all. Worst part was it was so small we couldn't justify opening another bottle for this course. :( Of course, considering my headache this morning, that's probably a very good thing.

Dessert

Sweet Street:
Cantaloupe-Prosecco Granita
Nutella Crepes,
Milk and Cookies

Ok, technically it was ONE cookie and ONE crepe. Not sure why they made those plural. But anywho... Cantaloupe Prosecco Granita was too cantloupey. I didn't want to end the meal with a melon taste in my mouth. Cookie was kinda store bought ordinary and the milk was, well, milk. Nutella crepe was good though. If I had designed this course, I would have had the nutella crepe and maybe just a grand marnier infused whipped cream on top. I brought a 2001 Chateau de Ste Helene Sauterne for this course. It was not so sweet so as to overwhelm the crepe.

Overall, an excellent dinner with excellent wine. Lots of laughter and good conversation. What more could you ask for?

Cheers!