Our flight was canceled the day before we were to leave. The trip would not happen. I was more than disappointed. I needed this trip. I needed to get away to unwind and find some of the energy I've lost here lately. I needed to laugh and cut-up like the four of us do so well. I was looking forward to being served imaginary tea! I was agitated and stressed before the trip was canceled and worse off after Southwest sent me the sweetly worded notification of our canceled flight.
Thankfully I married the best guy around and he knew I needed, at the minimum, a night out without worries and full of laughs. So, he made plans and took me out in hopes of us making it back home before the snow storm rolled in. We were forecasted to get 4-6", but that could mean anywhere from a dusting to a blizzard.
We started our evening with dinner at Moro in Wilmington. The restaurant is off the beaten path in a weird residential-business neighborhood. When you look at the place you know instantly it was someones home once upon a time, but once you walk in, you know you're in a fine dining establishment.
We started with drinks. I ordered a Moro Fizz which has blood orange soda, pomegranate juice and white rum served over ice. The glass it was served in was a fun style of a collins glass and if I could have gotten two of them to the table at once, I might have nicked them. The drink itself was great. Not too much alcohol, not too sweet and the carbonation was just right. It's like a gin fizz minus the gin, lemon juice, egg whites...hmm...okay, it's nothing like a gin fizz, but it was a great way to start.
Ray ordered the Basil Lemonade. It had lemonade, citron vodka and basil leaves served over ice in a highball glass. This drink would be good if a pitcher were made and served on a warm summer day. When I say good, you should read "dangerous".
We had the six course tasting menu and Ray had the wine pairing to go with it. Ray says he chose the six course menu over the four or five course menu because he figured there was going to be a tartar or foie gras brought out and he knows I don't enjoy either of those items. I personally think he wanted more food.
The first plate brought out was a salmon tartar. My heart sank. I really don't enjoy raw fish at all. I've tried a number of fish in many ways and have liked the flavor, but there's a texture thing I can't get past. So, as I've done many times before, I put some of it on my little crostini, prayed, and ate it. Then I finished my plate. It was delicious!
The next plate was seared mahi mahi with capers and caramelized onions served over a roasted potato. When the plate was put in front of me my first thought was that this wasn't going to work. I've never had potatoes with fish unless it was fried fish with a side of french fries. Of course, when I ate it, it was great.
The next course was my favorite of the night. It was a brown butter, artichoke risotto. I want a bowl of it now and later and tomorrow and the next day. It's not on their normal menu, so I don't know if I'll be able to order it on a return trip. This has to be in the top five things I've ever eaten. It was that good.
The fourth plate was crispy lamb served on top of a nutmeg ricotta ravioli with grilled asparagus and a parsnip puree. This wasn't my favorite of the night, but was still good. Ray really enjoyed it. The asparagus with the parsnip puree was so good he ate it all. For those who don't know, Ray dislikes asparagus with a passion. Looks like we both had a change of heart.
The next plate was a braised short rib. The meat was so tender that a knife was unnecessary. It was so good. My only complaint was that I was so full at this point that I could barely eat any of it. I am still very disappointed in myself. The positive is that this is on their normal menu, unlike everything else we ate, so if (read "when") we go back, I can order it as my entree. This was a close second behind the risotto. It was so good.
The last plate was dessert. It was a deconstructed smore. Now, I recently told someone that smores are over rated and that the only good smore was one that you could drink. I need to add an addendum to that statement. A deconstructed smore made with chocolate pot de creme, some crushed graham crackers and a couple of large charred marshmallows is also acceptable. Oh man was that good!
It was really great food and I hope we return soon and consume a few plates less. Ray enjoyed his wine pairings. With each new pairing I tried a sip and enjoyed them too. They did a good job with the small pours so as to not have folks drunk by the end of the meal. We've done pairings with our meals twice before last night and both times the pours were too much. I appreciate folks not trying to get me drunk. Personally, I think it defeats the purpose of the pairings. Plus, the amount of time and coffee you have to consume afterwards before you can drive home can get ridiculous!
Once the meal was over and Ray rolled me out of the restaurant, we made our way to the The Grand Opera House which was beautiful inside. It's a very cozy space which lends itself to not having a bad seat in the house.
We were there to experience Alton Brown Live: The Edible Inevitable Tour.
It was a great show. He played a few songs that were pretty funny and made chocolate ice cream with a couple of extinguishers, cream he got from Bessie, his trusted cow from Good Eats and a volunteer from the audience. He made pizza in his Mega Bake oven using stage lights and a ship wheel and another volunteer from the audience.
This volunteer comes with a story. She is the sister of the first volunteeer, an industrual engineer, blonde and drunk. The exchange between the two of them throughout the demonstration was hilarious. The burping/farting yeast sock puppets also made a few appearances throughout the show.
He talked through his current "10 Things I'm Sure About Food" of which I can only remember some of them now...
- Chickens don't have fingers - He told a great story about a sleep over his daughter had where she wanted him to make them chicken fingers. He made them chicken feet.
- The thing in the kitchen you should learn to use is salt
- Trout should never be in ice cream - He told the story about having to eat it on Iron Chef America. I remember watching that episode
- Your wife is the best cook
- The best ingredient to learn to cook with is eggs - They're cheap, come in cartons of 12, are pre-measured and even if you over cook them they are still (usually) edible
- The most important tool in the kitchen is the table - Pay attention to the people you're eating with more than the food.
- Raisins are always optional
- Never eat cocktail shrimp at the airport - He told a story about how he ate a shrimp cocktail at a LA airport, got sick on the 5 hour flight and ended up in the hospital for a few days. Ray was able to commiserate as he had a similar experience with BBQ.
It was a fun show that had us laughing. It ran long, which was fine with us, until we got outside and the snow had already started falling. The drive was a bit of an adventure since the roads hadn't been treated, but thankfully Ray was able to maneuver safely and got us home in one piece. Here's the picture of us once we got home. That's the look of relief on my face!
It was a great night out. The food was good, the show was funny and my date was the best. Thanks again, hunny.
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