whisknladle according to a food novice

I Spent: $60.91 + tip for three course meal and wine by the glass
Attire: Casual
Seating: Outdoor + Indoor, but we took patio
Happy Hour: 5pm-7pm

Appetizer: Shared Entree-Sized Cutting Board
artisan cured meats, artisan cheese, mustard & pickles
Entree: Alaskan Halibut Tartare
creme fraiche, meyer lemon relish & Crows Pass garden lettuce
Wine: Albarino
Burgans, Rias Baixas, Spain
Dessert: Coffee Marscapone
tres leches cake, cara cara oranges & caramelized cocoa nibs

Food: I was satisfied after the appetizer, full after the entree and stuffed after the dessert. The wine was aliquoted in the kitchen and poured from a smaller bottle at the table and there was no charge for corking - albeit, I did only order a glass and not a bottle. There was of course the pre-meal bread baguette and butter and the tap water is cucumber, which is always refreshing. The appetizer was wonderful. We shared it between the three of us and I would have been good on the cheese/meats and my wine alone - in fact, I may do just that for a business meeting sometime! There was an oiled pork portion that was very good and the ground olives made me wish they sold it by the mini-jar for me to take home. The tartare was light and refreshing and the salad served with it was also surprisingly good for such simple greens. The presentation was a little sloppy as they didn't wipe the plate completely and there was definitely some stray sauce. I have to admit that I didn't finish it because I was so full with the entree sized portion. The server recommended wine that went very well but he did have to take some time to think of which wine would work well. The dessert was also light and refreshing, which is the way I like to go. The nibs were my favorite part as they worked well with the citrus. The cake at the bottom was a bit dry on top and viscous from soaking up the leche on the bottom. I tried the entrees and desserts for both Andres and John and I have to admit, I didn't see what was so special about the apple bacon dessert that Andres ordered - but somehow it brought them both to utter foodgasm!
Service: They're well-staffed and the servers are very good about keeping your glasses filled and checking in on your regularly throughout your meal. Andres did notice that after as the meal was winding down, the servers did begin to neglect the table but I would attribute this more to the restaurant being more filled than the empty that we started with. There was also a point where the server was unfamiliar with John's dessert options and had to ask the kitchen. To our server's credit, the wine he recommended went very well with my tartare.
Overall: It's a nice and relaxed place to take someone out on a date for. Nicely decorated and the casual setting made it very comfortable. Reservations aren't really required on a Tuesday night and you can get $20 pitchers or red or white sangria which next time, I'll definitely have to take advantage of. The menu is a bit difficult to digest before ordering if you're unfamiliar with a lot of terms, so you may need to bulk up on vocabulary before heading on over if you're not used to going out to eat. After Andres's criticisms about my lack of knowledge, I know that I'll be doing a bit of studying before April's CaliFoodies meetup! =D

Reviews to Come

So a person short with Bree taking care of her puppy, Andres, John and I headed over to whisknladle for a culinary adventure earlier tonight. Reviews to come from toniht as well as for Andres's and Bree's Tennesee adventure. For now, here are some pics from last night.

Serendipity

Okay, so there's good news and bad news. Bad news: We have to cancel Cucina Urbana this Friday. I know I know, we fail. It's literally THE first restaurant we want to go to and now we can't. Which leads me to the good news. Your CaliFoodies will be taking a trip to Memphis, Tennessee. You see, Bree and I are alums of San Diego State University and (amazingly) the women's basketball team has made it to the Sweet Sixteen of the Tournament. Soooo, we're off to Tennessee.

Now...here's what's weird. My sister was watching the Food Network show "Best Thing I Ever Ate: Guilty Pleasures" and she was telling me about a dish she saw that looked insane. This dish is the Surf and Turf at Restaurant Iris. It's a grilled NY Strip Steak stuffed with fried oysters, cheese, over some sauteed Yukon potatoes, Bacon and Thyme, and topped with a Bordelaise sauce, Hollandaise sauce, and fried sage. A bit much, no? But I guess that's why it's been labeled a "guilty pleasure." And where is Restaurant Iris you ask? Well none other than Memphis, Tennessee. It's serendipitous I tell you. So Restaurant Iris will actually be our first restaurant. Sorry John and Nikki!! We'll bring you back some souvenirs.

The Idea

So here's the idea: Once a month, the four of us go to a new restaurant in San Diego. Rate it on a system yet to be determined, and post our conclusions (and lots of pictures). I know there's a lot of people that wish they could explore the city they live in more often, so we're gonna do that. There are so many hole-in-the-wall restaurants and cafes in one city alone we figure we'll start with the one we're living in.

So in a couple of weeks we'll be starting with Cucina Urbana by Balboa Park. Italian, obviously.

To be honest, I'm pretty excited about this little project, I've always been meaning to go to more restaurants in San Diego. I mean, aren't we all tired of the fast food chain? I am.

After picking a restaurant to catch up at... CaliFoodies was formed!

I missed Andres and just wanted to go out somewhere nice to eat and catch up. Then thinking that he and I could do this every month, ended up with CaliFoodies. He thought of reviews, I thought of a blog, he thought of a name, a restaurant was picked and it just went from there. Here is the AIM conversation:

Nikki: We should make this a monthly thing! We'll pick a new place every month and try it out!

Andres: oOoooo

Nikki: It will give me an excuse to actually go to restaurants!

Andres: i am SO down for that
haha

Nikki: YAY!!!

Andres: yeah, i've been wanting to do that for the longest time

Nikki: Then wait no more!
Let's do it!