A Little Saucy
October 27, 2009
Save Room - Dark Chocolate and Peanut Butter Fondue (Photo by Amanda Heironimus)
In honor of Wilmington’s Restaurant Week (ends Wednesday – see previous post for details), we mulled over the participating eateries, ruled out those we’d already tried, those we found on the low end of the Health Inspection grading curve (scores released recently at http://www.star-newsmedia.com/rr/rr.php?rr_county=NEW+HANOVER ) and any member of a national chain (The Melting Pot, really?? I thought this was about local flavor).
Chef's Choice : Second course salads (Photo by Amanda Heironimus)
From those remaining, we chose The Little Dipper, Wilmington’s homegrown answer to the aforementioned national fondue giant. A fantastic choice, as the evening was on the chilly side. Romantic, cozy and modern (if such a combination is possible, and it seems it is), TLD’s interior provided an instant warm-up. And shortly after being seated, we were treated to a more literal warm-up.
The Restaurant Week deal at TLD included four courses for $25 per diner, so we dove right in with the cheese fondu appetizer. We chose (and wisely, as it turned out) the Cheddar Ale flavor, and our server created the mixed-cheese and Guinness concoction at our table as we discussed the rest of the meal.
Round Two: Jeff’s chef salad was heartier than expected, small in size but loaded with quality ingredients. I chose the Ginger Carrot soup, a wonderfully balanced and savory dish.
The entrees are of a cook-your-own nature, so poor preparation is the diner’s own fault (this, I should point out, is every server’s dream). However, TLD is kind enough to not just toss you a couple fondue forks and let you sink or swim.Taking a cue from the airlines, theygive you a sort of pre-flight safety speech, replete with laminated instruction card, including cooking times and tips.
The Main Event: Meats, veggies and sauce to spare (Photo by Amanda Heironimus)
(Note: I probably would’ve liked the Wasabi Cream sauce better, but during one particular bite, the spice went straight to my nose and in my rush to get some water or something – anything! – I tipped over my full glass of champagne. The Wasabi sauce was therefore exiled).
Live Art: TLD's Resident Jellyfish (Photo by Jeff Boykin)
Pure ridiculousness never tasted so good.
