Eats, Writes, and Leaves

Last Friday night my friends Andrew and Catherine treated me to dinner at The Village Pub in the sleepy-yet-ultra-rich town of Woodside, California. Despite my to-this-day feeling of California Cuisine Overload, the Pub rocked my birthday dinner! I was honestly surprised at the combination of simplicity and creativity in the menu and on the plate.

Overall experience: Fabulous.
Chance of returning: Good.

For an appetizer, I ordered the asparagus salad with smoked sturgeon and poached quail eggs. Except for the poached egg, I was delighted. With five spears of perfectly cooked (IMNSHO) asparagus lightly coated in an intense lemon vinagrette and just enough little cubes of smoked sturgeon, the flavors were balanced, bright, and perfect as a starter.

One small complaint. Memo to all chefs everywhere: do not serve ice-cold poached eggs. Ever. For any reason.

Catherine got the beet salad, which she liked very much. I believe beets are evil, so did not taste any, but the multicolored presentation looked gorgeous on her plate.

My entree, the potato-crusted striped bass with Dungeness crab beurre blanc, was a welcome surprise. Way more crab meat than the menu implied, a sauce that didn’t smother the delicate flavor of the bass, and a better potato crust than I’m at all accustomed to.

Catherine’s duck was also superb, and as a connoiseur of blini, she was happy with the accompaniment.

I don’t mention Andrew’s dishes because he ordered all the same things I did. Heh.

For dessert, A&C split the Vahlrona chocolate souffle, while I went for the house-made s’more. OMG yum! Totally decadent and well balanced, plus a bonus smear of my new best friend–salted caramel. The only false note was the house-made graham cracker, which tasted a little bit stale to me.

The lengthy wine list runs heavily German–the Pub seems to specialize in Rieslings, which didn’t go with my meal. Good by-the-glass section with a mix of Euro and Cali wines, and some genuine bargains are tucked in there.

The service was a bright spot in an already polished and shiny birthday dinner out. The staff were quick without being pushy, listened well, and kept an attentive eye on us without hovering. We didn’t wait too long between the appetizer and the entree–one of my pet peeves. My thanks to the wait staff for their dedication.

Another of my personal peccadillos is portion size, and Village Pub nailed it. The plates looked rich and full, but I found myself able to clean each plate. Because I’m not physically capable of eating half a dozen pounds of food at one dinner, I cleverly deduced that the actual portions were quite reasonable.

Atmosphere and physical details: loud but attractive club-style white tablecloth dining room. Lighting at just the right dimness–romantic but I could still read the menu. Pretty but ill-designed bathrooms. (One of the stall doors opens into the restroom door.) Strange but functional sink basins.