stick a forked tongue in me

I’m totally stuffed. Co-workers took advantage of Restaurant Week and we went to lunch at Butterfield 9. It was an amazing meal, though I noted that I wouldn’t really bring a date there. The decor was nice, but overall the restaurant with with lighter and neutral tones that made it feel very cold and sterile.

I had Butternut Squash Soup with maple cured bacon, black peppercorns and young celery that was much sweeter than I expected, others around the table were very surprised at the flavor as well. I normally don’t care (to the level of ‘ew!’) for squash and avoid the dishes at all costs, but I had a spoonful of Jenifer’s butternut squash soup some time ago when eating out and have been a willing convert. But still I think there was a touch too much maple sweetness and not enough savory flavor in the soup, I barely detected the peppercorns or celery, though celery is very often a stealth ingredient that mostly adds water.

My second course was Braised Boneless Beef Short Ribs with soft truffle cheese grits, mustard greens and crispy portabella – this was amazing. The portion was actually larger than I was expecting, though if you’re used to ordering short ribs, it’s definitely not large. The beef was extremely tender and delicious, no knife really needed. I’ve had and made things with truffles and truffle oil in them before and they taste nothing like when I’ve just eaten a truffle, so I never really expect to taste it anymore, but the grits were good. I’m not a fan of mustard greens, way too bitter for my tastes and these were no exception. I wondered if the beef would be sweeter to complement the greens, but it was cooked in a well seasoned sauce, not too salty or overpowering. 4 out of 7 of us ordered this and were very pleased with it.

I had Crème Brulée for dessert and well I’ve never been steered wrong with it and this time was no exception to the rule. *mmmmm*

Turns out Butterfield 9 has a fixed price lunch for $25, but all the offerings aren’t the same, but still it’s a place I’d “treat” myself to for lunch with friends, but not a dinner place, I don’t think it would have the same feeling. Still, it was fun today, the web team rarely goes out to lunch together and while the conversations were still a little superficial, I feel like we still get to know each other better when we’re outside the office.

And stupid me forgot to bring in my camera for pics of the dishes. D’oh! On the bright side, my new phone has shipped.