C is for Caviar and Bananas
- Megan Victoria and Shelby Marie
- Oct 23, 2017
- 3 min read
RATINGS
Atmosphere: 5/5
Food: 3.75/5
Parking: 2/5 (there is a garage next door that is stupid expensive. Nine whole dollars. But we did learn a few days later that you can validate the first hour)
THINGS TO KNOW
Reservations: No
Must Try: Frosé, Roasted Squash, Togarashi Spiced House Fries
Meh: Salmon Tartar, Mango Marinated Flat Iron Steak
Sips
Frosé: 7 Eleven Slurpee meets classy rosé. A must try for any 90's nostalgia loving kid. #pinkiesup
Savory
Roasted Squash: tart apple puree, candied pecans, bourbon barrelled maple, micro sorrel. It was really good. Nice sweetness from roasting of the squash and candied pecans. Crunch of pecans added nice textural diversity in contrast to the squishiness of the cooked squash. Overall great dish, perfect flavors for autumn. Would definitely order again.
Togarashi Spiced House Fries: chipotle-citrus aioli. The aioli was definitely the star of the show. The fries were a little too spicy for Shelby, but she somehow powered through to eat a bunch, and is still paying for it in the gym. Aioli helped mitigate the spiciness of the fries. When we come back, we'll definitely be ordering these fries.
Salmon Tartar: cucumber, capers, salmon roe, house made potato chips. Meh times a billion. Smelled really fishy, which is never a good sign. Were expecting the salmon to look clear and orange like in our Alaskan rolls, but this was cloudy. The only clouds we want to see are to provide shade on a hot summer day (Shelby's pale skin needs protection). Only redeeming quality of this dish were the chips. If you're craving some raw fish, just go get sushi... somewhere else. #ellipsis
Mango Marinated Flat Iron Steak: asian glazed rice tots, cilantro and watermelon radish salad. The first bites were ok, until the warmed over meat taste became overpowering. Warning! Nerd alert coming.
Warmed over meat flavor = unpleasant flavor usually occurring in reheated meat that is caused by the oxidation of the meat's unsaturated fatty acids which results in various off-flavor substances, e.g. metallic, cardboard, damp dog hair (Thanks Shelby's text book) #foodscience
...and we're back. Spice and other flavor was tasty, just got bullied by the unpleasant meat flavor. The rice tots were a fun idea, just pair with something else. #insertnapoleandynamitejoke
Broccoli Rabe Flatbread: roasted garlic, ricotta, parmesean, arugala, giving thanks farm fried egg (insert Shelby eye roll). This was solidly good. The bread itself was still crisp, a huge plus as many flatbreads get soggy from the added toppings. The pretentious egg is a must -- bites with egg tasted a lot better.
Buffalo Fried Cauliflower: cauliflower, scallions, blue cheese aioli. Megan said this was spicy. So that means it was super spicy. Shelby's lips are still burning. Had good buffalo flavor. Main off putting feature of this dish was that it was served cold. Very unexpected. Not sure if it was intentional. The biggest ding you can get from Megan is to make something cold that she doesn't expect to be cold. No day-old cold pizza for her. Freak. #foodtemperaturepolice Usually expect this type of dish to be fried, especially in the heart of the south, but glad this was only lightly fried. So take note people: you can make a buffalo dish without frying with an inch thick batter. #sohot #hotdamn
Sweet
The sweets are all beautifully arranged in cases. They looked magical. Basically calling your name #comelittlechildren
But don't be pulled in by the Sanderson Sisters. The desserts were just eh. With these desserts beauty was only skin deep.
Caramel Twist: it was good, just very rich. Very caramelly.
Peanut butter mini bar: great peanut butter flavor, but not nearly as sweet as I wanted it to be. This also is coming from the kid that put loads of sugar on her rice krispie's cereal.
Butterscotch blondie: had great butterscotch flavor, but dry. Megan was dreaming of it having the same moistness of Shelby's gooey butter cake. (duh, as if anything can compare to that)
In Conclusion
This place is cute. If you're having a girls night it's a great place to hang out and sip frosé. Just don't expect the food to knock your socks off like Sam Hunt. This place also is a market and has other food options including sandwiches and salads. Great lunch spot if you are in the Vandy area. Will definitely be coming back!
References
Brown, Amy. Understanding Food Principles & Preparation. 4th ed., Wadsworth, 2011.
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