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| - First of all, since one of my given names is Frederic, it's now official: Fred's Here! Alas, they have not changed the name after my visit but they deserve 5 stars nevertheless. Why? Because if you treat your customers that well and give them so much choice during a festival like Summerlicious, where your price point is ridiculously lower than normal, then what can it be on a regular night? Do they massage you as well?
I had been to The Red Tomato a few times before and enjoyed it immensely. That is why I decided to give the upper room a try.
The Summerlicious menu had great options at lunch ($20). My friend had the cucumber, tomato and feta salad, a nice and refreshing twist on the classic Greek horiatiki, followed by steak frites and the shortcake as dessert. The steak frites was actually quite good. Beef is one of Fred's forte as he is a master of the grill. Steak came medium rare as requested, and the frites were crisp and satisfying. Shortcake was quite good too.
For myself I ordered the original quinoa and asparagus salad, which also had tomato. It was refreshing, well-seasoned and a tad lemony. Now my main was the pork belly, clams and chorizo platter. It reminded me of the Portuguese dish carne alentajana, because of the combination of pork and clams. However, this was pork belly, similar a bit in texture and taste to Chinese BBQ Pork. The clams were tasty, but the inclusion of chorizo and Israeli couscous made me fall in love with this dish.Truly spectacular! My dessert was a chocolate cheesecake which was quite good. I am not sure though if the desserts are made in house but they are good. The only alcohol had was a Vesper Martini ($10) and i really enjoyed this mix of vodka, gin, lillet and bitters. I felt like James Bond sipping this drink. Warning: a few of these may leave you shaken and stirred...
Our server was Jackie, not only competent, efficient and knowledgeable but also witty and charming.
Overall, Fred's not here is a great restaurant. And just like James Bond, Fred will be back!
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