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| - L'Albatros has 5-star potential, but fell short on my first impromptu visit (though I plan to return).
The opening courses were very good. My wife had the butternut squash soup, which was excellent though short of transcendent. She also had the mixed greens salad, whose freshness was a pleasant surprise in December. I had the onion soup, which seemed just above-average at first, but developed into excellence as I uncovered more of the submerged flavors, particularly the (braised?) beef buried within. I followed the soup with the "French toast," which was a delightful combination of perfectly pan-toasted bread, wild mushrooms, and a balsamic reduction -- a unique dish that I had never seen before. So far, so good.
The experience lost steam at the main course, at least for me. I ordered the choucroute garni, a combination of sauerkraut, pork chop, sausage, pork belly, and root vegetables. Texturally, all was cooked perfectly. However, the meats were all oversalted -- and I am not shy when it comes to salt. The dish was still edible, but bordered on unpleasant to eat.
My wife had the cassoulet, which had many similarities to my dish, but did not suffer from the abundance of salinity. However, she indicated that she would be unlikely to order it again on future visits.
For dessert, we had the frozen lemon "soufflé" and a French-pressed Kona. The coffee was absolute perfection -- velvety, syrupy, and complex, with a cocoa-powder finish on the tongue. The serving was easily large enough to split between two, with coffee to spare.
The lemon soufflé was good, but not mindblowing. I'll withhold judgment on the overall quality of the pastry chef until I sample more desserts.
The atmosphere and decor were excellent -- probably merits a bit of dressing up, though they didn't ostracize me for jeans and sneakers (it was an unplanned post-museum visit). The pricing seemed appropriate for the food and experience. The team-based service approach was very attentive without being overbearing. As a side note, it appeared that some sort of physical-fitness test must have been required to be a waiter.
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