| rev:text
| - Upon receipt of the much-coveted Big Burrito birthday voucher, I had to make the tough decision about which of their restaurants to visit. I was torn between Casbah and Eleven, but upon perusing the menus, reading reviews, and giving the matter much thought, I settled on Casbah. I knew I'd made a good decision when I invited some friends to join me, and they said that, based on their past experience, I'd made an excellent choice!
Our meal started off with a few slices of bread, which came with butter and a Greek yogurt spread. The butter was good, but the yogurt spread was amazing, and both of them dressed up the bread very well. We then ordered an appetizer of the bruschetta, which was not your normal bruschetta, but was delicious. I'm not entirely sure of the ingredients, since what we received doesn't match the menu description posted on the website, but one notable thing about it was that it had some pomegranate seeds that gave it a subtle sweetness and juiciness, complementing the other savory ingredients. For my entree, I ordered the orecchiette, a dish consisting of ear-shaped pasta tossed in a goat cheese and sage cream sauce, with chicken and dried cranberries. Flavorwise, this was one of the most well-balanced dishes I've ever eaten, with the savory ingredients and sweet hints from the cranberries (which were actual cranberries, rather than craisins, as I'd imagined) melding together in perfect culinary harmony. The pasta was also cooked to a perfect al dente firmness, which held up well in the microwave several days later when I ate the leftovers. The cranberry-lime dry soda that I ordered to go with this entree complemented it very nicely, and was a great alternative to wine (while I was tempted, I didn't order any since my dining companions decided not to, due to having driven).
My two dining companions ordered the Scottish salmon and the gnocchi, respectively. Based on the samples that they provided me, Casbah did a great job on these dishes, as well! The salmon had a subtle saltiness that complemented the flavor nicely, without overpowering it. My friend who ordered it had had it before at Casbah, but had since been to Scotland, and he said that it was very similar in quality and taste to the versions of this dish that he'd tried there. The gnocchi was one of the most unique and varied dishes I've encountered, and, based on the two bites that I tried, brought the ingredients together in a medley of flavors and textures. I think my friend who ordered it described it best by saying that every bite was a bit different, but that they were all delicious! Although all of us tried bites of each other's dishes, we each liked our own choice best, so we chose well.
After our entrees, we decided to order dessert. Although I was tempted by the dark chocolate raspberry bread pudding, since many reviewers speak highly of it, I decided to follow my instinct and get the chocolate-hazelnut bomba. I'm so glad that I did, since this dessert was amazing! If you like dark chocolatey, torte-like desserts or Nutella, this dessert is a must-try. Since I mentioned I was at Casbah for a birthday dinner, the dessert was served with "Happy birthday" written on the plate in chocolate icing, which was a nice touch. My dining partners ordered the creme brulee to split between themselves, which came topped with an apple compote. Based on the bite that I tried, it was a good rendition of a brulee, but couldn't match the star power of the chocolate bomba.
We visited at 7:30pm last Sun., at the later end of their serving hours, but service from our waiter, Brian, was very good. We were seated in the tent-like area in the front of the restaurant, which stayed surprisingly warm during most of our visit. At one point before dessert, upon returning from the restroom, I noticed that it'd cooled off, but the manager came out to turn on the heating elements, and it warmed back up in less than 10 min.
In sum, if you're looking for a solid fine dining experience with innovative, delicious food, Casbah is a great choice. The food was impressive in its quality, and the service was what I've come to expect at a higher-end restaurant. I'd particularly recommend getting on the Big Burrito mailing list to receive a $30 birthday voucher and $10 off coupons for the holidays, and taking advantage of one of these occasions to try it. I'm certain that you'll be as pleased with your experience there as me and my dining partners!
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)
![[cxml]](/fct/images/cxml_doc.png)
![[csv]](/fct/images/csv_doc.png)
![[text]](/fct/images/ntriples_doc.png)
![[turtle]](/fct/images/n3turtle_doc.png)
![[ld+json]](/fct/images/jsonld_doc.png)
![[rdf+json]](/fct/images/json_doc.png)
![[rdf+xml]](/fct/images/xml_doc.png)
![[atom+xml]](/fct/images/atom_doc.png)
![[html]](/fct/images/html_doc.png)