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| - Dined at Spoon for my 30th birthday. What a great experience!! These folks aren't kidding about the bread basket, it's delightful. My mother had eaten at Chef Brian's other restaurants in San Francisco and San Diego, and we were pleased to see that he was just named Pittsburgh's top chef of 2012. Sadly, he wasn't there, as we wanted to meet him, but we did get to talk with his assistant, Chef Dave, for a while. What a great guy!
I should also note that our server, I think his name was Ralph, was wonderful. Honestly, this is the best service I have had in a long long time. Completely attentive and very helpful.
Two appetizers... The Gorgonzola Souffle was truly wonderful. Rich, but light. The Turf on Surf (that we "made fly" with the addition of seared foie gras) was awesome; the braised short rib was so tender and juicy, and the lobster cake with lobster hollandaise was unreal.
Entrees... Duck two ways had two duck breasts served over perfectly braised carrots and also a crispy duck salad. Both were top notch. The Lamb plate had braised lamb over a mushroom bread pudding (great textural contrast) and I believe the other side of the plate had roasted lamb. I didn't try my husbands scallops, nor would he have let me if I wanted to.
Desserts... We ordered three (gulp), and Chef Dave sent us a fourth. That was awesome! All in all, we got everything except for the cheese plate. The Spoon Bar has rightfully earned its place among the top 100 desserts in America. The Almond Cake with Gelee and Macerated Fruit was so fresh and delicious. The "strawberry" dessert was a high-level take on a Pittsburgh party staple, the Jell-O Preztel Salad. This is the first time I've ever felt fancy eating those favors together. It was fabulous! Also, Chef Dave sent us a banana chocolate custard tart, which was, of course, lovely.
Spoon was fabulous, we are already looking forward to trying out their new Cranberry location.
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