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| - I moved to Madison from the Napa Valley where restaurants from the country's best chefs abound and my expectations for eating out are high. I had A Pig In a Fur Coat recommended to me by several work associates and I had high hopes for this restaurant. I am happy to say that I loved every aspect of this restaurant and cannot wait to go back and take all of our visiting friends here.
When we first got there we had a very short wait for a party of three though I was a little uneasy about the seating of us in the middle of a large table that had a party of 4 and 3 on each end. There had been no indication that you had to share a table with other parties, though the seats were spread out enough that we didn't feel cramped or that we were imposing upon other peoples conversations and vice versa.
We started with a few glasses of wine, the cheese and charcuterie platter and the dates. The platter was very well constructed with two types of cheeses, three cured meats, liver pate, a fig butter and some crustini. My only critique would be that I think that cheese and charcuterie plates should be constructed for the party they are serving. If three people are sharing it, then put out portions of food divisible by that number. No one wants to have to split portions, just don't make us do it!
The dates were phenomenal, perfectly balanced in sweetness, acid, and spice. Again though, we were served five for a party of 3. It would make the experience that much more amazing if you could see that special attention was given to who was being served.
We also ordered the duck fat fries which were tasty but nothing special. I guess I've had duck fat fries enough places to not feel blown away by them, but there was certainly nothing wrong with them and they are a nice, hearty appetizer.
Our next dish was the duck egg and ricotta ravioli in a brown butter sauce with ramps and bacon. This dish was heavenly. I adore brown butter in nearly everything and if you put an egg on something, I will probably inhale. The pasta could have been a little more noteworthy, but I was very happy with savoring each and every bite.
We finished with the Italian Sfingi which are essentially fried doughnut balls covered in chocolate sauce. This specified on the menu that there were 5 in an order so we specifically asked for them to include an even 6 which they were happy to oblige. They were delicate, sweet, and utterly divine. The perfect ending to a great dinner.
Can't wait to come back and try more of the menu!
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