I really like Dogwood. Their food when they get it right is great! When they don't it's a total bummer. Such a roller coaster of emotions from appetizer to dessert! I was taking a friend here to try it out because I thought it'd be a nice casual southern food experience. It's not really very casual but it is tasty. Dress a little more nicely than usual.
The atmosphere here creates a lot of hustle and bustle resulting in a very lively dining experience. Our waitress is a very nice lady though quite pushy with the drink orders. I didn't want a drink that night however. It's a nice menu you just point at stuff on the ipad they give you, no paper!
We started out with the sauteed octopus with chorizo and this dish knocked it out of the park! The spice from the chorizo combined with tender octopus and some braised greens really make for a great flavor combination in one bite. I almost wanted to order another one and make it my entree.
My duck was disappointingly deficient compared to the great appetizer. I appreciate a medium rare duck a lot but this thing could have quacked it was so raw. As it was pretty dark I didn't notice until I took a bite and took 5 minutes to chew a piece. I do not think it rested an appropriate amount of time either as there was a lot of blood running around this plate. After I noted this to our waitress she apologized and got it sent back for another round. It was a lot more edible after this however I don't think it was as good as it could have been if it had been done right the first time. What a shame.
Thanks for a decent (though expensive) night Dogwood! I look forward to seeing if my next trip will be an improvement.