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| - My brother and I ended up on Baldwin after not being able to decide on a place for dinner. We stopped to check out the menu at Valens and ended up deciding to try it (he'd eaten there once before and said it was good).
We came in just before 7 on a Saturday and the restaurant was empty. Like other reviewers noted, it was rather empty for the entire time we were there. One other table came in about 10 minutes after we arrived and another came in just as we were having dessert.
We both ended up going for the Prix-Fixe menu. I had the California Salad to start, which was a rather nice beginning to my meal. A little bit too much of the fairly sweet pomegranate dressing on a pretty plain salad but it was good just the same.
I ended up having the rack of lamb as my main, which was excellent! The lamb was cooked very well, nice crispy and flavorful outside. A very cute little tower of mashed potatoes, plenty of super yum gravy and a nice mix of vegetables on the side. The main was one of those meals that makes you stop in the middle of eating and go "wow". I was really impressed with my meal. I was afraid I wouldn't be hungry enough for dessert but the portion was just right. My brother had the paella and I got the chance to try some and it was fantastic as well. Great flavor, some good heat to it as well and a really fresh taste. He noted that he'd had paella at a place in the city that was known for the paella and his meal at Valens was way better.
For dessert I ended up going with creme brulee and it was pretty good. Not the best I've ever had but I liked how it was served, in a fairly wide bowl, giving a good ratio of sugar to creme. My main issue with it was that it wasn't a consistent temperature throughout. Part of it was rather warm and then it got cold again towards the middle. Odd...
We got very good service, the one server that was working had a good balance, not too intrusive but she didn't disappear for long periods of time either. I had a cocktail and my brother had two glasses of wine and our bill came to around $75 total. Not bad for a nice meal out with drinks.
I'd definitely come back here, especially for a date (as Vivek suggests) or with people who may have varying tastes as the menu seems to have quite a bit on it. I did like how nice and quiet it was and how there was no sense of being rushed AT ALL. The excellent service and the lamb pushed this review to a four for me.
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