Dining Month 2015: Verdegris
Starting the month off right! Day 1, I went out with Eric and Heather and Heather's delightful grandmother Elaine to Verdegris, in N.E. Portland.
There being 4 of us, we managed all but one of the entrees, all of the appetizers, and doubled up on one dessert. Here's what we had:
Roasted red & golden beet salad with house ricotta, hazelnut streusel and arugula (vegetarian): I am on a total beet kick recently, and this was quite good. Not stunningly so, but it's beets with some cheese, so hard to go wrong.
Grilled baby octopus salad with Spanish chorizo, white beans, parsley and orange (gluten free): Octopus was super tender, and the char on it added a lot. I found the white bean under it to be a bit fishy for my taste, but everyone else quite liked it.
Pork rillettes with grilled house-made brioche, brandied apple compote and mustard: Mmm, mustard. Mmm, pork rillettes. Good enough I only got a few bites, despite the fact I ordered it.
Living butter lettuce salad with croutons, radishes, pine nuts and blue cheese dressing (vegetarian): A good salad. H thought this was the best dish as far as a whet-your-appetite appetizer went, but while it was an all around good salad, this placed third for me by being just a salad. We had candied walnuts instead of pine nuts.
Entrees:
Pasta du jour (vegetarian): This was not actually a pasta dish for us, but was instead eggplant cannolini-esque wrap with other veggies and goat cheese, and was delicious. My favorite entree (impressive, as I'm still a little iffy on eggplant).
Idaho trout: en Papillote smoked trout, Cippolini onions, red potatoes and citrus butter (gluten free): Not my favorite - tasted rather fishy, and the potatoes couldn't compare to the duck-fat potatoes I got with the steak. I only had a bite of this one.
Braised meatballs with creamy semolina, collard greens, roasted red peppers, sauce debris: I'm not normally a big meatball person, but these were delicious. The creamy semolina under them was also great - everything you love about mashed potatoes, but creamier. Definitely get this one.
Seared 6oz Cascade Terres Major steak with duck fat potatoes, roasted garlic and Béarnaise sauce (gluten free): I always feel a little weird not getting something strange and exciting, but this was pretty darn great. Beautiful medium rare (the only way to eat steak), and the duck fat potatoes were nice and duckfatty.
Dessert:
Chocolate pot de crème with sugar cookies (vegetarian): So rich! So chocolatey! About twice the size it needed to be, but that is not a complaint - I had to get help to finish it, and despite the fact we had two of these at the table, there was no complaints from people helping.
Pineapple tarte tatin with buttermilk ice cream (vegetarian): I'm not a big pineapple person, but this had all the good aspects of cooking pineapple without it getting bitter or weird.
Citrus Creme Brulee: I adore creme brulee, but I'm not always a fan of flavored creme brulees. This was a good one - the citrus really helped lighten a very rich dish, and the balance between silky custard and the bruleed sugar was spot on. Also a large serving, but Elaine all but fought us off with her dessert fork and ate it herself.
Other:
We got an amuse bouche before the meal - a tiny little twice-baked potato, about the size of a quarter, with goat cheese and bacon. Very good, and I always feel like those are a fun little surprise treat.
Wine list is pretty long, but mostly for fairly expensive bottles, with only a few glass options (10-15 range). There is a full bar - no cocktail list, but they can make pretty much whatever.
Verdict: Not only recommended for Dining Month, but one to put on the list for regular rotation for a nice dinner.
There being 4 of us, we managed all but one of the entrees, all of the appetizers, and doubled up on one dessert. Here's what we had:
Roasted red & golden beet salad with house ricotta, hazelnut streusel and arugula (vegetarian): I am on a total beet kick recently, and this was quite good. Not stunningly so, but it's beets with some cheese, so hard to go wrong.
Grilled baby octopus salad with Spanish chorizo, white beans, parsley and orange (gluten free): Octopus was super tender, and the char on it added a lot. I found the white bean under it to be a bit fishy for my taste, but everyone else quite liked it.
Pork rillettes with grilled house-made brioche, brandied apple compote and mustard: Mmm, mustard. Mmm, pork rillettes. Good enough I only got a few bites, despite the fact I ordered it.
Living butter lettuce salad with croutons, radishes, pine nuts and blue cheese dressing (vegetarian): A good salad. H thought this was the best dish as far as a whet-your-appetite appetizer went, but while it was an all around good salad, this placed third for me by being just a salad. We had candied walnuts instead of pine nuts.
Entrees:
Pasta du jour (vegetarian): This was not actually a pasta dish for us, but was instead eggplant cannolini-esque wrap with other veggies and goat cheese, and was delicious. My favorite entree (impressive, as I'm still a little iffy on eggplant).
Idaho trout: en Papillote smoked trout, Cippolini onions, red potatoes and citrus butter (gluten free): Not my favorite - tasted rather fishy, and the potatoes couldn't compare to the duck-fat potatoes I got with the steak. I only had a bite of this one.
Braised meatballs with creamy semolina, collard greens, roasted red peppers, sauce debris: I'm not normally a big meatball person, but these were delicious. The creamy semolina under them was also great - everything you love about mashed potatoes, but creamier. Definitely get this one.
Seared 6oz Cascade Terres Major steak with duck fat potatoes, roasted garlic and Béarnaise sauce (gluten free): I always feel a little weird not getting something strange and exciting, but this was pretty darn great. Beautiful medium rare (the only way to eat steak), and the duck fat potatoes were nice and duckfatty.
Dessert:
Chocolate pot de crème with sugar cookies (vegetarian): So rich! So chocolatey! About twice the size it needed to be, but that is not a complaint - I had to get help to finish it, and despite the fact we had two of these at the table, there was no complaints from people helping.
Pineapple tarte tatin with buttermilk ice cream (vegetarian): I'm not a big pineapple person, but this had all the good aspects of cooking pineapple without it getting bitter or weird.
Citrus Creme Brulee: I adore creme brulee, but I'm not always a fan of flavored creme brulees. This was a good one - the citrus really helped lighten a very rich dish, and the balance between silky custard and the bruleed sugar was spot on. Also a large serving, but Elaine all but fought us off with her dessert fork and ate it herself.
Other:
We got an amuse bouche before the meal - a tiny little twice-baked potato, about the size of a quarter, with goat cheese and bacon. Very good, and I always feel like those are a fun little surprise treat.
Wine list is pretty long, but mostly for fairly expensive bottles, with only a few glass options (10-15 range). There is a full bar - no cocktail list, but they can make pretty much whatever.
Verdict: Not only recommended for Dining Month, but one to put on the list for regular rotation for a nice dinner.