Great places are worth revisiting and re-reviewing, and West Coast Tavern made my list this week as a definite return! With new chef Abe Botello creating a new menu full of enticing options I enlisted the help of fellow reviewer Anna to check it out!
We started off by drinking on a school night, since WCT has exquisite cocktails, and both of us love bourbon. A bourbon tasting was on the menu, so it was a no-brainer to select the assortment offered that night, Red Stag Spiced Cinnamon, Jim Beam (black) Double Age, and Red Stag Honey Tea.
The Cinnamon was my personal favorite, with lots of sweet and spicy flavor; it reminded me a lot of the fireball candies that I enjoyed as a child. Chased with soda water, it was very tasty. The Jim Beam black was very strong! It had quite a burn, and wasn't my personal taste, but was enjoyed very much with a ginger beer chaser by Anna. The Honey Tea was sweet as well, and a bit more mild than the sweet cinnamon. It was perfect with the ginger beer chaser.
The other drink that we enjoyed was the blackberry-infused mint julip, which was fantastic as well. Very sweet and refreshing, and very girly for a bourbon cocktail.
After a lot of consideration of the menu, and a recommendation from our server, Sophie, we chose the marrow as an appetizer. I've never had marrow before, but I've been curious to try it for years. Check out the beautiful presentation! The marrow was served in bone, with garlic toasts, fleur de sol, apple-rhubarb chutney, and greens. The marrow was amazing spread over the garlic toast, sprinkled with parsley and the salt. The chutney, while good, was a little much with all of the rich flavor of the marrow. Would definitely get this again. 
For our meals, we chose the Duroc pork chop, served on a bed of mashed potatoes, with greens and a brandied cherry sauce. I had pork chops so much in my youth that I avoided them as an adult. However, pork chops are making a huge comeback! This chop was thick, juicy, and perfect with a simple salt and pepper to season it. The cherry sauce was a wonderful compliment to the tender pork. The mashed potatoes were divine. 
The other part of our meal was a special seafood bisque, similar to a cioppino, with a tomato-based broth and loads of scallops, mussels, clams, shrimp, and fish. The broth was very, very thick, and was delicious when eaten with the garlic baguette. The soup had a wonderful flavor, and I think that served over pasta, this would have been stupendous! Check out all of that delicious seafood!
For dessert, we chose to split the dulce de leche panna cotta. I love panna cotta, as I love pretty much all custard desserts. Served with a homemade whipped cream, walnut cookie crumble, and mint leaves, this dessert was the perfect end. It wasn't too sweet or too rich, and after such a filling meal, was the perfect ending.
Definitely check out the new menu at West Coast Tavern!
No comments:
Post a Comment