nsxtasy wrote:Today I bought a couple of kouign amanns, including the one pictured below, at Cellar Door Provisions.

This post on the kouign amann thread reminded me to commend CDP for their chocolate walnut scone I had earlier this week, as well as their scones in general. I frequent the place for pastries to go with my coffee, and their scones are consistently phenomenal, especially considering that isn't a pastry that typically evokes superlative praise. Much moister than all other options (Alchemy Coffee in Wilmette is the only other place in the same league for scones). As was the case with almost all CDP pastries, the restrained sweetness makes the dish.

Don't think twice about stopping for pastries when in the area from 8-11am!

First visit to CDP last nice and I loved it. The menu was very vegetable focused, which was awesome. Went with a buddy and didn’t ask for any changes with the menu, but the server said if you request a vegan or vegetarian meal when you make reservations, they will try to accommodate, so will have to go back with my wife.

Nice feeling space. The older I get, I love being able to get a great, fine dining meal in a more casual environment. And gotta love BYO!

Really enjoyed the entire meal.

Snacks - pepita dip, zhoug, brined beets and carrots, briny butter, cabbage slaw
The sourdough was phenomenal. Wow, was that great bread…

Beets - yogurt, fennel, jalapeno
I have never met a beet I didn’t love, but will say without the yogurt, the beets would have been too smokey for me. But with the yogurt and seeds, very nice.

Rutabaga - garlic, citrus, fiddlehead ferns
Very nice course, good combinations. Great to see fiddleheads on the menu.

Gnocchi - beech mushrooms, pork broth
I really liked the texture of the gnoochi. Subtle, but satisfying dish.

Supplement: Seared Trout
We split this course, my least favorite dish, but my friend loved it.

Cultured Ice Cream - fig leaf caramel, rhubarb, meringue
Wow, what a delicious desert, loved that it was not overly sweet.

While they have nice looking stems, they are on the small size, so glad that I brought my Riedel Pinot O’s for the 2004 Giovanni Corino Barolo, which was a bit too modern for me.

Can’t wait to return.