Restaurant Week at City Hall
Jury Duty called for me on Monday and I'll be honest with you- my first thought was- Yippee!!!! Work has been brutal lately and Restaurant Week is just beginning. Maybe I would get a nice break and be able to enjoy a fabulous lunch?? I was on pins and needles in the court house. I made a 12:15 reservation for City Hall Restaurant but the sheet said lunch was from 1:00- 2:00. That was not enough time for a three course meal and out of my reservation time. But still...I got out early one time, maybe again?
At exactly 12:00 the women gets on the mic and says "If I call your name you may leave early and return at 2:00". As she read off the names I was literally on the edge of my seat. So much so that when my name was read I almost took a dive onto the floor! I quickly regrouped myself and ran out. Two full hours and perfect timing! I felt like I had won the World Series- free at last! I walked over to City Hall Restaurant and made it right at 12:15 on the dot.
I got a seat at a wonderful table right by the window and set to checking out the RW menu. Everything looked fantastic and when I finally placed my order I was only conflicted about choosing the Watermelon Tomato salad over the Summer Carrot Ginger Soup. Imagine my surprise when the first course brought out was the soup!
"A gift from the Kitchen" I was told. How lovely! The cold soup was nice and earthy. Definitely a wonderful start to the meal but I have to say the actual appetizer I ordered blew it out of the water.
My first thought when looking at this dish was wow- that's a lot of shrimp! Billed as a Marinated Heirloom Tomato and Watermelon Salad I was expecting one or two little shrimp mixed in. There must have been 4 or 5 huge shrimp in there! But the real goods was below all those shrimp.
Heirloom Tomatoes! What's better than fresh, sweet Heirloom Tomatoes. This was a shining example of summer. Just a little olive oil, fresh basil for spice, some juicy watermelon slices and fire grilled shrimp. This dish was so good I pretty much demolished the entire plate. Thank goodness this is always on the regular menu- it's a must have in my book and filling enough for a meal if you eat on the smaller side.
When my entree arrived I thought to myself once again- wow this is a huge dish for restaurant week! This was one of the biggest pieces of Short Rib I've ever had and the slab of Brisket on the bottom was no joke.
The meat was so moist my fork easily slid through the each tender piece. The corn salad gave it a nice rustic flavor and it really felt like an upscale picnic dish (in a very very good way). The tastes of summer were all over this place!
I was so full I almost turned away my dessert but the Peanut Butter Ice Cream was calling. Luckily I had room to fit in this scoop of homemade nutty goodness. I fit in some of the Bread Pudding as well but it was all about the ice cream for me. The texture of the Bread Pudding was a tad to dense and while the raspberry sauce was nice it made me feel like I was eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich instead of dessert.
The meal ended and I was ready to explode before they brought me the check and a plate of macaron cookies. I can never say no to a macaron and these were delicious. I had a brief thought of smushing my cookies over the peanut butter ice cream and making my own sandwich...Good lord I can be gluttonous sometimes.
Overall City Hall Restaurant was a wonderful surprise. I loved the atmosphere, the abundance and quality of the food and the service was exceptional. My waiter was so friendly, my water was always filled and the chef even stopped by during dessert to see how my meal had been going. It was truly the best jury duty experience ever! When I got back to the Court House I served on one case quickly and was done. How about that! I was honestly a little sad. I had such a nice day I could have gone for one more jury duty day:) Oh well- it was lovely and what a great way to kick of restaurant week!
City Hall Restaurant
At exactly 12:00 the women gets on the mic and says "If I call your name you may leave early and return at 2:00". As she read off the names I was literally on the edge of my seat. So much so that when my name was read I almost took a dive onto the floor! I quickly regrouped myself and ran out. Two full hours and perfect timing! I felt like I had won the World Series- free at last! I walked over to City Hall Restaurant and made it right at 12:15 on the dot.
I got a seat at a wonderful table right by the window and set to checking out the RW menu. Everything looked fantastic and when I finally placed my order I was only conflicted about choosing the Watermelon Tomato salad over the Summer Carrot Ginger Soup. Imagine my surprise when the first course brought out was the soup!
"A gift from the Kitchen" I was told. How lovely! The cold soup was nice and earthy. Definitely a wonderful start to the meal but I have to say the actual appetizer I ordered blew it out of the water.
My first thought when looking at this dish was wow- that's a lot of shrimp! Billed as a Marinated Heirloom Tomato and Watermelon Salad I was expecting one or two little shrimp mixed in. There must have been 4 or 5 huge shrimp in there! But the real goods was below all those shrimp.
Heirloom Tomatoes! What's better than fresh, sweet Heirloom Tomatoes. This was a shining example of summer. Just a little olive oil, fresh basil for spice, some juicy watermelon slices and fire grilled shrimp. This dish was so good I pretty much demolished the entire plate. Thank goodness this is always on the regular menu- it's a must have in my book and filling enough for a meal if you eat on the smaller side.
When my entree arrived I thought to myself once again- wow this is a huge dish for restaurant week! This was one of the biggest pieces of Short Rib I've ever had and the slab of Brisket on the bottom was no joke.
The meat was so moist my fork easily slid through the each tender piece. The corn salad gave it a nice rustic flavor and it really felt like an upscale picnic dish (in a very very good way). The tastes of summer were all over this place!
I was so full I almost turned away my dessert but the Peanut Butter Ice Cream was calling. Luckily I had room to fit in this scoop of homemade nutty goodness. I fit in some of the Bread Pudding as well but it was all about the ice cream for me. The texture of the Bread Pudding was a tad to dense and while the raspberry sauce was nice it made me feel like I was eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich instead of dessert.
The meal ended and I was ready to explode before they brought me the check and a plate of macaron cookies. I can never say no to a macaron and these were delicious. I had a brief thought of smushing my cookies over the peanut butter ice cream and making my own sandwich...Good lord I can be gluttonous sometimes.
Overall City Hall Restaurant was a wonderful surprise. I loved the atmosphere, the abundance and quality of the food and the service was exceptional. My waiter was so friendly, my water was always filled and the chef even stopped by during dessert to see how my meal had been going. It was truly the best jury duty experience ever! When I got back to the Court House I served on one case quickly and was done. How about that! I was honestly a little sad. I had such a nice day I could have gone for one more jury duty day:) Oh well- it was lovely and what a great way to kick of restaurant week!
City Hall Restaurant
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