Quince
Since its opening, Quince has received rave reviews. I would read about in food and travel magazines. I would hear tales of elegant and delicious cuisine from friends and other patrons. So, with each visit to
I left my home at 7:00am for a packed morning flight. When I arrived at the airport, I discovered that my upgrade did not come through and I would be sitting in the back of the plane, with multiple children surrounding me. Air traffic control delayed us two hours on the tarmac. They decided to play children's cartoons in lieu of an actual movie, and I had never been more grateful for my MP3 player! After landing, I waited another hour for my luggage and hopped in a cab to the hotel.
Having eaten only a bag of potato chips all day, the last thing I wanted to do was wait until 9:30pm (12:30am on my body) for a dinner reservation. I was tired, cranky, and hungry. However, I was determined to eat at Quince!
My cousin met me at the hotel around 6:30pm. We chatted for a while and then went for a drive down by the ocean. To our relief, the restaurant called to say they could take us a half an hour earlier and off we went.
Immediately, we understood why we had a hard time getting a reservation. As we walked in, we were swept into an elegant —- yet small – dining room that felt more like an 19th century salon or sitting room than a trendy San Francisco restaurant. Our highly attentive server came over to us immediately to discuss the menu.
"Have you dined with us before," she asked.
"I have been trying to get here for more than a year now," I answered hopefully.
"I can see why it is difficult to get a reservation, this place is small," Michele exclaimed.
Lynne, our server explained, "There is a chef named Joel Roubechon, and his philosophy is that in order to provide the highest quality food and service, a restaurant should have no more than 45 seats – we have 43. We are happy you have decided to join us."
We began with a lovely glass of Sorelle Bronca Prosecco —- featuring a crisp flavor and the tiniest of bubbles —- as we pondered the menu. There were so many wonderful choices! We had a difficult time deciding as we wanted to try one of everything.
We began each with the local halibut tartare, which they served on a bed of avocado puree along with cucumber, sea beans, and sliced radishes. I tried to convince Michele to order the chilled black prince & black prim tomato soup with tomato sorbet, but she really wanted the tartare.
Lynne brought us an order of the tomato soup to share along with our tartare and we were so glad that she did. The soup burst with freshness and prominent flavor that only heirloom tomatoes can deliver.
"It's like tasting the garden," Michele stated after the first spoonful.
We ordered our first ½ bottle of wine, a 2005 Chateau de Puligny-Montrachet. The complementary flavor combinations of the white burgundy, the tomato soup and the halibut played symphonically on our palettes and our tongues danced with delight.
For our pasta, we pondered pontifically. I could not decide between the Valentino Felicetti Selezione Penne di Faro, tripe, hot pepper and parmigano reggiano; the Tagliatelli with summer truffle & chicken liver sauce; or the Tagilolini with veal and morel ragu.
Michele contemplated between the Pappardelle with pork sausage & cavelo near or the Gnocchi with Dungeness Crab perfumed with Lemon Verbena. Ultimately, I ordered the Tagilolini with veal and morel ragu and Michelle ordered the Gnocchi with Dungeness crab.
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Dear reader, these two dishes could not be different. The Gnocchi were light. Their texture provided a perfect complement to the strands of Dungeness crab that fell apart in our mouths and the hint of lemon verbena gave this dish just the right amount of acidity. For contrast, the robust and earthiness of veal and morel Tagilolini grounded us with deeply developed flavors.
The crab paired well with the Puligny-Montrachet but the veal begged for a red wine, so I switched to our next ½ bottle, 2004 Domaine de la Vougeraie Gevrey-Chambertin. Upon impact, this wine confronted my nose with strong notes of leather and tobacco and yet it glided smoothly on my palette. I decided to let it breathe some and watch it open up.
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For our main courses, Michele ordered the Sea Scallops, but, alas, they were gone (the danger of a late reservation), so she decided upon the Chicken Ballotine with Bloomingdale spinach and butter bolette mushrooms. I could not pass up the Sonoma Liberty duck breast & Leg served in a mulberry-telicherry pepper sauce with Thumbelina carrots and turnips.
The tender strips of duck breast melted away while the thin crisp duck leg crumbled. The mulberry-telicherry sauce provided perfect sweetness and the carrots and turnips were devine.
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At this point in the evening, Michele and I were full. I drank substantially more than she did so, I found myself quite sauced as well. However, I still had a hint of white and a ½ a glass of red burgundy left to finish and this restaurant offered a cheese cart.
So, Michele and I indulged in decadently delicious French and Italian cheese… Tomme de Levexou: a mild, chalky sheep's milk cheese from the Pyrenees; Brillat-Savarin, a rich buttery cow's milk cheese from
To finish our meal, we each had a most-welcome, refreshing, single scoop of watermelon sorbet.
When I arrived back in my hotel room, I passed out.
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