Dinner at Café Lurcat last night was awesome.

The place looks like a castle, with hidden, maze-like passages everywhere and exposed brick and low lighting. When I arrived, I got flustered because I wanted to look around instead of listen to what the wait staff was telling me. I was a little ahead of my dinner companions, but I opted to sit at our table instead of at the bar. (In retrospect, it would have been very vintage Hollywood to be found drinking a martini at that bar. I’ll save this scenario for my next Lurcat experience.)

I was offered three kinds of water: still, sparkling, and tap. I don’t know why I chose tap water when I really wanted still water, but as I said: flustered. I was too busy absorbing the ambiance to think clearly. Unfortunately, this meant that I chose tap water for the rest of the table, as well. For this, I felt guilty. I think Lurcat could take a tip from the Red Stag Supper Club; offer a simple coaster with one side indicating a preference of still water and the other side indicating a preference of sparkling water.

Once I gained my composure, I began to peruse the menus for the evening. I ordered a Lavender Martini (Stoli Vodka, Lavender, Raspberry Purée, and Prosecco) though I also wanted to try the Lurcat Royal (Grey Goose vodka, passion fruit juice, Campari, fresh orange juice, and lemonade). A basket of warm bread arrived just before my dinner companions, which helped soothe my appetite while we all discussed what to order for the evening.

For $30, you get three courses: a starter, an entrée, and a dessert. I ordered the following:

1. Apple salad with Manchego cheese and fresh chives
2. Barramundi with tahini, lemon, and parsley (with a small side of couscous and cherry tomatoes)
3. Triple Chocolate Cream Cake (served with raspberries)

I have never eaten Barramundi (it’s a fish), so I had to try it. It was simple, but quite tasty. I didn’t expect to like the tahini sauce, but it wasn’t too over-powering. Fortunately, I also got to try a little of everyone else’s food (notably: Olive Oil Poached Shrimp with Sweet and Sour Butternut Squash, Hanger Steak with Sweet Garlic Confit, and Berkshire Pork Tenderloin with Ham Hock Glaze). The cake was one of the best chocolate cake experiences I have ever had; it wasn’t overly bitter or too sugary, and the raspberries were a perfect compliment to the other flavors. Everything was quite tasty and the whole experience was really lovely. Next time you feel like buying me dinner, let’s go to Café Lurcat!

I don’t recall having heard about restaurant week in previous years, but this would be a good week to budget for next year! There are so many other participating restaurants that I would love to try (to name a few: La Belle Vie, The Oceanaire, Cavé Vin, Cosmos). I’ll have to set a reminder for myself next March!