haute dish

Since I'm finally feeling like myself again, we decided to celebrate by going out to dinner. We haven't been to Haute Dish yet, and it was at the top of a number of Twin Cities' Best Restaurant lists this year, so we decided to try it. Boy, are we glad we did.

Seriously, we were happy from the moment we got out of our car to the moment we got back into it. They have valet service (which is terrific in a low-parking, high traffic area of downtown in the winter), but when we arrived, there were several cars waiting, so we had to pull over just ahead of the valet sign. Within moments, someone got to the car and apologized for not getting to us sooner. We were escorted into the restaurant, which was warm and inviting, all honey-toned woods and brick, and a smiling host at the welcome stand. Although we arrived a little early for our reservation, we were immediately led to what looked like was the last empty table in the comfortably narrow, very long restaurant.

Our server was friendly and knowledgable about the menu and bar offerings. They listed about 7 beers on tap and had about as many seasonals that the server described for us. I happily ordered a Sierra Nevada Celebration (a favorite, and I love when I can get it on tap!), while Brad opted for a Sazarac (rye whiskey, lemon, and absinthe).

The menu has been described as updated classics, and that's what we both wound up ordering. I had the General Tso's Sweetbreads with fois fried rice. I've never had sweetbreads and have been tentative about trying them, and this was the perfect way to test the waters. They're poached and deep fried and tossed in a classic Chinese-American sauce. The piece of fois gras that sat upon the fried rice was a silky medallion that melted in your mouth. I couldn't have been happier, down to the housemade fortune cookie.  Brad had the Tater Tot Hautedish, which was a deconstructed hot dish plate of braised short ribs (so tender they fell apart at just the touch of his fork), crispy young beans, a porcini mushroom sauce, and what can best be described as mashed potato croquettes - fantastic crispy puffs that oozed mashed potato once bitten/cut into. I ordered a side of extremely rich brussels sprouts casserole - sprouts tossed in a cheesy, mushroomy sauce, and baked/served in a small cast iron pan. Brad started with the evening's soup, a white bean/ham concoction in a light broth, with smoked tomatoes and sausage, topped with a bit of grated cheese and some crispy kale. As Brad said, it was exactly the soup you'd want on a cold January Minnesota night.

It was a great dinner from start to finish. I know we'll be back (because I have to try the mac and cheese with crab and truffle!), and I'd highly, highly recommend it.