It’s not something that happens often but when it does, I remember it. Sometimes when I am dining, I get giddy about it. It has nothing to do with the person I am with, because sometimes I am alone. It’s not a particular scene. I have no idea why it happens but sometimes I am overcome with happiness as I am consuming a meal. I call these “magical moments,” and I know then that I will remember them for the rest of my life.
I first marked this as a “thing” one night eating with a large table of six at The River Cafe in Brooklyn. The company was stimulating, the conversation engaging, and the food was great. But I think it was the floor-to-ceiling windows offering views of the Manhattan skyline at night, coupled with the gazillions of twinkle lights whose collective wattage created a dreamlike haze that made me feel elated to be there.
That is the most dramatic example, and there are others, but I have just as many simple dining experiences that for one reason or another literally thrill me. Back in 2021 or '22 Tom and I went to Brennan’s to pick up some king cakes they had just started to offer for the season. We stayed for lunch. We sat at a table looking out to the lovely patio and I surveyed the landscape, the table with its ornate dishes, my partner enjoying his turtle soup, and I exhaled into a happy sigh at the privilege of such a moment in time.
Recently I have had these thoughts twice at the same place, all alone. The new Aperitif at the Mandeville lakefront fills me with glee. I sit out front on the smallish patio in the midday heat and humidity, and I enjoy it immensely. Breezes wrap around the building, mitigating the heat and humidity enough for me. The people inside in the air-conditioning don’t have my unfettered view of the lake with the sailboats and the bridge and the moss in the trees. And I have my pick of tables along with the solitude that comes with wanting to sit outside now. The cool tables and tableware are mildly annoying, and no one in the kitchen is reinventing the wheel, but I am always giddy to be at Aperitif.
I went again last Friday and sat alone on the patio as the dining room filled with others equally comfortable and thrilled with the place.
My friendly waiter advised me that there was a 3 course lunch special for $28. The first course is a soup or salad, followed by a choice of three entrees, and gelato for dessert. I chose the soup of the day which was Crawfish Velouté, and Steak Frites, though I asked to swap the frites for a salad. It states on the menu that this is a 4 oz steak, which is plenty enough for me.
The soup was decadently delicious, creamy and thick with that lusciousness that a seafood bisque usually offers. There were enough crawfish tails to have one in nearly every bite. This was so good I could have made a meal of it.
My steak entree was perfect. It was a little filet mignon napped with a wonderful peppercorn sauce that cascaded off the steak into a puddle on the side. I didn’t say how I wanted it and they didn’t ask, but it was exactly as I would have ordered it. This steak was tender and juicy.
The house salad at Aperitif is not one I would think to do myself, but I am crazy about this salad. It is mixed greens with strawberry halves and spiced pecans and Bleu cheese crumbles, as well as sliced purple onions, all tossed in a light vinaigrette dressing. It is not wildly innovative, but it is very fresh, colorful, visually appealing, and really delicious and perky.
Gelato followed this course. It was dense dark chocolate with a sprig of mint sprouting from the top. I love gelato, and I love dark chocolate, but this was so intense I should have asked for some milk. After the heat got to it and it started to melt it was almost like having chocolate syrup. I wanted to lick the bowl.
My waiter was so lovely he even put up with my “tea project,” which was no small feat. After I had the last of it all, I had to go. Just then owner Cayman Sinclair came out to get me and show me the new renovations in back. As expected, the room is stunning in its glamour. Joanna Gaines would be proud of the pickled shiplap walls, and woven hanging lights in various sizes add drama. This will be used as a private party rooms and spillover seating. I would love to sit in this room, if I can tear myself from the front patio. There will be lots of opportunity for both spots, because I will be back at Aperitif time and again.
It checks all my boxes. Two “magical moment” experiences in the same place is quite something.
