A Dab of Disappointment

This may seem obvious, but it wasn’t to me until last night: Wine dinners are no place for people who don’t drink wine. I have gone to more than my share and never consumed more than a sip of wine from any of the glasses poured. I was content with the food served and the camaraderie in the room.

We were invited to meet up with friends at Dab’s last night for what is a monthly wine dinner. I knew going in that the menu was not especially to my liking, but that never bothered me before. Or maybe it was because the dinners I remember were Eat Club dinners, and restaurants were trying to make a good impression on potential new customers.

Or perhaps I am shocked at last night because those old Eat Club dinners topped out at $85 all-inclusive, and that was a rarity. $75 was more the norm, tax and tip included. I went last night under the impression that it was $75 inclusive and it turned out to be $101 or something like that.  Yes, I realize it is post-COVID, but I think that excuse is becoming entirely too common, and certainly too accepted.

The dinner started with an Aperol Spritz, which I had never had before. It was nice, sweet, and made with Domaine Ste Michelle Brut.

The first course was an Asian-Style Tuna with grilled shrimp, paired with Domaine Ste Michelle Luxe 2016. This was a complex dish with a lot of parts. It was served over linguine with an Asian sauce that included corn and bits of mango. This was very refreshing and quite good, and I don’t even like Asain sauces with sesame oil. This was soy-based. The tuna was beautiful and it was a nice small portion. Tom loved this tuna. I ate mostly the grilled shrimp. These were fine.

The second course was Fried Green Tomatoes with Shrimp Remoulade, paired with Chateau Ste Michelle Chardonnay 2021. A fried green tomato was topped with three small shrimp, The only sauce in this dish was the coating on the shrimp. The tomato was bare except for its breading. The shrimp remoulade was fine, but this dish is meant to be a cohesive unit, where the shrimp are generously coated and the tomato is napped with remoulade sauce.

A “Cajun” Duck Breast with Bing Cherry Sauce served over risotto was the third course. I was very happy to hear Chef Duke unapologetically say he had cooked the duck medium. He is as sick as I am of rare chewy duck breast served as though it is a great delicacy to be savored. This was sliced thinly and was definitely way more tender than duck breast is served. The Bing Cherry Sauce was outstanding, with clumps of cherries in a thick sauce that had quite a kick to it. This was unexpectedly delicious.

The risotto underneath the duck was a boring and pasty nothing. Risotto should be moist with clearly defined grains of rice, coming together into a luscious creamy unit. This looked like grits that had been sitting too long, and they didn’t taste like much. The cherry sauce was so strong though that the risotto flavor would have been nullified anyway. This was paired with Erath Resplendent Pinot Noir 2021.

The fourth course was an odd one, though I liked both elements. A roasted chicken thigh sat atop a portion of penne pasta and Bolognese sauce. The chicken had a great flavor but was a tiny piece of chicken. Duke’s Bolognese sauce has always been very good as it was this night. A 2019 Santa Cristina Toscana was the wine pairing for this dish.

The star dish of the night was dessert, paired with Eroica Reisling 2021. Billed as a baked cannoli, this was really delicious. Instead of the traditional hard shell, which Duke does well, this was a delightfully light and flaky puff pastry filled with sweet ricotta, dusted in powdered sugar, and drizzled with chocolate sauce. it was accompanied by a dollop of whipped cream. I made myself stop eating this after two bites, but I could have inhaled the entire thing.

The food was fine but ordinary, the wines fine but basic, and the price way too high. But the main reason we went is that I felt Tom would enjoy being back in an Eat Club environment. He certainly did, and that made the whole thing worth it. Almost.