Guest Bloggers Ryan & Kate

First off- Congratulations to my Future- in-Laws Kate & Ryan!

This week Tom S. (my other fiance- shhh, it's a secret) came out with his Fall Dining Guide. On the list is Vermilion. Tim and I haven't been, but have been anxious to try it after reading that Anthony Chittum, the former chef of Notti Bianche, is its head chef. We had the best gnocchi ever during one restaurant week at N.B. Ryan & Kate went to Vermilion on Saturday night, and here's what they had to say:

Kate: "Well we started with the diver scallops with russet potato gratin, black truffle & leeks 2 ways – these were fantastic and I usually don’t even like scallops very much. Then we both opted for the roasted pork loin with garlic sausage, alsatian cabbage, pistachios & fig gastrique – we both liked it but weren’t big fans of the fig mixture inserted in the middle of the meat.
For dessert Ryan ordered the trio of sorbet (cranberry, green apple & d'anjou pear), which he thought was a little overpowering at first, but after a few bites he began to enjoy it. I thought it was pretty tasty myself. I ordered the nutella bombe (hazelnut anglaise, salted filberts & chocolate sorbet). I thought it was quite tasty, although a little too much chocolate on one plate (which I never thought could happen). The cake was very good – Ryan really liked it too – but it was very rich. I thought it would be better paired with one of the fruity sorbets instead of the chocolate. Although I guess I was a little biased from the outset because I am not a real fan of chocolate sorbet in general – I like my chocolate creamy and smooth.
All in all it was a good time. I was a little thrown off because the last time I was there the menu was different and had a few more mainstream items. Also, we didn’t get it on Saturday, but I have had the cheese plate in the past and would recommend it."
And Ryan added: "It was a good place. The fig insert in the pork was not quite what I expected but the pork was good. The center of the pork was much rarer than i think you are supposed to eat pork but the fig part might have made it tough to get to temperature. The ambiance and waitstaff was top notch. I felt a little out of place in jeans. The appetizer rocked! and the wine I picked which I have now forgotten was solid."

My Triumphant Return!

I'm still trying to figure out how to do everything I want to do. I've done so much good eating in the last couple of months, but my focus has been on getting my Brownie troop running for the year.
I'll start with a little bit about this weekend and see if I can hit some other highlights. Tim & I spent Saturday touring Richmond- we saw The Jefferson hotel (where Tim was a fancy pants waiter), toured the VCU campus, checked out the shops in Carytown and managed to work in a couple of meals. First stop- lunch at the 3rd Street Diner. Solid diner food- I had a grilled cheese with bacon and tomato.

After touring (and making some room), we had an early dinner at the Strawberry Street Cafe. I ordered the chicken pot pie to make up for the abysmal pot pie I had at the Birchmere during Henry Rollins (I really should have known better).

A few notes on what I've left out over the past couple of months. Hot as all hell Houston with gigantic-sits-like-a-brick Pappas burgers and then, Papas BBQ. I only wish I had a picture of the kolaches. Two weekends ago- our "cute" tailgate before the Georgia Tech-Maryland Game. Chik Fil-A nuggets and pimento cheese were highlights- along with Elizabeth's "Go Jackets" M&M cookies.
I don't want to breeze through dinner at Proof last week- anyone want to guest post about what we ate?