As you (should) know, we are currently at the Rotary Club’s
District Conference at the Hyatt Chesapeake Bay Resort in Cambridge
Maryland. The Eastern Shore is quite a
pretty place so we were glad they chose this location. We’ve been on the eastern shore several
times, but mostly to Easton. Great meals
there (Bartlett Pear Inn, followed by Mason’s, Out of the Fire, Scossa, etc.). Sadly, it seems that every time we come there
are more lights, chains, and cars down Rte. Fifty. Too bad.
Quaint ain’t so much quaint anymore, at least on the main arteries.
Anyway, the “real” conference started Friday and
since we arrived Thursday night there was only a little “formal” activity. So we decided to avoid that and try for a
night in town. What was reasonably my
only “kitchen pass” from banquet/hotel/production food turned out to be chosen
well. I had done a little research on
the restaurant choices here, and most of the “highly thought of” ones were clustered
in their “historical district”. The top three places were (kind of in order)
Bistro Poplar, Jimmie & Sook’s (for all you crab lovers), and High Spot,
all located relatively close to each other.
A they featured French Cuisine, we chose Bistro Poplar, and were joined
by another couple here at the conference.
Our friends who had arrived earlier in the day had lunch at Jimmie’s and
had enjoyed it but were up for something a bit more upscale for dinner.
Once we finally (another story) got here and knew the time
situation I called and reserved a table for four. After bouncing around a bit and finding a
parking place we walked to the Bistro which turned out to be right next door to
the J&S place. Their historical district is not as well developed as some, as there are several old, empty buildings around. There is alittle enclave of restaurants, a gallery here and there, but that’s about it. There may be a chocolatier, but not the restoration you might see in other older towns. A little red awning
was over the door and the store front style revealed an inviting space inside,
with white tablecloths, wine glasses and silver. We identified ourselves and were seated sort
of near the door, a good spot for observation.
I have not been to a lot of Bistro’s in France but somehow
the place was evocative of that (or at least my perception). Wooden floors, high ceilings, the walls in a
warm yellow with large mirrors here and there, a couple of those French
posters, and tables kind of scattered around.
Somehow the room seemed to evoke the atmosphere of an old world room, it
just sort of fit with the Bistro idea.
Plus, it was in sort of a run down area. The bar was sort of plopped in
the back, with a simple counter in front, and a relatively few amount of
bottles. The staff was in white shirt
and tux vest. When I say “staff” it
appeared to be one server, a back waiter, and another who sort of bounced
around. I figured (without asking) that
he could be one of the owners or at least the manager. He didn’t seem to have a well defined task.
Natalie (whom we found out because of the Hi.. I’m speech)
took a bit to get to our table as other diners came through the door and she
apparently was also responsible for seating them. She returned, dropped the menus and was off
again. Usually I comment on the service
after the food, but it sort of fits here.
She turned out to be a very friendly and accomplished server, answered
very knowledgably about menu items, and generally attended to the table. It just seemed that she was behind the eight
ball all evening, always sort of being in a rush. Since you could see the whole restaurant from
our table she was always pretty much in sight.
She took drink orders, went behind the bar and made them, served them,
ran food and generally was on the go most of the evening. Not that she didn’t spend time at our table
when she had to, just sort of set the pace for the place. Despite that, when we left, I would say the
service was not a distraction. She
remained bright and cheerful, adding comments about the lemon tart for dessert
would be good for breakfast. Maybe consistent with a bistro (and yes, they did
have the paper squares on the tables.
After corralling Natalie we were able to put in a cocktail
order, and I have to admit they weren’t exactly up to what I wished. My DMOTRWAT showed up as an “up” Manhattan
with sweet vermouth (which was replaced and repaired fairly quickly), and MFO’s
Gimlet lacked a lime slice. These were
created during a time when she was doing about five things simultaneously, so
we kind of gave her a pass, although I think the concept of a dry manhattan was
a bit new to her.
As to the food. No
matter the level of service, the food overshadowed any nuances there. It was very, very good. The menu was a simple one page affair, nicely
labeled “Dinner D’Hiver” indicating some level of seasonal attention. It consisted on choices of ten starters and
nine mains, something you could easily deal with. For Starters, there was a nice mix of
expected items, French Onion Soup (Onion Soup Gratinée); Duck Confit; salads
(Bibb Lettuce with roquefort, tarragon vinaigrette; Haricots Verts &
Marble Potato Salad - walnuts, radishes, sherry vinaigrette), along with some not so expected: Sautéed
Sweetbread with glazed oyster
mushrooms, dill; Beer Battered Brandade with
tomato tartare. We did ask after the Brandade (hey, I don’t
know everything!) and Natalie explained it was a French winter staple of an
emulsion of salt cod, olive oil and potatoes. I was a bit surprised there was
no offering of a Charcruterie plate. Mains
also had a nice variation available, with our old friend Steak Frites, a
Bourguinon of… Bison, Leg of Lamb, a pork shoulder, and from the sea Roasted
Salmon, seared Scallops, and a not so familiar Pan-Roasted Monkfish
Amandine. Pretty pleasant menu. They also had a nice selection of wines by
the glass on another one pager.
After a bit of thrashing, we settled on starters of the
soup, the bibb lettuce, the Haricots Verts, and I went for the sautéed
sweetbreads. Mains were two orders of
the scallops (based on a recommendation from Natalie when compared to salmon) a
roasted quail, and I, after discussion regarding the Veal Escalope, went with
the leg of lamb.
Like the menu, each dish had a nice little twist to it. MFO’s Haricots were a nice stack of good
flavored beans, some lovely walnuts and the radishes came in form of little
matchsticks complete with red tops, the soup didn’t have a covering of melted
cheese on a huge crouton as is fairly common.
What for me was the dish of the night was the sautéed sweetbreads. Sometimes you get them sort of diced and
fried, but this was several little slices of yes, the thymus gland. Sauteed (seared almost) provided a nice
little caramel crunch hiding the sweet meat below. They were served over a
lovely bed of caramelized mushrooms good in their own right. Don’t be put off by what it is, just enjoy
how it is in the mouth! Bibb lettuce
with gorgonzola was a delightful stack of lovely green lettuce.
Okay, this is getting long so we’ll contract. All the main courses were cooked nicely,
presented well, and had appropriate flavors.
My lamb was subtle without that overpowering flavor you get
sometimes. Anyway, for dessert we
ordered two lemon tarts and “four forks” and were presented with four plates
containing half a tart. Lemon is one of
the all time favorites for dessert.
So if you are ever in Cambridge I would highly recommend
Bistro Poplar. We would go back in a
second, and I think a return visit after experiencing the first would be even
more enjoyable in that you would have some realistic expectations..
mas oui, we were
DFD
quick update (Saturday PM): King Oyster has been highly received, hotel food has been better than some i've had. Yesterday's lunch was plated, but last nights (Business Dress) was buffet... go figure..
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