A Night on the Town...

When your duet becomes a trio, one of the most generous gifts someone can give you is to offer to watch your child while you paint the town red with your spouse.  It makes perfect sense, yet no one really thinks of that one - no one except my in laws, who during their visit last week not only did the baby-sitting, but also picked up the tab for dinner.  How's that for a pretty cool present?

Diplo-husband and I are creatures of habit, and when we have a night to enjoy a really good meal, we usually spend it with Roberto over at Melograno (especially during truffle season), but we have been trying to branch out.  Restaurant Artner has been on our list for awhile, and despite several attempts, we somehow never made it - either it was closed, full, or I didn't feel well.  Last week, we were finally able to make it happen, which was a good thing since an outstanding meal was waiting for us.

I started out with an appetizer of bacon covered goat cheese.  Let me say that again, bacon wrapped goat cheese - warm and gooey on the inside, crispy and salty on the outside.  The only other time I've had that was at Chez Paul's in Paris in their "goat cheese three ways" dish.  What's more, diplo-husband insists he doesn't like goat cheese, so I didn't even have to share.  I followed that with their "crispy risotto", a risotto dish topped with crispy leeks and forest mushrooms.  And for a grand finale, we split their "grilled apple strudel", which was a nice twist on a classic.  The restaurant also has a pretty comprehensive grilled meats menu, a lunch menu, and their own wines, as it belongs to an Austrian wine label.  Cool decor, knowledgeable, on-point wait staff.  Definitely thumbs up.  And did I mention it was goat cheese...wrapped in bacon? Mmmmm....