Lisa's evening at Daveed's at 934

Our dear friend, Lisa, came over tonight...mostly to see me, I think.  I love it when she stops by.  She always talks "baby talk" to me, which I find charming.  We were all in the family room and she was telling us about a friend's recent visit from New York.  They went to Daveed's at 934 in Mount Adams.  She stopped with the "baby talk" long enough to describe their selections.

      They both had the cauliflower soup with crème fraîche and orange curry, which basically was puréed vegetables in a cream base with a hint of curry and orange pieces.  Eric and Neil have always known that if you’re unsure about what to order at Daveed’s, rely on duck.  They say that they might not call it their specialty since they’ve taken extreme care with every dish, but it is always spot-on.  In fact, Lisa’s friend Joy doesn’t even like duck, but Lisa talked her into it.  I'm not sure I do either, but she told me that since I like chicken I probably would like it too.  (She regressed back to the "baby talk" for just a moment.)  On that evening, it was pan seared Maple Leaf Farm duck breast with truffle, wild mushrooms, garganelli, and Vermont cheddar.  It is a complete breast that is sliced so it not only looks large as it is fanned across the platter, but it is large.  It made a believer of Joy.  Lisa had the duet of pork with potato, compote fondue, sauerkraut, and romesco.  The red cabbage sauerkraut was the off-beat detail that took the dish over the top.  Joy chose the hot fudge sundae (I'm watching my winter weight these days), in actuality a flourless chocolate cake with peanut pâté and salted caramel gelato for dessert.  The dichotomy of the salty and the sweet was a memorable detail.  Lisa had the apple dumpling, which is a whole wine sap apple in a pastry crust topped by bourbon caramel, and vanilla bean ice cream.  Eric and Neil were hungry just listening to her talk.  Yes, as in Barbara Ehrenreich’s Nickel and Dimed, food can be porn for some of us.  I'm so embarrassed!

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Daveed's is at 934 Hatch Street

http://DAVEEDS.COM/wordpress