3rd B-day Dinner - Margot
As some people know, as long as I am living in the Nashville Metro area, and there are the means to go, I have the standing order that one of my birthday dinners must be at Margot Cafe. As all good stand orders are, I did finally get to go to Margot's. I did not get to go to Margot's on my birthday because the place was closed for vacation, so I had to wait for a couple of weeks.
Some of you may notice that I have had quite a few celebrations for my birthday this month. Well, for about 15 years now, I have decided that celebrating my birthday month is way better than just one day, so every year since then, I have tried to keep celebrating my birthday for as long as I can! My life is funner and funnier that way.
It was a mandatory thing to start my 3rd birthday dinner at Margot Cafe with the fresh fried chips with aioli. I have been waiting a year, since my last birthday, for these sinful little treats. I nearly ate about 3/4 of the huge bowl by myself. I love these things. I have been saving up my fried potato calories for this one single event. I have not had one McD's French fry all year because I was thinking of these chips. These fresh chips are so darn good. I am banking on going to Margot Cafe next year for one of my birthday dinners, so I need to save more fried potato calories for that time.
We split a starter and it was an antipasto plate with shaved parm, prosciutto, mushrooms, and gigunda beans. It was an Italian influenced plate that was high on flavor. It was a nice solid presentation of food. It was a simple dish from the standpoint of the consumer (me), but it is possible that there was some complex figuring on the chef side, while she decided to use the gigunda beans for the first time. This dish is akin to the iPod in complexity. The iPod is so darn simple for the consumer to use, but all the hidden things like the designing, developing and manufacturing of the iPod are quite complicated.
For our entrees, I got a barramundi fillet with artichoke puree sauce, basmati rice and chick peas. Matt got a veal chop served with polenta croutons and ratatouille. I did not include a photo of the barramundi because everything on the plate was a bit beige to white, and it was a bit boring in the photo. Believe me, the fish and the rest of the dish was just fantastic and flavorful, and I did not want the glory of the dish to be eclipsed by a non-flattering photo. Matt's dinner was much prettier in the photograph. The ratatouille was delicious and the veal chop was straight forward and grilled quickly over a very hot flame. It is fun going into Margot Cafe to find out what is on the daily menu.For dessert, because I had to get dessert from Margot Cafe, we opted for the homemade blueberry pie. The pie had a real homemade flaky crust with just the right snap between my teeth. The open faced blueberries were not overly sugared, so the real blueberry taste could come through. There is nothing worse that an icky sweet pie. This blueberry pie, was not sweet, it was perfect, and the base ingredients were allowed to be their beautiful selves. This pie reminded me of my Great Aunt Isabelle's pies she used to make when I was young. Matt and I agreed that this pie was rather well done, and quite possible the best blueberry pie that we have eaten since the passing of my Great Aunt Isabelle.
The last thing I want to say about Margot Cafe is that she has 2 of the best wait staff in Nashville, and they are Dana and Greg. There is an art to customer service, timing of dishes, watching for the clients needs, and being knowledgeable about the food and wine list. There is a skill and excellence that Greg and Dana provide that surpasses all others. The know the job, they are willing to do the job, they seem to want to do the job, and they have figured out the way to make the job profitable. They are pros and they do great job. We keep forgetting to request Greg or Dana to be out front line to customer service while making our reservations, but this time, because it was my birthday, Margot traded out tables for us so that we could have Greg. Thanks Margot! We like Greg, he is the best.
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Labels: Margot Cafe, Nashville Eats
4 Comments:
i loved margot at f.scott's way back when. but in the past years i've been to her place about 6x or so and just have never been wowed. last time was about a year ago and i sent something back - an appetizer because it was so bland that i was shocked. so i dunno. i think i am just a pain in the ass when it comes to restaurants... but i like her and i think she knows her stuff and i would go back - but first i gotta try midtown cafe which i've heard such good things about since the new chef...and f.scott's which sucked for awhile has a new chef too... and all i do is cook... so it might be awhile!!!
Well, one of the reasons why I like Margot's is that the natural flavor of foods can through. There is nothing worse than ruining perfectly good base ingredients with heavy sauces and flavoring made in NJ.
Three birthday dinners is pretty cool. I think you've set a new standard we all must follow. Margot is always great and I agree the potato chips with aioli are a must. My only complaint is that it always feels so cramped. I guess you could call it cozy, but I hate having people run into my elbows at a restaurant. I have a friend who swears by the patio, which we have not done yet.
Yeah, 3 birthday dinners are kind of a lot, but way cool. Yes, there a some tables that seem like you may want to elbow the neighbors. The trick is to request the little 2 seater table on the 2nd floor way in the corner overlooking the bar and the entryway. It is like a little oasis there.
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