Artisanal restaurant review

It's time for another restaurant review - Artisanal in Bravern.
The other day I was invited by friends to one of the new restaurants recently opened in Bravern, downtown Bellevue. The restaurant's name is Artisanal and it is said to be one of the best French restaurants in the area, mostly due to its chef - Terrance Brennan.
The location is very easy to reach, pretty much you have to drive to downtown Bellevue and go to the Bravern. The restaurant could be seen from the street.
The general impression entering the restaurant was one of a “still in construction” places, even though nothing actually looked like is building over there. I’ve got a feeling of an unfinished setting, of something missing there, but I can’t really point out what. An Asian person would probably say ‘this place is missing Feng Shui – no harmony’.
After we got to the table I ordered the Prix Fixe Artisanale which consisted of tarte flambee, chicken cooked under a brick and chocolate mousse artisanale. I also tasted from my friends’ mushroom soup, lamb and crème flan.
The food was not bad, nothing spectacular though. The chicken was very tasty and you could tell it was naturally fed, crispy skin was cooked perfectly, the sauce was a bit too sweet for my taste, I expected more of a French flavor out of it, as in herbs de province etc. The Tart flambee was tasty but a little salty, so was the soup. For dessert, chocolate mousse that had the perfect texture but was made with dark chocolate and that made me dislike it. Actually one thing that bothered me was that the dark chocolate was not mentioned in the menu, and that was misleading.
The service.
Cold atmosphere (I expected some French music in the background at least), inhospitable service - too rigid in the sense that the waiters seemed very stressed while serving, and they conveyed the same feeling to the patrons as well. The food had nothing special ... except the price which was expensive for what was offered. In conclusion for a single visit is ok but I wouldn’t consider going for a second time.

Quote of the day

"Inside relationships, it's important to first understand who's coming into the relationship. And I don't mean about your partner, I mean about you!" - Lisa Nichols

Wild Ginger restaurant review

Wild Ginger restaurant recently opened in the new complex The Braven in downtown Bellevue.
The restaurant is very nice, easy to find, large but not intimidating. The interior looks classy and cozy at the same time. Dark colored tables and walls create a nice home feeling, nice soft music in the background and candles on the table complete the perfect setting. There are no tablecloths on the tables, the unfinished dark wood gives a pleasant Asian look.
The service is excellent, waiters are classy, relaxed and very attentive.
Intimate atmosphere, decent prices and excellent food.
I ordered Wild Ginger Fragrant Duck. For the duck aficionados this is the ultimate duck. The duck was perfectly cooked, crispy skin on the surface and full of flavor inside. Rice rolls that come complementary with the duck are the perfect addition to this wonderful dish. The deboned duck is cut in pieces and it could be eaten as a sandwich with the rolls, or just cut the meat and eat normally which I actually did.
Besides the main course I also ordered some green beans that were also very tasty, crispy, with a touch of oil and spices - delicious.
An extra touch that I liked was that the meal had the option to choose between traditional cutlery and chopsticks - both were present by the plate. I chose chopsticks myself :)
Drinks on a scale from 1-8.
One Cosmopolitan made with pomegranate which was pretty good - 8, Mojito Traditional - 7, and the house specialty mango Mojito, excellent combination of mango and mint with Bacardi - 10.
At the end of dinner I ordered some jasmine tea which was great, excellent flavor for only $ 2.
Besides the dinner which was excellent, visiting the toilet was a surprise in itself, hand dryers are awesome. Running on a system where you insert your hands into some sort of device with hot air in 10 seconds max are dry - the first time I see them and give them score 10.
Overall, on a 1 - 10 scale I give it a 9.
If I still consider to go there - no doubt.

Disclaimer - photos collected from the internet, see web address in the address when you open the pictures.