Abacus

This past Saturday night we finally made it to Abacus, a restaurant in downtown Dallas. Shaw had a gift card for it from his co-workers about a year ago and we've tried since then to find the right time to go. For wine dinners, we love to go around 2:00 on a holiday, so we can take as much time as we need for a bottle of wine, and skip dinner's hectic pace. However, when we tried the first time, we discovered they aren't open for lunch, ever. Style cramper. So more time went by and we chose last weekend to give it a try.

This restaurant's menu is prepared by some chef who used to be on Top Chef, but I'm not sure who since we don't have cable and I've only seen that show a handful of times when staying with family. We had heard some great reviews and also some caution; they have a bit of a rushing history between courses. We had checked their menu out months ago online and found it to be a bit adventurous for KK, but we knew their wine list was really good, and KK can find something almost anywhere. I'm just not a fan of quail eggs or buffalo when it costs that much!

At the end of the meal, I can safely say I will spend many attempts trying to recreate some of what we had that night. So yummy! We deliberated over a wine once we saw the menu up close and knew we were both aiming at fish. This viognier from Zaca Mesa was delightful. Really delicious. It started out a bit cold, but tasted pretty good even then; as it warmed up, it got even more enjoyable with plenty of honeysuckle and weight. Such a tasty wine! We looked it up on their website and it seems to be sold out; probably directed mainly at restaurant wine lists, so I'm not sure we can get it locally. We've been pleased with viognier lately, even though our preferences lie towards racy and crisp Sauvignon Blanc. Our first viognier (purchased in a restaurant) was the viognier-like Israeli wine at Amma; while not life-changing, it was very delicious with the food we had. This viognier was fantastic on it's own, and became even more delicious with the food.

And...the food! KK started with a deconstructed Caesar salad (not her usual choice EVER). The romaine hearts were split down the middle and topped with shaved parmiggiano, oven-dried tomato slices and an assertive but not too tangy caesar dressing. Looked cool, tasted even better. I'll be doing it for a family dinner in the future. Shaw chose tiger prawns with a chili-ginger dipping sauce, and just as we expected, it was nothing special. However, on the side was this little bowl of ginger risotto and small veggies which was OUTSTANDING. I think they serve the dish just for that risotto. I'll be working on that one soon. I think it would be spectacular with a glazed piece of fish. Wow. I tried to steal more than my little bite from Shaw's plate, but he is wise to me.

Main courses were both fish, and both delicious. Sean's was the most beautifully white and flaky portion of grilled swordfish. I've never seen it so white; and it was perfectly cooked. Underneath it was some sort of sauce, wilted spinach and other things. I didn't notice it too much as I was devouring mine. I got pan-seared halibut (a bit too seared and dry, but still tasty). Underneath was baby bok choy, slivers of red pepper and a carrot-ginger broth. I was not too ashamed to use the table's bread to sop up the sauce. It was so beautifully balanced and tasty, and I couldn't get it all with my fork, but the bread worked nicely!

Continuing on our splurge, we ordered a sampler of chocolate desserts. Four little piles of chocolate goodness appeared on a rectangular plate, and all of them were delicious. Memorable bites were the brule pudding (very dark and rich!), the five spice chocolate tart. One of them had a sprinkling of sea-salt on it, which made it burst with flavor. There is just something about crunchy salt and chocolate that is unexpectedly fantastic.

By the way, Starbucks has a new pretentious hot chocolate for this season: Salted Toffee Caramel Hot Chocolate. I never get Starbucks drinks, almost as a rule. I run in, get a pound of beans for Shaw, and run out. But this time, there were little samples on a tray in front of me. I couldn't turn it down. One of the most delicious warm beverages I have ever put past my lips. Just in case there is a Starbucks near you.... I'd suggest it.