Dining critic candidate No. 11

Sometimes names can be deceiving, like in the case of the Warehouse Restaurant. This is anything but your traditional Warehouse. The setting is very open and inviting. In one half of the establishment you will have access to a finely designated art gallery that can be booked for private parties, invite only or open to the public for your viewing pleasure. The other half of the building is an open air dinning room with a sit down style bar and seating for parties ranging from two people to sixty two people. Even though all the tables were draped with white table clothes, the atmosphere was anything but stuffy. Since we were celebrating a special event with some close friends, casual attire was the choice of dress for this evening. Upon being seated we were pleasantly greeted by our server and made to feel like we were the only table dinning out on this night. From the drink order to the presenting of the final check our party never felt hurried or rushed.

Menu selections were laid out in such a way as to make your mouth water before you ever placed your order and making one selection over another almost imposable. Pricing ranged form $5 and up for appetizers, $6 and up for salads, $16 and up for entrees and last but not least $5 and up for desserts. To help enjoy the Chefs creativity we ordered a little bit of everything form the menu. For starters we tried the Warehouse Crab Cakes with Smoked Corn Salsa, Cilantro and Toasted Walnut Pesto and a small dollop of Chipotle Mayonnaise. The crab cakes were made with real lump crab meat and just the right amount of bread crumbs and fresh herbs for binding them together, yet still allowing them to pan fry up light and flakey while keeping them moist in the center. Salads were served next and my choice was the Traditional Caesar and I was not disappointed. The romaine greens were served chilled and crisp, while some restaurants have a tendency to allow there salads to sit out to long before being served this was not the case at the Warehouse. The Caesar dressing was made to perfection with plenty of garlic, squeeze of lemon, a hint of anchovies and to top it all off fresh grated Parmesan and Romano cheese shavings. If you prefer some thing a little lighter try the Brewery Spinach Salad. For any guests not having an appetizer or salad you could indulge in the fresh baked bakery basket filled to the top with an assortment of whole grain, sourdough and Jewish rye rolls and sliced breads. Try not to fill up on bread because you will need room for the entrées.

When the main entrees were served we had truly reached the highlight of our evening. I chose the Chicken Breast Marsala. The plate presentation was a thing of beauty, combining an array of vibrant fall and winter colors together on one plate, and the taste, oh the taste was wonderful. The 8 oz chicken breast was dusted with a light blanket of almonds and fresh herbs and sautéed to a light golden brown. Accompanying the chicken was a wild mushroom and Marsala demi glace and rounding out this seasonal fair was sweet potato confetti and tumeric scented cauliflower. What a treat for my taste buds. Other entrees enjoyed this evening were the seafood and penne pasta served in a lemony cream sauce, portion size was adequate but we felt like the dish could have used more seafood, especially shrimp. For the heartier of appetites you may choose to have the Steak Frite, a grilled top sirloin served with home made French fries tossed in a light truffle butter, you sure won’t go away hungry with this choice. Since every one in the parties hunger was satisfied we all left no room for dessert. We will however be back to try the home made pumpkin crème brulee served with pumpkin ice cream and a dusting of fresh ground cinnamon or the strawberry tiramisu served with a chantilly cream.

The only real disappointment of the evening was the fact that the Warehouse no longer has there own brewery, The Palmer Lake Brewing Company. We were, however, able to enjoy an Amber Pale Ale “imported” from our own local Bristol Brewery. The evening was a fine success plenty of good conversation, excellent food and great service, who could go wrong with that combination. Until we dine again remem