Monday, August 11, 2008

Back from the grave

This has been my most unexciting ever due to my seemingly unrepairable foot injury. Due to some meds that I was on, I wasn't able to enjoy any alcoholic beverages until recently, which also cut down on the amount of time I've spent dining out.

This past weekend, in honor of my boyfriend's 30th birthday, we went to The Chophouse. I'd long avoided going there because, well...it's a chophouse! Since my boyfriend is closer to a carnivore than an omnivore, I surprised him by making reservations for this past Friday night.

I was impressed with the decor as soon as I walked in the door. It seemed very 1920's Miami. With dim lighting and a live jazz band playing in the distance, the ambiance was wonderful. Our server was very attentive and took care of our every need, but not in an annoying way. We started out our dinner with a bubbling crock of spinach and artichoke dip, served with freshly grilled pita bread. My skeptical boyfriend, who griped about the lack of tortilla chips when I ordered the appetizer, was really impressed with the flavor of the dip and the freshness of the pitas. We both had salads - Caesar for him and house for me. The portion was pretty large and I liked the house herb vinaigrette dressing. For my meal, I enjoyed a roasted vegetable pizza. Despite being a vegetarian, I typically hate dishes made up of large quantities of vegetables, but it was really good. My boyfriend enjoyed a pepper crusted tuna steak which he claims is one of the finest meals in Cleveland. I took his word on that one.

Accompanying the meal was a fresh pan of cornbread. Since bread is one of the only things I can eat at most restaurants, I consider myself to be a bread snob. I have to say that this cornbread was absolutely delicious. I could have just eaten that all night.

I'd purchased Cheesecake Factory cheesecake for birthday dessert but we didn't get to enjoy it until just last night. Dulce de leche is absolutely delicious...and the plain old traditional kind was pretty tasty, too.

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