The One With The Visit To Cru.

Alright everyone! It's the second week of Austin Restaurant Week. Something my mom and I loved to go to. We actually went to Siena off 360 last week, and it was a huge disappointment...The appetizer was pretty good, but the salmon they served us, I couldn't even finish eating, and the dessert was only ok. SO, my mom and I knew we had to try out a different place so we wouldn't leave ARW with a bad taste in our mouths...no pun intended. So we decided on Cru, and we chose right this time. Cru is located in the Domain (there is one downtown as well), and if you haven't tried it, you need to. We actually went there on Saturday afternoon for brunch and we took the pups to celebrate Noah turning 3. I can't believe he's that old, but that's beside the point. Our lunch was so good that we decided to try out the ARW menu. So here is a low-down on what all we ate. First, here's a pic of my wonderful lunch there on Saturday. I had the tomato basil soup and grilled cheese. SO DELICIOUS. One of the best tomato soups I've ever had.

 

Ok so now for both my mom and my meal from tonight. (By the way, my dad came, but he eats a tic-tac and is full, so all he had was the caprese salad, which was like 3 slices of tomato and 2 slices of mozzarella - but it was delicious as well). My mom got a flight of wine so she could try 3 different wines. They were all red wines. I don't know enough about them to write about them, but her favorite was one that had hints of bacon taste. I had the coffee, and let me tell you, this is some of the best coffee I've had. I don't know why, but I feel like they infuse cinnamon or something in it. It was delicious.

 

For our appetizers: I had the ricotta ravioli with a lemon butter sauce and chorizo, and my mom had the mussels. They were both very good. If I had to choose, the mussels would take it. It was actually the first time I'd even tried mussels, so I guess I don't know what I'm comparing it to, but they were very tasty. They had white wine, parsley, garlic, shallots, and lemongrass brother.

 

On to the entrees. I had the Salmon with couscous, haricot vert (which is just a fancy way (french) of saying green beans) with a basil-citrus sauce. It was so good. It was perfectly cooked on the outside with a little crunch but still piping hot and moist in the middle (much better than the Salmon at Siena). My mom got the beef tenderloin with Gorgonzola, tomato gratin, and creamy potatoes. This was also delicious. I don't think I could choose a winner in this category. They are both so different and equally good. Although, I do love me some potatoes...starches are my vice.

 

And finally we come dessert. We both got the vanilla napoleon, which was pound cake with a warm berry compote. This was also delicious. I didn't put it in my mouth and think, "Oh, my goodness, this is absolutely wonderful," but it was very good. It was almost the perfect amount of sweet, with homemade whipped cream, and I'm a big fruit lover. :) 

 

So, until next Austin Restaurant Week...unless I randomly decide to go another time this week, which I wouldn't be against...

"Tartlet, Tarlet, Tarlet...word's lost all meaning."