Ariel in Menlo Park

We decided to try Ariel in Menlo Park last night, as we were looking for

a nice, quiet place and Sent Sovi seemed too long of a drive.  We had never been there before, but had heard good things.  We were definitely not disappointed -- it's a very pleasant place with excellent food and service, and calm and quiet.  That's something that's really missing from its bigger competitors in the Palo Alto area (Spago, Zibbibo, etc.).

We started with a nice, simple salad with raisins & pine nuts; then we had appetizers:
- Roasted Mushroom Escebeche with plaintain "tortillas" was rich and hearty, an interesting vegetarian option; beautifully presented with the

mushrooms sort of spilling out of a cavity between two pancakes of crispy fried plantains.
- Crab sizzle cakes with mango chilpolte dipping sauce were also delicious, heavy on the crab with the spicy sauce setting them off nicely.

Main dishes:
- Sake-seared salmon fillet set on a moro rice cake with carrot broth. The broth was somewhat spicy, not too sweet (which can be a danger with vegetable juice sauces).  The salmon was slightly crispy on the outside from the searing, and was presented atop the rice cake in such a way as to suggest a swimming fish -- fanciful, yes, but very beautiful.
- Pan seared five spice duck with tamarind orange glace, green onion crepe, and baby bok choy was perhaps less exciting, but perfectly done, and again beautifully presented.
- Cumin roasted lamb rack with apricot-mustard sauce, curried potato samosa, and roast garlic flan was fabulous.  The lamb was sliced and put

atop the sauce, which was not too sweet (again, a common problem).  The mustard and apricot combination was wonderful; the samosa was a large, phyllo-dough construction with a delicious Indian-scented filling, and the flan lightened the whole dish.

For dessert we had a "banana bonanza," a whimsical combination of banana

ice cream, banana mousse, chocolate-covered banana, fried banana chips, and caramelized banana.  Cute and very tasty.  Also raspberry and mango sorbets were very good.

The restaurant is small and simply, prettily decorated.  Our waitress was attentive, non-intrusive, and very helpful -- no complaints whatsoever.  The wine list is fine but small.  Finally, the prices are much lower than other interesting restaurants in our area.

All in all, a highly recommended place. We'll be back.

Ariel is at 1137 Chestnut Street in downtown Menlo Park, just off the main drag.  (650)322-7388.

Disclaimer: I have no connection whatsoever with Ariel except as a satisfied customer.