Menlo Park Vida

Well, despite your warnings - we had dinner there last night. Arriving at 9:30 - we were seated cordially. A bit rushed on the selection process and the lamb and beef were gone. Considering the time and occupancy - fair enough. I had the ubiquitous ahi tuna. It was cooked to perfection (a bit on the raw side) but with LOTS of pepper. Served with some new potatoes and a bit of warm salad. OOOps, started off with the mussel soup, which I liked a lot. My friend asked for some veal and what came was something that looked like a huge pork chop with a very long bone. It too was covered in pepper and cooked fairly well. It was placed on a 'pile' of mashed potatoes (rather than the beans per menu). Looking a bit confusing
- all-n-all. With a bottle of chatenauf-du-pape, (second label), I would consider the meal an invitation to return. The wine list is quite sparse and I would bring my own, next time. Considering the lateness - the owner was very patient and I thought the pacing of the meal just fine. I was quite pleased with the effort and being pretty hungry, enjoyed the meal. We were given enough time once the dishes were served. I have to say that my friend (JQ) was less pleased than I and thought I was taking it easy as a critic. Maybe it was the hunger but it's also true that meat and potatoes go along way with me. Paul

 "I came
to Casablanca for the waters." "But we're in the middle of the desert." "I was misinformed." 1942