My wife and I went to Pacific Moon (on Bee caves road in Rollingwood, 328-8888) for dinner last night. It was our second visit. The atmosphere is elegant, but not intimidating. It is quiet and romantic, with nice carpeting, room dividers, and subdued lighting. The waiting area is plush, with overstuffed chairs and ornate lamps. We were served chips and dip with the water, but it was not your normal tortillas and salsa. It was strips of delicately fried flour with a small (too small) bowl of something they called "ginger de gallo", which was an excellent blend of chunks of ginger with other stuff I couldn't identify. The ginger was marinated somehow so the the "gingerness" was very present without being overwhelming. Although the portion served was small, they did refill it for us when we quickly consumed it. They now have their alcohol license (which they didn't have on our first visit), and their wine list, while somewhat sparse (about 12 choices), had a well placed variety of selections. We chose a nice Chardonnay. For entrees, I chose the pan-seared yellowfin tuna, rare, and my companion selected the grilled mahi-mahi with pineapple. Mine was a generous slab of tuna cooked as I requested, coated with a light soy-based sauce. It was served with a slice of portabello mushroom, a couple of slices of Chinese eggplant, a potato and tomato puree, a few slices of yellow and green squash, a portion of an onion and celery chutney sort of thing, and a contrastingly nondescript bowl of lightly seasoned rice. My wife's was a similarly generous filet of mahi-mahi, and the pineapple topping was grilled with the fish. It was accompanied by the same side dishes as was my tuna. Both dishes were very tasty, and though the portions of the side dishes were small, there were a lot of them and they provided a wide range of flavors and textures. The owner is very attentive to her customers, and makes a point of coming over to visit each table. The waitstaff were cheerful and professional. The only down side to the experience is that they did not have the ginger cheesecake that they served us on our first visit, but they assured us that its absence was temporary. This dessert is something that must be tasted to be appreciated. Highly recommended! I don't normally eat desserts, but in this case I'll enthusiastically make an exception. All in all, it was a very pleasant and satisfying experience. I will return. Gordon in Austin
Austin, TX