LUCE Despedida Dinner

 Two of my favorite relatives are leaving to return to Florida after three months here, so took them to one of my favorite restaurants, LUCE. We had a wonderful meal as we said good-bye for now. 

I started with my drink of choice, a Negroni straight-up and it was delicious. So speaking of delicious that was my Braised Short Ribs over spinach fettuccine and carrots. This was a special for the night so didn't get the Luce Combo [look it up]. My two other guests had the Veal Chop and the Duckling Two Ways which are also two of my favorites. Actually I should say I like everything on the menu.

The short ribs were remarkably tender which helped as my fractured arm is still healing and cutting meat is a chore. No need to struggle here as the entire dish was a smooth dream. There were no complaints about the medium-rare veal chop with a bone that went home to the dog. The duck confit looked wonderful and the duck breast exuded an aroma which led it not to be shared. The wines were flowing and the house Zinfandel turned out to be very nice.

Desserts were Ricotta Cheese Cake, Creme Brûlée and my Lemon Sorbet in the frozen lemon. All were good but mine was refreshing if not caloric. Service was again exceptional!

blognote: enough short rib left over to make another dinner for tomorrow!?!!

Sans Souci

An old favorite of a friend of mine is Sans Souci. It has been here for years originally as a Howard Johnson's [1959] and later as the Black Dog Tavern. I hadn't really found anything reasonably enticing until today with its Lentin [sic] Lunch Special. We both enjoyed orders of Fried Cod with fries, coleslaw and tartar sauce. Beginning with good bread and butter and a tasty but different jicama on bruschetta. The lunch orders had a large piece of nicely fried cod on top of a bed of excellent fries. We enjoyed time together and I applauded her choice of restaurant.

blognote: I just think of the address as 'way down the Berlin Turnpike'

LUCE RESTAURANT

Super dinner tonight [and always] at LUCE in Middletown. The place was packed for our 6:30 reservation and by 8pm the place was really hopping. The service and kitchen were fine and the food was delivered promptly and was super delicious.

Started off splitting  a cold appetizer of shrimp and spaghetti squash special of the evening. Both of us ordered the Veal Chop with bleu cheese mashed potatoes and baby green beans over a rosemary infused jus. This was one of the best servings of this in a long time. A half bottle of Grgich Hills Estate Zinfandel was the complement to the meal. Finished with desserts of Lemon Ripieno and a fantastic Panna Cotta with fruit. Kudos to this establishment again!

blognote: Parking free in their lot but very crowded on weekends.

LUCE

Looking for a place to eat after a play and everything didn't excite me or was closed. So went to an old favorite LUCE and realized why it is a favorite. Seat at the window on a beautiful day overlooking Main Street. Rabbit Ragu over pappardelle pasta was a special and it was special. The rabbit was tender, the sauce luscious and the pasta al dente. My dining partner had the Duck Two Ways from the regular and this will be my next culinary experience there. It was delicious. The service was perfect as usual and the dining room was alive with happy diners. The private parking there is a plus also. Finished the meal with a Cappuccino and shared the Ricotta Cheesecake.