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(March 12, 2004)
It's not often that a medical doctor abandons their work for an entirely
different career field. Well, I guess Howard Dean did it. And look what
happened to him!
But the restaurant bug bit Dr. Susan Hartmier, an
epidemiologist, really badly a few years ago. She hasn't completely
abandoned medicine. But she's spending the majority of her time and
her restaurant.And lucky for us that it did, because the result of her
mid-life career adaptation is the Thistle Café.
There are two Thistle Café locations, in
Davenport Center off 360 in Westlake and downtown on 6th St. across
from the new nightclub Oslo. The 6th St. location has a more eclectic
and formal dinner menu and we'll be talking about that one today.
In two very enjoyable dining experiences there,
I've had only one negative. The bread on the second visit was stale
and not too edible. But the rest was totally delightful.
The appetizers are diverse and well thought-out,
and delicious. The Calamari is soaked in buttermilk and lemon juice
before frying; giving it a very appealing texture and taste. I liked
the idea of the mustard sauce for dipping as well. I, for one, do not
subscribe to the notion that a marinara sauce is the standard for calamari.
Good for Thistle. Like this out of the box thinking: and the sauce was
mellow and the perfect complement to the spicy Calimari. Another cool
appetizer is the Blackened Gulf Shrimp. This is comparable to Dan Haverty's
Shrimp Harissa at the Shoreline and just as good. They use a light,
blackening spice, clarified butter, fried leeks and crumbled Stilton
cheese. The taste sensation is immediate and riveting. We also tried
their lovely Goat Cheese Salad. The key here is the combination of dried
cranberries and candied pecans: they totally enhance the field lettuces
and make for a really interesting salad.
I've tried four different entrees and they've all
offered a complex yet totally complementary array of tastes. I mean
to tell you folks: they are delicious. The Angus Rib eye is excellent.
I like my rib eyes marbled and tender and Thistle delivered on both
counts. They cut their own steaks at Thistle and my cut was perfect.
But the accompanying sauce elevated the dish to an even higher plateau.
The black truffle butter merged with a demi-glace of shallots, fresh
thyme, garlic, and parsley was just outstanding. Run, do not walk to
the Thistle and order the Angus Ribeye. The Sea Bass is equally appealing.
It's a 6-8oz portion of steamed sea bass, and how's this for an interesting
twist, a sauce with a base of lemongrass and mustard stock. And then
a sweet chili sauce topped with toasted sesame and served over soba
noodles. Seriously good.
The next dish to try is the Pan Seared Australian Lamb Loin. The lamb
is cooked perfectly with a ragout of mushrooms and a visually stunning
and equally tasty English pea puree. Again, the diversity of flavors
here is quite stunning.
And do try the Beef Tenderloins with a whiskey shallot demi-glace. Ours
were cooked just right and were tender and eminently tasty.
If you've got room for dessert, try their cookies
and cream. They take a homemade cookie and crumble it into vanilla ice
cream. I think you get the picture. Decadently good. Also tried the
sorbets, which we found to be a bit on the bitter side, particularly
the lemon and the mango. But after a meal like that, one can forgive
a sorbet that misses the mark.
Our server was generous with her time and was very pleasant and engaging.
Thumbs up for her!
This is a truly distinctive and exceptional restaurant that is likely
to become a downtown standard. And a distinct candidate for my Top 20.
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