Mountain View Brasserie once again comprised our
stay-close-to-home pick, and once again its efforts attested to our vote
as our favorite restaurant. And it is the details, from the exterior
half-height Christmas trees still lit (Terri must have paid extra for the
fresh coat of snow!), to the warming details of the lobby and the
welcoming area, and, of course, to the dining experience. The magic must
have rubbed off in bunches because nearly three hours was experienced with
nary a fidget from a single soul.
After sauntering across the full parking lot, we gathered in our
usual back corner banquette with two (three?) tables pulled together on a
classically cold evening.
The menu, as usual, is the set standard—a half
dozen appetizers, three soups, a dozen entrées that cover an ample range,
and a half-dozen desserts. It is, however, the evening’s specials (of
course, we anticipate Terri’s recital of the list), that garner our
attention, with their usual creativity
Our appetizer/salad choices
included:
==> the included house salad, a plate of light greens and
fillers (Kriss, Ken: both good);
==> a special - shrimp bisque—a somewhat light but still
creamy full base with generous chunks (Don, Deb T, Lynda, Deb K: all
excellent);
==> Caesar salad—a MVB classic (Ross, Chay: very good);
==> and an appetizer special - jumbo lump crabmeat cocktail, in
a tall fluted glass (Deb K: excellent with a mound of fresh chunks on
greens with cocktail sauce).
The entrées
caught us with the familiar and special:
==> The sautéed Wiener Schnitzel (not quite French but it is
requested so much it is now a regular menu item) always draws at least one
of us, with the spaetzle drawing particular attention (Ross, Deb K:
excellent as usual);
==> chicken parmesan, a regular, with tomato basil sauce and
fresh mozzarella cheese served with linguine (Ken, Kriss: old
standbys, especially since they had visited MVB a week earlier, excellent
as usual)
==> a special - tenderloin of pork, topped with peach &
onion marmalade, with au gratin potatoes and ratatouille (Don: very good,
especially the marmalade, even better the next day)
==> another special - seafood risotto, with a lobster tail, four
shrimp, four scallops (Deb T, Chay, Lynda: much oohing and aahing over the
quality of all the ingredients)
The only item missed was
MVB’s prime rib, depleted not only from a busy New Year Eve schedule but
also from a rest-of-the-month vacation arising in two days.
Dessert, as
usual, waggled its irresistible finger
==> A regular - the warm chocolate cake, ice cream, cream and
strawberries drew one diner (Ross: shared with Lynda, a good comfort
dessert)
==> Another regular - Key lime pie (Ken: a well-known for him,
and good)
==> A special - raspberry sorbet (Deb T: excellent) (note: Chay
& Deb yielded on their selection of this sorbet when one less serving
was available)
==> Another special - maple walnut ice cream sundae, with a
spurt of chocolate syrup, cream and a star pattern of strawberry slices
(Don, Kriss [the usual chocolate people]: a worthy change of pace)
Our evening finished with Terri’s generous offer of
an after-dinner drink, an offer
accepted by several: black Sambuca (Chay, Deb T), Grand Marnier (Ross),
tequila (Lynda, Deb K). Much appreciated by DP8, and thank you, Terri and
house.
Our drink order consisted of
a soda, a small pot of Harney’s white grapefruit tea, and six drinkers
of a bottle of Anne Pichon Rose de Ventoux rosé and two bottles of
Elara Cellars 2009 Napa Meritage. (I should note that wine markups at MVB
are quite modest, lower than many other
establishments we have frequented.)
Service by
Rebecca was excellent again—attentive, good about checking without being
intrusive, pleasant. Water was filled regularly, and Ken, by reputation of
long standing, had his coffee cup filled consistently. Good service does
not happen by accident, and good service at MVB is a testament to the
trainer!
Ambiance has been
described before so the usual catalogue will depend on past accounts,
except for these next few. MVB’s entry table presentation is both classy
and warm. The white linened table—each half anchored by a small shaded
candle-lit bistro lamp, a plate of lemon and lime slices—sports eight
settings of white bread plates with butter knife resting akimbo, three
sides of a silverware square surrounding the absent dinner plate, and
modest sized water glasses that will be filled upon seating. And shortly
after that, two linen-covered metal baskets of bread, bracketed by
ramekins of softened butter, all add up to an excellent first impression,
one that we have enjoyed over the years.
And then there was that new hunk of wood in the greeting area—the
plaque recognizing Hudson Valley Magazine’s
Best of 2013 winner for Greene County Restaurant.
Congratulations to MVB.
The final bill came to $115 per couple, ending an
evening we found so comfortable. (Later, when I asked my dinner mates how
three hours could have passed without an edge of fidget from one person,
the consensus seemed to be—MVB is our comfort spot, we were close to
home, the flow of conversation trickle pleasurably, and all the right
notes resonated. A rarity! And although our scores serve as a reminder,
not a critical review, the fact that the second highest score in 134
dinners came this evening must not be overlooked!)
As tradition will have, or has had the last few
years, we held no pre-session this evening, instead agreeing to meet at
MVB at reservation time. The Monteverds seated first.
One
should note that influencing DP8’s normal course of affairs this past
year is our recent substitutions regimen, now that the Adamses have a new
permanent address a few hundred miles distant. Add the Monteverdean
snowbirding and the former normalcy changes even more. Fortunately, four
couples fill in for the count of eight and that variety certainly flavors
the mix. And to gussy things up, the remaining six veterans have
designated that the third substitution by a couple earns them a
certificate of Almost DP8, an accomplishment of some dubiosity, we
suspect. Ross and Lynda’s presence this evening, the third with DP8,
earned them a certificate, adding to the ranks of the other Almost
DP8ers—the Notars and Quinns. Still, the Adamses, upon an accommodating
date, fill their usual spot whenever they happen to grace Greene County
with their presence.
And so the evening’s topics took the usual twists and turns, with
a Pisano/Burhouse angle. Recent cold weather and a snow storm of a few
days ago garnered much of the early attention. More details of the Rhine
Cruise from a Lynda/Ross perspective filled another chunk of time, as did
retellings of Christmas schedules and visits, of in-laws, grandkids, and
other relatives to keep happy (or not, in one case). Chay’s impending
June retirement will continue to be a topic, with every event being one of
his last ones (last Christmas break, e.g.).
Other topics included: packing for winter vacation, Florida
travels, Adamses travels, skiing, Karneses’ visit to Buffalo, status of
pets, Deb’s pocketbooks, changing of local banks, Ben and Terry’s
vacation plans, New Year resolutions, visits to doctors, new furniture,
Den’s 2014 photo calendars, and so much more. Even the few innuendos
that evoked a cackle or guffaw have slipped into forgetfulness. |