I am full of surprises this year. Remember when I surprised Chris for his birthday? Well on Saturday night was another big surprise my brother and I have been planning for months. My brother, Doug, lives in San Diego and it is hard for him to come home often. My parents celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary this past August, and Doug and I knew we wanted to do something special for them. We knew how much they love being with just the 4 of us, but since my brother lives so far away that becomes very hard. So we decided to surprise them by having my brother fly home and we would all go out to dinner. The whole night as been months of planning. We got a limo, I picked the restaurant, Doug had his flight-we were ready to go. So here is how it all went down.
On Friday night I went to pick my brother up from the airport. He was able to be at my race yesterday, which was so much fun for me.
(I couldn’t put this pic up yesterday b/c I didn’t want my parents to see and ruin the surprise).
We hung out during the day and then got ready and drove to Annapolis where my parents live and where the limo would pick us up. We hopped in the limo and drove to the front entrance where the limo would pick up my parents. They came down expecting nothing, and when they got IN the limo -SURPRISE! They were so ecstatic-let’s just say it brought tears to their eyes.
We headed to DC to the Blue Duck Tavern. This is a restaurant my parents have been wanting to go to for a while, and we had heard such amazing things about it. The restaurant is known for their American fare served through simple, time-honored methods such as roasting, braising, preserving, and smoking. I really had no idea what to expect. We walked in and it was gorgeous. The restaurant is in the Hyatt Hotel, and was sleek and modern but still very homey feeling. This place was heaven to me. From the decor to the service, to the spectacular food. This was a night to remember.
The ambiance is classy and sophisticated yet homey and comfortable. Everything is seasonal so when we walked in to the restaurant there were big wooden bowls filled with pumpkins and squash. The kitchen is very open and in the middle of the restaurant so you can see where all the magic happens.
We had a very quiet table in the corner, and started with a bottle of my moms favorite -MerSoleil. She loves the buttery creamy Chardonnays.
The menu is created everyday, and is designed to be a little like family style.
The chef really suggests that everyone get something different and share. This way you get to try all the wonderful dishes they have to offer. He actually won’t make more then 2 of the same dish for one table. How funny is that? All the food is fresh and organic. The chef prepares the meals to order and nothing is prepped ahead of time. If you thought all that sounded great-listen to this. The waiter knew the menu inside and out and goes over every dish with you before hand to make sure you know what you are getting. You really get personalized service! My family ordered a lot of food because everything sounded incredible.
We all shared, and it was MORE then enough food. I’m not going to go over every single dish because they were all so extraordinary. Every single dish popped with flavor and tasted absolutely amazing. There was not one dish I didn’t like. Everything was seasoned perfectly and cooked exactly right. Absolutely OUTSTANDING! (I wish I didn’t use the flash on some of these dishes-its hard to see them)
Here were our dishes:
Rocket Salad of Arugula with Meyer Lemon Oil
Brussel Sprouts and Veggie Tower and Crusted Parmesan
Braised Beef Rib with Homemade Steak Sauce
Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes
Fingerling Potatoes Roasted in Bone Marrow (I know-sounds disgusting, but surprisingly delicious)
Homemade Gnocchi with Fried Sage
Pave of Eggplant, Tomato Condiment
Warm Swiss Chard, Pine Nut, and Raisin Pie
We enjoyed our dinner with a fabulous bottle of Australian Cabernet that we picked up from my store earlier that day. You can bring your own wine to the restaurant, and they just charge a corkage fee. The wine was Marquis Philips S2. Big and rich, nice fruit, but not jammy. Perfect with the braised beef rib.
After dinner we were full, but knew we had to order dessert. Of course we ordered the Warm Flourless Chocolate Cake Flamed with Bourbon and Chocolate Cream, and the Warm Apple Pie. They brought out a bucket of ice cream with a candle for my parents and a small cookie gift bag for them to take home. I had my dessert with coffee.
The desserts were to die for. I couldn’t get over how wonderful this dinner was. Every single dish was spot on!
What a spectacular dinner and a successful night. We were able to pull off this awesome surprise, and it turned out better then we could have ever planned! I will remember this night for as long as I live!!!! HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MOM AND DAD!
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Wow what a great surprise and looks like an amazing night!! All of that food is making my mouth water…yum!