35th Street Bistro - A New Favorite
Friday, May 19, 2006
We discovered the 35th Street Bistro in Fremont almost by accident - my wife was looking up another restaurant on the Internet and came across a story about their new chef (Steve, formerly of Flying Fish). We decided to give it a try. And we were glad we did because it immediately became a new favorite.
I rarely eat at a restaurant where every main course on the menu looks great. This menu was one of these. Of the 6-7 main courses offered I would have been happy with any of them. Our waiter recommended the duck, which was outstanding. My wife had the risotto, which was also fantastic. Nice portion size and great presentation to boot.
The soup of the day was a curry crab and shrimp bisque. Lots of meat, just the right amount of spice. It was a big bowl and would have made a full meal in itself. I'm looking forward to the leftovers for lunch today.
For an appetizer we had the cheese collage - 5 cheeses accompanied by nuts, apples, fig puree. They serve it on a big board, with the cheeses placed opposite the recommended accompaniment (blue cheese across from apples and fig puree). Next time we'll get this for dessert because it's a little filling for an appetizer.
The wine list is broken up into wines by the glass and by the bottle. And unlike a lot of places the by the glass list is extensive. And that doesn't include the special pours.
I should also mention that the service is top notch. Attentive, but not overbearing. We never felt rushed.
During coffee Steve, the chef, came out to talk. He pointed out that the menu changes regularly, sometimes daily, based upon the ingredients available. That just made me want to go back more often in order to see what interesting things were there to tempt me.