Dining Out

Friday night after a job interview that amazingly seemed to go pretty well, I was taken out to dinner at a Cedar Rapids restaurant called Vino's (plus a little sitting and sipping at the bar next door, R. G. Books).

We had a basic meal with no appetizers or desserts, but I have to report that my main dish was a delectable hunk of seafood as good as any I've eaten in coastal areas. I will no longer pine so much for Parkside in Providence, unless for the cocktails. My dinner was a thick piece of slightly crisped Chilean sea bass topped with a tiny dab of black caviar, lounging comfortably on a bed of risotto with tiger shrimp and peas. The peas were not as chic as the rest of the plate, but all the seafood was tender and perfectly cooked. It was a solid and delicious meal.

I bought a gift certificate for my brother and his wife. They enjoy good food and appreciate the difficulties involved in locating it.

Tonight I am playing around with the Enchanted Broccoli Forest recipe for mushroom pie. I don't want to make a spinach pie crust, so I'm using a regular frozen crust and putting spinach in the filling. We don't have any fresh mushrooms, so I'm using a can of mushrooms and throwing in a turnip. My friend Elantu advises me to replace half the yogurt with sour cream, so I'll be doing that too. The pie may taste funny, but it will definitely be full of vitamins!