I was fortunate to be invited to a fundraiser at Dante for ORT. I have been somewhat hesitant to try Dante after what could only be called a disaster at Lockkeepers. Still any new restaurant in town deserves to be given a fair shot, this was not that fair shot. Why? Prefix 3 course meal on a random Sunday evening with wine pairings. The good news is I have to go back and order off the menu.
Wine selections from the cash bar were ok. I have given up on finding decent $8 glasses of red wine in Cleveland. Every restaurant thinks it is acceptable to charge $13 a glass for wine that retails at $22 per bottle. Do I get therapy for my issues related to this? No, I just prefer to drink at home…Dante kicked off the evening with a demonstration on how to cut up a chicken. Best tips of the night? Use a medium to smaller blade and remove the wishbone to preserve some of the best meat. It was nice to see a chef working and Dante did a good job at breaking down the chicken while explaining his process.
The salad was served first. I am into the Beet salads around town these days and this one had a nice light dressing. I would have enjoyed some cracked pepper, but the staff was moving quickly and never came around with any. The Vegetarian option was a perfectly cooked thicker linguini style noodle with a light sauce and lots of veggies. My kind of meal. Loved it. I could eat this 5 nights a week. Hearty and delicious without loads of fat, maybe a hint of vinegar.
Dessert was a passion fruit creme brulee. I was bummed there was no chocolate, but strangely enough truly enjoyed braking thru the crispy shell to spoon out creamy deliciousness. This was a great ending to the meal, capped off by Dante’s candy cart loaded with Lemonheads, fireballs, bubble gum and jolly ranchers rolling out onto the main floor. Excellent way to end a great evening. What about the wine pairings? Who cares…just kidding. The highlight was the St.Suprey Moscato paired with dessert. Sweet and rich, this is the kind of wine that will leave you wondering why you decided to drive to Mexico at 2 am. The white to start and red for the main course was well whatever.
I tried to take pictures, but the light was so low all I could here was my friend Simone telling me that I should not post such poor quality pictures. What I will tell you is I wish I had gotten some nice shots of Dante cutting the chicken or my pasta dish. Overall, I am looking forward to a return visit to Dante to put their menu to the test, looks like he has found a great potential home here in Cleveland and I hope he focuses on creating great dishes with exceptional service.
