Terry here! It has been a long time since I've posted. Sorry to everyone about that; I know how much people have missed my blogging, and I apologize that you've had to suffer through Julie's continuous posts (love you, Jules!).
Anyway, between work, school (I'll be done in June!), running (taking part in a Ragnar relay - www.ragnarrelay.com), I haven't made time to get to the ol' blog. But now I get to talk about the really important part of the wedding: the food!
On January 19th, Jules and I had a whirlwind day that ended with us flying from LA to San Jose, and driving out to Pleasanton for our tasting. We would have much preferred to have gone up another day, but we would have sacrificed getting to try the whole menu. We arrived at the Palm Event Center a few minutes early and were greeted with glass of champagne. The tasting itself took place in the Estate Room, which is the room in which our ceremony will be. We were seated with three other couples, all of whom are getting married the holiday weekend before us. It was really nice getting to chat with these couples and we ended up walking away from the night with several new ideas and things to consider for our big day.
The tasting started with a sampling of the passed hors d'oeuvres. Laid before was a platter with an eggplant caponata on crostini, a crab salad with preserved lemon, a smoked sausage stuffed mushroom, a mini Reuben sandwich with sauerkraut and Thousand Island dressing, and a chorizo and date wrapped in bacon. The eggplant crostini was very light, prepared in a vinaigrette without a heavy flavor of eggplant. Julie and I were big fans of this appetizer and thought that this would be quite nice on a hot summer day. The crab salad was prepared in a little wafer, so it's still a finger food treat. This, too, was light, but lemony and refreshing as well. I love seafood, so I was already gung-ho on this one, and thankfully Julie didn't need any convincing. We had one more appetizer to choose! The sausage stuffed mushroom did not make the list. It wasn't just the right flavor for our liking (I thought there was a little too much cumin). So it came down to the Reuben and bacon wrapped chorizo and date. The mini sandwich was very tasty, and I was actually surprised Julie liked it as she's not a fan of sauerkraut. But the chorizo and date in bacon? Wow! I was sold on it. It's spicy and sweet, with the right amount of bacon (and how can you go wrong with bacon?). Julie and I talked it over, and though the Reuben was good, it's a Reuben. Compared to the chorizo and date, it just didn't hold a candle. So our passed hors d'oeuvres will be the eggplant crostini, crab salad, and the bacon wrapped chorizo and date.
In addition to the passed appetizers, we will also have an appetizer table. We weren't served any of the food for this as it all comes with our booking of the venue. So our guests will all get to enjoy cheeses, salamis, peppers, artichoke dip, and Spanish meatballs! Yum yum!
Onto the sit down portion of the meal. We began with three salads: a caesar, a classic wedge, and mixed green and pear salad. All were great, but the one that stood out was the pear salad. In addition to the greens and pears, the salad was topped with candied walnuts, crumbled blue cheese, and a balsamic vinaigrette. It was delightful!
The entrees were definitely a feat to finish as there were 9 and we'd already had plenty for starters. First came the fish and vegetarian choices: a basil and brown sugar salmon, a seasonal white fish with chili ponzu and scallions, and a red chard and sweet onion ravioli with carrot-nutmeg beurre blanc. The white fish was light and flaky, and the chili ponzu had a nice kick to it. The salmon was oh so buttery with a light crust of brown sugar. But the surprise of the night was the ravioli! The sauce was sweet and complemented the red chard and sweet onion perfectly. I think it may have been the only dish that Julie ate the entire thing of (I polished off her other dishes). The dish was also the talk of the table well past the other entrees.
The second course consisted of chicken and pork. We had a chicken saltimbocca with onion soubise, pan-seared chicken with wild mushroom and sweet wine butter sauce, and Carloina-style BBQ pork loin with crispy onions. Again, everything was delicious. We particularly liked the chicken with wild mushroom and sweet wine butter sauce. To give you a better picture, the chef referred to it as the butterscotch chicken. It was definitely sweet, but the taste was so unique! At the end of the course, that was the front runner.
The third, and final course had the red meat: a grilled New York with brandy and green peppercorn sauce with buttermilk shallots; braised beef short ribs with upland cress and fig demi; and marinated tri-tip with red wine demi, sauteed mushrooms, and crumbled blue cheese. Everything was good, but we felt the New York was a little over done. The short ribs were super tender, and the tri-tip was prepared to perfection. At the end of the meal we were torn between those two dishes.
Well, in the end, we had to choose two of the nine entrees. We absolutely loved the ravioli, so that was in. Now we had to choose between the butterscotch chicken, short ribs, and tri-tip. After talking it over on the way home, we agreed that the ravioli and the chicken would be too much sweetness for the night (and we hadn't even gotten to the cake). Between the short ribs and tri-tip, it came down to the fact that the tri-tip had that little something extra to push it ahead of the competition. So we will be enjoying the ravioli and tri-tip.
A few things. If you're concerned about what you're going to choose to eat because everything sounds good, don't worry! Julie and I have decided that we're going to serve a family style dinner, so the food will be brought out on platters to the table for all to share and enjoy! Second, if your mouth is already watering over the menu, just remember that the menu may change ever so slightly as things go in and out of season, but that really only applies to the small details of the dishes.
So that was our tasting. Phew, I'm out of shape when it comes to typing. I'm winded from writing this, and now I really need to eat something.
Until next time!
