Last night Bob and I had dinner at DeepWood with two other couples. What a fun evening! These are some of our favorite people and we were excited to introduce them to this wonderful restaurant. During Restaurant Week in the fall Bob and I had discovered DeepWood and fell in love with it. http://dishingitup-columbus.blogspot.com/2009/09/restaurant-week-deepwood-american.html. The menu DeepWood was offering for RW this time looked awesome.
We arrived at the restaurant and were surprised to see scaffolding surrounding the front and side of the building. Don’t be put off; DeepWood is still there! We were seated immediately. Our table was under the “tree” in the center of the restaurant. I kind of felt like Alice-in-Wonderland … in a good way.
Our server was a delightful young man, whose name I am sorry to say I did not get. The drink service seemed to be a bit slow to start, but once it began the service flowed quite smoothly. We didn’t feel rushed, which is nice. One of the gals commented that sometimes the plates are whisked away so quickly you barely have a chance to enjoy one course before the next is set before you.
Not so at DeepWood. Service was attentive but not smothering, and we all liked that.
I think the bread is really something special. Each diner was given a trio of breads which included a piece of sourdough bread, a slice of dark brown walnut bread, and a seeded lavash. All were delicious, especially when slathered with the butter sprinkled with pink sea salt!
The first course choices made it very difficult to choose just one! All three sounded awesome, and were! Of course we shared, and I would be hard pressed to have picked a favorite. But if I simply had to, I would choose the mozzarella. Oh my …
The Chef’s Hand Stretched Mozzarella was served with oven dried tomato, zucchini & yellow squash ribbons and a balsamic reduction. I kid you not, I wanted to lick this plate. I considered sneaking behind the “trunk” of the tree and doing just that, but someone was sitting there already! It really was that good. I could go back just for that alone. The picture just doesn't do it justice.
The Cod Beignets were quite a surprise. They were a spectacular surprise! The beignets were light with little bits of cod, expertly fried to perfection, and served with a wonderful tartar sauce. Kathy was genuinely delighted with them. She was such a happy girl eating them that I hated to take one away from her for tasting … but I did.
Last in this course, but most definitely not least, was the Duck Leg & Foie Gras Sausage served with briochette and green apple jam. Now, I am not a huge duck fan. I love Chef Tony’s duck rillettes, but that is about the extent of my fondness for duck. But hey, these sausages rocked!
We moved on to the second course. I knew way ahead of time what my choice was going to be. I was set on the Lobster Bolognese, served with vegetable risotto. The risotto was creamy and had just the right amount of vegetables; yellow squash, peas and zucchini. Risotto was plated in the middle and ringed with the bolognese. The sauce was fragrant and lovely. There were bite sized pieces of lobster meat alongside the chunks of tomato. The bolognese had a lovely fresh taste, but in my humble opinion, I thought the lobster meat was overpowered by the tomato. The dish was delicious, however I think the lobster just kind of got lost.
The Braised Pork Ribs were served with a house made barbeque sauce, white cheddar polenta and coleslaw. We concurred that the seasoning on the ribs had an Asian flair (five spice, maybe?) and the meat was so tender it literally fell off of the bones. The white cheddar polenta just danced across my tongue, teasing me because I only had one bite as it was on my friend’s plate and not mine! I surmise the slaw was good because no one left any on their plates.
The last offering for the main course was possibly the best of the three. The Chicken Involtini was absolutely divine. The chicken was rolled with house made tasso ham, gruyere, spinach and served with a whole grain mustard sauce. It was a beautiful plate and a delicious entrée. The tasso ham was incredible. It added a depth of flavor to the dish and pulled all of the ingredients together.
The third and final course was the Chocolate and Walnut Toll House Pie paired with Brown Sugar Ice Cream. Add a cup of coffee to that and Kathy said it best; “Now this is the way to wrap it all up!”
DeepWood doesn’t disappoint. I still love this place. All six of us decided we need to come back and order off of the regular menu. There are so many interesting foods that DeepWood offers. We will be back, and I hope it is soon!
DeepWood
511 North High Street
Columbus, OH 43215
614-221-5602
http://www.deepwoodrestaurant.com/index.htm
Sounds wonderful, Jean.
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