Rosewood Resident Recounts a Wonderful Dining Experience at the Rose Garden Grill

I’m not exactly certain of the total number of Rose Garden Grill experiences I’ve had, but this time was one of the best. The meal started with all of us seated at an exceptionally well decorated table. The Valentine color scheme was appropriate since it is the next day that involves decoration of any kind on the calendar. In any case, it gave the occasion a festive atmosphere.

The first pairing was a caramelized fig appetizer with the addition of grilled cantaloupe, goat cheese and prosciutto.  A pinot noir rosé was paired with this dish which was a perfect choice for it.  The artistic presentation matched the delicious flavor. The fig has several varieties; this variety was sweet with a lite flavor and in combination with the components produced a sweet, but hardy appetizer. The sweetness was offset by the dryness of the wine and the combination was superb. This prepared us for the next course which was salad.

The salad consisted of roasted beets and blood oranges with ponzu dressing topped with a spicy green herb the name of which eludes me at the moment. This was paired with a Sauvignon Blanc. Without eating this dish the description is meaningless. So, don’t miss the next Rose Garden Grill.

A lemon and cucumber gazpacho shooter was served as an “Intermezzo” to the dishes served so far. It was explained that this was to clear the pallet for the next portion of the meal. There was no detectable alcoholic beverage connected with this drink just a lot of flavor and it served its purpose.

Next came the entrée: herb roasted lamb chops with sweet potato and corn hash, grilled asparagus and a cherry demi-glace. I’m not a lamb person myself. Give me beef anytime and I’m happy, but this dish has changed my mind. The herb combination used with the lamb produced a very subtle version of lamb which was perfect for my taste and the cherry sauce was superb in combination. Calling the vegetable combination of sweet potato and etcetera hash gives an unjustly diminutive description of it. I can’t think of a better description right-off, but give me some time and maybe I can. The presentation is again attractive and paired with a good merlot, was delightful.

The finishing touch to this superior meal was a chocolate lava cake served with a ruby red port. As with the other dishes served during this dining experience the presentation was excellent as you can see, but it tasted better than it looks.

If you don’t have a taste for wine, it isn’t necessary for the full enjoyment of this meal and I guarantee you would have been pleased without it. I personally am a “common sewer” of wine and need someone else to make selections like those made for this meal. Fortunately, we have Sally to make the choices for these occasions.  Thank you, Ryan and Sally.

The message is, join us for the next Rose Garden Grill, but if you’re not there, I’ll be sitting in your place.

-Bill Fellows, Rosewood resident