Totally Unauthorized

When last we met, our intrepid adventurers wanted to dine at the 4th Street Bistro, but they were closed for a private party.  So we trekked off to Lulou’s, and had a fine meal.

Tonight, the restaurant atoned for being closed on Tuesday.  I called, they were open, we went.

4th street is a major thoroughfare here in Reno, and the Bistro is quite a ways  to the west of downtown, and the clearest part of their sign says “Tues-Sat”.  Micky drove right past it, we looked for another mile before we turned around and found it.  Good thing their food is better than their signage.

The restaurant is sort of generically French in decor. It’s just a simple building out in the middle of nowhere, overlooking, well, nothing.  Which is what most of the high desert is, nothing.

The menu, however, is something special.  More like Berkeley than Reno–all organic, local, sustainable, touchy-feely, tree hugging and über-modern.  I loved it.

The exception to the  Berkeley-hipness of the place was my first course.  Foie gras is about as politically incorrect as you can get–I’m not sure it’s even legal in California anymore.  I had it at Lulous, and I had it again at 4th Street.  Served here with persimmons and pomegranates and “pain d’epices” which turns out to be dense, sweet, spicy bread.  It was fantastic.

Next up was Arctic char, which is quite like salmon.  The fish was good, but the highlight was the Quinoa it was served on.  “What’s that?” you say?  Darned good question.  It’s a Peruvian grain, only mildly poisonous until properly treated.  Very high in protein and amino acids.  Incredibly tasty. Impossible to pronounce–Wikipedia lists 2 ways to say it, the people at the restaurant used another, Linda knows a fourth.  None of them sound like you would think they should.

Dan S. and Linda had the halibut.  Micky had the lamb shank.  I was too busy enjoying to see what Tom had.  We were all happy, yet the consensus seems to be that the set-up, the Quinona or Peruvian Lima beans or Beluga lentils that the entrees were served on, were uniformly better than the main events.  It’s like they put all their creativity into the foreplay ( some people think that’s a good thing, though)

Prices were not cheap, but on a par with Lulou’s. Service was smooth and unobtrusive, probably the better of the two.  Definitely worth a try.

4th Street Bistro, 3065 W. 4th Street, Reno.  775-323-3200