A Salute to Richmond
Played bridge at the sectional in El Cerrito Sunday. Turnout was abysmal: only 7 teams in the A/X flight. We managed to win one of our six matches, and headed out to dinner at The Boilerhouse.
Which is closed on Sunday.
Quickly regrouping, we headed to Salute e Vita in Marina Bay, the upscale, waterfront part of Richmond. We’ve been there before, and always enjoyed it. Last night was no exception.
The restaurant was not very busy at 7:30 on a Sunday night. We were all chilled from the day–not enough heat in the community center where we were playing. Nicely, the hostess seated us in a semi-private room off the bar, which had two 4-tops (restaurantese for tables seating 4 people) and a fireplace. We were soon toasty warm, and ready to enjoy a very nice meal.
Here’s a design note–all the place settings were adorned with a small, flat rock which served as a knife rest. This doesn’t serve any real purpose, it just is a way to differentiate the business at almost no cost–rocks are cheap. A different little touch I appreciated.
Gail and I started with the broccoli soup. I asked Gail if she liked her soup, and she did, and I have come to the conclusion that I just don’t like broccoli soup. I like broccoli, but the soup always tastes grainy and bitter to me, and now I’m sure that’s me and not the chef. Go there, order and enjoy the soup, it just isn’t for me.
What is for me is the Risotto al Anatra, risotto with duck. Last year in Cambodia I had the tastiest duck of my life, (and I eat it often), and Salute is damn near as good. Definitely the best I’ve had in the Bay Area. If you are a duck lover, this is the place to go.
The second best duck in the world, I think.
The risotto is perfectly done, and loaded with artichoke and asparagus. You can’t ask for better, and the dish is only $18.
Carol had the filet:
Filet, asparagus, joy.
For a restaurant chosen on the fly, we felt we hit the jackpot with Salute. Service was fine–our waitress was just OK, but the busboy was excellent, and should be promoted to waiter. Being in our little cubby-hole of a room may have made it difficult for the waitress to see us, so I’ll cut her some slack.
Salute is right on the water, and in daylight the views are spectacular. Combined with the pleasant decor, the white tablecloths, good silver and those intriguing little rocks as knife rests, this is a very nice restaurant in an area you might not think of for fine dining–but you clearly should
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