A Valentine's Restaurant Review

I'm not a big fan of Valentines Day per say, but at the same time I'll take any excuse to make a special date with my man. Some years we go out for a fancy dinner and other times we make a fancy (i.e. crab cakes) dinner at home. Since last year we had a one-month-old and were basically just existing, we did the dinner at home thing. We have pictures to prove it but I can't say I remember much of it. Since my wonderful sister lives nearby now and selflessly offers her time to babysit, we took advantage of the holiday this year to go out for a special dinner.

Our favorite restaurant in the neighborhood, and the place we always end up at on special occasions is Evening Star Cafe. We've never eaten the same thing twice and we've never been disappointed. We started our meal with an appetizer of seared scallops which were perfectly buttery and delicious. Geoff ordered Rockfish, which was served in a broth with mushrooms and andouille-stuffed calamari. The sausage gave it a wonderful kick of heat and the dish overall was mellow but had deep flavor. I ordered the Duck Breast, served over hazelnut dirty rice with brussels sprouts and a cranberry gastrique. The crunchy rice was a perfect counterpart to the soft duck, and the roasted brussels sprouts had amazing flavor. I can't describe how good it was. Unfortunately we did not have room for dessert, but we've had dessert there before and it is indescribably delicious. I'd also recommend their brunch menu. If you're ever in the area and looking for a bit-pricier-but-totally-worth-it restaurant, check out Evening Star (or "the Star" as they call it).

On a Valentine's side note, I'll take this chance to give a shout out to my man. He let me get a fancy new dress and wore a suit and tie himself because he knows I like getting dressed up sometimes. He is our dishwasher. He is so excited to come home from work and play with our daughter and help out with whatever he can. He routinely gives me breaks to have an hour or two of "me" time or girl time. He works hard to provide for us even on days he doesn't love his job. He manages lots of responsibilities and time commitments in a way that allows him to be home as much as possible, especially during Zoe's awake time. He spoils me. He serves me. He loves me. And I'm so, so blessed to call him my Valentine.