By CHRISTOPHER YASIEJKO
I had never tried foie gras.
There's something about force-feeding a duck or goose to fatten its liver that turned me off. But this account is for all tastes, so I chose the duck and foie gras shumai for a City Restaurant Week dinner first course at Mikimotos.
Our waiter, conscientious and friendly throughout the evening, delivered the dish on a long, narrow plate, part of an attractive presentation. After the host found us a table 20 minutes before our reservation, our hopes were high.
I expected to taste something rich, something that would amplify my conflicting feelings about how this dish came to be. Instead, the foie gras had the consistency of a meatball, if slightly softer. It tasted bland, which was especially unfortunate considering it was wrapped in a flavor-muting dumpling.
Glad I ordered the Purple Haze, a $10.50 confection of hot Gekkeikan sake and a shot of Chambord served in a ceramic carafe. It was warm and strong, and the shot provided a nice, spicy kick. Suddenly, the foie gras left my mind.
My girlfriend had the pork ribs and peanut sauce, and she was pleased with her choice - the meat slid off the bones. But when the main course arrived, she cast a jealous eye at my plate - I had ordered the grilled petit filet mignon, again presented beautifully, a fist-sized chunk of beef coated in crunchy black peppercorn with a medium-rare center, a deep purple hue that tasted delightful. The butter-infused mashed potatoes, topped with crunchy, breaded asparagus, were the highlight of the dish.
Mikimoto's seems unsure about its identity. The decor is somewhere between that of a comfortable pub and a fine-dining establishment. The lighting is chic, but the tables are basic and close together. This being Restaurant Week, the place was buzzing even at 6 p.m. Maybe the loud house music is an afternoon thing, but it was a bit much. The wall art is equal parts modern and kitschy - the more casual of Mikimoto's dual personalities featured framed prints of the Japanese manga series InuYasha and of Usagi Yojimbo, the rabbit bodyguard you may remember as a character in "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles."
And the fine presentation of each dish left me perhaps more disappointed with the flavor than I might've been had the food arrived in a less aesthetically pleasing arrangement. That's not a call for downplaying the presentation. I just wished the taste would live up to the promise. My girlfriend's main course was a sushi and sashimi platter with a good variety of samples. The rice-coated shrimp was wrapped in shredded shrimp, so the first touch to the tongue threw the taste buds into the full flavor. That was a nice touch.
And there was enough on the plate to fill her before she was half-done. For dessert, I chose the lime and pineapple bombe. A delicious, warm pineapple dumpling topped it. A nice dose of Baileys coconut caramel sauce was drizzled throughout the dish. Know this: Ice cream boosts the value of most any dessert. It certainly made this one complete, a welcome counterpoint to the warm dumpling.
My girlfriend pined for a scoop of ice cream with her ginger cake in cardamom sauce. The cake was overwhelming, and with its chocolate crust I couldn't help noticing a resemblance to a large Devil Dog. If you can't get enough ginger, it's the dessert for you. If you like a balanced combination of flavors to finish a meal, try the bombe instead.
Contact Christopher Yasiejko at 324-2778 or cyasiejko@delawareonline.com.
