http://www.restaurantjamesrandall.com/Home.htmlToday is Alicia's birthday, and for that she got to pick a restaurant that she has been wanting to go to: James Randall in Los Gatos. It's a cozy place with 14 tables, half of them with seating for just two. They do a small plates menu, not exactly tapas but they recommend 5-6 plates per two people. So what did we get?
We started with a cheese plate and a meat plate. The cheese plate came with a nice bleu cheese, a type of Parmesan, and something that was like a brie. They were accompanied with dried fruit and spiced pecans (very good) and warm bread on the side. The sliced meat had only two selections (was supposed to have three). They were dry Italian style Sopressata type meats. They came with dried fruit and warm bread as well. They were both good with one clearly above the other in taste. A good way to start the meal; meat, cheese, and bread.
Alicia had a white wine and I just had water. They wanted 7$ for bottled beers and the wines were pricey. I like to try different beers and wines but don't appreciate exorbitant mark up and decided to pass. After the meat and cheese we got our next two dishes. Delicatta Squash pancakes and fried chicken and waffles. The pancakes were nicely cooked, crisp on the outside and tender inside. They came with apple sauce and a sour type creme. They were nice with the creme but the apple sauce didn't seem to complement the pancakes. I ate the rest without the apple sauce. What can I say about the chicken and waffles. It was the first time I've had that combination so I guess saying it was the best chicken and waffles I've had doesn't mean much. I don't see how this dish could have been improved at all. The chicken was fried perfectly. It had a beautiful rich brown battered crust surrounding the tender dark meat. It was nice a crisp and not greasy, exactly what fried chicken is supposed to be. Not only that, this came on top of a crisp waffle with a slab of herb butter to spread over it. In between the waffle and chicken was perfectly coked Swiss Chard with bits of bacon that were cooked together and finished with something sweet (maple syrup maybe?). I really wish I ordered two of these. It was the highlight of the meal. Okay, the final two dishes of dinner were a spicy tuna tempura roll and gnocchi with mushroom. I made a mistake here. These two dishes came out together and do not go well with each other. Eating a couple bites of gnocchi and then having a piece of sushi was really disjointed. I should have got the halibut with vegetables instead of tempura. The tempura roll was okay, it was quite spicy (too spicy for Alicia) but I've had better and regretted ordering it. The gnocchi was made well and cooked well. It came with nice chunks of cooked mushrooms and was in a very rich and creamy sauce. It was a little too rich for me although I don't know if it was the food or just that I was getting full by this time. So if you're getting full that means no desert right?
For desert we got a brownie with salted peanuts, caramel, and marshmallow fluff. The brownie was rich, I loved the caramel and salted peanuts and Alicia loved the marshmallow fluff. The fluff was a mix between liquid and solid, interesting. I only wish the brownie was served warm. Oh yeah, we got a chocolate torte with white chocolate bourbon ganache. No that's not overkill, that's just celebrating a birthday you know?. So we taste the torte and it tastes exactly how I thought it would. Alicia says the same and we keep taking bites of it. Then I remark that it's like eating a truffle. Alicia says this is the smoothest torte she has had. The more we eat it the more we like it. By the end I think that was one of the best chocolate tortes I've had.
So the prices look reasonable when you see the menu but you have to remember they are all small plates. The bill was 96$ without tax (4$ for a bag of tea? What?) So it came to 60$ a person with tax and tip. This is pricey. At the same time though we got to try eight different things. If you are the kind of person that likes to try some of this and that well have I got the place for you. It's called James Randall in Los Gatos. The only drink you should have there is tap water. This is a cozy place with friendly staff and some good food to boot.