Beauty in Strength

Hello everyone, and Happy Monday!  How was the first day of the work week for you?  Today was an extremely busy day at school, but the warm weather kept my energy high!  It was almost 60 degrees in Jersey today, in January, so I had NO complaints.

Speaking of complaints, last night we decided to end the weekend going to a place we absolutely adored last time we went… 16 Prospect Wine Bar & Bistro.

As soon as we entered the warm and friendly atmosphere, we were seated and greeted by our extremely polite waiter.

After speaking to our knowledgeable waiter we decided to order a bottle of 2008 Castello Monaci Negroamari Maru from Puglia, Italy.  Following a taste, the waiter carefully poured the bottle into a decanter before serving us.   A medium-bodied, soft wine, similar to a Merlot, it was absolutely fantastic!

The menu at 16 Prospect is extremely extensive, offering a variety of small plates, salads, and entrees.  Although there were few vegan and gluten free options, with the help of our server,  I put together an appetizer and a salad to create myself a delicious and healthy meal.

I began with the appetizer I loved so much last time, the marinated and roasted artichoke hearts made with chopped tomatoes, extra virgin olive oil, garlic, and basil. I requested it without the freshly shaved parmigiano reggiano cheese, and they were still incredible!  As always, I lifted them out of their sauce and savored the fresh, rich, simple, quality ingredients.

Along with the artichoke hearts I ordered a simple tossed salad, which was mixed greens topped with red onions, black olives, cucumbers, tomatoes, pine nuts, and a little sprinkling of Daiya cheese.

I never even used the dressing.  The crunch of the pine nuts combined with the sweet tomatoes and salty olives really packed the salad with flavor!

Following our meal, we decided to have one more glass of wine before we left.  We asked the waiter if he had a recommendation, and he suggested two types, a Chianti and a Cabernet, which he found would appeal to palates such as ours.  After a taste of both, we decided on the Chianti, which was medium-bodied, light, and with a hint of cherry.

As we sipped on our glass of wine, we began discussing how tentative and wonderful the service was the entire night in addition to the food.  Unfortunately, there is a couple of restaurants where we still go to, where the service isn’t the best, but the foods make up for it, and then there are other restaurants that even though the food is excellent, we still won’t go to because of the awful service.  It made us question…when do you sacrifice service?  What is the limit for you?  Inattentive waiters?  Impolite waiters? When is the food worth it, or is it not?

Time for a shower folks – yoga today made me quite the sweaty one.

Question of the Day: Would you sacrifice service for great food?

Quote of the Day: “Exercise to stimulate, not to annihilate.  The world wasn’t formed in a day, and neither were we.  Set small goals and build upon them.” – Lee Haney