Grand Street Cafe

JJ and I always have such a hard time figuring out where we want to eat out on special occasions. For his birthday dinner, we wanted to try some place new. We have always heard that Grand St. Cafe had amazing food and when he suggested it, I was delighted. Grand St. is tucked away just east of the Country Club Plaza on the ground floor of a low-rise office building. The restaurant decor reminds me of one of my favorite classic restaurants in Charlotte, The Village Tavern. The food is much better, though. The casual, yet sophisticated surroundings really represent the food well. It is not pretentious or overly trendy. There are jagged-edged glass panels that allow you to view the busy kitchen area. We sat in a booth with plain view of the cooks in the kitchen which was kind of fun.

Looking at the menu, we began to salivate. Everything sounded delicious. We couldn't decide on one entree each, so we split three appetizers and split an entree. Our appetizer choices included Thai Style Shrimp Dumplings (in a lemongrass coconut cream), a Trio of Artisan Cheeses (with wild honey, seasonal fruit, and sunflower seed crackers) , and my favorite which was Maine Lobster Gnocchi (poached lobster and portabella mushroom in a lobster chervil cream). Our entree choice was Pan Roasted Duck Breast grilled with fig butter, a side of sweet corn souffle and butter braised green beans. The duck breast was lean and succulent. The sweet corn souffle was airy and rich and absolutely divine. We had not eaten a meal this good in a very long time. We hardly spoke the whole time because the food was so captivating. It is a bit expensive, but well worth it. I strongly suggest this restaurant if you have not been there. We plan to go back really soon.