One thing people may not know about me is that I love surprises. I was certainly surprised when I dined at Late Harvest Kitchen.
My foodie friend, Adrienne, is always on the hunt for new restaurants serving exciting fare, so when we made plans to have dinner at the new Keystone Crossing area restaurant I knew it was going to be special.
The culinary experience began immediately as I entered the contemporarily decorated entrance. The architecture allows you to see parts of the restaurant but allows diners a quiet, private meal. (I hate restaurants whose entrances allow people to stare at me while I eat. Kudos to whoever designed this nursery turned restaurant.)
Although the restaurant is composed of both tables and booths, our private nook near the fire place felt pristine and elegant. The green girl in me loves the fact that parts of the restaurant contain reclaimed wood and brick.
This green attitude is also reflected in the menu that serves local, organic seasonal American cuisine.
Late Harvest Kitchen’s menu changes daily to reflect the market and season, but no matter what you order, it is served to perfection.
My friend and I started our meal with a basket of bread and butter. The bread was fresh and came with whipped herb butter that made me want to devour the whole basket.
As we surveyed the menu for our entrée, our waiter was experienced and attentive and answered all of our questions.
Late Harvest Kitchen does offer small plates for folks that want to graze, but my appetite was too big for a small plate. My eye went straight to the big plates where I contemplated ordering the Fischer Farms pork chop or the saffron risotto. Our waiter alerted us to a second, special menu that featured a three-course special for $30.
After much deliberation, I chose the special – gumbo as my second appetizer, the chicken schnitzel and the famously decadent toffee bread pudding.
When my gumbo arrived at the table, I thought it was going to make me lose my appetite, but surprisingly, this gumbo was thinner than traditional stew and was the perfect start to my meal.
The chicken schnitzel had the perfect size helping of Brussels sprouts, spaetzle (a type of German dumpling) and dill to accompany the fresh tasting chicken.
The portion size was big enough to share, but the toffee bread pudding was so good, you may not want to share.
Late Harvest Kitchen is definitely on my “go-back-to” list. I loved the décor, the staff and the food. Plus it was the perfect blend of fine dining and a neighborhood restaurant.
