The French Laundry

So I’m a cliché, I admit it. I start a blog and barely update it. I blame my pure laziness, not my lack of interest. Trust me, I still love food and the city. I’ve been eating my way around town. Maybe I was too full to write? Eh, whatever the reason, you don’t care and, well, I don’t really care that you don’t care…so I say we stop with excuses and move on to the food…

Every now and again when my friends are contemplating something to do, I throw out the “Wanna go check out that French Laundry restaurant?” And every time the response is a whiny “Buttttt it’s too far” (which ever friend is reading this, I’m not talking about you…it was the other one..haha). So what do I do about that---drag my boy toy (BT)!

So, we made the hour long trek to The French Laundry in Fenton. Side note before I get to the restaurant: being that I’ve never been to Fenton, I was really surprised by all the beautiful historic homes. I’m a sucker for a good ol’ home. They just don’t make houses like they used to. Resume blog: Okay, so I’ve been hearing some good stuff about this restaurant, and as soon as I walked in I knew it wasn’t just a bunch of b.s. It was the kind of place that I would own, if I were to ever win the lottery. It has that local diner feel to it, but not in a cheesy way. The furniture was a smorgasbord of fun….tables and chairs not matching and in every nook of the place. I kind of felt bad for the people who were sitting right behind the hostess stand because I was staring at their food…contemplated asking them if I could join in on their dinner because I was starving and we had to wait 45 minutes. The display of food goodies to purchase occupied my time. They sold microbrew beers, preserves, Zingerman’s baked goods, etc. There was also a chalkboard of headlines in the dining room that I thought were fun.

One thing in particular I have an appreciate for is the fact that they use local ingredients….even the salt and pepper shakers were from Milford Spice Company…double points for that! I especially love that all the beers on tap are from Michigan microbreweries. They even have a firkin of beer. Not only do I love saying “firkin”, but I love when restaurants offer it.

On to the menu….they had me at “Short rib sloppy joes sliders with bleu cheese slaw.”

After falling in love with the first item on the menu, I knew it would be trouble deciding on my entrée. We’ve already established that I love food with a passion….so you combined that with the fact that all I had for that day was a small breakfast and that I spent the past 45 minutes drooling at the couple behind the hostess station while they ate …you end up with one hungry dame who is looking for a three course meal. We decided to go with my first love, the sliders for an appetizer. Short ribs were very tender, and the brioche bun was perfect for it. Only complaint was that it could have been a little hotter….in temperature and in spice level. It was served with Tim’s Chips….not gonna lie, they were good…but a little disappointed they weren’t Bettermade.

Next, our Turkey Chili and Caesar Salad was served. I enjoyed my Turkey Chili and I snagged a forkful of Caesar Salad that I was impressed with. I can’t stand when there’s too much dressing on a Caesar Salad…this one was well balanced.

If I only could eat 5 things for the rest of my life, I would pick goat cheese, scallops, nutella, fresh pita bread from Yazmeen bakery, and gelato…obviously not together. Because the Pan Seared Sea Scallops with Goat Cheese Risotto had two out of the five items, it was like an entrée that was specifically made for me. I was almost strayed way by the Eggplant Parmesan, Grilled Atlantic Salmon with Ancho Chile and Ginger Glaze or the Quinoa Stuffed Acorn Squash (loved that they had a decent vegan entrée on the menu). My BT selected the Cassoulet. My entrée was too die for, but then again I do love goat cheese and scallops. Everything from the risotto, mushrooms, and scallops were cooked to perfection. I kind of wish I was a bit more adventurous with my selection. As for the Cassoulet, it was good, but not my cup of tea. It’s one of those entrees that you can’t blame the restaurant for, it simply wasn’t right for you. It’s what I like to call the “It’s not you, it’s me” entrée (see El Brazon post for reference). With both entrees, it was apparent that fresh ingredients were used, there was depth to the taste, and care was put into making the entrees.

For dessert, we had the strawberry apple pie. They make their pies from scratch. The picture will tell you that we did enjoy it.

One last thing that I appreciated about The French Laundry was the service. I can see how some people would get annoyed with this, but I like when the server takes their time serving the meal. Our server took into consideration the timing of serving each course to not be overwhelmed.

Overall, The French Laundry was worth the drive and the wait. It was a bit overpriced, but then again you can tell they use fresh, quality ingredients. I would like to go back to try breakfast and lunch selections. Let the whining begin!

The French Laundry deserves 4 forks out of 5!