Monday, March 29, 2010

Flyte World Dining and Wine

Posted by Heather / 4 comments » / $$$, american, gulch, recommended, romantic, sobro

We recently visited Flyte World Dining and Wine (Flyte for short in this post) and had a fantastic meal. We’re very excited to write about it here!

The restaurant is located just off the corner of Division and  8th Avenue South. Flyte’s website thoughtfully points out that if you’re using a GPS to find it you’ll have some difficulty, and so it’s best to consult a map before setting out for it. There’s a lot of valet parking, so much so that it seems that there’s nowhere for regular folks to park. But we parked on Division with no problem whatsoever.

When we arrived, we were greeted warmly and taken to our seat immediately (reservations are highly recommended). We were placed in a very comfortable corner spot of the banquette. Maybe it was the stark contrast to our really long work day we’d just endured, but everything about the seating made me say “ahhhh”, with its cozy corduroy cushions and comfy throw pillows. There is ample table seating as well, and all parties were comfortably spread out, making no one seem crushed into one particular service area. Even with a large dining group in the restaurant, I didn’t feel rushed at all or that our own experience was affected.

Our waiter was friendly and very, very helpful. The meal started with an amuse bouche (which we unfortunately cannot remember exactly what it was! But it was tasty.) There are several appetizers available along with a list of little dishes of hummus and other accompaniments. We ordered the hummus and it was very good – a nice lesser-expensive option if you’re hungry right off the bat. I was also eyeing a combo of appetizers for my main meal, so I was glad to have the option of some smaller items for true appetizers.

For my entree, I actually combined the Salad Flyte ($12), which is small servings of all three of Flyte’s salads, with the braised short rib ($14), all off the appetizer menu. It was more than enough for an entree and I was really happy with my choice. The Salad Flyte includes a smoked salmon salad, which has mixed mixed greens, fried capers, crème fraiche, a lemon emulsion, and croutons; salt roasted pear salad, which has arugula, candied shallots, homemade corn nuts, and bleu cheese; and roasted beet salad, made of baby Romaine lettuce, feta cheese, roasted beet carpaccio, beet marshmallows, and orange coriander vin. Each was fantastic in its own way, and I was struck most of all by the attention to the combination of textures. Each salad had something crunchy and something soft. Most amazing of all were the beet marshmallows, which gave a truly unique texture to that particular salad. The braised short rib was full of very strong flavors but a burst of gremolata kept it from being too heavy.

Josh had the steelhead trout ($28), which had with it maitake mushrooms, bok choy, napa, squash, bacon dashi (a traditional Japanese stock) and sesame flavors. He very much enjoyed his meal, although he was a bit overwhelmed by the very earthy aroma of the dish. But overall he liked it very much.

For dessert we chose opposing items. I had avocado pudding ($9) which came with a homemade citrus cracker and grapefruit and guava sorbets. It was very refreshing. But we both agreed that Josh got the best dessert item: the hot smoked cocoa ($9). It’s a pot of hot chocolate for which the cocoa is smoked, and it’s accompanied by homemade graham crackers and toasted marshmallow. The combo was delicious and we were licking our lips after finishing it (I’ll admit I stole more than a little bit of his dessert!)

All throughout the meal our waiter gave exceptionally helpful information and seemed to really care that we enjoyed ourselves. When I think back to our time at Flyte, I am struck by how comfortable we were there. The gentle atmosphere of comfy seating, soft lights, and helpful service really made us relax and we went away plotting when we’ll go back. Maybe we’ll take advantage of the three-course prix fixe meal for $35!

Flyte World Dining and Wine
8th Ave South and Division
615-255-6200
Tuesday-Thursday 5-9pm
Friday and Saturday 5-10pm

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