Night Out :: The Bearded Frog

For my birthday dinner this year, my boy took me to The Bearded Frog in Shelburne, VT. For starters, we ordered the graham cracker crusted calamari, which comes on a bed of greens and drizzled with two delicious sauces: a "lime & chive emulsion" and a dark, mysterious second sauce ($8, and 8 well-spent dollars at that). My boy had the perfectly-cooked pork chop, marinated in buttermilk, the served atop two large cheddar and bacon hashbrowns and topped with "apple & orange marmalade" ($20). I opted for the roasted duck breast, which is served with a mushroom bread pudding (a schmancier way to get good old stuffing on the plate -- the size of the bread pudding was a little too large in my opinion, but nonetheless decadent), haricot vert (skinny green beans) and a cherry purée ($23). Interestingly enough, I had ordered a glass of tempranillo (Spanish red wine -- $10 for the glass) which had a hint of cherries. The wine went perfectly with my food. =) To round out the meal, my boy ordered a slice of the flourless chocolate cake ($7 and accompanied by a delicious strawberry sauce and a scoop of vanilla ice cream) and I ordered the pumpkin pie tart (also $7, topped with cranberry sorbet and served over a swirl of wine reduction). All in all, the service left a little to be desired (either they were a bit understaffed, or we got the young-adult treatment) and there was more time between courses than we had hoped. However, the deliciousness of the food made up for it.