Thursday, August 24, 2006

Dinner at Valeriano's Ristorante

Tonight, I celebrated this week's triple poker session win streak by eating at a restaurant I've been meaning to try for some time... Valeriano's Ristorante in downtown Los Gatos. I must say that I had an amazing meal tonight. Everything we ordered was great.

We started off with their Calamari appetizer, and boy, was that delicious. It was just so good. The squid was fried to perfection. It was light and flaky with a hint of lemon and some other spices. The dipping sauce was light tasting, which I very much prefer. QB wasn't as impressed with the sauce, but she agreed that the calamari itself was excellent.

For our main course, I had the Filet Mignon with Portobello Mushrooms in a red wine sauce. It was fantastic. I really don't want anyone to think I'm exagerrating, but the meat was so tender and cooked exactly as you would expect it would be in the best of all possible worlds. The sauce was rich and flavorful, and while it might have been a touch on the salty side, it was incredible. I'm still in shock.

QB had a Risotto and Rock Shrimp dish. I had a couple of bites, and that too, was unbelievably good. As soon as you put a forkful in your mouth, your taste buds were greeted by a medley of different flavors. After having just a couple of bites, I immediately wondered if this is how some of those Iron Chef dishes with the odd ingredient pairings would taste.

The portions were sizeable, and so we skipped on the dessert. There will be a next time. That much, I know. So, the review of some desserts from Valeriano's will have to wait until then.

Also, the prices were quite reasonable for the quality of food and the excellent service we received. Not once did we have to ask for any beverage assistance, and we were checked up on regularly, but not so often as to be annoying. I highly recommend this restaurant if you are ever near the Los Gatos area.

On a final note, it seems that the restaurant bar is a pretty popular place to socialize. It was packed with an older, richer, and sophisticated crowd. Everyone seemed to be having a wonderful time drinking and chatting. Neither QB nor I would fit in, so that's one part of the establishment that we would probably not check out.

Anyway, it's time to kick back and finish off the evening with a nice glass of bock beer.

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