So we, (my girlfriend, and me) have been looking for a night to try Vermillion for a while. Both of us have been in the industry and we have heard mixed reviews, but mostly good regarding Tony Chittum's place on King St. Overall our experience was pleasant but there was a few hiccups.
We started with the the fried Dragon Creek Oysters over sliced fennel, and the Smoked Arctic Char with Latkes and Horseradish cream. Both dishes were excellent and the oysters were fried and seasoned perfectly, although we had expected them to be raw. I thought the horseradish cream could have used another small dollop of horseradish. We both ordered the Nebbiolo by the glass and it was excellent. It was very reminiscent of a southern California Pinot, medium bodied, fruit forward, soft and very drinkable. For our entrees, I ordered the Striploin medium rare, with parsnip puree, sliced cabbage and fingerling potatoes. It was a fantastic dish. However, my girlfriend's raviolo dish was slightly a disaster. The raviolo itself was very good, it was stuffed with a healthy amount of lobster and scallop mousseline, then surrounded with a "seafood" foam. However when the dish is presented, the server also poured and entire teapot of lobster bisque into the dish. This presentation might have some flourish, but it really looks dull in the plate, and it drowns out the delicious pasta, and dilutes the foam. In fact, it reduces the dish into the "what were they thinking?" category. The second hiccup was our service, our server was very pleasant, but overly-obsequious in execution. Sentences like "would it be acceptable if you allowed me to bring you some ice-water while you looked over the menu" seemed so forced it made us cringe. Relax, we're here to have a good time...Also, from the moment we were finished with our meal, until we had paid and left was almost thirty minutes. Our server left and didn't come back for quite some time twice after she had dropped off the dessert menu and check,respectively. We will come back as there was so many wonderful thing about the restaurant. Great decor, quiet upstairs dining, and good food and wine will all play a part in bringing us back.
