Revolution in Durham

Jessica and I shared a post-Valentine's Day celebration at Revolution in Durham on Tuesday.  Revolution is a silver-medal restaurant from the News and Observer's 2011 restaurant list, and certainly did not disappoint.  Spatially, the restaurant is basically split in half; one being a fairly open, large bar space and the other being the compact seating area.  The tables are close together, making it feel almost like a NYC restaurant, and the decor is modern and trendy.  For a "random" Tuesday night, the restaurant was very crowded, although I suspect that was more a function of being so close to February 14th.

For appetizer, we split three different items; haystack shrimp, a sort of lobster "lasagna", and black trumpet mushroom tamales.  The portions for each were quite impressive (four U-12 shrimp, a 5" x 5" square of lasagna, and two full husks, respectively) and all of the dishes had a little twist from what you may typically expect.



Haystack Shrimp

 The haystack shrimp was served as four large shrimp covered with potato straw that was made to look like hay.  On top of each was a dollop of lemon aioli, and a sweet fruit side sauce was drawn across the plate.  While the shrimp were perfectly cooked, I felt they could have benefited from more seasoning.  This could have either been done directly on the shrimp, but maybe more effectively by seasoning the "hay" heavily with salt and pepper to carry the flavor over.  The hay itself was a challenging texture that didn't quite taste like potato, except once it was complete.  The dish was successful in twisting a traditional fried shrimp dish, but I felt it could have been far more successful had the "hay" been slightly more coarse and heavily seasoned.  With this one improvement, I really feel the dish would have gone from average to excellent.



Lobster "Lasagna"

 The second appetizer was a play on lasagna, and was offered as both an appetizer (one portion) and entree (two portions).  Thankfully, we saw the couple next to us order the smaller version as we were between the two so that we'd both get a taste.  The dish was fairly simple; a dough "envelope" was made and stuffed with lobster, ricotta, and chive, and served over a red sauce.  This large envelope was crispy on the outside and extremely creamy and flavorful when broken apart.  The red sauce that sat beneath was not quite a typical tomato sauce that would accompany most Italian dishes, but it still added the final touch to remind the diner that this was basically a modern lobster lasagna.  Both Jessica and I really enjoyed the combinations of flavors in this dish, and felt it stayed light even while being quite filling.

The black trumpet mushroom tamales were very good, even for someone like me who is not overly fond of mushrooms (or any vegetable).  Two full corn husks, packed with masa and mushrooms, were served over a charred tomatillo salsa that provided heat and a compliment to the surprisingly sweet flavor of the tamale.  Overall, I was pleasantly surprised with this dish, although I'd suggest slightly fewer mushrooms (and Jessica suggested more!).

Prosciutto-wrapped Monkfish

For dinner, I tried the monkfish special; the fish was wrapped in prosciutto and roasted, then served with fingerling potatoes in a carrot-infused butter.  I had never tried monkfish before, but the waiter suggested it to be a mild, white fish and I went with it.  I am glad that I did, as I would say this is the best fish dish I've ever tried.  The biggest surprise I had when I was served was the sheer quantity of fish; three large medallions, each probably 3-4 ounces.  The monkfish itself reminded me most of lobster (I was later told this fish is often called the "poor man's lobster" and I can see why); firm texture than most fish with a very subtle, sweet flavor that worked perfectly with the carrot-butter sauce.  The prosciutto wrapped on the fish added crispy texture and a great meaty / salty component.  Coins of fingerling potatoes were scattered on the plate, holding great flavor on their own and even more when soaked in the sauce.  The dish was truly perfect in every sense with each ingredient serving a dual purpose; amazing taste on their own and perfectly balance between all. 

Double Chocolate Mousse

Jessica did dabble into the dessert, and was served an excellent double chocolate mousse with raspberry sauce.  The two mousses, served as a layered cake, were white chocolate and milk chocolate, each infused with some of the raspberry flavor.  I tried a bite of the white chocolate version and really enjoyed the light texture and the strong flavor that it carried.  If memory serves me right, Jessica was able to finish the whole plate...

I could not recommend Revolution enough to anyone who has an interest in modern American cuisine.  Every dish we ordered was unique and changed slightly the flavors and textures that may be served by a more traditional restaurant.  My dinner special was particularly noteworthy, and while I cannot tell you to run out and get it next week or next month, I think the dish typified the creativity and flavor that Revolution is able to impart with everything on their menu.