Greenwich, Connecticut - July 2002
Dome
253 Greenwich Avenue
Greenwich, Connecticut
(203) 661-3443
My wife and I were seated at the bar, enjoying preprandial libations, attempting to finalize our dining plans for the evening. Would we cast our lot here at the Dome or seek a change of culinary venue? We'd heard marvelous reports about this eatery... but now, looking around, we were having second thoughts.
The restaurant's interior does resemble a dome -- several, actually -- done up in rather garish red and yellow brickwork... Add leopard skin carpeting, blue velvet banquettes, a wildly outrageous mural, and you begin to understand our reticence. And the character of the clientele gathered in the bar/lounge, while not quite as tacky as the décor, was still enough to give any serious diner pause. If this was the state of affairs at the front of the house, what horrors could one possibly expect from the nether regions of the kitchen?
In point of fact, we did vacant the premises briefly in order to spy out another establishment, which, we discovered, quite obviously catered to unsuspecting tourists in search of uninspired cuisine... So we quickly made our way back to the Dome... A most fortuitous decision.
The menu is a rather exotic international amalgam that meanders from down-home Maryland crab cakes to spicy tuna tempura & ahi tuna sashimi... from the ubiquitous linguine with white clam sauce to the enticing tea-smoked duck with baby bok choy and miso plum sauce.
If you're looking for a first-rate starter, the steamed Cantonese pork dumplings certainly fill the bill. They are accompanied by an array of Asian vegetables and a wonderfully pungent ginger soy broth. Equally appealing is the spicy orange and chili-glazed shrimp spruced up with scallions, baby corn, water chestnuts, and a soba noodle salad.
And speaking of salads, there are several outstanding choices here: Organic Mesclun with balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, and homemade potato chips; Romaine with creamy garlic dressing, Asiago chips and Pecorino Romano croutons; and a Mountain Gorgonzola Salad replete with Belgian endive, radicchio, and romaine lettuce leaves tossed with a red wine vinaigrette.
Entrée-wise, be sure to try the black pepper-crusted tuna. It is prepared rare, and slices are arranged like spokes of a wheel emanating from an epicenter of sautéed spinach. A sprinkling of shoestring potatoes and a lovely soy/black pepper sauce complete the delicious scenario. The pan-seared wild salmon is also a marvelous choice. Set on a luscious seabed of sun-dried mashed potatoes, it is garnished with baby zucchini and finished with a warm citrus vinaigrette. A rather strange combo, but it works beautifully.
Carnivores may feast on the likes of pan-seared filet mignon with Roquefort mashed potatoes and Napa Valley Merlot sauce or spice-rubbed Mediterranean lamb sirloin adorned with vegetables and mint cous-cous. For those who enjoy more simples pleasures, there is also the Jack Daniel's burger crusted with peppercorns and embellished with cheddar cheese and caramelized onions.
For dessert, you may partake of such exotica as chocolate banana brioche bread pudding with roasted banana gelato, Tahitian vanilla bean panna cotta with fresh berries, molten milk chocolate cake with malted milk gelato and peanut brittle, or a refreshing summer fruit soup with orange sorbet.
There is also a very nice wine list with some first-rate selections by the glass, as well as an impressive array of postprandial libations.
The Dome is a unique and most satisfying dining experience. I recommend it highly.
Bon Appétit!
The
Artful Diner
July 2002
