after dinner sneeze

t says:  a is a huge fan of soup.  Like a huge fan.  He could get soup in the middle of summer.  He could get soup in the middle of September, too!  So when faced with a choice of restaurant (and in an attempt to avoid Restaurant Week), we journeyed on out to Stock.

September 2014, Friday Dinner, Party of 4.  So, first things first, this place is TINY.  I don’t know the official seat count, but there was only one “large” table (it can accommodate four … maybe 6 in a pinch).   There’s also no reservations.  Oh, and if you do put your name on the list, there’s also no phone for them to call you back on – so they give you an estimated time to come back and you just show up on time.  While this sounds absolutely crazy – it turns out that they’re true to their word!  When we showed up, they were busy, so they said come back in an hour: we showed up at the suggested time and boom! there was an empty table – ready and waiting!  And while the rest of our party was assembling, we saw them turn away at least two groups of people!  What loyalty!  Love it.

raw cobia, with ginger, pomello, and dill. very fresh, slightly firmer than I expeced, and pieces rather haphazardly cut/presented. It could have been more finessed.

the main event: beef pho.  Best said by a: “Pho was good, but I’m sure there are Asian people doing it better”.  I would tend to agree.  While the noodle cookery was spot-on, and the herbs were as fresh as can be, I felt that the broth was a little lacking in oomph.  Like, when I was done eating, I had no desire to slurp up the remaining soup on my own.

sideways dessert: fresh and light and tasty, but, in the words of a: “nothing to make you slap your mother.”

They were so nice there! They accidentally forgot my cobia, so the server comp’d my dish – but really – it wasn’t a big deal!  And then the chef came out and also apologized for the wait – but in all honesty – we didn’t even notice!  Their thoughtfulness was as refreshing as their food.

So would we go back?  If they had different Pho, sure!  That’s not to say that we had anything bad – but we just want to see what more they can do.  Also – they were missing ALL banh mi’s that evening!  a was so sad – who knew a sandwich could have meant so much to him?  In any case, while there wasn’t one thing in particular that we’re going to be craving in our dreams, there was a lot of promise with the space and freshness that we look forward to seeing what they can do!