Starker's Reserve
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All in all, it was a wonderful experience at Starker's. We had a relaxed and elegant meal without stuffiness or pretense. The service was perfectly professional, and the lamb one of my greatest meals of all time. The dessert was not up to standards but next time I will choose more wisely. And there will definitely be a next time! Try the Lamb.
Atmosphere
I had walked by Starker's many times, but never stopped in. Although the store front is on the street level, the restaurant itself is actually on the second floor. To get upstairs, you climb a narrow stairway carpeted in dark red, and come out at the entrance of the dining room. Although Starker's has many rooms, most of them used for private dining, the main dining room is quite small, housing only 12 tables. On the left side, large windows overlook the Plaza. On the far wall is a very small and quaint bar with 3 stools. The cream and white walls are simple and clean, and the light wood chairs with blue plaid cushions give off the air of a sophisticated, yet casual, French farmhouse. Tables are dressed in white linen and a full setting with Blue and yellow china, several courses worth of silverware, and wine glasses. Small glass kerosene lamps on each table give off a soft romantic glow. Colorful china plates and vases line the walls, and a thick antique-red Persian carpet covers the blond wood floors. Decorative sconces complete the atmosphere with perfect lighting, dark enough for atmosphere, yet light enough to see the menu. Jazz music plays at a perfect level. The rooms are intimate and cozy, almost as if you are dining in someone's home.
Service
Although we went at a late hour and the restaurant was not busy, our service was impeccable, friendly and attentive, while also very professional. Our server was near every time we needed anything, and was well-informed and well-spoken, without being pushy.
Food
Although Starker's has a pre-fixed option of "3 for $33" we were not too impressed with the selection and, so, ordered off the regular menu. The menu is divided into 'Starker's Classics which, I take to mean things that are always on the menu, and 'Seasonal Favorites', items that change. Also on the menu is a list of the week's local food producers, such as Campo Lindo, Farm to Market, and Shatto Dairy, which I find a nice touch. To start, we were given a small 'shot' of a creamy potato-leek soup, compliments of the chef and, with the soup, thin slices of Farm to Market sesame bread and a ramekin of delicious whipped and unsalted (thank you!) butter. As an appetizer, we split the steak tartare ($12), raw steak ground and seasoned, topped with a raw Campo Lindo egg, and complimented by a small bowl of house-made potato chips. And, although the tartare was well-seasoned it, by it's nature, tends to be a little bland, so the crunchy and salty potato chips made a nice accompaniment. It also had a nice drizzle of olive oil on the plate, adding one more flavor dimension.
For entrees, I had the lamb ($32), beautifully seasoned with fresh herbs and salt and cooked to perfection. It had a nice salty crust on the outside, the inside was tender and flavorful. Along with it was a fresh herb and sea salt pesto, for lack of a better description, and a very green flan made of, I hope I remembered this correctly, dandelion greens and nettles, which was rich, intense, and earthy, full of flavor. Also coming with the lamb were sautéed black trumpet mushrooms with fava beans, a dish that looked like a clump of seaweed but tasted only slightly salty and chewy and was an excellent way to set off the slight gaminess of the lamb. This dish was so good I think I could eat it every night of my life! I will probably put it up there among my most favorite meals of all time. My companion had the KC strip steak ($29) which was inherently chewy but had nice flavor. Along with the steak was a shallow pan of creamed spinach which was nice but, in my opinion, was marred slightly by its crunchy topping. Sorry to say, his dish did not live up to mine. The only other criticism I can offer here it that both dishes were not very exciting to look at. There was very little color variation in either of our meals, mine looking almost like a St. Patrick's day special, with all it's green, and his just a plain brown all around. Too bad for that, a little punch of color may have made the dishes that much more exciting!
For dessert, I opted for the lemon pound cake with fresh berries and cream ($8). The cake, which had no lemon flavor that I could detect, was heavy and dull. I didn't even eat it and, believe me, when I don't eat cake, there's really something wrong!
The berries, however, were beautiful, a nice mix if strawberries, and blackberries, and the cream perfectly sweetened. I could've just stayed with that.
Starker's is famous for it's wine selection and, as you sit down, a huge book of wine is brought to the table. For me, it is too overwhelming to go through a book like that, so I opted for a cocktail. Glasses of wine are much easier to choose and the nice selection ranges from $9- $12.
For entrees, I had the lamb ($32), beautifully seasoned with fresh herbs and salt and cooked to perfection. It had a nice salty crust on the outside, the inside was tender and flavorful. Along with it was a fresh herb and sea salt pesto, for lack of a better description, and a very green flan made of, I hope I remembered this correctly, dandelion greens and nettles, which was rich, intense, and earthy, full of flavor. Also coming with the lamb were sautéed black trumpet mushrooms with fava beans, a dish that looked like a clump of seaweed but tasted only slightly salty and chewy and was an excellent way to set off the slight gaminess of the lamb. This dish was so good I think I could eat it every night of my life! I will probably put it up there among my most favorite meals of all time. My companion had the KC strip steak ($29) which was inherently chewy but had nice flavor. Along with the steak was a shallow pan of creamed spinach which was nice but, in my opinion, was marred slightly by its crunchy topping. Sorry to say, his dish did not live up to mine. The only other criticism I can offer here it that both dishes were not very exciting to look at. There was very little color variation in either of our meals, mine looking almost like a St. Patrick's day special, with all it's green, and his just a plain brown all around. Too bad for that, a little punch of color may have made the dishes that much more exciting!
For dessert, I opted for the lemon pound cake with fresh berries and cream ($8). The cake, which had no lemon flavor that I could detect, was heavy and dull. I didn't even eat it and, believe me, when I don't eat cake, there's really something wrong!
The berries, however, were beautiful, a nice mix if strawberries, and blackberries, and the cream perfectly sweetened. I could've just stayed with that.
Starker's is famous for it's wine selection and, as you sit down, a huge book of wine is brought to the table. For me, it is too overwhelming to go through a book like that, so I opted for a cocktail. Glasses of wine are much easier to choose and the nice selection ranges from $9- $12.
Cleanliness
As a restaurant of this calibre should be, it was perfectly clean.
Pros
Starker's provides a comfortable yet elegant environment with excellent service and delicious food.
Cons
The plates of food could use a little color boost. The pound cake wasn't worth the calories.
