date: 10/5/04
location: minneapolis
grade: b+

i think most of us who attended were expecting... a bit of something else from sapor. not that it wasn't good...

some of the group had been there for lunch, and others had heard of the 'one bite, two bite' menu and from that information, one of the things we expected is that the prices for the rest of the food would be lower than they were. not that they were entirely out of line, but the dinner menu is limited, and none of the entree options were 'inexpensive' (but they were reasonable) and most of the apps were on the side of more spendy. perhaps we expected more options, as in the one bite, two bite menu, available in the bar only, or the prices to be more in line with the lower lunch cost.

anyway, the food was all pretty good. i got two apps instead of an entree. i had the last heirloom tomato salad ever... well, ever until next season. sapor uses in season, mostly local, fresh ingredients. alas, the other people at the table who ordered it only found out after i had mine that it was the last, so they had to choose something else (a hard task for the vegetarian who didn't want two mostly greens salads). it was very good, but as much as i adore fried cheese, it would have been better served to have the more traditional fresh mozzarella or something than fritters of ricotta and ... er... another cheese.

calamari was above average, it was done tempura style. it came with some marinated warm veg (carrots, onions) and a few bits of olives on it, plus one lemon wedge. it was generally agreed as good as the dish was, something to dip it in may have put it over the top.

those who ordered the beet salad were impressed by it, the duck entree was tender and tasty (and served with the onion-tasting unbloomed bulbs of the hyacinth plant, cippolini, if i recall correctly... you know where to find me if i'm wrong... heh), the carrot ginger soup a nice late summer into early fall dish. i wasn't too impressed with the buttermilk biscuits, served with olive oil and a nice white bean and artichoke heart (or something like that...) puree. the puree was a nice touch.

creme brulee was good, i think it was chocolate or mocha flavored. it came with some chocolate chip cookies, which were not quite sweet enough for me.

the + in the b is mostly service-related. the server was very good, friendly and competent without being fawning or overly eager. water was refilled pretty promptly and the fact that it had no ice in it was praised by those of us who don't like ice in our cold beverages (or hot ones, really...). after everyone had come, the server arranged the table so that the decor wasn't in conversation lines. nice touches.

the restaurant itself is calm, very feng shui, very zen, done in simple lines and earthy tones. alas, you have to trek to the bathroom, which is not one of my favorite things in the world and kind of ruins the calm, the fluorescent lights in the hallway. the handicapped accessible entrace is also a trek (and kind of hidden). i do realize that's what happens in older buildings that are redone for restaurants... etc.

it was nice that the place filled up a bit as the evening went on. i'd go back purposely, but probably during lunch or to the bar, as the one bite, two bite menu seemed something that's unique and interesting, whereas the dining room concept, as lovely as it is, didn't quite hook me into being a regular.