La Laiterie

This is a really hard post to write, because revisiting all the deliciousness makes my stomach growl and my heart yearn for the meal all over again. I have been waiting to go to La Laiterie for a long, long time. It is right in my neighborhood, but various reasons have kept Andy and I from going- fear of long wait times, fear of spending too much money...

But, my parents were in town (abolishing the fear of money), and we decided to go early on a Thursday (hopefully eradicating the fear of waiting). We had absolutely no wait, and we arrived at about 6:30. After salivating over the beautiful menu, we decided we could not resist the charcuterie plate and a sampling of cheeses.

Here is the charcuterie:

The offerings change daily, but from left to right we had: chorizo, pork rillette, house-made pork and chestnut sausage, and duck pate. The accompaniments were an apple mustard, cinnamon butter, and a selection of various pickled jalapenos, sweet pickles, and red onion. This was really phenomenal. The crowd pleaser was the pate, but the pork rillette also had a wonderful salty flavor and great, tender texture which went well with the sweet butter.

For our cheese plate, we let the cheesemongers do their job and pick out three of their favorites:

This is an awful picture, but the cheese included a Montgomery cheddar and a Bonne Bouche goats milk. Alongside the cheese were house-made nuts and dressed microgreens. The goats milk (to the right) was the winner for this plate- it's creamy texture and pungent taste and flavor made it also the most unique.

Because my mom and I could not fathom just trying one thing each off of the menu, we decided to split both the baked cheesemonger's mac n' cheese:

and the 1/2 pound Vermont burger:

These were the best two options. I think they may be the shining stars on the La Laiterie menu. The mac n cheese was crispy and bubbly on top, and the noodles were swimming in a smooth and creamy sauce. This looked like a huge portion, but once we all started taking bites of it it seemed to vanish quite quickly. We got the burger with gorgonzola cheese (the other options are cheddar or raclette), which was a great compliment to the sweet pickles atop the burger and the cheese provided an extra lick of saltiness that I loved. Then, there were the polenta fries- huge, piping hot alternatives to the potato fry. I love that La Laiterie chose to do something different with their burger and that they added a garlic aioli as an alternative to ketchup.

My dad also had the burger, but Andy went with the grilled statler chicken breast:

The chicken came atop sweet potato gnocchi, roasted root vegetables, and mustard jus. He thought all of the flavors came together really well, and that it was necessary to take a little piece of everything in each bite to get the full effect. I didn't try any of it because I was too engrossed in my mac n' cheese, but now looking at the presentation of it, I certainly wish I had.

I was pre-warned that I must order dessert if I go to La Laiterie because Kate, one of the owners, is a pastry master. So, I pre-warned my fellow dinner mates as well and we ordered both the gingerbread bread pudding with eggnog ice cream:

And the espresso cream cheese brownie sundae:

I thought the bread pudding was the most memorable of the two because it's texture was perfect and the eggnog ice cream was a taste of heaven. The bread pudding didn't have too powerful of a gingerbread flavor- just a nice hint to remind me of winter and festive eating. I also thought the presentation was a tribute to La Laiterie- simple, but certainly eye-pleasing.

I could go on and on about the experience at La Laitiere. The service was wonderful. We had a great waiter who wasn't overly attentive- but was enthusiastic about the restaurant. All of the employees were eager to please and come together to provide a sumptuous dining experience. The dining room is cozy and not too loud, and both the food menu and drink menu were impressive and wonderfully simpatico.

Needless to say, I will be going back. As soon as I can!

Comments

[Lydia]

One of my favorite places. The mac and cheese is beyond compare!

[Jennifer]

I told you... they are an awesome restaurant and I'm glad you didn't have a wait! Isn't the mac and cheese to die for?!!!

[Steph]

Mmmm. Can't wait to try this place. I love Farmstead. It is with baited breath that I am awaiting your blurb about Gracie's too!
By the way, I tried El Rancho Grande this past weekend with the better half and we both loved it.

[cheryl]

my mouth is watering for the meal all overagain, a very accurate accounting for a wonderful meal and time!

[steve]

I'm curious to know if you found the cheese starter a bit on the small side? Four of us -- not terribly big eaters -- dined there last fall and thought that the cheese plate hardly gave one enough to get a sense of the cheeses, let alone to share. At least that was our thought. Still, in all other aspects you are right on the money about this place. Another great dining experience on the East Side.

[Amateur Cook]

Yeah the mac n cheese pic caught my eye too. But I wouldn't be sharing it with anybody!