Deda

I know, I know.  A bit of a gap since last I blogged.  And yes, I am sorry.  But honestly?  Quiet week, not much going on.  And that's a good thing.  Oh, my step count is up, that's something, but hardly worth a blog entry.

I have been in the habit recently of blogging whole weekends in one go, but I'd like to single out dinner tonight in its own entry.  A newer Pasadena restaurant, a cuisine that is new to us.  Deda, a Georgian restaurant.  No, not the deep south state but the country in the Caucasus.

The three of us chose the dining spot because our focus today was a movie over at the Landmark.  Today's viewing?  Marty Supreme.  We all agreed that our dinner was a far far better experience than the movie.  Sorry, but true.  Can't wait to discuss that at our online drinks tomorrow!  Anyway, it was a short walk over to Deda after the movie.  We were quickly seated for our reservation, admiring how the place had been reshaped since the (not good) steakhouse days we each remembered it as from before.

Cocktails!  Poor Conrad.  He ordered a martini, dry, and had to send it back to be remade drier.  That then happened again.  So, note to Conrad:  do not order martinis there in the future.  To their credit, the server got that taken care of without fuss each time, which we all appreciated.  Van had a drink made with chacha, a Georgian brandy, and liked it enough to order a second.  Beautiful design on top of that drink! 

I had the Black Sea Smoke, a mezcal drink with blackberry syrup.  I was a little worried it would be sweet, but it was nicely balanced. 

I ordered a second.  I kind of wish we'd explored the Georgian wines, but maybe another time.

Our server gave us recommendations, and largely we stuck to them.  The menu was mostly unfamiliar, though I had some notion of what lobio (which we didn't order) was.  The food, though?  All of is was good.  We agreed that we'd reorder the warm eggplant salad

and the Imeruli Khachapuri, a disc of baked dough filled with cheese on a future visit.  Really really good.  I liked the Chicken Baje,

though Van found the walnut taste too strong.  The Lamb Abkhazura was fine,

but the pickled jonjoli accompanying it was a bit unusual for Conrad.  The Pork Mtsvadi was the weakest dish with the potatoes outshining the grilled pork chunks. 

I thought that the Georgian Donuts “Ponchiki” for dessert were fine, a bit plain, but a nice ending to the meal.

All in all, a very good meal.  It was exciting to try some new things, and the menu promised a lot more to try in the future.  And there will be a future.  For us, and for them, that is - the restaurant was bustling!  But yes, we liked what we had and would be glad to go back.  Hooray for having a new option to turn to for dining in Pasadena.