You may recall that we spent some time at Foxwoods as recently and January of this year. This is not because we’re avid gamblers, I’m much too cheap of a New Englander to play the slots. I’d rather place my bet on a Bulleit Manhattan. I know for sure that that will pay off. The reason for the previous trip was to take the kiddos to see a comedian and have a very cla-ssy dinner at the Paragon, the premier dining spot in the casino. That dinner unfortunately went all pear-shaped. You can refresh your memory HERE. After we returned from that trip I shared my disappointment with the management at Paragon. They were quite apologetic and offered to send us a gift certificate to make up for the evening. My wheels started turning and vóila! we had an anniversary trip planned around cashing in on said gift certificate and visiting nearby Mystic. Now, you are up to speed.
Because we would be touring around Mystic, I didn’t want to be tied down to a specific reservation time. I figured we could just pop into the lounge for a late dinner. The amount on the gift card was only enough for a couple of drinks and appetizers anyway. They weren’t THAT sorry. First off though, we moseyed into the Hard Rock Café to have a glass of wine and drop a card to the entertainment manager. Always be scouting!
Hard Rock Stage set up for later in the evening.
Cabernet to start the night.
Turns out that they were hosting a guitar Karaoke later on in the evening. Perfect! We would come back later and lay down a tune or two. We finished our aperitifs and made our way to the Pequod Tower and up the exclusive elevator to the tippy top Paragon! Here’s where the story turns tragic. We stepped off of the elevator to be greeted by this:
The upholstered, tufted, leather doors were locked up tight. It was CLOSED!
Turns out they are only open Thursday through Saturday. The whole reason we planned to come here was kiboshed. I’m savvy enough to know that high end restaurants are often time closed on Sundays and Mondays, but this was a Wednesday, people! Unbelievable!
We took in the stunning view whilst I calmed myself down.
There was no use bewailing about this (anymore than I already had). We set about finding another place worthy of a 26th Anniversary dinner. We landed at Al Dente an Italian eatery.
The menu had all the usual suspects. No surprises.
Here’s where that Manhattan comes into the story. He’s the hero.
We started with a Charcuterie and cheese plate.
Gorgonzola Dolce, Aged Asiago, Daily Fresh Mozzarella, Prosciutto di Parma, Sopressata, Coppa, Mortadella, Olives, Eggplant Caponata, House-Cured Tomatoes & Peperonata.
This salty, garlicky block of bread was gratis.
There were some very tasty morsels here, I especially loved the Sopressata and Coppa, but there just wasn’t very much of either. It also turned out that there were two olive heavy components, and I really don’t care for olives. My bad, it was plainly stated on the menu. I admit, I skimmed it.
We chose a special addition as our main course, so I don’t have an exact description.
Lobster Risotto with Morrel Mushrooms and Spring Peas.
The flavors here were gorgeous. The lobster was butter-poached and extremely tender. The silken sauce was luscious and the mushrooms and peas added a perfect balance of sweet and savory to the dish. The risotto was a let down. Though it was tasty, it was just rice. It’s very rare to get that creamy texture of risotto. It’s either mush, or under done, as this was. That said, it was entirely enjoyable.
I have to admit that the Paragon might have had the right idea. This place was DEAD. There were maybe two other tables occupied during the whole evening.
Helloooooo!
We decided we had enough energy and not too many cocktails to participate in the Guitar Karaoke back at the Hard Rock.
Back at the ole’ watering hole.
The deal here is that they have a guy who’s basically a human jukebox and can play anything on guitar. Folks can come up and take the mic with his accompaniment. The waitstaff were the main participants and they were all darn good! We asked if it was ok if Jeff played instead which was cool with him. We played a song to which I received the most “damning with faint praise” type compliment ever. “Give ’em a hand guys, It’s not easy to sing Whitney Houston.” Oof. I think we’re done here.
G’night, arrow god dude.
We drove back to the Whalers Inn and left the car for an evening stroll. I failed to mention that the weather was just perfect the entire trip. We found a suitable Irish Pub for a snifter of Whiskey before calling it a night.
The Harp and Hound.
Two snifters of happiness.
You may assume that we could just go ahead and use spend our apology money the next day, but we already had other adventures planned. As of this dateline there’s still a meal to be had. When that will be, I have no clue.
Up Next: More aquatic creatures than you can shake a flipper at.