[...as opposed to the "same old" Saturday night of which Frank Sinatra sang...]
As I mentioned yesterday afternoon, my visiting friends and I had plans to go to Zocalo on the Downtown Mall here in Charlottesville for dinner. Here are the photos and the food reviews. 
Zocalo, as far as I can ascertain, is sort of a Mexican/Spanish/Southwestern/Deep South fusion restaurant. The menu is full of things like chorizo-braised collards, smoked tomato grits, and manchego cheese bread pudding, with chile and spicy peppers making cameos all over the place, which taken together make for an interesting combination of what you would think of as the traditional elements of those aforementioned cuisines.
I, of course, was compelled to order a Ginger Mojito (oh how I love a good mojito…and anything with ginger usually makes me happy), but I rationalized that I’d rather spend money on ordering more food, since I’d probably not even finish the drink anyway…but, I did make a note to self that I should try that drink concoction at home some time.
I settled on water with dinner, and, of course, asked for extra limes.
There were two trays of Vella Jack Cheese Fritters ordered for the table. Bridget let me taste one of hers, and, as she said, it tasted like “a hushpuppy with cheese.” [Translation: awesome.]
They were really tasty, and I really liked the sweet-hot pairing of the raspberry chili sauce underneath, but fried foods tend to make my stomach not-so-happy, so I basically just had a little bite of the filling.
When it came time to order our entrees, I knew I was going to go the “order two apps” [appetizers, not programs for your IPhone] route, as it would end up costing about the same, and then I could try more tastes! (This is always my ultimate goal…especially when you are dining in a large group of people who may or may not appreciate you reaching over to take bites off of their plates….)
I questioned the waitress about the Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with lump crab and cilantro oil, but I sensed the subtle-but-present hesitation in her slightly wavering, “It’s good.” When I asked about the Spicy Tuna Tartare (which they spelled tartar…really? Let’s get it right, people…I want raw tuna, not tuna covered in white pickle sauce), she got super-psyched and said it was her favorite, so I knew I was on the right track.
This was amazing…perfect amount of spice and the cucumber relish added a nice, cool, crispness. I also really liked pasilla-negra vinegar drizzled about. (There were also some dollops of supposed tequila crema, which tasted like plain old sour cream to me…)
Additionally, the waitress, had told us about the special appetizer of the evening, which she referred to as a “Local Salad,” with asparagus grown near Richmond, sliced red peppers, crispy Serrano ham (made in Surry, VA), and….hearts of palm (?!) As excited as I was about the hearts of palm (I cannot resist them, as you know), I had to question how “local” this salad really was. Last time I checked, we do NOT have hearts of palm growing in the Shenandoah Valley. I was willing to concede the point, and ordered the salad anyway.
BEST dish of the evening. Seriously, I do believe you should always order the special. This motto has never failed me, not once. I will call this a Asparagus & Hearts of Palm Salad with Serrano Ham Crisps (and lemon vinaigrette). I didn’t actually finish it, but saved half to bring home for lunch some time this week.
Bridget ordered the Corn and Black Bean Relleno, with smoked tomato cheese grits and cilantro-buttermilk honey (see what I mean about the Mexican/Deep South fusion? do we call this Mex-uthern cuisine? just muthern?)
Lizzy and Annie both ordered the Key Lime Chicken, but Lizzy substituted the manchego cheese bread pudding and herb polenta fries for her sides…
…while Annie kept the dish “as is,” with black bean rice and avocado salad.
I tasted Annie’s sides, and I must say they were fabulous. I especially liked the chili-arbol vinegar with the avocado salad…it tasted like an amped-up and more delectable Mexican ketchup.
Josh ordered the Seared Duck Breast, which came with the manchego cheese (corn?) bread pudding and apple chutney/compote, as well as chorizo-braised collards, which were exceptionally good, albeit a little too oily for my taste, and I wouldn’t have wanted more than a few bites. [Considering that Josh and I have only met on approximately three occasions, I truly appreciated his willingness to let me taste his food. ]
The whole crew…
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Woo-hoo, love the pics! Making me hungry again…