What I Ate: January 16, 2010 (South Congress Cafe)

Dinner: Our friends Braden and Kelly came over, so we headed over to South Congress Cafe (1600 S Congress Ave, Austin, TX‎ - (512) 447-3905‎) for dinner. To start, Braden ordered a Pan-Seared Tuna Salad (marinated ahi seared rare served on a bed of field greens, pear tomatoes and garden fresh veggies. finished with jicama, tortilla confetti, sesame seeds, and spicy avocado vinaigrette, $14) which looked and tasted great. They also ordered the Gumbo with Duck & Oysters which Tina and I had on a previous visit.

We ordered the Calamari (semolina breaded sliced calamari steaks served with an orange ginger red chile sauce, $12) as our appetizer because we found out that Braden had never had soft and tender calamari before. Squid is chewy when raw and chewy when fully cooked - but when cooked just right it's very tender and soft - almost like warm mozzarella cheese but less sticky.

I had the Rosemary Candied Pecan Lamb (two double cut australian lamb chops coated with honey and rosemary candied pecans, served with garlic mashed potatoes, grilled asparagus and four pepper demi glace, $26) which was tender and flavorful. The flavor of the lamb worked well with the sweetness of the glaze but I wished the mashed potatoes were a little stronger tasting.

Tina ordered the Trout Almondine (a pan-seared rainbow trout with lump crab meat, toasted almonds, and chipotle lime brown butter. served with a duo of poblano and saffron rice and vegetables du jour, $21) which we had in November. The trout was very good, but Tina wasn't as enthusiastic about it as the last time we had it. She thinks she might have been in the mood for pasta (she was debating between getting the trout or the Angel Hair Salsa Fresca with Shrimp).

Braden and Kelly had the Wild Mushroom Asparagus Risotto and the Duck Breast with Spaetzle & Mustard Cream which we have had on our previous visits. They liked both dishes.

Lunch: We had HEB tamales for a quick lunch.