Carrollton Market- Review

I decided to head over to the brand new Carrollton Market last night for a dinner date.

Made a last minute reservation for 7:00. It was not packed, but most of the tables were full.

I had dined at One, the previous occupant of this space, and the layout is largely the same. It does have a slighlty more formal feel, but it's not stuffy by any means.

They still have the open kitchen, and you could watch Chef Goodenough preparing every dish.

Started off with a couple of cocktails, Old Fashioned for me, and a lavender champagne cocktail for the lady.

We browsed the menu which has quite a few good looking options. We decided to order 5 appetizers to try as much as possible and passed on entrees.

We ordered:
"Hot Oil" tuna: was a slightly seared tuna served with Soy, Louisiana Citrus, Scallion, Sesame. It was a nice start, the citrus was very fresh and pronounced but nice to cut through the saltiness of the soy oil. I would have prefered the tuna completely uncooked but that's my opinion.

Grilled Mississippi Quail: with Brioche Pain Perdu, Pepper Jelly, Warmed Frisee. This was excellent. Quail was laid across the rich and soft pain perdue, and the pepper jelly gave the dish a little kick of freshness and heat.

Oysters Goodenough: Flash-fried Oysters, Benton’s Bacon, Creamed Leeks, Bearnaise. enough said. Excellent dish. Of course it's not new, but it has everything you want in a single bite.

Pan Roast Sea Scallop: Buttered Corn Bread, Roast Beef “Debris". This was the low point of the meal. I felt the scallop, which was small, had a fishy taste. It also was undercooked. The corn bread cake beneath the scallop was not given much attention by the kitchen. I did enjoy the "debris" as it was the only seasoned and executed item on the plate. This was truly a disappointment, considering how simple the dish is to pull off.

Braised Veal Cheeks: Celery Root Puree, Panko “Gremolata”, Red Wine Jus
This was excellent. It was a big appetizer, enough for an entree IMO. The puree was excellent and was a perfect vessel to carry the awesome wine jus. The cheeks were perfectly rendered, and as tender as can be. This dish is worth trying if you make it here.

We were both stuffed after the 5 dishes. I think this was a good way to try the menu. One thing that struck us both, we needed a veggie type side. Just to break up the meal. I realize they don't expect many people to order in this fashion but it would have been nice to pic some light veggies with our multi-app order. The service was excellent and I thought the price was reasonable. We got out under $120.

I would say give this place a try. It's only been open 1 week and will have some growing pains. But I say, to Tom Fitz.