Restaurant Week Review: Jasper's

Last night we went to our first-ever Restaurant Week dinner. It's a great way to try out some of DFW's top-flight restaurants at a fixed price, while also contributing to a great charity.

Early last month, I pulled the list of participating restaurants and culled those that I've already been to for one function or another, sending the remainder to my husband for his selections. We agreed on two: Jasper's and Abacus. We'd heard that reservations could be tough to come by, so we opted for an early seating (5:30) on an off-night (Tuesday) for both restaurants.

We arrived a few minutes early and were taken right to our table. The restaurant has a very cool modern feel - lots of dark wood, amber and cool green tones, modern art, metal and bamboo. Overall, very comfortable yet chic.

Our waitress, Gretchen, was helpful and on top of things. She was supported by an unbelievable wait staff. Water glasses never went beyond half-full, plates were cleared quickly and unobtrusively.

And the food! My goodness...!!

For his three-course meal, Kelly had:

• Crispy Calamari - he said the sauce put this over the top. In his words: "This is incredible!!"
  
• Hickory Grilled Flat Iron Steak - grilled medium, wonderfully flavored and tender. The mashed potatoes weren't anything special, but the plate was well balanced.
  
• Stone Fruit Buckle - pecan cake layered with peaches and ice cream
  

For my three-course meal, I had:

• Jasper's Caesar Salad - good thick slices of Parmesan cheese accented the salad where each green was completely coated with dressing.
  
• Pan Seared Salmon - cooked to the chef's suggested. It was crispy on the outside edges, moist and tender inside. The star of the plate, for me, was the mascarpone polenta. It was nutty, creamy and delicious.
  
• Butterfinger Creme Brulee - A fairly standard, though well-done creme brulee. The butterfinger, on the other hand, was outstanding. It had all the flavor of a Butterfinger, but was slightly softer and easier to eat. I think I'm going to have to add it to my list of things I want to eat just before I die.
  

If I could have changed one thing, it's this: our table was near the kitchen (no problem there) and we were subjected to the wait staff's pep talk about providing good customer service even though they all hate Restaurant Week. That's a little bit of a bummer to overhear...kind of like standing around the corner when you hear a friend talk about you behind your back.

Even despite this small downer, it was all in all a fantastic way to kick off Restaurant Week!!