9th Door to My Stomach

So Amber, our dear friend Catherine, and I went to The 9th Door, a tapas place on Lincoln. Now as a huge foodie, tapas is my dream because instead of only trying one food that may or may not change my life, I get to sample a bunch of foods that hopefully will fulfill me in ways never thought possible.

First of- great atmosphere. Very nice seating- high backed booths to make you feel like when you’re gossiping, no one can hear you.  The waitstaff was super kind- it was the day after New Years Eve and so the last thing any of us wanted was a drink- and yet our waitress didn’t try to move us out quickly. She let us sit, chat, and really enjoy our meal.

Now. This meal. A quick low down on what we had and how I felt about it (As you will soon learn, I love me some lists.)

Aguacate: Flash-fried avocado with fresh pico de gallo.  This was amazing. The avocado was crunchy on the outside and warm, melt-in-your-mouth on the inside. And this pico de gallo. Wars were probably started to win this pico de gallo’s heart. Tangy, fresh and just perfectly paired.

Patatas Bravas: Crisp, spiced potatoes with three sauces.  The potatoes were really crispy and the three sauces were delicious and varied. The potatoes were a bit bland though without the sauces- I def. needed to get my salt on.

Filete con Cabrales: Beef filet with Rioja wine reduction and Cabrales blue cheese sauce. This wasn’t exactly what I was hoping for… the meat was a little soggy or mushy, but the gravy and blue cheese combo was delicious. This just might be because I like my meat as well done as a hockey puck…

Manchego Con Tapenade: Spanish cheese, olive paste, and extra virgin olive oil. This was heaven in my mouth. The cheese matched the saltiness of the olives beautifully. There was a perfect ratio of cheese to tapenade. The crunchy toast with the creamy cheese and tapenade created a wonderful texture in my mouth. A+.

Mussels in a butter sauce: These mussels were delicious AND on a happy hour price ($6). They were perfectly cooked in a creamy, rich butter sauce. Did I eat all of the mussels and then dip some crusty, fluffy soft bread into the sauce? Yes. Yes I did. Get these. If you go here (and I urge you to!) get these.

Finally dessert:

Higos Rellenos: Chocolate covered almond stuffed figs with candied orange: I loved these and so did Catherine. Amber thought it tasted like soap (a bit dramatic if you ask me… :)) So…if you like soap, eat up! I liked the candied orange flavor (popular in Scotland, where I grew up) along with the crunch of the fig and nuts.

Chocolavá: Warm chocolate cake with a rich ganache center, served on an orange crème anglaise. This was the clear dessert winner. MY. GOD. Decadent. Rich. Molten. Chocolate. Lava. Done and Done. I’ve seen heaven and it is made of this chocolate cake.

Overall a great place to go! We had another happy hour item, I can’t find it on the menu, that was only so-so, but the experience was wonderful. Out of 8 different tastes, only 2 of them were disappointing.

So instead of being boring and going somewhere to eat only one meal, be smart and try out 9th Door. You can order like 12 different things and since it is really only a bite or two, does it count? No, no it doesn’t.