I insist on using my dinner at Little Grouse as my first blog! It is by far one of my favorite places to eat, drink, and be in Saskatoon….(I’ll be there again this coming Friday!)

When: Friday, January 27th, 2017 – 6:00pm (my two friends and I)

At a glance: Fine-dining Italian restaurant in downtown Saskatoon, order off the menu or eat Alla Famiglia (family style eating),  ~10 tables, open-kitchen concept, pasta made in house, locally-sourced ingredients, great décor, cozy and inviting (picture of my favorite wall, above)

Interesting detail: Alla Famiglia ($60 each) includes sharing 5 dishes (starters, two pasta dishes, and a meat or fish dish) and 1 dessert (customized dish sizes to number of people – you won’t go hungry!) Comment: staff asks if there are food allergies, dislikes, and what you’ve had there before, so that you fully enjoy the dishes they bring you!

……My memory is slightly fuzzy on some of the ingredients (wine likely didn’t help this – I wasn’t driving!) so bare with me and hopefully you are still able to imagine how amazing the food was….

What we ate: Starters: i) arugula salad with a balsamic dressing, thin apple slices, fresh parmesan, and fresh green olives (so refreshing) – this is an amazing salad ii) celery root with bone marrow and lemon cream? – bone marrow makes everything better!  -simple but tasty iii) charcuterie plate – meat only with cornichons and mustard on the side – salami, Serrano ham, prosciutto, smoked Serrano? ham, and three kinds of sausages (all meat….so yum) – enough variation in the meats and mustard/pickles are a great accent

Mains: i) artichoke and ricotta stuffed ravioli in a butter sauce  – this was delightful, so fresh and tasty ii) pappardelle pasta with short rib and tomato based sauce – delicious and the meat was so tender, iii) branzino (sea bass) in tomato sauce with kale, small onions, and white beans – this was crispy perfection (however, a little dry)

Dessert: cannoli with ricotta ice cream, caramel, and spun sugar – this was unreal – different textures, sweet, salty, savory – a great balance

Drinks: I had Prosecco (mmmm bubbles) and red wine (Italian, of course) – my friends had cocktails (Boulevardier) and white wine – I won’t lie – I cannot remember the names of the wine – which is unlike me – but this shows you how ridiculously good the food is. Nothing else matters!

Honorable mention: the dessert – NOTE – I am not a dessert person but the cannoli with caramel, frozen ricotta bits, and spun sugar was one of the best desserts I’ve ever had….crunchy, tasty, creamy…..perfection.

Not so great but who really cares: it’s pricey and it’s extremely cold at the two person tables near the door in the winter.

Also: I love how easy it is to book a table here on http://www.opentable.com. In Saskatoon, not all restaurants use this site…..and most don’t take reservations (which I understand).

I hope you get there (or again) someday very soon – it’s worth the trip!

For more information about the restaurant, see: http://www.littlegrouse.com/welcome.html

Happy bites!