I surprised my wife with a dinner at Fleurette last night to celebrate our anniversary. It was, as @Robert_Dentice mentioned, fantastic, from start to finish. I had alerted them that it was our anniversary, so the front desk congratulated us when we arrived. Then, when we got to the table, a little hand-written note in an envelope awaited us. So the night started off nicely.
Since this was a special occasion, we decided to start with a glass of Champagne Bérêche & Fils, Brut Réserve that was absolutely lovely (though TBH I don’t need a special occasion to open a Champagne). It went well with our apps, the house-made Duck Liver & Bone Marrow Pâté with fennel marmalade, citrus, and brioche toast (fantastic), as well as the Sweetbreads à la Meunière (outstanding texture and taste, not too salty, just really balanced). We had the simple green salad to make ourselves feel like we were eating somewhat healthy…
For our mains, we chose the Olive Oil Poached Wild King Salmon for me and Seared Yellowfin Tuna for my wife. Both were outstanding, and perfect foils for the bottle of Ligurian Vermentino (who’s name escapes me this morning) that the lovely somm, Traci, recommended. The wine was slightly rich with beautiful balancing acidity, minerality, and tons of salinity. Just the way I like my Ligurian Vermentinos.
Desserts were a comped lemon sorbet with a vanilla cream (surprisingly not too sweet), and a Strawberry & Yuzu dish with crisp meringue, almond wild fennel & pernod gelato. Both were just what the doctor ordered to end the meal.
After, Chef came out to say hello, as we had sold wine to Bar Boulud when he and Michael Madrigale were there. We had a great time catching up, and the whole evening was just special. Service was on-point across the board, plating and presentations were just right (most high-end places in San Diego are still doing the late '90s stacking made popular by Gotham Bar & Grill ), and the interior room was warm and inviting. We sat in their covered outdoor terrace, which had some strange color combinations but was a great way to be apart from the main room.
One thing to note if you go: it’s in the middle of an office park and can be hard to find from the main road, you have to go into the parking lot to get to the drop off. The decor outside has soft green grass beds, making you easily forget the towers around you, but still it’s an odd location. Still, it’s a great addition to the local dining scene for special occasions.