Ask The Fat Guy

One of a fair little local chain of restaurants (four in the greater Sonoma County area), Stark’s is down in Railroad Square and is, when you walk into the dining room, the kind of steakhouse you’d like to find yourself in.

Dark. This place specializes in dark and may well have captured the local market, dark tables, dark table dressings, wait staff dressed in black, ceilings high enough that the ruddy hue fades into the dark distance. I’m not usually one to remark on the floor in a restaurant, but I thought that the floor had just enough lighter elements in its grain to keep you from tripping over yourself as you crossed the room, and I found this an admirable choice.

Seating is efficient and the servers find their way to you quickly. I was pleased that they also seem to be conversant on what they are offering, both the specials (including a few unpublished) as well as the “flights” of three in wines, scotchs, bourbons, Armagnacs, tequilas and more that are on the drink menu. The wine flights are delivered by someone I never saw do anything else, and since he approached his task with a fair bit of style, I was pleased to have him there. Three scotch’s for TFG and three whites for my fair bride and we were off (and hungry!)

My wife found it amusing that the waiter mentioned that the bread was from the FrancoAmerican bakery right next door. My wife chuckled at this because she still remembers SpaghettiOs and RavioliOs from childhood.  What wasn’t amusing was how good the bread was. Bread is a little detail but an important one, liberally brushed with herbed Garlic Butter, this bread was pull-apart rolls in a loaf pan and was exactly what we were looking for at that moment, a little sweet, soft and warm.

We were both of a mind for some serious beef, after all, why go to a steakhouse and have chicken? Debbie had the angus Filet, medium and I had the dry aged bone-in New York, rare. We split an order of the creme fraiche mashed potatoes and an order of the rosemary yam fries. As an appetizer, we opted for the roasted artichoke.

I also asked for a coffee. Let me say that I drink a lot of coffee and tend to be more fussy than not about it. This coffee was spectacular. Pressed in an individual french-press with room for a cup and a warmer, it was rich and smoky and delicious. When I asked, I was told that it comes from Flying Goat coffees, also here in town.

The roasted artichoke was very good. Seasoned simply with pepper and salt, the split halves were perfectly cooked and the meyer lemon aioli was a nice complement. As has been mentioned in previous posts, since coming to the state of the blessed thistle, I have become quote a fan of artichokles, as has my six-year-old, which is a wonderful thing. I’d never had them roasted before, though and I was delighted.

The potatoes were rich and creamy, redolent of the aromas 0f home, assuming that you grew up in an apartment over a three-star restaurant. The single criticism I would level at the Yam fries was the somewhat overpowering dose of rosemary. Instead of sweetly floral, they came across as almost brutally flavored. On the other hand, they were perfectly cooked, shatteringly crisp crusts surrounding steaming yam sweetness.

I won’t wax rhapsodic about the meat. This is a steakhouse after all, and if they’ve survived, it hasn’t been on the virtues of their side dishes but instead on the quality of the beef. The aged steak had that delightful earthiness that has all but vanighed from the American palate since so few people have ever had a dry-aged piece of meat. It took me back to rural Washington State, and Stewart’s Meats, also known as a carnivore’s Nirvana where they’d age your meat for you upon request. As a matter of fact, they do pretty much whatever you wanted, upon request. Consumate professionals.

Tender and just bloody enough to be truly rare, my steak was wonderful. Debbie was also delighted. What else can you say? They did what we asked and it came out as we’d hoped. TFG will bring out of town guests here and that is high praise. It might break the bank if you go too often, but for special occasions, we will be back!