Main course . . . veal sweetbreads in maple syrup with fresh corn kernels & popcorn. Delicious & fun!
“Sweetbreads” have never been a go-to item for me, but was introduced to this delicacy about 1970 when an attorney for whom I worked in San Francisco took me to dinner for my birthday . . . now — amazingly! — 52 years ago! We went to an elegant old SF French restaurant (VERY
classique!), “The Old Poodle Dog.” It probably was the very first French restaurant in which I had eaten.
The restaurant was legendary: “Not only was the French food at this five-story 1800s restaurant hailed as the best in the city; there were dining rooms with beds, so stuffed customers could sleep off their wine-drenched meal.”. My host / boss suggested that the sweetbreads were outstanding. I had no idea what they were, but being “game” for the recommendation, I said, “great!” They were delicious . . . and it only was much later in the evening when I figured out what I had eaten! (Google didn’t exist in those days . . . I probably turned to the Encyclopedia Brittanica — apologies to young people today who don’t have a clue about what I’m describing!)
In intervening years, I’ve never become a fan of organ meats. From time to time, however, I will have them when I know that the restaurant will offer an exquisite example of the category. (I’d say the same about
steak tartare.)
With this story, I write that Zion’s sweetbreads tonight were mouthwateringly exquisite! In 50+ years, though infrequently a choice for me, I’ve never savored this dish so spectacularly. Tender, sweet, melt-in-the-mouth! Only “The Old Poodle Dog” comes to mind as a rival,