My mom had a meeting in my neighborhood this afternoon, so we met up for an early dinner at Elsewhere, the new sister restaurant to Hell’s Kitchen wine bar Casellula.

I’m not normally a small-plates enthusiast, but tonight I was up for trying a bunch of things. Must be this marathon headache I’ve been slowly working through. Today is day five…It’s getting better, but I’ll be happy when I’m firing on all cylinders again.

These pickled green beans were spicy, sour, and out of this world! Ask for a glass of water.

If you go, you also have to order the garlic pate with vegetables and pretzels. I enjoyed this so much.

I didn’t love this smoked caviar appetizer with puffed rice and herbed creme fraiche, but I was glad we tried it. 

My favorite thing was this bay scallop appetizer I had in place of a main course—the celery root puree, butternut squash chunks, and salty-crispy scallops was delicious! I’m also not sure what kind of greens these were (dandelion greens?), but they added the perfect touch of bitterness.

The line list was also quite detailed and intriguing. We ended up going with an Italian red that was a little lighter than some of the Tuscan wines I tend to lean towards—it was smooth, peppery and the tiniest bit sweet (to my taste). I know you’re not “supposed” to pair red with fish, but I do it all the time. While red wine may not be the smartest thing to drink during a marathon migraine/sinus infection, it did no harm, and vastly improved my outlook on things ; )

I wish I’d taken a picture of the almond butter-apricot ice cream we sampled for dessert. It was the tiniest little scoop but the flavor was so intense! Sometimes a few bites is truly all you need. I can’t wait to attempt a replication at home.

I will definitely be going to Elsewhere again—there are so many things I want to try! Lavender-rosemary popcorn is near the top of that list, as is the grilled fish. The carrot timbale looked amazing too!

Back to work for me, now. Hopefully the good wine and food will make it easier for me to map out a “session structure” for class.