We were quite excited to try this new higher-end restaurant in our neighborhood; two of us were going in particular for the New Zealand lamb. Which is what put quite a damper on the experience. To be fair to MMR there’s still good stuff on the menu to try and the complimentary Squash Ravioli tasting that owner Steve brought ’round was delicious. We were quite impressed with design and décor and really liked the ambiance, in addition to the friendly staff. With our group of four it was still a fun interesting evening but as stated the lamb that two of us had been so looking forward to was a huge disappointment. I was raised overseas where lamb was a staple protein rather than the high-end meat choice it’s offered as here(well, crown-roast will cost ya anywhere though!) and I’ve missed it! But. Over there we cook it ’til it’s done, not all rouge in the middle like all the blasted cooking shows are doing with everything these days! Changes the flavor too of course. Which is what we, in a more politely phrased way, said when we asked our server for Medium Well. When the lamb arrived not only was it not even cooked to their standard Medium offering but almost qualified for Blue. Very. Rare. Raw with a mild sear. They went back to be cooked more. Returned, they were still underdone and we both thought the much-touted marinade bland but didn’t want to disrupt the evening more. The chef came to our table to apologize; she was pleasant and friendly and we had a bit of a chat but we were left feeling a bit puzzled by the overall casual reaction to a 50% error rate at our table. Our server brought a complimentary dessert over; at least my sweeter-toothed dining companions enjoyed it :) The next evening I got out the doggie-box, grilled my lamb chops to perfection, and enjoyed them with home-made mint sauce ~ don’t know why this traditional accompaniment hasn’t made it over here, it’s like having the peanut butter without the jelly, I swear, the turkey without the cranberry!
