ubuntu

It’s a very good sign, when I’m handed a menu in a restaurant, and everything on it looks so good to me, I can’t decide what to order. Such was the case with the menu atubuntu这是美国最受赞誉的餐厅之一，不仅以创新食品而闻名，而且还因为它完全是素食主义者。

Luckily there were six of us, so we tried almost everything on the menu, which included lots of oddities and items so unusual, we had to ask what they were.

我们的服务器和侍酒师都很棒，他们肯定地指导了我们通过厨师杰里米·福克斯（Jeremy Fox）的菜单，尽管最终，我们决定订购所有可共享的东西的两到三个，然后将其拆分。这就是要走的路ubuntu，，，，since the food is all about intriguing tastes and flavors, which make for good mealtime discussion.

Some of the produce is fromubuntu’sbiodynamic garden, including most of herbs and greens, which are used in abundance as both a seasoning and to pique one’s palate, as was the case with tangy leaves of sorrel and spongy buds officoide冰川。

我们的饭开始时有几个“叮咬”：olives marinated in mizuna pesto，，，，Spanish marcona almonds toasted with sea salt and lavender以及我最喜欢的，一个整洁（大量）的堆栈chickpea fries with piquillo romesco，，，，which reminded me of my belovedpanisses。

午餐菜单是小盘子的名册，我们选择搭配葡萄酒飞行。完美的2盎司倒入旨在补充菜肴和另类的口味，而诸如Gewürtztraminer之类的葡萄酒则可以与高度调味的食物完美搭配。（这偶尔会在有点太淡的一侧。）

在番茄季节的尾声中，这顿饭始于一块盘子，混合了各种罗勒和粘糊糊的毛burrata奶酪，上面扎着野生茴香饼干。

用熏制的酱汁的鱼种条纹gribichewas terrific, and I wondered how they got that smoky flavor in there. (I’m going to try something like this at home with my smoked salt.) Those little dark dots are what was described on the menu as黑大蒜。I have no idea what “black” garlic is, but it was smooth and had a gentle, yet lingering aftertaste.

一种nd the萝卜沙拉，，，，which wasn’t on the menu, was so beautiful I wanted to take it outside and photograph it for an hour. Carrots and greens were interwoven with nectarine foam and flowers, served on a slab of slate. I think this was my favorite course, although there was a long way to go before dessert, so let’s not get too hasty…

The signature dish,cauliflowerin a cast iron pot, was highly-anticipated at our table, and I almost burned the crap out of my mouth, since I couldn’t wait to eat it and shoved a spoonful in my craw too-quickly. Once the casserole, and my larynx, cooled down, I could appreciate the flavor better.

服务器告诉我们制作它的漫长过程，它是用法国瓦杜万·库里（Vadouvan Curry）调味的，该过程在法国生活了六年，我从未听说过……不得不来纳帕谷（Napa Valley）尝试。

一种nother cast iron dish came out withhomemade fregola，，，，small nuggets of pasta, with roast red zebra tomato and braised fava beans. Hot on its heels were small casseroles ofmacaroni & cheese，，，，made with silver mountain white cheddar. (Like the provenance of the French curry, I have no idea where silver mountain is.) More liquid than crusty cheese, it tasted good, but I think macaroni & cheese is one dish that’s best baked one day, and re-heated an served as leftovers the next. So I hope the kitchen makes plenty extra for staff meals. And if so, I want an invite.

我们在菜单上订购了两个披萨pizzabianco上面有一个domaine de la chanceegg (and once again, I have no idea where ‘domaine de la chance’ is, but I’m sure if I asked they would’ve helped me out on that one, too) which I just managed to tuck in a slice-and-a-half of before I begged off any more.

因为我正在等待我最喜欢的课程 - Dessert！

糕点厨师Deanie Fox，，，，who served up her creative and playfully-unusual desserts (but never silly or contrived) atManresa，，，，started us off with a cleansing goblet of watermelon granita, figs, rose geranium sabayon, and a lively dab of berry coulis at the bottom. It was the absolute perfect segue before the rest of the desserts were brought to the table.

Strawberries and raspberries were presented in a controlled tumble, along with demi-scoops of ice cream, candied lemon, and dried berry powder. Crackly white shards of meringue were not just architecturally advantageous, but a nice balance with the gushingly-soft berries. But really, it was just so beautiful. I loved the presentation.

Served in a jar, thevanilla cheesecakewas layered with huckleberries, verbena cream, and crunchy almond streusel. And a witty take on a bowl offlaky feuilletinewith caramelized banana, and kaffir lime ice cream was served with a pitcher of warm coconut and rum milk, which brilliantly brought the whole thing together. It’s amazing how just a small, yet deftly-perfect touch, can change an entire dish. Isn’t it?

Even though I was still coasting on the fond memories of my公民蛋糕蛋糕从几天前开始，迷你胡萝卜纸杯蛋糕是素食主义者（许多菜肴都在ubuntu菜单指出，可以很乐意为素食主义者制作），不仅像纽扣一样可爱，带有小蜜饯的胡萝卜饰有顶部，而且它们又湿润，不太甜，只是正确的叮咬午餐。

一种fterward, I was too full to head upstairs to the yoga studio and do a few poses, and next time, I’ll get in a few moves beforehand to prepare for the lengthy meal to follow. I was so full I felt like walking the forty-miles back to San Francisco, and was thankful the waitress stopped us about 2/3rds of the way through the meal to put the brakes on us, who were careening out of control in terms of ordering.

午餐是一个愉快的时光ubuntu，，，，with the sun streaming in the windows and a not too-jammed dining room, which meant a very relaxed pace all around. I hear dinner requires reservations a few weeks in advance. Much of that is probably due to the publicity that chef杰里米·福克斯收到的，包括被《美食》杂志称为“年度最热门的厨师”之一，在我用餐后，这是当之无愧的绰号。（不过，他们总是设法跳过厨房中最重要的人 - 糕点厨师！）

海蒂说她有兴趣知道我对这顿饭的看法，我不得不说我给我留下了深刻的印象，总是惊讶。有很多活泼的口味，即从花园的草药和树叶中，演讲很简单，以至于不分散成分的注意力，但并不是那么简单，以至于您感到被盖住了，得到了一盘蔬菜。

I’ll often write about places, sometimes without giving a concrete opinion, if I find them unusual or interesting enough to bring to your attention. In some cases, the food takes second-place to either the ambiance or the locale. One doesn’t necessarily eat at a hot dog cart because it’s ‘gourmet’ or especially delicious, but because it’s, as the French would say,“Très correct”。In this case,ubuntuhits all the right notes, but the fresh, immaculately-prepared food is definitely the star, which in this case, makes it“Très，Très正确。”

Ubuntu
1140 Main Street
Napa, CA
（707）251-5656

Update：截至2010年2月，杰里米·福克斯（Jeremy Fox）和他的妻子迪恩·福克斯（Deanie Fox）离开了ubuntu分别为厨师和糕点厨师。他们的替代品或餐厅的状况没有任何消息。