Valentine's Day A Day Early

Just got back from a lovely pre-Valentine's Day dinner with my partner Jerry. We went to Benoit, a French bistro on 55th St. between Fifth and Sixth aves. I would definitely recommend it. We started with three delicious cheeses--the brie was unexpectional, but the blue was exquisitely thick and rich and the third, I can't remember what it was, had a nice texture. An excellent light white wine which was slightly citrus-y, almost grapefruit-like washed it down.

I had the prix fixe three-course dinner--lobster salad, stuffed quail, and porfiterolles. The lobster salad had a syrupy dressing which wasn't too sweet. The lobster itself was fresh and cold, mixed with greens and a little fruit. The quail was stuffed with figs and pate. My only quarrel with it was it was small. The bird was served on a bed of spinach prepared with just a hint of salt and butter. I had a taste of Jerry's buttery filet mignon. He said it was the best he'd ever eaten.

The dessert was truly heaven--a plate of little pastries with creamy filling was set before us. On the side was a dish of hot chocolate sauce, decadently rich. We each got a dish of vanilla ice cream and fondue skewers. We dipped the pastries in the chocolate sauce and stuffed them in our mouths. Then poured the sauce over the ice cream. A cup of earl grey tea for me and coffee for Jerry finished one of the best meals I've ever had.