We had Basic Kitchen for dinner to cleanse our body after having some heavy BBQ for dinner the previous evening.
We walked into a very casual, chic, and moody environment. We didn't make a reservation and were lucky enough to be seated immediately. The restaurant definitely started filling up shortly after our arrival, however.
At a quick glance at the menu, it appears Basic Kitchen prides itself on fresh and local ingredients with tons of local produce. Most, if not all, of the dishes are super energy and nutrient packed! Basic Kitchen is a huge benefit to the vegetarian and vegan community but does not pigeonhole itself as that kind of eatery, with add-ons like wild-caught seafood and sustainably-raised meat. Definitely my kind of ingredients. So far, so good!
For starters, we ordered Cauliflower "Wings" (tempera-fried cauliflower, buffalo sauce, pickled celery, and cashew ranch). For those wondering, the dish does not have any chicken wings whatsoever. Rather, the cauliflower is deep-fried tempura-style and then coated with buffalo wing sauce (as you would with a chicken wing). The tempera was a nice, flaky consistency, and the buffalo sauce was sufficient. I was relieved that the kitchen staff did not have a heavy hand when coating the "wings" with the buffalo sauce. It would've been too strong. Sometimes, less is better.
My only complaint about the "wings" were regarding the lesser two components of the dish - the pickled celery and the cashew ranch. The celery was not really pickled. I was looking forward to trying pickled celery, as I've never had it. The ranch did not seem to have a single hint or any trace of cashew either. However, I do not mind that the items were served that way. What I do mind is that the menu states one thing but I am served something else. If they do continue to serve it non-pickled, barely-there pickled, or non-cashew, respectively, they should consider updating their menu to reflect the change.
For the entrée/plate, I opted for the Basic Bowl (brown rice, sesame kale, chickpeas, grilled broccoli, grilled sweet potato, and Magic Green sauce). I added wild-caught salmon for a bit more sustenance. I really enjoyed the bowl. The salmon was seasoned and cooked perfectly. However, like my appetizer, the kitchen staff added stewed or fire roasted (mixed into my chickpeas) to my plate. I have no issues with tomatoes but didn't expect or want them in my dish, as it was not listed as an ingredient for the Basic Bowl on the menu. I did not make a fuss of it and ate it anyway.
Consistency seems to be an issue at Basic Kitchen, at least for the night I was there for dinner. Some ingredients were missing in some dishes and some haphazardly or mistakenly added in others. Luckily, the main parts of the dish were well executed, so I could overlook some of the issues.
I would definitely come back to Basic Kitchen because it was a pleasant experience aside from some of the misses I came across. Our server was very sweet as well.
Hopefully, next time I will not have to "overlook" certain issues with my dish. read more