4 1/2 stars. Excellent new entry in the Milford food scene. My husband and I went in for dinner and ended up filling up on tapas, so I cant speak to any of the entries other than that they looked good as the servers walked by. We started with drinks and raw oysters. My husband asked for a recommendation similar to another wine on the menu that he was familiar with. He was satisfied with the selection and said it was very good, but not remarkable. For a restaurant that bills itself as a wine bar, it should have been outstanding. I ordered the red sangria which was tasty, but lacking in brandy and therefore weak. So the drinks were overall a bit of a letdown. Next came the oysters, which were first rate - fresh, plump, and sweet - with each oyster sitting in a luscious pool of its own liquor. Clearly whoever shucked the oysters took great care in preserving the juices. The oysters were served with cocktail sauce and a mignonette. The cocktail sauce wasn't good, as it was oddly sweet and lacked both acidity and a horseradish kick. i would have preferred ketchup with a dollop of horseradish and lemon wedges. I usually pass on mignonette sauces, but this one was exceptionally good, so I didn't mind the weird cocktail sauce. After our oysters we ordered three tapas, thinking we'd order more if we were still hungry, but it turned out to be sufficient. The lamb kofta were two generous sausage-sized kabobs. They were well seasoned and served with a "corn raita." It bore no resemblance to Indian raita, but the corn was tender and the sauce lusciously creamy. There was also a small pile of pomegranate arils, which complemented the sauce with its acidity and crunch. This was a solid tapa, and I would happily order it again. We also ordered the arancini, which were truly memorable. They were smaller than expected, but there was a generous pile of them. Each crispy ball was filled with gooey, melted cheese, and they sat in the best romesco sauce I've ever had. It was rich and had a touch of heat. I fear I will dream of these arancini. I can see myself needing to return to Unwined for the sole purpose of eating them again. Lastly, we ordered the mushroom toasts, which were three small slices of a narrow baguette, topped with mushrooms. I found this dish to be bland, lacking the earthiness one expects from a mushroom dish. The mushrooms would have been better served by a long sauté in butter to concentrate the flavor. This was the only dish that was disappointing, and we won't be ordering it again. I appreciate a server with opinions, but he spoke highly of this dish, and sadly it stood out as being far and away the worst dish served. Finally there were four desserts on offer, three of them appealing to us, but wait for it - they do NOT serve coffee. Zero. None. Our server explained that this was a conscious decision made so that customers would not linger too long. I understand the need to accommodate multiple seatings from a financial point of view, but we simply could not conceive of ordering the fudgey chocolate pâté without a cup of coffee to go with. Surely there must be a way to communicate to customers that they are allocated two hours maximum, perhaps only on weekends. This was our biggest disappointment of the evening, and I deem it unconscionable for an upscale restaurant. I'll go even further and say that in decades of fine dining, I have never once encountered a restaurant that deliberately did not serve coffee in order to turn over tables faster. Just wow.
Lastly, I want to mention the excellent service we received. Our server, a young man with a long beard, was knowledgeable about the menu and competently described everything we asked about. He was efficient, attentive, and friendly. The management clearly made the effort to hire professional servers, and it showed.
All in all, this was a very good meal, and we will definitely return. Let's just hope that they keep the arancini on the menu! read more