Wednesday, July 05, 2006

Fresco -- lovely and loud as hell

To mark our seventh anniversary, Jeff and I headed to Fresco, the latest restaurant from Food Fight -- a local group of restaurants that I have no problem giving tons of money too.

Fresco's got a prime location with primo views. Located on top of the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, the views of State Street are amazing. Not to mention, the museum is great.

It needs the view really to make up for the noise. Like a lot of modern places, Fresco is sleek and shiny, which hard surfaces everywhere. As a result, it's noisy as hell. I got a headache from listening to other people's conversations, which shut down our conversation until the place thinned out a little bit.

Fortunately, the food also helps make up for the noise. Fresco puts the emphasis on seasonal and local dishes -- much like a many upper-end places around here. The grilled baby asparagus, with toasted pistachios and garlic orange oil made me bounce up and down with delight. I've never had grilled asparagus before, and the asparagus taste was intensified with the grill.

The pan roasted sea bass and Jeff's halibut were also divine. I love a good piece of fish that's prepared simply and well. All of the food is simple, but very well prepared.

The desserts -- a bruleed pear sundae and strawberry tart -- were a good finish to the meal.

I'd like to try Fresco again, but I might have to choose a slow night to ensure I can hear my conversation.

2 comments:

K. said...

Loudness aside, that sounds like a great meal. Happy anniversary, BTW.

Anonymous said...

m mccollum -
i thought what a great idea for a restuarant if not a little unorthodox. my first impression was one of disappointment not at the food but that I couldn't enjoy it because the fresco doesn't open until evening.
the rooftop garden and restaurant are great ideas and i think the right ideas but you become aware "up there" that the look of Madison from above needs improvement. that we still look a lot like the 20th century and that its perhaps time for a welcome change.