The Publican Brief

Had impromptu plans for dinner on Friday with our buddy Rob aka Roberto (even though he's not aware that I call him Roberto...or really that I refer to him as that to anyone...). He had heard good things about The Publican so we decided to check it out. Now in case you're wondering that wasn't the first location we were going to go to as someone who shall not be named but rhymes with Sharon wasn't digging the menu choices. We had opted for another place that was nearby but as luck would have it the wait was going to be over an hour. That being said and since I had paid for parking nearby I was like let's try The Publican.

The Publican's description per their website actually pretty much sums up the experience: "Eclectic menu inspired by simple farmhouse far in a space evocative of a European beer hall. " The decor/layout of the joint was interesting. Most of the seating is communal seating- it's a family style venture where you sit with complete strangers/other parties. They booths they had were designed like pigpens where they had little doors that swung open. Definitely gave that farm vibe off on top of the painting of a giant fat pig on the wall. 

The restrooms were crazy in my opinion as I've never encountered that before. Basically there are 5 individual stalls(?) with a communal sink in the middle/outside of them. You go do your business and wash your hands outside of the restroom. Probably not even describing it right but found this pic on line:

The Publican Restrooms

But enough about the actual place and let's get to the glorious food. Now fair warning this is probably not one of those healthy places for your wallet let alone your calorie counts. That being said it was definitely worth the price of admission.  Started off with some appetizers.

Frites with Lorene's eggs

In case you were wondering like I was cause I'm uncivilized- Frites is French for fries. To be honest I think snobby me like the word frites better. I had no idea what Lorene's eggs meant either as that was an option for $2 more and I went #YOLO on it. Legit out loud said YOLO to make the decision official. Not sure if that's named after someone associated with the place but as you can tell they're sunny side up eggs. I would go back here just for this. The fries were cooked in beef fat and seasoned well.  The eggs gave it a whole other dimension. Honestly probably the best thing I've eaten in 2017 so far- if not it's top five for sure. Definitely started off the dinner well.

Rob ordered the avocado salad was pretty excellent as well. Was a whole new experience in itself as it had avocado, snap peas, farro verde, mustard, and almonds. That too was a hit with everyone. Karen's description was "yummy with a citrus burst." Best I could come up with is yummy for your tummy.

Avocado Salad.

The first dish to come out and I dare say the star of the whole meal was the pork shank. Man was that perfectly cooked and presented well. Like honestly felt bad eating it just from how beautiful it looked. Came with goat cheese, fava beans, shiitake mushrooms, onions, and parsley to name a few. I don't know how much you love food, but have you ever eaten something and like just keep nodding or repeating "yes" while you eat it. That's the experience that was had with the pork shank (not code for something). I would also just come back to The Publican strictly for this. I'm not sure if its a permanent staple to the menu though as it wasn't listen on the site and they do mention they rotate items.

Pork Shank

Karen went with the Farm Chicken which was a half chicken served with frites and summer sausage. As simple as it sounds, it was well cooked as well. Not really sure when's the last time I've had chicken that tasted that fresh and wasn't dry but that hit the spot. Also didn't hurt that it came with more of those delicious fries.

Farm Chicken

I opted to go fancy and picked the Suckling Pig. It was bits of pork on top of polenta with asparagus, some mustard, and a wine. Once again not a permanent menu item so don't have all the specifics. I will say that I don't know what my expectations were for this. It was a complete surprise but I actually enjoyed it as it had a hint of mustard but sweetness but it all worked out and hit the criteria for a fancy dish.

Suckling Pig

Decided since the calorie counts were destroyed that we might as well hit up their dessert options. I mean there wasn't any bad food selections so it seems logical that their baking would be just as good.

Rob selected the mud pie which was an oat brownie, dark chocolate pudding, and peanut butter topped with dark cherries. I thought it was pretty good and I'm not a big fan of dark chocolate. If you are a fan dark chocolate, this I have to imagine would be a big hit for you.

Mud Pie

Lily went with mint ice cream. Now being the caveman I am, I was expecting it to just be you stereotypical store bought mint ice cream. Nope. This tasted like they freshly made the ice cream using a whole mint plant. It was pretty crazy to me at least. She liked it but I don't think I could have eaten a whole serving of it by itself.

Mint Ice Cream

 Karen selected the pineapple upside down cake. It was topped with butterscotch, pecans, and pineapple sorbet. Man did that hit the spot. Once again like the mint ice cream, I thought the pineapple sorbet would have like a hint of pineapple- nope. It was fully of flavor as well. You can add this to the list of reasons to go back to The Publican.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

The Publican was excellent food on the pricey side but at the same time well worth it. Definitely will have to eat here again. Shout outs to whoever suggested this place to Rob. Shout outs to him for the invite. Shouts to shouts.

#FoodieAdventure,

Reef