Live To Nibble: Highlight #117: Sometimes less change is the way to go

And that certainly holds true for Woodfire Grill, where chef Gillespie is carrying on the farm to table legacy of chef Tuohy without missing a beat. The dinning room has changed a little. New table clothes covered up the tables and the walls seemed a little brighter. But overall the feel of the place is still the same. It's cozy and full of warmth, which seemed to radiate from the wood fired grill smack in the center of the room.

Since I am no critic, I have no problem letting you know that this meal was kindly served to us free of charge. But at $38 for a tasting that included three courses (four if you count the extra middle course) of pristine ingredients, a romantic dinner here isn't really out of reach.

We began with a piece of pan fried Georgia mountain trout. The skin sizzled ever so slightly at the table and was my favorite part, boasting plenty of crispiness. My friend J loved the greens that cut through the natural oils of the trout with its tempered bitterness.

Before our main, the chef sent out a few fried oysters for us to try. And they were fantastic. Hot and crunchy, the seasoned batter gave way to juicy innards of natural brininess. They confirmed my new found love for this preparation of oysters that have taken roots in my heart since those earlier bites at Legal Seafood (a few posts back).

My main came out revealing pretty deep pink slices of medium rare duck on a puree of butternut squash. The duck breast was obviously treated with respect in expert hands as none were the least bit tough. The only thing shy of perfection was the level of salt. A heavier hand would have really set it off against the sweetness of the puree.

My friend J receive the fillet. Just like the duck, it was cooked to the right temperature, but was just short of enough salt. Maybe we were both in the mood for something jazzed up with the white stuff. :)

For dessert, I was presented with some sculpted carrot cake that, despite the modern shape, was comfortingly old school. I also got plenty of homemade ice cream with enough butterfat to keep me scooping.

J received a sort of warm pineapple cake with the most adorable mushroom like toasted marshmallow sitting on top a piece of candied sweet potato. For a cold night the warm cake was nice and soothing, but I enjoyed the cream cheese icing of the carrot cake more and three scoops of ice cream is better than one any day. :)