Well Fed On the Town

Sometimes a restaurant gets so wrapped up in its theme that it forgets the basics - not so with Paul Martin’s Amercian Bistro. Paul Martin’s operates by the following mantra: “Eat organic. Believe in sustainable. Buy local. Love fresh.” The menu consists of “meat raised in a humane and wholesome way, locally sourced organic produce, fish from conscientious fishmongers, artisan cheeses and cured meats from small local purveyors and custom-made bread from expert bakers.”

After hearing about Paul Martin’s through the local Sacramento blogger grapevine, imagine my excitement when my husband and I were invited to try out Paul Martin’s American Bistro, located just outside Sacramento in Roseville. First, there was the organic thing, but almost more importantly, it isn’t a chain. Roseville is all about big box stores and chain restaurants, so we’re always looking for something different. If a restaurant like this can make it here, there’s a good chance they can make it anywhere. (Although, it could be a California thing, I guess.)

We started with Bloomsdale Spinach Dip, which consists of “creamy white cheddar sauce and sundried tomatoes.” It was served with thin, crispy, crostini sprinkled with cheese and I think I could have eaten a pound of it. The sundried tomatoes were all on one side, but once I found them, I enjoyed them! We also started with the Castroville Artichoke, which is mesquite grilled, with lemon-tarragon aioli and pesto. Castroville is a few hours away, and I always appreciate knowing where produce comes from. I’d never had a grilled artichoke and have now been inspired to learn how to do it myself, since it had such a unique flavor.

Next up (I told you we ate a ton) was the soup. Oh, the soup. I had the Butternut Squash Soup with sage pesto and croutons, while my husband had the Clam Chowder with fresh top necks, Neuske’s bacon, and a touch of thyme. We were huge fans of both soups, since they tasted exactly what you would want them to taste like - the ingredients listed on the menu. My husband was especially pleased by the chunks of clams.

You would think we would be full by now, but no. Not yet. I went for the “Brick” Chicken with mashed potatoes and fresh herb jus. The chicken was deboned except for the wing bone and butterflied so that it laid flat when baked and placed under a heavy skillet. It even had crispy skin and, wait for it, wait for it, thin sliced pieces of crispy garlic. Mmmmm…… My husband had Sole that was pan-fried, with autumn root vegetable hash, and brown butter. Since it was on his plate for a total of about 4 minutes, I think he liked it.

After unbuttoning the top buttons of our pants (I kid!), we were persuaded to try the Huckleberry and Red Pear Crisp, which was served with homemae vanilla ice cream. After eating this dessert, we decided that we are officially fans of the huckleberry (we already knew we were ice cream fans, of course). It wasn’t too sweet, was even a little tart, and was covered in the perfect crispy topping. Sigh. If I’d had room, I would have had two of them.

So, overall I was really impressed that is restaurant was complemented by its organic and local spin rather than being taken over by it. Each dish arrived to the table with a proud story regarding its source, which was certainly refreshing and welcomed. It was all about simple, clean food that was prepeared with style, with an emphasis on fresh, high quality, local and organic ingredients that were clearly selected with great care.