The Patio at Night 

Unique menu, harmonious flavors and personable staff are just a few of the ways to describe our night at Kitchen 1540 during Restaurant Week 2017. 

The Patio at Night is a "pop up" restaurant on Kitchen 1540's back patio area. Lined with twinkly lights, live music and heaters, it is certainly the perfect location for an intimate dinner beneath the stars. 

Location: Del Mar, CA

Attire: Casual

Favorite Dish:  Street Corn 

Price: $$$-$$$$

We indulged in every dish on the Restaurant Week set menu...yes every dish. The best part about the dinning experience was our ability to have a variety of small bites with diverse flavor. 

The menu at The Patio at Night changes on a weekly basis, focusing on only local, fresh ingredients. Plates are meant to be small and eaten family style to get a taste of a variety of dishes. 

Appetizers

We began our meal with your not so average funnel cake. This funnel cake had ingredients such as corn, jalapeños and avocado crema that made it a balanced, savory kick off to your meal. Next came our salmon tartare with soy, cucumber and wonton crisps. The salmon was extremely fresh and cut into thin squares making each bite the perfect combination of flavors. Following the salmon we tried the Tostado with octopus, mango and Aji Amarillo. I am not the biggest octopus fan, but this dish was actually quite delicious and had great texture. We ended our first appetizer round with melon, prosciutto and almond, the favorite for all those Italian food lovers out there! 

Favorite Appetizer: Salmon Tartare 

Garden:

The garden menu consisted of all the healthy veggies and was probably my favorite part of the meal (besides the dessert of course). We had the Cucumber Salad with seaweed and Yuzu, the Tomato Salad with torn herbs, pine nuts and balsamic and the Spaghetti Squash with chili verde, Cotijia and Pepita. Each of these were absolutely delicious and fresh. The cucumber dish was light and refreshing, which was a great contrast to the acidic flavors in the tomato dish. However, my absolutely favorite dish of the entire night was the Street Corn. When I say I ate three plates of this dish I am not kidding...I am still dreaming about it. The Street Corn had Tajin, Tapatio and Cotija cheese, the perfect combo of a spicy kick with a creamy finish. The corn was cooked to perfection, with that subtle crunch of freshness when you bit down. 

Favorite Garden Dish: Street Corn 

Main Course

Now for the main plates...time to talk rich combinations of ingredients! Options for main courses included Skuna Bay Salmon, Tiger Shrimp, Beef Cheeks, Corn Risotto and Potato Gnocci. We of course had to try one of each to try the assortment of dishes. The Salmon was delicious with a corn base. The Tiger Shrimp were smoked with garlic and tomato, giving it a great aroma. The best main course I had was the Beef Cheeks, they melted in your mouth on top of creamy polenta and horseradish gremolata. To finish off the main courses, we were served the Corn Risotto and Potato Gnocci, the heavier, yet extremely satisfying options. 

Favorite Main Course: Beef Cheeks 

Dessert

The best for last. Dessert was decadent and ended the meal with a final touch of class. The four dessert options ranged in flavor, texture and composition. We started with a Crispin Apple Buñelos with vanilla cream and dulce de leche. Next we had a Poached Warren Pear with saffron, cardamom, and honey gelato - yes the honey gelato was to die for. Then we had the Garnet Yam Pound Cake with pineapple quince chutney and cream cheese gelato. To close out the meal we had the flourless chocolate cake with blackberries, black pepper syrup and whipped cream. 

Favorite Dessert: Flourless Chocolate Cake

As you all will learn, I love fancy cocktails, wine and ciders. So naturally whenever I go to a new restaurant I am excited to try whatever concoction the bartender can create. We started the night with cocktails at The Living Room Bar. The Living Room Bar is part of L'Auberge and is located right outside of Kitchen 1540.  The bartender can make you almost anything you can imagine, but I always like trying one of the unique combinations, such as the image pictured below which was a gin and chamomile drink. 

My favorite drink of the night was our after dinner Sauternes from France. It complimented our dessert with its crisp, sweet taste. 

Drink Suggestion: La Fleur D’or, 2011, Sauternes, France 

Atmosphere - such an important part of every meal, but can be overlooked when booking a reservation.

The atmosphere at The Patio at Night was picturesque. With twinkling lights, fire pits and personal cabanas, you felt like you were in your own personal oasis . I highly suggest making a reservation for a large party in a cabana, it is a great way to make a gathering feel more intimate. There is also live music playing throughout the night and attentive wait staff ready to help you with even the most basic needs.