Millennium-O-Rama

Millennium is my favorite restaurant.
Executive Chef Eric Tucker is both a great teacher of vegan cooking skills and also the mastermind behind the most sublime vegan dishes, their complex flavors are hard to describe.

Last night, I took my dear friend A. to Millennium. A. is a friend from my university days, visiting California from England for the first time. She's not a vegetarian, and self-describes as a gal who likes a nice steak. She was blown away by the satisfying vegan food. And, honestly, so was I. Seems like everytime I go to Millennium, the food just keeps getting more amazing.

We sat at the bar, which was a great experience, thanks to the very friendly and well-informed bartenders, Kyle and Leo. Kyle recommended the excellent McDowell Valley Grenache. A. looked up Millennium in her Time Out San Francisco and they were described as having one of the best organic Wine Lists in the U.S.

Above, Tempura Snow Peas & Spring Onion with cucumber and citrus ponzu sauce from the fixed-price menu - fresh, light, and the sauce was perfection.

Below, slightly blurry version of the Indian Spiced Red Belgian Endive & Avocado Salad with chiogga beet, mint, cilantro, grapefruit with a rhubarb & cucumber chutney and a creamy coconut-curry leaf vinaigrette. I'm not an endive fan, but this was amazing - gotta get that chutney in every mouthfull:


Green Garlic Risotto Cakes with wilted mustard greens, grilled oyster mushrooms, green olive vinaigrette and crisp fried fava beans:

The eternal deep fried oyster mushrooms:


Wicked Potato & Butter Bean Enchiladas with ranchero sauce, corn tortillas, morel mushrooms, smoked onion & pasilla negro cream with a strawberry-cabbage slaw (this was such an incredible dish, again from the Fixed Price Menu I'll be petitioning to make this in a future class):


A delicious Indian flavored dish of Teff Crepes with an asparagus and lemon tofu filling, ginger & mustard seed coconut cream, South Indian red lentil dal (perfect!) and agretti:


Housemade Fazzoletti with English pea and caramelized onion filling, roasted fennel and fiddlehead ferns, maitake and King trumpet mushroom sugo, meyer lemon "cream", pinenut gremolata and truffle oil:


Aren't you just amazed by the menu descriptions of these dishes? These dishes are creative and complex and an experience to eat.

A. ended with an a drink, aptly described as Nocturne, organic vodka, espresso, chocoate ganache, chilled straight up:


Enjoy!