Sunday Brunch at Arte Cafe

Sunday August 7, 2011

Wine Country in Signal Hill hosted a Sunday Brunch at Arte Cafe in Cerritos today. 80 people in attendance. In the past there has been a problem with the service at this establishment but today they seemed to have enough servers to handle the crowd

The wines today were from Francois Chidaine in France. The rep from Beaune Imports was on hand.

They poured freely with the first course of Eggs Benedict with Country Smoked Ham. Small potion which was good. The ham was julienned so it was easy eating. The wine was a NV Montliouis Brut. Dry yet had a light fruitiness to it. I did order 3 bottles of this one. My egg was slightly undercooked but the Hollandaise sauce was good.

Second Course was Dungeness Crab Cakes with Mixed Greens. The crab cake was very good. Not to much binder or filler. Just lots of crab. Served with  2010 Touraine Sauvignon Blanc. Nice pairing.

Next up was Seabass with Saffron Beurre Blanc and Asparagus.  My fish was slightly overcooked. It still had moistness to it but it was headed to  being over cooked in a few more seconds. Flavor was good. Sauce was good. The wine pairing was excellent. 2009 Vouvray Les Argiles.

Main Course was Short Ribs with Thai Barbeque Sauce. Served with mashed potatoes. Good flavor, meat was moist and very tender.  Pulled away from the bone nicely. Paired with a 2009 Touraine Rouge. A blend of Cab Franc, Malbec and Petit d' Aunis. Again a nice pairing.

I took most of my seabass and short rib home. A lot of food and wine for $45. A bargain in today's market.

Dessert was fresh diced mangos on top of mango sherbert. A refreshing way to end a meal.

I will say my opinion of Arte Cafe was better today than in the past. Service was good. No long wait for food.  Food and wine paired well. Hope they keep this up.