So, we had been married 7 years, together for 13, we decided to celebrate! Thank you to Bonnie for offering to watch the kiddos for us. We knew they were in good hands and were able to enjoy dinner without worrying! 
Here is Jeremy with the card I made him. We went to an Italian restaurant at the Hyatt Regency in Scottsdale. The hotel was very nice. Jeremy got off work early so we were able to get there considerably early. We arrived at 5, and the restaurant did not open until 5:30 so we enjoyed a drink at the bar and then walked around the gardens for a bit. Then off to Alto! We had the place to ourselves for a little while. After perusing the menus, we decided to do the "Chef's choice 4 course meal." The menu was vague and the waiter was mysterious..."The chef never does the same four courses, the table next to you may order it and get an entirely different four courses." We were at Chef's mercy. Jeremy ordered his meal with wine pairings and I ordered mine without. We told the waiter, Ty, that we were celebrating our anniversary, and he said that entitled us to a complimentary desert. He also brought us out a sparkling wine (on the house!): 
We ordered asparagus with Gorgonzola cheese, breadcrumbs and pine nuts as an appetizer. I forgot to take a picture before we dug in, it was delish!
Here's looking at you, kid! Jer picked me a flower from the Hyatt's garden...some things never change!
This is a palate cleansing roasted red pepper soup with marscapone cheese and a 50 year old balsamic vinegar on the bowl. 
First course: Arugula salad with figs, pecorino cheese with black truffles and a chili oil drizzle.
Second course: seared striped sea bass with a bean, mint, and crab salad, the yellow sauce is a yellow tomato puree and there is a green parsley puree sauce as well.
Third course: Risotto with saffron and marscapone cheese.
Cool flying saucer plate that the risotto was served in.
Fourth course: duck breast served over pulled duck leg in a sweet and sour sauce with pine nuts and rosemary.
Happy couple with their complimentary dessert wine.
Pretty sunset!
Jeremy is pretending to eat the ice cream, but this picture looks so funny! The dessert was interesting. The cakes were good, I don't remember what they were called, something fancy, but one tasted lemony and one tasted chocolaty, the chocolaty one was supposed to be almond. One of the gelatos was pistachio, the other was marscapone, but it tasted like sage. That was bizarre! Everything but the sage one was delicious! My favorite course was the arugula salad. That was amazing. The waiter did a great job pairing the wines to the courses, too! The whole meal was outstanding. We really enjoyed each other's company, and we do not get out alone often enough. I felt like the kid who fell in love with him. It was great.
Next stop- gondola ride! For each entree purchased at Alto, you get a fee gondola ride. Jer and I had been on a gondola ride in Venice, and that was amazing and romantic. This was actually pretty nice, too. Although it was warm out, it did not feel as hot as it was, maybe because we were on the water, but when we got back to the car it was still 103. 
The gondolier stated that this is actually a sondolo, not a gondola, she said it is smaller to fit in their little lake. She sang a beautiful song in Italian about waiting for one's love. It was a fine way to end the evening. We both look forward to number 8!
Here is Jeremy with the card I made him. We went to an Italian restaurant at the Hyatt Regency in Scottsdale. The hotel was very nice. Jeremy got off work early so we were able to get there considerably early. We arrived at 5, and the restaurant did not open until 5:30 so we enjoyed a drink at the bar and then walked around the gardens for a bit. Then off to Alto! We had the place to ourselves for a little while. After perusing the menus, we decided to do the "Chef's choice 4 course meal." The menu was vague and the waiter was mysterious..."The chef never does the same four courses, the table next to you may order it and get an entirely different four courses." We were at Chef's mercy. Jeremy ordered his meal with wine pairings and I ordered mine without. We told the waiter, Ty, that we were celebrating our anniversary, and he said that entitled us to a complimentary desert. He also brought us out a sparkling wine (on the house!): 
We ordered asparagus with Gorgonzola cheese, breadcrumbs and pine nuts as an appetizer. I forgot to take a picture before we dug in, it was delish!Here's looking at you, kid! Jer picked me a flower from the Hyatt's garden...some things never change! This is a palate cleansing roasted red pepper soup with marscapone cheese and a 50 year old balsamic vinegar on the bowl. 
First course: Arugula salad with figs, pecorino cheese with black truffles and a chili oil drizzle.
Second course: seared striped sea bass with a bean, mint, and crab salad, the yellow sauce is a yellow tomato puree and there is a green parsley puree sauce as well.
Third course: Risotto with saffron and marscapone cheese.
Cool flying saucer plate that the risotto was served in.
Fourth course: duck breast served over pulled duck leg in a sweet and sour sauce with pine nuts and rosemary.
Happy couple with their complimentary dessert wine.
Pretty sunset!
Jeremy is pretending to eat the ice cream, but this picture looks so funny! The dessert was interesting. The cakes were good, I don't remember what they were called, something fancy, but one tasted lemony and one tasted chocolaty, the chocolaty one was supposed to be almond. One of the gelatos was pistachio, the other was marscapone, but it tasted like sage. That was bizarre! Everything but the sage one was delicious! My favorite course was the arugula salad. That was amazing. The waiter did a great job pairing the wines to the courses, too! The whole meal was outstanding. We really enjoyed each other's company, and we do not get out alone often enough. I felt like the kid who fell in love with him. It was great.
Next stop- gondola ride! For each entree purchased at Alto, you get a fee gondola ride. Jer and I had been on a gondola ride in Venice, and that was amazing and romantic. This was actually pretty nice, too. Although it was warm out, it did not feel as hot as it was, maybe because we were on the water, but when we got back to the car it was still 103. 
The gondolier stated that this is actually a sondolo, not a gondola, she said it is smaller to fit in their little lake. She sang a beautiful song in Italian about waiting for one's love. It was a fine way to end the evening. We both look forward to number 8!
Oh how sweet! So glad you had a wonderful time together. Refreshing isn't it?? Congrats on 7 (13) years!!
ReplyDeleteCongrat's Sweetie!! It sounds wonderful!!! I am so glad that a you had such a wonderful evening to celebrate such a beautiful relationship!
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