Black Sheep is on the menu tonight. Open since October 2012, the restaurant boosts their farm-to-table fair featuring fresh, local ingredients, hand crafted with a flair. Along with their signature cocktails, extensive wine list and craft beer selection, Black Sheep was just the ticket for us after a long week.
Now in the car, so began the slow seduction of the evening with our favorite 40's on SiriusXM 4. I felt so sexy with my bare legs against the cold black leather of his seats. My gorgeous man reached over and held my hand and gazed into my eyes at every stoplight...until of course we started arguing over which route would get us to 5 Points faster from the beach. In a huff, I retracted my hand and crossed my arms. Oh well, easy come, easy go.
We arrived at Black Sheep Restaurant, located at 1534 Oak Street, Jacksonville (5 Points, Riverside) 15 minutes late for our reservation and flustered. After checking in, we were seated just behind the hostess stand at a small two-person table. My better-half took one for the team and sat with his back facing the door (which I know he hates, as all men have an innate instinct from the Old West days to never sit with your back facing the door). My seat wasn't much better as I was staring at a huge support pole on one side and the backside of the Hostess on the other.
After so much anticipation and the long journey to Riverside, I shook it off. At that moment I truly let the beautiful atmosphere pour over me. Black Sheep's ambiance matches that of a nouveau-industrial design restaurant in L.A. with their use of rich wood, sleek metal accents, cool white subway tiles and warm lighting.
I quickly awoke from my daydreaming as I noticed we had not yet been served the champagne I called and ordered ahead of time to be served to us upon arriving. After three visits by the waitress, I decided they had forgotten my request and revealed to my husband I had hoped to surprise him with drinks to toast his recent work accomplishment. Just then, the waitress arrived with our champagne. "Surprise!...Oh well," I sighed.
Ok, enough chit-chat and down to the nitty-gritty.
What We Ate/Drank:
Lil Moo Ravioli
Acorn Squash Soup
Cider Brined Berkshire Pork Loin with black-eyed peas, house-made tasso (cured Italian meat) and glazed cippolinis
(Fresh catch of the day) Trigger Fish (from Florida) over cauliflower risotto
Salted Caramel Creme Brûlée
Jon Boat brew - Intuition Ale Works, Jacksonville
We started with the ravioli, which was melt-in-your-mouth delicious! Rich and creamy with a hint of nuttiness from the oil, we were off to a great start. Next was the soup, which after the soft-cheese ravioli, was probably too much, as I should have transitioned to a lighter option like one of the salads before my main course. Alas, as I can't resist any squash soup, and this dish did not dissapoint. Smooth and buttery, I would have added a pinch of cayenne pepper to add a spicy note to the finish.
As our main courses were placed in front of us and the first thing I noticed was, while the plating was beautiful, my dish was one big plate of brown and my husbands one big plate of white. The pork loin was perfectly cooked, along with the black-eyed peas, however, the meat was so lightly seasoned, the smoky flavor of the beans completely overwhelmed the meat. I have to admit my favorite part of this dish were the perfect caramelized cippolinis (large Italian pearl onions). They were rustic, sweet and burst in your mouth at percicely the right moment. My husbands fish was similar to my pork loin, cooked perfectly, but also one-dimentional in color and flavor pallet.
To end on a high note, I ordered the creme brûlée, which was delicious, but a typical dessert you would find at any upscale-restaurant. But unlike other creme brûlées, this topping was the perfect combination of burnt sugar sprinkled lightly with salt - Ummm, heavenly. It tasted like the Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate from Starbucks....which if you have never tried, you must immediately even though it's like 550 calories!
Speaking of drinks, the Jon Boat could possibly be my new favorite staple! As far as craft brews go, this crisp little ditty was absolute perfection from first sip to finish!
Overall, the food was good, but not great. I plan to return for a second tasting, as I feel we could have ordered differently and had a completely different experience.
What I Will Try Next Round:
Poutine (traditional Canadian drunken night bar food that was recommended to me by the nice couple from Canada sitting next to us).
Fried Green Tomatoes
Truffled Black Hogs Farm Egg Toast
Braised Beef Shortribs
Cookies and Chocolate Shake (Uttered to be Black Sheep's best dessert by many friends).
After dinner we adjourned upstairs to the 4th floor or rooftop bar, continuing our impression of Black Sheep. Let me just say, thank you God for finally giving someone (Jonathan Insetta) the foresight to open a rooftop bar in Jacksonville. Having visited Charleston, they are on every corner, but it took many, many years for Jacksonville to catch the wave. I hope this set's the precedent for the new "norm" in this city. The decor was light and comfortable and the servers pours were heavy. My after-dinner drink was the perfect end to a fun evening.
After returning home and making sure the little one was tucked in bed, We headed for the bedroom. Like other healthy, married couples, we like to spice things up every once in a while, and I'm not referring to the incredibly hot Indian food I specialize in. Since that last Grey Goose and tonic went down quite smoothly, I had just enough of a buzz to try something....different. I grabbed my husbands fancy plaid argyle sox one at a time and proceeded to tie each of his wrists. With one swift motion I grabbed both "handcuffs" with one hand and push him down on the chair with another. He then proceeded to laugh so hysterically, it sent me bursting into a side-splitting fit. After about five minutes, we both stopped to catch our breath and decided to go to bed.
Ahhhh, another successful date night for the record books :)
Photo Credits: Janice Price (Metro Jacksonville), Jacksonville Magazine and OpenTable.com
