Maude

I had wanted to visit Curtis Stone's Maude for years (I'll kick myself forever for not partaking of his June 2015 avocado menu!), and last month, my mother and I had the brilliant idea to treat each other to a pre-paid Maude dinner as our Christmas presents to each other. Named after Stone's late paternal grandmother, Maude's set tasting menu changes by month, and is built to herald one key ingredient -- luckily for us, December is "black truffle" month, which made for a perfectly decadent, festive, first experience. With wispily elegant wine stems in hand, we enjoyed course after course of this warm, winter feast; the highlights of which to me were the Foie Gras Royale with maple sherry and pecans, the Boeuf en Croute, and the delightfully seasonal praline, Gianduja, and mascarpone dessert. The restaurant's upcoming 2017 ingredients cover an equally beautiful range of flavors, and I've already made a mental promise to not wait three years before visiting Maude once again.

Dress: Pinup Couture Katie Dress in Black (sold out)
Shoes: Bettie Page Retro Mary Jane Heels in Red
Tights: Kate Spade New York (old)
Purse: Kate Spade New York (old)
Lips: Lime Crime Velvetine in Red Rose
Brows: Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Definer in Ebony

Apple & Oyster

Truffle Toast - soubise, collard greens

Winter Vegetables glazed in their juices

Foie Gras Royale with maple sherry and pecans

Lobster - leeks, sauce Americaine, tarragon

Agnolotti - chestnut, marsala, clementine

Boeuf en Croute - parmentier, consomme

Waybridge

Praline - Gianduja, mascarpone

(close up) Praline - Gianduja, mascarpone

Fruit Cake with Truffle Butter