A quick review of Knox Mason
I happened to be on the 100 block of Gay Street the other night, saw Knox Mason only about a third full and decided to try my luck. I sat at the bar and was quickly served a delicious local beer. Mason's menu is an interesting one...
I started with deviled eggs, a Southern staple. They were light on the rooster sauce (aka sriracha), but the relish on top was quite evenly balanced with the milder egg filling -- that's not easy to do. I should have not had the eggs, because I filled up quickly.
The entree was absolutely divine, and one of the best dishes I've ever had, ever (this includes extensive eating in France, New York and San Francisco). I ordered the pork confit entree and added some macaroni and cheese as an extra side.
A generous helping of sweet potato puree lay under three perfectly prepared slices of pork confit. This is not easy, as the pork had actual meat in it, and wasn't just fat. The pork itself was simply some of the best pork I've had, let alone confit.
Atop the pork were some wedges of apple, prepared much like fried apples but with less sugar, allowing some of the tartness of the apples to shine through. I probably should have asked what type of apples they were, but I was too busy allowing the pork confit to melt in my mouth...
The mac and cheese was good, and I like how it came in an iron pan, searing parts and lending them that distinctive savory richness you get from iron baking. That said, they were good but paled in comparison to the entree.
The sweet potatoes were almost perfect, frankly. The pork was impeccably prepared. The apples were anticlimactic but only due to the other components of the meal being so outstanding. I thought I could eat no more by the end, especially after finishing my mac and cheese, but then I tried something I rarely do: I trusted the staff to choose something for me.
As I had sat at the bar, the bartender was serving me. I asked if one of their cocktails would match up with the banana pudding, and he said he'd make something that did. I think it was basically a mudslide, but it was quite excellent and definitely went with the sweet marshmallow-heavy banana pudding.
The pudding itself was pretty normal (for some reason I'm fond of the gloppy cafeteria style pudding), but the marshmallow topping was a little magical. It was just the right consistency, and a cook's torch had lightly toasted it around the top.
All of this plus tip (and I tip well) cost less than $60. That's a beer, a cocktail, appetizer, meal and dessert for one. Given the quality of the food, which is on par with any major metropolitan area, I think that's a pretty good value.
I started with deviled eggs, a Southern staple. They were light on the rooster sauce (aka sriracha), but the relish on top was quite evenly balanced with the milder egg filling -- that's not easy to do. I should have not had the eggs, because I filled up quickly.
The entree was absolutely divine, and one of the best dishes I've ever had, ever (this includes extensive eating in France, New York and San Francisco). I ordered the pork confit entree and added some macaroni and cheese as an extra side.
A generous helping of sweet potato puree lay under three perfectly prepared slices of pork confit. This is not easy, as the pork had actual meat in it, and wasn't just fat. The pork itself was simply some of the best pork I've had, let alone confit.
Atop the pork were some wedges of apple, prepared much like fried apples but with less sugar, allowing some of the tartness of the apples to shine through. I probably should have asked what type of apples they were, but I was too busy allowing the pork confit to melt in my mouth...
The mac and cheese was good, and I like how it came in an iron pan, searing parts and lending them that distinctive savory richness you get from iron baking. That said, they were good but paled in comparison to the entree.
The sweet potatoes were almost perfect, frankly. The pork was impeccably prepared. The apples were anticlimactic but only due to the other components of the meal being so outstanding. I thought I could eat no more by the end, especially after finishing my mac and cheese, but then I tried something I rarely do: I trusted the staff to choose something for me.
As I had sat at the bar, the bartender was serving me. I asked if one of their cocktails would match up with the banana pudding, and he said he'd make something that did. I think it was basically a mudslide, but it was quite excellent and definitely went with the sweet marshmallow-heavy banana pudding.
The pudding itself was pretty normal (for some reason I'm fond of the gloppy cafeteria style pudding), but the marshmallow topping was a little magical. It was just the right consistency, and a cook's torch had lightly toasted it around the top.
All of this plus tip (and I tip well) cost less than $60. That's a beer, a cocktail, appetizer, meal and dessert for one. Given the quality of the food, which is on par with any major metropolitan area, I think that's a pretty good value.
posted by Victor Agreda, Jr. at
11:42 PM
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