Mark's in Dundee

My return to blogging coincides with a return to Mark’s Bistro.  This summer, Mark’s had a change in Head Chef and I was interested to see what changes he has made and how he has made his stamp on the menu.

The first thing I noticed was how much smaller the new menu is.  Many of the favorites that regular customers expect from Mark’s are still there, including their signature dish: Macaroni and Cheese, with or without embellishments.  The embellishments on this particular visit were nothing to get too excited about. 

The new chef has added a handful of new dishes, one of which we tried for our appetizer.  The Roasted Brussels Sprouts caught our eye and I am glad we tried it.  The sprouts were well prepared with just the right amount of tenderness.  The combination of honey and the mustard “aioli” were a perfect contrast.  The mustard had some eat behind it without the tang of vinegar.  This was perfect as the sprouts provided enough tanginess.  The sprouts were cooked with honey and it had a warmth and fullness behind it that made me think of maple syrup.  The dish also comes with bacon lardons which would give you the complete package of sweet and salty.  For crunch, torn croutons were tossed with the honey and Brussels Sprouts.  I could have devoured the whole plate. 

For our main entrees, my Beau and I ended up ordering dishes we have had at Mark’s on previous visits.  We found the Pad Thai and the Tempeh Reuben to be largely the same as before.  Gone, however, are the sweet potato waffle fries, replaced with roasted fingerling potatoes, served with a malt vinegar aioli.  I did not care for this mayonnaise mixture as the combination called out for another ingredient to tie it together.  The potatoes themselves were average.

We were uninspired by the dessert selections and chose not to order any this time.

Mark’s is still a lovely environment.  Our waitress was the worst of the lot that night as she didn’t even tell us about the specials and largely seemed uninterested in us.  The other wait staff were pleasant even as they struggled to remember all the details of the night’s specials.  The menu has room for improvement and I hope the new chef spreads his wings a bit as he does show promise.  At this point, Mark’s is not on my list of “Must Visits” but still is a good bet for a nice place to dine and watch Dundee.