I love to cook, I think that is evident by some of the recipes I post here on the blog. I also love to go out to eat. Before we retired to our life here on the farm we went out quite often; we had less time and more disposable income. Now we have lots of time but live an hour and a half (minimum) from the restaurant and not so much disposable income. Now we go out to eat maybe twice a year and to be honest I’d rather go out two times to a really nice restaurant than many more times to mediocre restaurants. In the few years we have been here in Montana we have found a few that we really enjoy.
Red Bird – Missoula, MT
The Red Bird has two distinct areas – a wine bar with music and the fine dining room. There are two different menus. We have only eaten in the fine dining room and the food is extraordinary. The menu changes with the seasons and includes sustainably grown foods, many of them locally sourced. The atmosphere is very romantic with lot of pretty colors and low lighting. The decor had a Morrocan feel to me and it was very inviting. The tables are well spaced so you don’t feel like you are overhearing your neighbor’s conversation.
The service is excellent and unobtrusive. The food is outstanding. It’s our favorite of the restaurants we’ve tried. The menu offers a range of choices with some Asian inspired dishes. The last time we ate there I had duck and the hubby had salmon and bother were prepared beautifully. The courses are brought out at a perfect pace and we never felt rushed. I’ll look forward to eating here again. Red Bird on Facebook
2nd Street Sushi – Hamilton, MT
If you like sushi this is an excellent restaurant. For us it’s a real haul so we have only gone once – to celebrate our 30th anniversary. We read about the place in our local paper and so we took a day trip for a sushi dinner. It was worth the drive. Finding quality sushi in the middle of beef country was a real joy. It’s a small place but well laid out. Service is good and there are some interesting rolls.
The Silk Road – Missoula, MT
Billed as a Global Dining Experience that is indeed what you will find when you decide to eat at The Silk Road. This is a tapas style restaurant where your order appetizer size portions of meals from different countries from around the world. It is a fun way to eat! You can order a table full of treats and share – there is nothing more romantic than that! The menu changes from season to season to reflect what is fresh and available. They offer gluten free options as well. The restaurant is comfortable and the service is good. Silk Road on Facebook
Plonk- Missoula, MT
Plonk is also a wine bar and is more known for that. We’ve only eaten here once and it was good. The seating is a little bit odd – there are mostly bar tables with a few regular tables in the back. It’s not the most comfortable way to enjoy a dinner – especially one considered a fine dining experience. The tables are perhaps 2 1/2′ around so there is just barely enough room for the dinner plates and your drink. Beyond this we found the service to be good and we did enjoy the food. I had rabbit and the hubby had sturgeon. Both were well cooked and nicely presented. We were there at Christmas the the restaurant was nicely decorated so it added to the mood. Plonk on Facebook
I hope to discover more restaurants as we live here longer. We will be trying another new restaurant next month as we celebrate our 33rd anniversary. It’s fun discovering new places to enjoy a romantic night out with the person you love.
