Simma and Ron and Debbie and I dined at Bas Rouge on a Saturday night with a 6:45 p.m. reservation. We were seated immediately.
The hours during which the restaurant is open are quite different than anything I have seen. On Thursday and Friday it is open for lunch from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. On Friday and Saturday it is open for dinner from 6 – 9:00 p.m.
The restaurant seats 24 people at two tops and four tops.
There is a semi-circular beautiful dark wood counter at the back of the dining room where the servers work when they are not among the guests.
The kitchen is behind a wall with a windowed door.
Once we were seated we were offered champagne. Ron accepted the offer; the rest of us did not. This was followed by an amuse bouche – Seafood Sausage on finely sliced white cabbage.
Throughout dinner the servers offered a selection of sourdough bread, and three small rolls: brioche, cheddar and rye.
Simma began with Warm Artichoke with Roasted Spargel with Mache, parmesan foam, red wine reduction and puffed wild rice. Ron started with Crudo of Scottish Organic Salmon with Blood Orange, fresh wasabi, aged soy sauce and pickled jalapeno. Debbie and I opted for Grilled Lobster Tail, Hon Shimeji mushrooms, citrus segments, Styrian pumpkin seed oil and brown butter.
Debbie and Ron selected as their entrée Whole Roasted Dover Sole for Two, with potato puree, roasted spargel and brown butter pan sauce. Simma selected the Poached East Coast Halibut with fennel potato puree, confit tomatoes, macadamia and asparagus salad, Yuzu citrus emulsion. I chose Rack of Lamb Pommes Dauphine, Spring pea cassoulet with squash & Tomatoes. [“Spargel” is asparagus.]
The Dover sole was fileted by the chef table side on an old fashioned rolling silver serving cart.
The selected desserts were:
Debbie – Austrian Coffee with Almond Ice Cream and Tuile
Simma and Ron – Lingonberry and Almond ice cream
Mike – Chocolate Cake with Frangelico Anglaise and Hazelnut Crunch
None of us have experienced better service. There were two servers plus a maître d’ who was also the sommelier and assisted with the service.
The dishes are quite beautiful with white on white designs. The walls are adorned with a series of paintings.
When dinner was over, little paper origami cups filled with madeleines straight out of the oven were delivered to the table. As we left each couple was given a small black paper bag containing the restaurant’s signature olive oil cakes.
There is a single unisex restroom. As you enter there is on the right a square white ceramic washbasin on a black counter with a mirror above. Further to the right is a small glass-top table with towels, tissues and a liquid soap container. To the left is a white ceramic commode.
There is a safety bar at around waist height from the small table to the wall at the far end of the room and over the commode.
The top of the wall is tan colored while the bottom is a light brown. The floor is covered with beautiful large tile that is similar to the floor in the restaurant.
Bas Rouge is part of a group of food service locales on a single block called BluePoint Hospitality. The other sites are:
Sunflower & Greens which has a menu that offers salads, soup, and premium proteins. It is open on Monday – Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. (The head chef at this restaurant and Bas Rouge are the same person.)
Bumble Bee Juice is a cold-pressed juice company. It serves fresh juices, acai bowls, artisan honey and smoothies. It is open Monday – Saturday from 8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Weather Gage offers various coffees and pastries Monday – Saturday from 7:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
There is also a yoga studio on this block and plans for a trattoria on the street behind Bas Rouge.
BluePoint Hospitality is owned by Paul Prager, a business man from New York who is resettling in Easton.
Bas Rouge
19 Federal Street
Easton, MD 21601
410-822-1637
www.basrougeeaston.com