Blue Dahlia Bistro

On a recent Friday evening, I checked out Blue Dahlia Bistro before heading to the Off Center for a show.

Since it was an early dinner, we were able to catch some great happy hour deals.

The man and I shared a tableful of snacky foods on the back patio.

To drink, he had a Belgian beer, while I had a fresh lemonade with pomegranate.

First was the tartine with brie, apricot jam and walnuts. I think this might have been my favorite dish of the evening. The brie was room temperature and soft, and the jam lent a sweet-sour note and the walnuts a nice crunch.

A platter loaded with hummus, tabbouleh, olives, sun-dried tomatoes and fresh breads arrived next. The breads, especially the olive bread, were tasty. The tabbouleh was probably the best thing on the plate—very fresh and herbal.

A white bean and mint gazpacho was quite mild. After adding salt, it woke up a little, but didn't hold up to the rest of the meal.

We'd gotten to dinner so early, we were going to be too early for the show. Too full for dessert, we opted for some warm after-dinner drinks. He got a latte; I got a chai.

Sipping it on the serene back patio was really enjoyable. The only problem were the flies. Throughout the meal, we had to swat at swarms of flies to prevent them from landing on our food. Kind of distracting, but overall the meal and the setting were really nice. I'll definitely be back to sample more of the menu.