More Mis-labeled Food

Although I am desperately trying not to have this blog turn into a food critic's page, such is becoming more difficult.  Another rant.  If  a chef is going to change the main ingredient of a traditional dish, PLEASE tell your customers.

With the arrival of fall, one of my favorite dishes, ossobuco alla milanese, makes a greater and grander appearance on menus. My wife and I headed to a local establishment, the Chop House,  for a weekday night out dinner.  There it was on the menu:  ossobuco.  A cool crisp fall evening just cried out for braised veal with a sultry gremolata. Had to go there. What was on my plate when served was not veal ossobuco, but rather pork ossobuco. In other words,   braised fresh ham hock---not a veal shank.  I would not say  I was disappointed but surprised that I had no warning that that chef opted to go with pork rather than veal and not inform this guests. (Then a horrific thought:  Perhaps  Tennesseans think ossobuco is supposed to be made with pork????) Should I inform them that traditional ossobuco is made with veal????? Is this another reason why Tennessee is certainly a "different" kind of place, if you know what I mean.  BTW the dish was terrific but not as expected.

A few days later, having theatre tickets, we headed out to Nashville for an early dinner and a show. Tried a restaurant we had yet to venture into,  The Bound'ry.  Again, on the menu was my yearned for ossobuco.  Karen, our supremely professional server, looked at me like I was nuts when I asked if it was veal rather than pork ossobuco. "Veal, of course, with a fork placed right in the marrow for your convenience" she responded.  Embarrassed  I had to inform her that we recently were surprised with a pork hock rather than a veal shank and once bitten twice shy. Chefs should learn quickly that changing a dishes ingredients is fine and they should not limit their creativity---just let us know before we order. Labeling is really, really important in my opinion.  By the way, the Bound'ry is, in our opinion, one of the best restaurants in Nashville.