One night last week, as the fog was slinking back into town on the tanned heels of a glorious warm spell, my sweetheart Michael and I set out for an evening at Christopher’s. Chef/owner Christopher Caul’s cheery Carmel restaurant, which opened in April, did more than just banish the gloom; it reaffirmed our faith in the power of a meal to attain the status of a fully satisfying esthetic experience.

We found Christopher’s in a small courtyard on Lincoln Avenue, its warmly lit interior beckoning in the cool evening air. The dining room exudes casual California chic. Indirect light suffuses the two rooms from graceful wrought iron wall fixtures. The crispness of white linen-covered tables is softened by tasteful, unpretentious details: square candle holders, comfortable chairs, generous windows opening onto the courtyard and street beyond. A fireplace had us scheming to return once colder weather sets in.

Christopher’s has a full bar and an array of intriguing cocktails made with boutique hooch—the Cosmopolitan made with mandarin blossom-infused vodka caught my eye—but we decided to stick with wine. Michael ordered a glass of the Mountain View chardonnay ($6.50) and I ordered the Estancia pinot noir ($7.50), a choice confirmed by our server, Brielle, as a food-friendly selection, and a light, spicy gem in its own right. As a nice touch, she brought the open bottles to our table and offered us each a taste before pouring. We were also supplied with a basket of excellent piping-hot rolls (olive and rosemary).

Thus fortified, we faced the daunting task of deciding what to order for our first course. Like all good Cal-Italian restaurants, Christopher’s menu is heavy on fresh produce and seafood, and the sushi-grade albacore carpaccio and the tequila-cured salmon tempted mightily. But all bets were off once I spied the words “cornmeal-crusted chile relleno” ($10.25). Years growing up in New Mexico have left me with a yearning for chile rellenos to rival the incendiary deliciousness of a fat Hatch chile stuffed and smothered with cheese and ladled over with green chile sauce—and a wounded, cynical certainty that no California chile relleno will ever be up to the job.

Well. Days later I am still thinking about Christopher’s chile relleno, not because it was hot (it wasn’t) but because it made me see pictures. Okay, embarrassingly, the pictures were of lassos and cowboy hats, but the point is this: Caul has taken a bunch of city-slicker ingredients (rock shrimp, mushrooms, goat cheese, oven-roasted tomatoes and cilantro pesto), stuffed them in a mild poblano chile and rolled it through cornmeal to create a deliciously earthy, rustic dish with flavors that unfold with surprising complexity. It’s a real treat, this dish, and it’s

enormous.

Michael’s roasted asparagus salad ($7.75) was excellent too. How marinated asparagus done simply on a charcoal grill can turn into something one keeps wanting to eat more of is beyond me, but it worked. Laid out on a bed of greens, red and yellow beets, and roasted yellow peppers, and dressed with a flavor-enhancing vinaigrette, this appetizer made us glad we had forgone our usual beloved mixed green salad.

Our dinner courses followed soon after. While the halibut, pork chops, pastas and steaks had all looked appealing, Michael had opted for the roast duckling ($19.75) and I had staked my fortunes on the lamb shank ($18.75). The lamb—French cut, slow roasted and served with an opulent zinfandel sauce—fell helplessly off the bone, leaving the knife underemployed and looking for trouble. It was very good and, obviously, quite tender. The smooth, creamy polenta, punctuated by delightfully crunchy whole kernels of corn, was a lovely counterpoint. Crisp green beans and baby carrots rounded out the meal.

Michael’s duck arrived fanned out on the plate accompanied by a raspberry sauce, wild-rice risotto, and the same fresh cooked vegetables I enjoyed. I am a big fan of duck and often order it when dining out; to my disappointment this one seemed a little chewy, and I craved more of the crispy skin promised in the description given by the capable Brielle.

As full as we were after our main course, though, we could not resist seeing what Christopher’s had in store for us for dessert. Reluctantly bypassing the white peach-and-blueberry cobbler, we chose the zabaglione gratin ($6). This version uses orange muscat rather than marsala, incorporates a bit of heavy whipped cream in addition to the traditional whipped egg-whites, and—amazingly—is glazed under a flame just before presentation to caramelize the sugar. The result is a small lake of foamy, slightly boozy, not-too-sweet goodness unlike any dessert I’ve had before, lifted by the spoonful like ambrosia. Michael’s glass of Rosenblum late harvest zinfandel ($8.50) partnered nicely with it, and we left Christopher’s feeling warm and rosy and glad Caul—a veteran Carmel restaurateur just returned from a stint in New York—is back in town.

CHRISTOPHER'S ON LINCOLN
Lincoln between 5th and 6th, Carmel | 626-8000
Open for dinner at 5pm | Closed Tuesdays