Foodie Friday – A Foodie Adventure at Edison: food + drink lab

It’s a Foodie Friday Adventure!  Hooray! I decided that I would embark on a culinary bucket list adventure, visiting the top rated local restaurants in the Tampa Bay area.  I’m using the Top 50 Restaurants in Tampa Bay as scored by Laura Reiley of the Tampa Bay Times as my road map.  This week’s Foodie Adventure takes us to Edison: food+drink lab, rated number 3 on the list.

I met an old high school friend for dinner last Friday.  I wanted some place new and cute and I have a coworker that has been singing praises about how great Edison’s food is.  The mad scientist behind the lab is Jeannie Pierola, former chef of Berns/Side Berns so the expectations for greatness are pretty high. Luckily I was able to get a reservation for the same day.

The menu’s are on clipboards, which plays well to the theme of a “lab”.   However, it can be a bit daunting.   I felt like I was going to be given a pop quiz on dinner.  While this place has a hipster, “cool without trying too hard” vibe, the menu reads like something straight out of the Iron Chef show.   It’s wordy and it could deter you if you feel like you are not a culinary aficionado. You know me, I don’t do pretense.  If you have a question, ask. Don’t be intimidated by the terminology and don’t try to understand what all of it means.  It’s really not important unless you have a food allergy obviously.   In which case you should inform your server and they would check just to be sure that what you are ordering is safe for you.

The great thing is that our waiter, Roy, was very knowledgeable and down to earth.   He answered our questions and he wasn’t a food snob.  There’s nothing worse than a waiter or maitre’d who tries to intimidate you or belittle you because you can’t pronounce something on a menu.   We all come from different life experiences, and if you have intentionally sought out a restaurant that is off of your beaten path, then you have come because you wanted to expand your pallet and your food education. Many thanks to Roy, for being completely awesome.

We had several tasty selections, buffalo cauliflower and oysters on the half shell with charcoal butter to start.  I don’t know how the heck you make charcoal butter, but yum!  I have other ideas in my head that I could do with charcoal butter.

 

For my entrée I selected the red snapper with brown butter, brussels petals, sun chokes, hedgehogs, fuji apples, cider caramel jus with barley. 5 points to Gyffindor if you know what a hedgehog is.  The first image in my mind was Sonic from the old school video games.  In this case a hedgehog is a type of mushroom.  You feel smarter already don’t you?

My friend ordered Za’atar-seared yellowfin tuna with baby carrot chickpea stew, dandelion greens, medjool dates, and preserved lemon persillade.   He enjoyed the tuna.  However he was not a fan of the dandelion greens.   Once he found the dates, he changed his tune.   The greens, carrots, and dates are all meant to be eaten in a harmonious fashion together rather than as separates.

The cocktails were tasty as well.  I highly recommend the gin and plum concoction, the Violetta.  As its name indicates it’s purple! However, what made this dinner a foodie adventure for me was dessert.  Our awesome server, Roy, didn’t steer me wrong. It’s called the sugar-crusted butter cake.   It should be called, sugary bites of celestial yumminess.  Yes please!  It’s a butter cake with brown butter ice cream, pistachio, orange, and toffee sauce.  It’s safe to say, my mind was blown.

When I return there were a few other tasty items that caught my eye too, like the Edison crullers served with carrot ice cream and white raisin puree.  There is also a spicy Jamaican chicken and waffles dish and a scallops dish that peaked my interest.

Entrees for dinner ranged from $28 to $38, while the most expensive dish I saw on the lunch menu was $18.   There are many offerings on the lunch menu, not offered at dinner that I would really like to try.

If you are in the mood to increase your foodie education, Edison is a good choice.  It may be worth it to look at the menu online ahead of your visit.  That way you will come to class prepared.

Lauren G. , Outdoorsy Diva™

“Adventure is a lifestyle.”