Tinks

Friday April 18

We used to go to our friendly neighborhood restaurant, Tinks, all the time, since it was equidistant - i.e. two blocks - between our friend Brian's house and ours. He doesn't cook, so he was their most regular of regulars, and they would basically let him treat the place as his headquarters. Since he moved, though, we haven't visited until tonight, when Lynne and Tom very kindly took us there for dinner. We were pleased to find it's still good, and now they treat Tom as a regular.

While we sipped a bottle of Con Class (which Tom introduced us to), we had some excellent appetizers: beef carpaccio topped with fried oysters, plus a dollop of whipped potato and garlic aioli; and a mountain of smoked salmon tartare on an apple and potato pancake with caper crème fraiche and wasabi caviar.

Our mains were diver scallops, a bit hidden under an arugula-apple salad, with nubbins of butternut squash in brown butter; and a special of broiled snapper, again hidden under too many chunks of mango this time, on drunken rice (i.e., made with Corona beer and tequila!) and grilled ramps. Once you brushed aside the various toppings, the mains were well-cooked and tasty.

For dessert, we headed home for a bowl of Graeter's coconut chip. Lynne knows what she likes when she visits Cincinnati. Thanks to her and Tom for a wonderful evening!

We still miss Brian, though.