Bashan Restaurant, Glendale

Though Bashan is technically in Glendale, it's so close to the main drag in Montrose that no one would fault you for saying it was there. In fact, it's probably more appealing to say Montrose, the town known for it's cute little downtown strip of cafes, boutiques and quaint small town atmosphere.

My friend and I decided to get to Bashan a bit early so we could walk around Honolulu Street, the aforementioned main street in Montrose. We stopped by Three Drunken Goats for a quick drink before dinner, and chose the Juve Y Camps Cava Rosada, an absolutely lovely sparkling Pinot Noir. It was light, refreshing and perfect for this balmy summer evening. If anyone knows where I can buy this directly, please advise!

We then headed to Bashan, a restaurant that has been praised heavily by foodies and critics alike. We arrived right on time for our 8 p.m. reservation and were seated promptly. A few minutes later, our waitress brought each of us a warm roll. Soft on the inside, chewy and a bit crusty on the outside, this roll is the kind of bread I dream about on a regular basis. It was a mild sourdough and with a bit of butter, it was heaven.

Next up was a curious amuse bouche. The waitress explained it as a melon consomme, with a bit of curry oil, but to me and my dinner companion, it just tasted like melon juice. There were bits of something floating around in it, though I could not determine what it was. The juice was refreshing, but nothing really special.

For appetizers, we shared two salads: a green salad with jicama, tomatoes (yay!), truffle oil, red onions and blood oranges. It was simple and flavorful and the flavor combinations worked perfectly. To those who think it's easy to make a great salad, let me be the first to disagree. But Chef Bashan knows how to create a memorable one.

Our second appetizer was, in a word, divine. It was the burrata and bresaola salad with parsnips, dates, endive and pistachios. The bresaola was formed into a little cup, which cradled the creamy burrata. It sat on top of a shredded parsnip slaw, which was a discovery for me. I've never eaten parsnips raw - what wonderful flavor and texture! The dressing had bits of shallots and perfectly complimented the salad. Again, it takes some mad skills to take a bunch of vegetables and make something profound from them. This is one of those profound dishes.

For dinner, my friend had the Alaskan halibut with pea puree and fava beans with langostines. The verdict was that while the langostine/fava bean/onion hash on the side was fabulous, the halibut - while perfectly cooked - was on the bland side. I took a bite and have to agree, though a bit of salt would've fixed it right up.

I had the dry aged NY steak with truffled mushroom puree and vegetables. I have to admit I was surprised to see it served sliced like this; I much prefer cutting my own steak, especially one that is so high in quality. The steak itself was very good, though a bit gristley on one side. The snap peas, carrots and onions were perfectly cooked and lovely. If I had to (humbly) make a suggestion to the chef, it would be to please serve the meat in one piece. Otherwise, it was very good.

If we had to pick a winner for the night, it would be a toss up between the burrata and this, the sticky toffee and peanut butter pudding. Both my friend and I agreed that this is one of the best desserts we'd ever had, period. The warm pudding and caramel sauce was served with cold vanilla ice cream and salted peanuts, and every bite was a divine experience. Even though we were quite full, I think we could have eaten another one of these. The whole meal was fantastic, but this dessert is enough reason to go back to Bashan. Prices are a bit steep (average $27 for an entree), but they have some well-priced wines by the glass and bottle, so in the end it didn't end up costing as much as we thought.