Spruce is a large place and a one star Michelin restaurant.  There is a long bar with lots of seats as well as a good sized dining room with lots of interesting art and mirrors.  They also have a large party room in front and a substantial wine cellar.  Nice white clothes cover the tables that are set with matching napkins.  Some music is in the background and the lighting is lowered with the vibe being subdued and elegant.  At lunch they have an a la carte menu but also a pretty good deal in a fixed price Harvest Menu which is a three course menu for just $38 and wine pairings are available for $15, which include a small glass of quality wine with each course.  We chose for this options.  

 

Diners are furnished with two nice breads – a white roll and a slice of cranberry bread.  Both were soft and tender and the flavor of the cranberry bread was tasty; it was not a quick bread but a yeast bread.  We munched on this while we sipped a glass of champagne.

 

Parsnip Veloute was with crispy duck confit, poached apples and walnuts.  It was almost sweet and some of the parsnips had been cut into strips and fried to add a nice texture to the creamy soup.  The pink apples were cut into little balls which mixed with the other ingredients very well.  Along with the walnuts adding an additional texture the taste of the liquid parsnips was excellent.  The variety of textures and flavors made this course a real winner.

 

Red Wine Glazed  Shoulder of Pork was served with roasted turnip, English peas and smoked potato purée. The pork was tender and complimented by the tiny root vegetables, which were really strongly flavored.  There was a very reduced sauce that was intensely flavored and worked well with the pork and smokey mashed potatoes, which were nicely smooth.  Everything again, went well together and packed an exceptional flavor punch.  The wine pairings, while not huge pours, were nicely chosen and did compliment the dishes.

 

A Baked Blood Orange Tart was dessert.  The blood orange was from Valencia and fairly tart.  The pastry was quite buttery with the filling smooth, almost slimey and all topped with a couple slices of sweet crisp meringue. It was served alongside a guava sorbet that was sweet yet tart.  The overall effect of the dish was good and did provide a sweet fix but it did not fall in the exceptional category of the first two courses.