Z's parents gave us a groupon for nice French restaurant in Woodside called Bella Vista that we decided to use for our 5 year anniversary dinner. The drive there from the city was a bit scary since we had to drive up a tiny two lane road through forested area. I couldn't help but have flashbacks of all the scary movies I used to watch as a child about the crazy serial killer coming through the woods out to get me while menacingly waving a machete or chainsaw. After driving the small winding road for what seemed like an eternity, we finally came upon the little cabin-like restaurant. The entrance area had a lovely fireplace going while we waiting for our table to be ready. The tables of the restaurant are facing wall to wall windows where diners can view the city lights amidst the redwood trees. The view was as the restaurant's namesake mentioned--beautiful.
The sitting area in the ladies restroom had the most lovely wood paneling and floral paintings hanging up. I felt completely ridiculous snapping all these photos, but it is not everyday that Z and I go to a nice classy restaurant. For appetizer, Z and I shared a bell pepper soup and some mussels. Immediately following this, the waiter served us a lime champagne sorbet. At this point, I thought it was so cool. (I had already drank 2 glasses of wine since we brought our own bottle to share.) After the sorbet, we had our entrees. I had the special of the night--lamb in wine reduction sauce, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, and green beans. Z had Veau au Poivre--Sauted Veal with Green Peppercorns in a light Dijon Mustard Sauce with the same sides. We both tried a bit of each other's dishes and everything was delicious. For dessert, we shared a Grand Mariner souffle which was definitely more grand mariner than actual souffle...which was fine for 4 wine glass me.
I decided to wear my velvet dress from Vanessa of The Velvet Bird's holiday collection. All her dresses fit me like a dream and this velvet number is my new favorite dress. I added a cardigan clip of gold roses that I found on Etsy to add a little extra special something to my fancy collar. If I could, I would probably wear this dress every single day! When we arrived back to the apartment, there was an anxious little pug waiting for us. His eyes were so sad and pleading that I just had to take a photo. Don't worry Finnegan...I only have pug eyes for you.
Velvet Collar Dress // The Velvet Bird
Gold Rose Cardigan Clip // Etsy
Black Mary Janes // Ebay
Brown Coat // H&M
