35 Brix
 Canton (Green), Ohio        Date of Visit  07/21/16        http://www.35brix.com 

We got an invite with promise, a new place, greatly enjoyed with other friends and now offered to us. Uhhhh, this needs to happen more often. 35° Brix is in the same plaza as the gentrified Tom + Chee. Outside, strip plaza. Inside, much snazzier than outside. Swank on a stick.
 

Pretty Slick Inside
 

The service was friendly and quick and while our particular server (a little frantic) forgot a thing here and there but was apologetic and bought us dessert (oddly our least favorite part of the whole meal) to offer recompense. Even more strange, but fantastic was the manager, who just strolling by somehow divined we were talking about a missing soup, drink and side and screeched to a stop to make sure everything was quickly addressed. Well done.

Mixed green salads were cold and came with nicely done dressings. I would do the white balsamic or the white French next time instead of the bleu cheese, which needed a little more funk. A loaf of warm multigrain bread arrived with soft salty butter. And we ordered three drinks. The server tried to talk me into some super sweet nonsense (in a fun and pleasant way). No. Then she said it came with a glowing ice cube. Double no. Then my bourbon based drink arrived with a disco party going on inside. She may have forgotten a few things but she was fun. The cocktails were balanced top to bottom.
 

We started with their poutine and a bowl of soup. The poutine (fries, curds and gravy) was tasty. Nicely browned taters, squeaky cheese and brown gravy all worked together but would struggle to compare to the versions from Public House or Bacchi Burger. The difference is the gravy, good versus stunning. The soup didn’t make it to the table until much later, and having realized how much food we had, I almost asked them not to send it. Lucky me, almost. They have a regular she-crab soup. Haven’t had it since I was in Charleston for training a decade ago. Honestly, I can’t remember exactly what the official low-country version tasted like. Just remember it was awesome. So was this. There was no way to be disappointed. Thick and creamy, definitely butter added to the dairy party, the bisquesqe broth was redolent with crabby goodness from both shell and pulled crabmeat. Add a splash of sherry and I hope it’s just like the original, means my memory is intact.

In addition to our entrees we ordered two additional sides. The night’s special were the Brussels sprouts, sautéed and glazed with a salty brownness. Not bad but paled in comparison to the wild corn pudding. Expected something akin to a corn bake, got something more reminiscent of a corn cake. So sweet, I should have hated it, but there was enough serious corn flavor, plus some butter and salt to tamp the sugar into balance. Way better than the actual dessert.
 

First entrée, scallops and risotto. The rice is over-cooked (almost every restaurant serving risotto is) but the asparagus and mushroom flavor was spectacular. Add three well prepared scallops and you have the idea. The Avignon chicken was also well done. Seared in olive oil with fresh basil, red onion, fresh lemon juice, white wine and mounted with cold butter at the end. Much more flavorful than your average chicken dish. It was served with identical risotto.
 

The two absolute standouts for me were the short ribs and the salmon. The ribs were braised for hours and hours until they just fell into rich, succulent chunks of delicious. Tender dumplings of sweet potato gnocchi were sautéed off in brown butter, adding a nutty taste and the lightly bitter broccolini was doused in an oil with a nice kick which kept the dish from devolving into nothing but heavy and heavy.

The salmon was extraordinary. Wonderfully flaky with a formidably crispy crust. The crust even stood up to their signature 35 Brix toppings, which shouldn’t be as good as it is. It comes on seafood, steaks, I might get it on the salad when we return. Get this:  butter, bacon, bleu cheese, and brown sugar. The big scoop atop the fish was great. Add a big plop of delectable mash and you have two excellently conceived and executed dishes.
 

To finish we were treated to the flourless chocolate cake, stuffed truffle style with a peanut butter mousse. Functional flavor, but the texture of the cake reminds us why most people use flour. Still all in all a superior outing on many levels.