Set in a cozy corner of the Downtown Mall, Moondance Café could be easily overlooked. But with its sedate atmosphere and intimate feel, this gem of a restaurant deserves a double take.
Sun-shaped mirrors and celestial tablecloths invite the customer to sit down and browse through the menu of New Orleans-style cuisine. A string of illuminated moon and stars lights drape thematically across the bar, while a welcoming fireplace sputters in the smoking section.
Accented with red peppers and green sprigs, the Fried Oysters in a Chili Corn Cream Sauce ($5.95) were soaked in corn chowder and melted in the mouth.
The waiter then brought a half-loaf of bread settled on a wooden cutting board, giving the impression that mom had just pulled the warm dough out of the oven. Leftover slices of the bread were perfect for soaking up the excess champagne vinaigrette that coated the house salad. The tangy vinaigrette had a desirable consistency and was not too heavy.
The Penne Pasta with Sauted Shrimp in a Tomato Basil Cream Sauce ($14.95) seemed an obvious choice at an eatery that prides itself on seafood cuisine. Satisfying, warm shrimp without much flavor of their own were accompanied by chunks of tomato and a strong cream sauce served with parmesan.
Their most popular dish "by far is the filet mignon, blue cheese crusted," Moondance waiter and bartender Doug Eward said. The entrée, listed as Blue Cheese Crusted Filet Mignon in a Shiitake Red Wine Sauce ($17.95), was pleasing but failed to meet my raised expectations. Although the filet was tender, once you get past the garlic, salty topping, the meat itself was light on seasoning.
Moondance Café, which has been open for about five years, attracts a 30-something crowd, according to Eward. Businessmen and stockbrokers are regulars, but often a student crowd will come before a date function, he said.
"The cold weather burns up business though," added Eward, who noted that this is a consensus among vendors in the Downtown Mall, an outdoor enterprise that is subject to mother nature.
While the dishes were delicious, prices that would warrant a special occasion such as a semi-formal or an extravagant date, were not necessarily supported by a special atmosphere. The wicker chairs in the front section where smoking is permitted are not ideal for high-class dining. But the back room, with cushiony and circular booths, allows more personal exchange.
As the saying goes, if you shoot for the moon, you'll at least be among the stars. That's about where Moondance Café has landed.
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