By Judy McDonough
Judy McDonough is our office manager. She also handles circulation for the Milton Times. She will occasionally write reviews for us. This review is of the restaurant, dbar, at 1236 Dorchester Ave. in Dorchester –Editor

Our office closed at exactly 5 p.m. recently—an unusual occurrence. The staff then headed out together for an evening of food and socializing. We saw this as a way to “de-stress” as the holidays approach, and our work of putting out a newspaper becomes even more complicated than usual.
Picking a restaurant we could all agree on was easy. We wanted someplace new that was also one of our advertisers. Our staff had visited dbar’s once before as a group. Their menu is tantalizing, so we headed back.
Pulling into a parking lot instead of trolling the streets for an open space was a plus right away for all of us. Dbar’s décor is funky and inviting with cool lighting that helps you to relax. We got a table in the corner that fit us comfortably.
One of my colleagues and I looked at the lengthy martini menu that offered varieties we had never seen. Even though these drinks looked great we figured we would stick with a glass of wine, more work appropriate, although that “white grape” martini stuck in my head. I’ll have to return with my lady friends to sample it.
The waiter came to our table with wonderfully crusty, bread, the best kind, with three different dipping sauces. We couldn’t decide which was the “dbest,” the red-hots/oil, garlic/oil or the balsamic vinaigrette.
The menu was varied and with ingredients described for each entrée, it was difficult to choose. One item missing on the menu, however, was something our resident vegan, Nate, could eat. When we explained this to our waiter he informed the chef, Chris, formerly from Blue Ginger.
Chris came to the table and said he would create something especially for Nate. I ordered the special, striped bass that came with lentils and asparagus. The bass was done to perfection with a hint of lemon flavor. I ate every bit. Pat, our boss, got large sea scallops over mushroom risotto, which would have been my second choice. She said they were delicious and pan seared with a crusty edge. The risotto was creamy and dreamy. Another male co-worker, William, who had a heftier appetite, ordered the pasta Bolognese. He was delighted by the size of the portion and by the spicing of a heavy meat sauce presented over pasta that was not overly cooked.
As to our vegan, Chef Chris presented him with an array of vegetables over rice that was simply beautiful and might have appeared in a fine cooking magazine. Not only did it look good, it tasted better. The blend of vegetables and spices hit the mark, and, as Nate says, he hasn’t had something that tasteful and exotic ever.
Even though we were completely satisfied with portions that were ample enough to even satisfy my husband’s hefty appetite, we had to try at least one of the desserts. Of course we agreed on a chocolate item, though the pumpkin brulee was tempting but maybe not big enough for six spoons. The Semifroid (a word some of us have trouble pronouncing) Chocolate Mousse with a raspberry coullis was to die for. Thankfully, I got my spoon in first.
It was hands down or as they say in the restaurant review world, a thumbs up, a complete success. The trendy drinks, fabulous food and great company…. dbar is dbest for dstress.
*****