Date Night at Piggy’s

Things I love –

• My kids’ smiles.
• A clean house.
• Hugs from my hubby.
• A sunny, 85 degree summer day with NO humidity.
• A good deal on anything.
• Good food I didn’t have to make.
• Date night.

The hubby and I spent a night out on the town (if you can call being home by 9:30 pm a night out) in La Crosse, Wisconsin for a rare date night.

Part 1

We headed first to a place every girl dreams of having her date take her – the Boat, Hunting and Camping Show.  Now a girl shouldn’t complain when her date is paying so I won’t because I actually enjoyed the show.  We dreamed of the boat someday we may have.  We walked through about 50 campers that are much nicer than my college apartment was and I didn’t have to listen to any hunting spiels. Good start to the night.

Part 2

After two hours of wandering around the La Crosse Center we headed to Piggy’s in La Crosse for dinner.  Piggy’s is one of my favorite restaurants.  Their food has never disappointed me and their service is always top notch whether it’s just a table for two or a group of ten.  They rock!

Now I’m not sharing this information with you to make you jealous of the fine dinner we enjoyed, I’m sharing this information with you so you too can enjoy this little piece of heaven. 

We started out with an appetizer.  This Smoked Beef Tenderloin crostini (fancy word for small piece of bread) served with cheese, chopped tomatoes, basil and garlic.  It was served cold which really brought out all of the flavors.  It was divine.

Next up was the soup or salad.  The hubby went for the Tomato and Bacon Bisque which he said was good and I went for the salad.  It was a plate full of mixed greens, dried cranberries and topped off with honey roasted almonds and ranch dressing.  I don’t normally like nuts but the cranberries and almonds complimented each other so well.  When our waiter came to ask how our food was – I said it was “beautiful”.  Now I don’t talk like that.  Not sure where that came from but it was either the wine or the fact that I truly loved the taste. 

And then it was the main attraction time.  Yipee!!!

I always have a hard time deciding what to order.  They have a large menu with some unique offerings and everything is always so good. 

My hubby went with a Center Cut NY Strip Steak topped with bleu cheese and seasoned crumbs on a pepper sauce.  They served it with seasoned mashed potatoes and steamed veggies.  I love the big potato chip as a garnish. It looked delicious!

I decided to go with something I hadn’t tried before – the Seafood Thermidor.  It was gulf shrimp, sea scallops and lobster meat, sautéed with wild mushrooms in a brandy sauce topped with Romano cheese.  They served it with a tomato risotto and steamed veggies.  I ATE THE WHOLE THING!!!  It was delicious too!  The flavors all blended so well together.

We never have room for dessert and I didn’t even want to be tempted so we passed on even hearing what they had to offer that night.  Saved myself a few calories.

A few recommendations –

• If you are in the La Crosse, WI area, give Piggy’s a try.
• Make reservations.  They do their best to fit you in but you may have to wait an hour or two.
• Dress however you feel comfortable.  This is a place where one table will be all dressed up and another will be wearing jeans and t-shirts.  Everyone is treated with the same great service. 

The prices are reasonable for a fine dining experience.  Drinks and all of the above food cost us about $80.  Not bad for a lovely dinner out every now and then.

Are you drooling yet?  I can still taste the seafood thermidor (in a good way).  It was a perfect place for a date night.  Can’t wait to go back and try something different!

Piggy’s did not solicit this post.  In fact, they have no clue who I am except as a very satisfied customer.