We recently took advantage of a company-sponsored night at the Cleveland Museum of Art and used that as an opportunity to check out Provenance, a Doug Katz creation that resides at the west end of the atrium inside the museum. Being located within the museum adds a unique air, as the stroll through the open, airy, football field-sized atrium sets the tone for something unique. A wall of windows will also provide your meal with a beautiful sunset backdrop. Whether you come in for an early dinner before browsing the galleries, or browse first and dine later, a stop in Provenance is a must!
The menu has a Continental flair (and highlights local fare), but also contains a prix fixe section featuring cuisine that complements a current exhibition. Plenty of options here, including meatless.
We started with a roasted cauliflower salad, accompanied by shaved beets, kohlrabi, raisins, pine nuts, and a tantalizing yogurt, mint, and honey dressing. Leave your “salad” prejudice at the door – no lettuce here, just an assortment of hearty cool-weather vegetables and that delicious dressing.
For an entree, S ordered a salad off of the prix fixe menu. This one did contain greens, but atop the spinach base came a smattering of pork belly lardons, crispy fingerling potatoes, and a poached egg, that, when broken, added its molten insides to the mix. Topping it all was a creamy and refreshing lemon Hollandaise. Two for two on the dressings so far. We rarely order main course salads, but we’ll gladly make an exception for something of this caliber.
I went with classic comfort food in the form of a rabbit cassoulet, with grilled sausage, white beans, and roasted baby carrots. Rabbit is quickly becoming a favorite of mine (maybe I should throw a few in the backyard?), and here, it was tender and mild, soaking up the flavors from the stew.
For dessert, we heeded our server’s advice and ordered the peanut butter and jelly cheesecake (good recommendation, by the way). To me, it was more like a mousse than a cheesecake (or at least the stereotypical heavy cheesecake that is so dense and takes several minutes to swallow each bite). This was light and delicious and had us fighting over the last bite.
Provenance earns 5 1/2 stars out of seven. Food, as expected, was excellent, entree prices are generally in the mid- to upper-20s, and service was great. As S said, Doug Katz has never done us wrong, and Provenance is no exception!
Leave a Reply