Some of our “chosen family” was in town at the end of February, and yes I know it’s almost the end of March, but I had to share. They’re huge foodies from the East Coast, and so we decided it was time to finally try out The Painted Lady. The Renaissance Man and I have been hearing about The Painted Lady since we moved to Dundee and I can tell you that the rave reviews were well earned!

We had an eight o’clock dinner reservation and the whole upstairs room of the house to ourselves. What’s neat about the location is the charm of the old Victorian house. The house is part of the “painted lady movement” thus the restaurant’s name, The Painted Lady.

Indulge me with a Random Fun Fact: The Painted Lady Movement is a term used in American architecture for Victorian and Edwardian houses and buildings painted in three or more contrasting colors, that embellish or enhance their architectural details. Pretty cool, right? It’s hard to see the colors in this picture, but The Painted Lady certainly holds down the corner of this street with her stately appearance!

We started dinner with a few cocktails while waiting for all the guest to arrive. The Renaissance Man had an Old Fashioned and I enjoyed a Sidecar! We both were impressed with the cocktails, super smooth.

Dinner for eight!

Before long everyone had arrived and we celebrate with a toast over our first course. We had many things to celebrate on this evening. A couple of milestone birthdays, and the health of our good friend who is currently going through cancer treatment. He’s been going through treatment with such poise and strength, and is a model example for how a positive outlook and a team of supporters can really get you through anything.

Dinner was off the charts amazing! Everyone at the table was overwhelmed with flavors. I’ve seriously never had such an amazing meal in my entire life…every plate was like artwork and I’m still dreaming about the pineapple palate cleanser.

You’ll have to forgive my photos as I forgot to grab the flash for my camera. Below is the menu description and photo of each amazing course!

Ok, so I don’t exactly know what all these treats were…this was a bonus round of small bites that were served before our first course arrived. My favorite thing on this plate were the savory macaroons in the middle. The outside shell was some sort of buckwheat pastry and the inside as filled with a blue cheese spread. It melted in my mouth!

Course No. 1 ~ Fresh Hearts of Palm, Avocado Mousse, Yuzu, Watermelon Radish

Course No. 2 ~ Artichoke Soup, Potato Wrapped Oregon Prawn, Pearl Onion Petals

Course No. 3 ~ Potato Gnocchi, Veal Sweetbreads, Shitake Veloute, Swiss Chard, Toasted Almonds, Parmesan…I would have eaten an entire meal of this gnocchi, it had so many wonderful flavors and textures!

Course No. 4 ~ Winter Vegetable Salad, Local Cauliflower, Crispy Kale, Turmeric Yogurt, Baby Carrots, Poached Duck Egg

Course No. 5 ~ Oregon Mushroom and Spinach Crepe, Wild Rice and Lentil Salad, Butternut Squash Sauce

Course No. 6 ~ Artisan Cheese, Pickled Quail Egg, Romaine, Sun Dried Tomato, Parsnip Puree, and Crispy Shallot…the pickled quail eggs were so tasty, they’re so delicate and petite.

Course No. 7 ~ Pineapple Kaffir Lime Granita, Young Coconut Gelee, Coconut Cream…this dish was the absolute favorite of The Renaissance Man, he is still taking about it! I have a feeling he might just try to make something similar to it this summer. It was so light and refreshing and was an explosion of flavor in your mouth.

Dessert Course ~ Chocolate Soufflé, Peanut Butter Ice Cream, Peanut Brittle, Pinot Noir Jam

As I mentioned above, we also had a few birthday celebrations! The birthday kids went with the other dessert option which was Brown Butter Hazelnut Pound Cake, Meyer Lemon Curd, Buttermilk Gelato, Oat Laced Tuile.

And at the end of a seven course meal, what you really need is one more special surprise! This cute 3-tiered stand held all sorts of delights…my favorite were the Earl Grey Biscuits on the bottom tier dusted in powdered sugar. They had me at Earl Grey…

Not surprisingly, we closed the place down. We started at around 8pm and didn’t leave the restaurant until well after 11:30pm, it was a marathon meal and crossing the finish line was worth every last bite!

If you’re in the Newberg-Dundee area and are looking for something special, an experience that you’ll be talking about for years to come, make a reservation at The Painted Lady! Trust me, just do it.