w w w v w w v 7 12B -The Michigan Daily - Weekend Magazine - Thursday, April 1, 2004 Eve prepares authentic European fare as a reminder of the high stan- dards of quality and service In the south of France. EXPECT A FULL 'EVE'NING FRENCH INSPIRATION EQUALS SATISFYING, BUT PRICEY DINNER By Anthea Stolz - Daily Arts Writer As graduation nears and the uncertainty of the post-collegiate years creeps into my thoughts, I crave comfort. Like many in chaot- ic situations, I look to the idyllic past for an escape from the impending reality of gradua- tion in ... gasp ... four weeks. I cannot think of a more carefree and stable time in my life than my semester in the south of France. Dinner, made from scratch, arrived on the table every night at 7:30 p.m. sharp, served by my charis- matic and lovable host grandmother. Comfort food is important to most people. Right now, comfort food for me is escapist food: a vicari- ous culinary return to paradise without ever leaving the city limits. Hankering for an evening hiatus from reali- ty, I headed to Eve for dinner with a fellow friend seeking escapist cuisine. Transporting ourselves from Ann Arbor to France, we arrived at the cozy restaurant tucked in the Kerrytown Market to find it bustling with live- ly diners and others awaiting tables. Very lim- ited bar seating and virtually no other conve- nient place to wait should encourage future diners to make reservations. Once seated, the ambiance is lovely. Small tables covered in white linen and adorned with a single white candle lighten up the brick walls without destroying the intimate atmosphere. With space at a premium, the tables are placed fairly close together, a la frangaise, and ani- mated yet hushed discussions abound, but everyone is concerned only with their own conversations. Chef and owner Eve Aronoff believes in the French philosophy of cooking, which she describes on the back of her chic menu to mean "making almost everything from scratch, following the seasons and savoring and caring about the food." Because Eve's dishes follow seasonality dictated by produce rather than the calendar, she is still following her winter menu. While carefully studying the menu, boasting Asian-inspired fusion fare, we awaited a bottle of Louis Bernard Cotes du Rhone 2001. Far from the most coveted bottle on the wine list, it was one of the "Excursions" (wines under $25 per bottle) and evoked memories of the red wine from the same region that sat on the din- ner table each night in France. The culinary trip back to France really began with a cutting board of good crusty bread accompanied by three flavored butters: garlic and herb, salmon and guava. Each delighted with a very distinctive taste, which made choosing a favorite impossible. My entree, macadamia nut-encrusted salmon, topped with a citrus sour cream and served with coconut rice and sauteed seasonal vegetables achieved a delicate complexity that combined substance and freshness. Salmon's natural richness was nicely complemented by the macadamia crust, which contrasted with the spicy tomato-cilantro salsa in texture and in taste. With a distinct hint of ginger, the sticky coconut rice sweetly cooled the heat of the salsa. Eve's food is undoubtedly prepared in the French style, though it does not arrive in minuscule European portions, but rather in larger American servings. While I had no room for a third course, I couldn't resist a peek at the dessert menu. Overtaken by my red wine haze, I temporarily forgot about the limitations of my stomach and ordered the apple and dried cher- ry cobbler. Delightfully warm, the fruit cobbler was topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and served with a small pitcher of maple syrup and cream for drizzling on top. A dessert that could have been too sweet was carefully bal- anced by the tartness of the cherries, resulting in a delectable treat and a perfect finish to the leisurely meal. Three hours after being seated, the meal unfortunately came to an end. Without a morsel left on our plates or a drop in our wine glasses, we had nothing to prove that we had escaped to France for the night, except the indescribable satisfaction and happiness that radiated from our faces, stomachs and minds, put to rest by the comfort of the cuisine from our idealized worry-free pasts. Eve is a pricey excursion for the student budget - entrees range from $20 to 30 - but dinner is far less expensive than a plane ticket to Paris. PARKING Continued from Page 3B really concerned, have someone get out of your car and direct you. This is cheating because you can't take full credit for the parking job, so if you 'have faith in your inner-parking mechanism, go it alone. First, pull up to give yourself room to maneuver. Checking your rear and side-view mirrors obsessively, employ the hand-over-hand method taught in driver's training. Slowly turn the wheel to the right, nudge it to the left and gently glide the car into the space. Make sure not to slam into anything. Again, Costanza's wisdom is apropos: "It's all geometry, know- ing all the angles, when to make that first turn and then when to swing it back in, that's the key." When you emerge triumphantly from your vehicle, admire your work and exclaim to everyone within earshot, "What a beauty!" Stare at them until they nod in agreement. Smirk at your friends because they doubted you. Call your mother and tell her that you're back, baby - Ann Arbor's reigning champion of parallel parking has done it again. You walk into your destination, which happens to be Mr. Greek's, feeling like the new American Idol. Leaving the restaurant, you glimpse a thin white envelope on your windshield. In all the excitement, you forgot to pop some quarters in the meter. Wailing "Nooooooo!" in opera-worthy woe, you realize you've destroyed the perfect park -the final leg of the Greek's challenge is return- ing to a ticket-free car. The ticket will run you $5 if you pay at City Hall within the next 24 hours, $10 if you mail your payment within 14 days. However, this is a small price to pay for entering a restaurant and not being compared to a horny Englishman with bad teeth.