I've been meaning to try this place out for quite some time, was just waiting for the right occasion. We shared an evening with friends at this place and I can highly recommend it.
The atmosphere is perfect for conversation--most nights no music and the place is small, so there's not a lot of competing noise. I understand that they have a keyboard player on Friday nights so you can enjoy some live music then.We started off with some wine flights and the brussels sprouts appetizer, which set the stage nicely. Disclaimer up front--this is not a wine review. The owners know what they are doing and will help you with pairing the wine with food. The wine was just fine.
The brussels sprouts appetizer was fine also, the sprouts were tender and well seasoned with bacon. It's not a large portion so one didn't go far with 5 people. They wouldn't displace my favorites at Thistle Draft Shop but they were very good.
We followed that up with a cheese board. It was a nice variety of cheeses and they were all tasty, but the presentation wasn't up to par, it was kind of dumped on. The server apologized for that. The crackers and other accompaniments for the cheese were delicious and intriguing, so we very much enjoyed it.
We made a dinner of their bar food--each of us ordered a flatbread pizza. If you have any kind of appetite it's a meal for one. We got the Pepperoni, Pesto Chicken, Mozzarella & Tomato, Pesto Arugula & Prosciutto and the Bacon & Blue, and they were all fantastic. The flatbread was done perfectly--nice and thin, good and brown but not at all burnt. The slices ate perfectly. The marinara on the pepperoni was somewhat sweeter than average but went very well with the salty pepperoni. The flatbread is an absolute must if you go, it is perfect with the wine.
We shared desserts, getting a lemon torte, a tiramisu and a Scarlet's Slice, which is red velvet cake. I don't recommend dessert. They all came frozen and were nothing special in terms of presentation, though they tasted fine.
Besides the dessert, there were some other service issues that prevent me from giving the place 5 stars. The pours on the wine flights were very uneven, with some glasses having twice as much wine as others. The gaps between courses seemed to go on a bit, and in particular it seemed excessive that it took about 20 minutes for them to plate and serve frozen desserts. We were enjoying each other's company so this was not a serious issue but we noticed and commented on it.
The bathrooms were spare in decor but clean and very sensible, just like the rest of the interior. They have two non-gendered restrooms, one marked as a handicap restroom though the other one has plenty of room for a wheelchair to maneuver.
The Classy Cork is located in an unassuming strip mall north of the Grand Parkway, but don't let that fool you. It is a luxury experience and will set you back accordingly. Average cost for the full evening we had was about $55 per person. Service was homey and friendly, and we felt fully relaxed. If you want a place to go where you can fully focus on your company this is it.
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