City, Slicker

We loved our server, the smoky-voiced Darren. We told him he should be on the radio, but he thought he would be too nervous unless he had something stiff, like one of those potent oyster shooters, to steady his nerves. Darren was unflappable, even when I realized I'd forgotten my credit card and had to call a friend to bring it over.

"Well, you do have an honest face," insisted Becky, dipping a spoon into a trio of house-made sorbets in tropical flavors. The kiwi and mango were ridiculously sweet, but the raspberry had a nice, tart edge.

I'm not sure that I always look honest, but I must frequently appear hungry. On my next visit to City Tavern, our pretty server, Jessica, must have noted that I was practically salivating from the moment my friend Bob and I sat down. On the way to our table, I had passed the legendary broadcaster Walt Bodine dining with a friend and sawing through a big hunk of beef. It looked so good, I nearly snatched the steak off his plate.

"I'll bring some bread right out," Jessica said, just moments after greeting us. Was I that obvious?

I'm always a sucker for bread. And I'm even more vulnerable to the sound of a salad made with "duck prosciutto," which sounded more decadent than it was. A heap of fresh spinach was topped with two tissue-thin slices of salty duck, sprinkled with pine nuts and orange segments splashed with onion vinaigrette. The duck was gone in two bites, and I was left with a big ol' pile of spinach that seemed to double in size with each bite. I finally gave up.

Bob made a better choice with a bowl of summery cucumber soup, a cold and creamy concoction with chunky cubes of crisp cucumber. It was so wonderful that he begged our server for the recipe (and she got it for him); alas, by the time this review runs, the dish will have been replaced by a more seasonal autumn soup — "Maybe carrot-ginger or split pea," Craig Christopher told me later.

I clearly must have been mad with hunger to order the deep-fried combo seafood platter, which was not what the doctor ordered in my case but was so delicious that I risked heart failure for the crunchy fried oysters, shrimp and a flaky hunk of cod in a tempura-style batter. And french fries, naturally.

Bob made a meal out of appetizers: shrimp cocktail, followed by a bowl of steamed mussels in a fragrant shellfish broth and then an exceptionally fine crab cake. Not inexpensive, but when you're dining like Diamond Jim, it's important to have options. Bob was also impressed by the civilized touch of an artfully folded warm napkin offered to wipe his hands after the mussel course.

"Very classy," he said.

And that's the one thing that hasn't changed about City Tavern since it opened three years ago. The menu has undergone numerous revisions, chefs have come and gone, and prices have noticeably dropped as the economy has taken a dip (the most welcome change, as far as I'm concerned). But it remains a classy joint. For that reason, it may have the longevity of a Tadich Grill or the Berghoff. I sure hope it does.