STEPH DEROSA: CHICKEN ARTICHOKE SALAD >>>

Nordstrom Cafe Bistro
Chicken Artichoke Salad
Price: $10.95
Rating: Three out of four croutons
 

In all honesty I think Nordstrom is one of the best local shopping experiences around. Originating in Seattle, this retail giant holds such high quality and customer service standards that even the most discerning shopper like myself can always be made happy. Although I’m not hanging out there as much as I’d like lately, there is still an occasional need for a friendly lunch at Café Bistro, which is located on the second floor of their recently rebuilt Tacoma Mall location.

Not only has the store been given a facelift, but so has the menu of one of my favorite lunchtime shopping institutions. With re-created salads, different entrees, and an entirely new look, I was happy to find my favorite salad still on the menu â€" given a new name and tweaked just a teensy tiny bit â€" all for the better.

Description: Organic baby greens, strips of roasted chicken breast, long and full pieces of marinated artichoke hearts, chunks of goat cheese, sweet grape tomatoes, and small garlic croutons tossed in creamy Dijon balsamic vinaigrette.

Taste: Delicious. This salad hits every taste bud my mouth craves. The Dijon Balsamic Vinaigrette was balanced sweet and sour, the goat cheese soft and flavorful, the artichokes perfectly tender, and the grape tomatoes were seeded and absolutely savory. Get this: I even ate the croutons. Even those little suckers were good. They were just the right size (small) and were tossed in that Dijon Balsamic Vinaigrette I love so much. It goes without saying that this Nordstrom’s salad lives up to Nordstrom’s standards and everything about it was delicious.

Conclusion: There are differences between the old chicken artichoke salad and the new. First of all, they got rid of that weird bread-roll camping out on the side of the plate that nobody ate. To me, when a roll comes on the side of a plate I expect to have just finished ordering Baby Back Ribs or have just exited a buffet line at a hospital cafeteria. There’s nothing fancy about a roll on the side of a plate, not even at Nordstrom’s. Secondly, the artichoke hearts are fuller and tenderer, and the mozzarella balls have changed into goat cheese chunks. These two obvious changes, along with the improvement of softer artichoke hearts make for a top-notch salad that I am happy to have in my life.

Dressing on the side
Have you visited a school playground lately? They’re mostly filled with big contraptions meant for an older kid who can climb, or stocked with plastic spinning seats meant to nauseate all the others. If all I wanted to do was climb, I’d search for a tree. What happened to all the swings? Or see-saws? Or merry-go-rounds? They’re gone for safety reasons; I’m sure, but at what expense on the fun-o-meter? Where have the dangerous daredevil days of our youth gone? Part of the see-saw exhilaration was flying high and feeling intense anticipation of whether or not you could trust your partner not to jump off and drop you on your ass. And the merry-go-rounds? Oh the different ways you could hold on for your life! Now THAT was fun! Get the older boys to spin you and you were sick for hours. Man, how I miss that.

[Nordstrom, 4502 S. Steele St., Tacoma, 253.475.3630]