More on Mission Beach

(Continued from "ooh la la, lapin" below ...)
O' course, my venison chop with al dente potatoes plus edamame and wilted greens was nothing to sneeze at. Nor was my other mate's honkin' braised lamb chop with a heaping side of veggy lentils. We oohed and ahhed all 'round. The lamb was falling off the bone, and the venison was grilled to a wonderful rare. Mission Beach Cafe's chef certainly knows what he's doing with his meat.

And so does its wine director, who suggested three big-bodied wines that weren't on the list. We chose Napa Valley's Brown 2005 Zinfandel ... and OMG did it kick ass.

When I took my first sip, all I could say was, Wow. It's a wow kind of wine, agreed the super-friendly, super-helpful cafe's wine guy. I want to buy a case, I said. It's that good. This zin is the kind of rich, velvety red that you want to roll around on your tongue for EVER. It's delicious all alone, but also the perfect partner for any meaty dish, especially in this case, rabbit, lamb and deer.