Monday, August 22, 2011

Birmingham Restaurant Week: The Silvertron Cafe.

by Rachel
The Silvertron Cafe sits inconspicuously in the Forest Park neighborhood of Birmingham, along Clairmont Road.


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My family and I have come to adore Silvertron over the past couple of years, and when we rave about it to others, we get one of two responses: either excited agreement, or “I’ve never heard of Silvertron, where is it?”

…which would have been our own reaction five years ago.

However, it’s been a favorite of those in the know for the past twenty-five years, and with good reason.

Their expansive and widely-varied menu offers up something (or, in my case, a dozen somethings) for everyone, and the fabulously generous portion sizes are sure to feed you tonight AND tomorrow night.

But they don’t skimp on quality for quantity – they offer both. The owner, Marco Morosini, adds his seasoned and highly-acclaimed touch to each menu item.

Another great perk that Silvertron offers is their constantly varying menu. They display their specials on the wall as you come in,

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As well as offering fun event nights like Monday Night Pasta and Tex-Mex Tuesdays.

We always bring our kids along, and I’ve never felt uncomfortable doing so, despite the high-end tastes that Silvertron offers. Their dining room is open and airy, leaving plenty of room between tables. The atmosphere is casual and inviting, with a wide array of diner demographics.

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The wait staff is always friendly and overly helpful to our burdened-with-kids state. Last time we visited, our waiter chased for a block to bring us our leftovers that we’d accidentally left on the table. This visit, the staff only had good humor in Ali’s efforts at making herself at home, depositing her shoes underneath my chair.

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The kid’s meals are more than enough to feed two (or more) children off of one plate – they use the same platter-sized plates that they use for entrees, and fill them to the brim with kid goodness.

And then, because every kid needs help filling in the cracks after dinner, you can let them finish the meal off with a Kid’s Ice Cream Sunday, made to order:

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This week’s Birmingham Restaurant Week Menu offers some fabulous choices to let diners sample what Silvertron is all about.

For the appetizer course, you have the choice between Tomato and Mozzarella Salad or Roasted Eggplant and Goat Cheese Bruschetta.

I had the opportunity to taste the bruschetta at the Preview Party Thursday night, and it was fabulous. The Eggplant and Goat Cheese were warm and rich, and the toast was perfectly done, not hard and dry like many bruschettas tend to be.

Since I had already tried the bruschetta, I chose the Tomato and Mozzarella Salad when we visited Silvertron the next night.

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It is amazing. The balsamic reduction is the perfect flavor to highlight the softness of the Mozzarella and bring the whole salad together.

For the entree course, there are three choices: Chicken Tacos with Caribbean Sauce, Tagliata with lemon-mustard mayo, or Mango-chipotle Tilapia.

When given the choice, I always opt for fish. However, since the Tilapia is fried and served over Mashed Potatoes (which sounded fabulous, but was probably a few more calories than I wanted to consume that night), I decided to step out of my comfort zone and try something completely new for me: the Tagliata.

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Besides being gorgeous, it was wonderful. The roasted vegetables had a great spiced flavor without losing their natural tastes, and the beef medallions (which I ordered rare) were tender and juicy. The mustard sauce was a surprising combination, but fit perfectly with the meal. I found myself sopping up every last bit of it.

The dessert options include a Bailey’s Parfait, Homemade Roasted Sweet Potato Pie, or Chocolate Chip and Espresso Bread Pudding.

Always a sucker for the chocolate, my choice was easy. I was a little hesitant because sometimes bread pudding isn’t sweet enough for my needy taste buds, but this one is perfect.

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The bread pudding is moist and flavorful, and the powdered sugar and chocolate syrup only helped guarantee that it would be sweet enough, causing me to, once again, scrape my plate clean.


The Silvertron Cafe
3813 Clairmont Avenue, 35222
Open Monday – Friday 11:00 AM – 9:45 PM, Saturday 8:00 AM – 9:45 PM, Sunday 11:00 AM – 8:45 PM.




Rachel is a Birmingham-Based Blogger who writes at Grasping for Objectivity and runs this networking site for all Alabama Bloggers. She and her family love eating out, especially at local establishments where the food is divine and kids are welcomed with open arms.Silvertron Cafe on Urbanspoon

2 comments:

j said...

I sat with my mother and my Aunt Jackie in The Silvertron Cafe and discussed the plans for my wedding. August 17th was our 20th wedding anniversary :) Great places like Silvertron stick around. Hopefully I can get back there again soon.

Great restaurant, great review!

Brandi said...

Silvertron is one of our go-to date night spots. Every time I go, I think "we should bring the kids sometime".

This might be a good week to do it!

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