We’ve eaten at Murphy’sbefore, on our only other visit to Boise. If you’re like Sue, and actually follow menu links like this one, be advised that Murphy’s website makes their menu look lame. That’s because a lot of their fresh fish dishes don’t appear on the main menu page, you have to hunt around for the link to the specials page, which is hiding at the top under the heading of ‘What’s New’. I guess the fish items are subject to availability, so this makes it easier for them to keep things up to date, but they could make the link more prominent.
Moving on. Our waitress was Lisa, who looked after us last time. She’s been there about twelve years, she says. We decided to go all seafood, all white wine, starting with clam chowder for both of us, and a glass of Pend d’Oreille, ID Chardonnay. The clam chowder was very tasty, and an interesting orange colour that made me wonder if we had got the lobster bisque instead. Caroline says I’m mad, or I was sitting under a coloured light. The chardonnay was quite bold, but I didn’t think it would stand up to my Trout with maple chile sauce, so I ordered a glass of Peltier, Acampo, CA Viognier. After tasting the viognier, Caroline ordered a glass of her own to have with the Mahi Mahi with crushed tortilla crust and seasonal salsa. When our dinners came, neither of us said much at first. It turned out that the seasonal salsa was strawberries, and Caroline didn’t care for the fish and strawberries combination. I found my trout a little dull, and wished they had given me more of the maple chile sauce. We exchanged tastes, and both found that the grass was greener on the other side. We exchanged plates and enjoyed each other’s dinners more than our own. Caroline didn’t want more than a hint of the maple chile glaze, and I thought the strawberry salsa was fascinating. Since we had both chosen rice and asparagus for sides, the switch really only involved the fish. I did have one more morsel of the trout because Caroline didn’t finish it all, and I was more convinced than ever that the trade was a good deal.
Dessert is presented in a novel fashion at Murphy’s. Most of the desserts are served in small glasses, similar in shape to a classic Coca-cola glass. This means Caroline didn’t get a lot of sugar crust on her crème brulee, but I thought my coconut cream (pie?) was terrific. Cab service back to the hotel was prompt, but I’m almost sorry I remarked on how hard it must be to sell RV’s when we passed a dealership. Turns out our driver sold RV’s for twenty years before losing his job at the first sign of the recession. It wasn’t high gas prices, he said, but the uncertainty of borrowing for an optional luxury purchase. His former employer, once a big business, is now down to a staff of one, the owner.
Tim's Road Noise 