The Sanctuary (Business Lunch)

Food Review 2-27-06

Headline:

The Sanctuary
201 N.W. “A” St., Bentonville

3 stars

It was a beautiful Valentine’s Day made for star-crossed lovers as two reviewers (betrothed to others) strolled to lunch at The Sanctuary in downtown Bentonville.

The restaurant is a 108-year-old church building that was home to the First Christian Church of Bentonville from 1898 until the 1970s.

We were seated at a cozy table on a balcony that overlooked the dining room, which is bright and airy in the middle of the day. The arrangement of the table was a little tight, causing our reviewers to squeeze in.

The male reviewer was a little miffed that there was no soap in the men’s restroom, not what he expected from an “upscale” restaurant.

He chose the grilled beef tenderloin sandwich ($13), which came with arugula, red onions and a Gorgonzola cream sauce on a ciabatta roll. He went with a side of french fries.

The beef was tender and delicious, and the bread was fantastic, he said.

The female reviewer tried the Quiche Florentine ($9), which came with a side of fruit. The quiche had a great herb-like flavor she couldn’t quite identify, but she was hard-pressed to find many of onions, spinach, tomatoes and mushrooms that were listed on the menu as being in the quiche. The strawberries had a weird chemical taste and some were brown. We don’t expect fruit to taste great in the middle of winter, but it should at least look nice on the plate.

The pair split a heart-shaped chocolate-cherry ganache cake with Amaretto cream ($9). The cake, which was coated on the outside with a hardened rich chocolate glaze, was absolutely decadent. It had a perfect blend of cocoa and chunks of sweet cherries.

The service was abysmally slow, turning a relaxing lunch into torture for the type “A” personality at the table.