Deluxe Cafe, Wilmington

This is a most interesting place - the outside looks like a store front (of course, so does everything else downtown, except whatever ships or boats are tied up). The inside is upscale and artsy, with lots of paintings, drawings that are rotated regularly, along with autographed, designer surf boards - classy without being stuffy or ove-the-top trendy. The high ceilings, while attractive, make it somewhat noisy when crowded. Food at night is generally very, very good to absolutely excellent - I have not tried the Sunday Brunch, but will at some point. The appetizers offer a nice variety of choices, wth the Beef Tartar being very good, having a little bit of an oriental taste to it; The Kashmiir (curried lamb, goat cheese, and tomato chutney inside paratha) is nice, but relatively mild in flavor for a curried item; the serrano ham and chicken fritters are quite good, and a bargin at $6, as are the spanish home fries. The Paella is extraordinary, as is the Pan Seared Grouper (as good a piece of fish as I've had in a while). The Braised Beef Sort Ribs are good, but I prefer ribs with the bone in, always seem to have more flavor. The Chili Barbecued Confit of Duck is not a dish I care for - I absolutely love duck confit, but all the remarkable flovor the the confit is lost in the barbecue approach. The wine list is nice, the bar pours a nice drink, and the service is generally spot on - knowledgeable, attentive, and friendly. This place had kind of stumbled a year or two back, but seems completely back on course. This is not an inexpensive dining choice, entrees generaly in the mid to upper $20's.

Deluxe has some of the best prepared food in WIlmington. But beware, the portions are extremely small and the chairs will leave your behind sore for a week. However, you may get a little relief since your wallet will be significantly smaller when you leave. The taste is out of this world and the service is usually excellent.

The Sunday brunch pecan roll is amazing! They play live acoustic music during brunch. One drawback is they allow smoking at the bar during brunch, so request a table away from the bar.