If I had sat at the bar and ordered the fried oysters to start and the scallops as my entree, I would have walked out of The Confident Rabbit eager to return. Open in downtown Fredericksburg as of last September, the easygoing bistro pulled off these two dishes without a hitch.
The oyster starter is generously piled with a dozen black peppery, perfectly fried bivalves served with cocktail sauce and a spicy aioli that tastes like Buffalo sauce spiked with Texas Pete. The other compelling reason to return was a plate of seared diver scallops flanked by good-quality grits, sauteed baby kale and a creamy shrimp sauce that had us dredging every forkful through it to amp up the delicate scallops.
Wines were also a high point, with an interesting list and helpful recommendations and tastes from a server (not ours) who noticed our glasses were empty.
Sadly, there were a few head-scratching parts of the experience that dashed any plans for a second visit. For starters, the pork rillettes is heated before serving, which melts the fat and leaves you with an unspreadable jar of shredded pork—which tasted good but is not rillettes. We gave up trying to spread it on bread and ate it with a fork.
The pheasant was overcooked, a fact you could see just by looking at it as it landed on the table. The menu now lists its accompaniment as the creamy grits, but our version on a hot spring day came with asparagus, baby bok choy and a wedge of heavily herbed savory bread pudding that was also cooked to the point of desiccation, and its fall flavor tasted sorely out of season.
Staff could use some training, which results in long lags between courses and a glaring lack of basic knowledge about food—including how to pronounce the word “thyme.” An overly sweet cookie pie only served to reinforce the unfavorable impression.
Notes:
The Confident Rabbit
309 William St., Fredericksburg
Open for lunch Monday through Saturday; for dinner Tuesday through Sunday; and for brunch on Sundays
Appetizers: $4.50-$80
Entrees: $14-$24
