Meli is the latest endeavor from the fine folks who've brought us Kali's Court and Mezze (if you've read my review of Kali's you know they've given me high expectations).

"Meli," is Greek for "honey," which Vasilli has used as a theme throughout his new digs. Nearly everything on the menu incorporates the bee-goo in some aspect or another, and even the decor is meant to represent it, with honeycomb shaped fixtures.

Meli's menu is decidedly less expensive than that of the flagship restaurant in the group; with the priciest dish set at only $20, you can impress your date with the expected outstanding service without breaking the bank.

The last time that my wife and I stopped in with our friends, we decided that we had to sample just about everything the menu had to offer. We started out with the charcuterie and plates. Each item on the plates is paired with a condiment, my favorite of which by far was the goat cheese with truffled honey, though Ken, the general manager, stopped by the table and suggested trying the prosciutto with the same honey...WOW! A crazy, yet delicious combination of sweet and salty, with just a hint of earthiness from the truffles.

We decided to skip salads and moved on to a couple of cold appetizers. The tuna tartare, a usually simple dish, was the most complex and delicious I'd ever had, with the white anchovies and balsamic "caviar." The beef carpaccio was good, but nothing really special...though who can argue with near-raw beef, onions and horseradish? Not this guy.

My companions and I decided that we had to have one of each of the hot appetizers...we ended up ordering SECONDS of three of them! The scallops were so perfectly seared, with a little bit of crispiness on the edges...basically a twist on the classic bacon wrapped scallops served all over, the chef serves them with pancetta and a honey viniagrette. I'm a huge fan of duck, and judging from the fact that the first plate of the duck sausage was clean within seconds of touching the table, I think it's safe to say the everyone else (save the vegetarian wifey) was, too. Finally (at least for appetizers), the sweetbreads... A lot of people are afraid of offal, or organ meat, the stuff that gets thrown out (or made into scrapple ;) ), but you haven't lived until you've tried these. They're fried until crisp on the outside and still delicate inside, served with an amazing Sauterne reduction and bacon oil. Yes, BACON OIL. There are two things that make everything in the world taste better, bacon and fat. So bacon oil made me very happy.

By the time the entrees came out, I think we'd finished out sixth bottle of wine (there WERE eight of us), so this part is a bit of a blur as far as what everyone else had. I had the Steak Au Poive, which is just a fancy-pants way of saying steak with cracked pepper, but was amazing with its oxtail pan sauce.

Note to self: a little less wine next time