February 28th is an important day for the Dineamic Duo. You see, it was on that day in 2016 that Ian and I agreed to make things official! Permit me to tell a little backstory here to set the mood. Ian and I met four years ago under different circumstances. We reconnected in 2015 when my cousin Cayla married his close friend Bob. Sparks flew and it was magical. Well, until I ruined it. In my own words, “Ian, I would totally date you if we lived on the same coast.” Whoopsies. Ian, being the hopeless romantic that he is, took these words to heart. He pursued me for six months– six months of texts, phone calls, Facetime dates, and one east coast visit (thanks Nicole and Justin for the ticket!). I was a little gun shy at the time, but Ian persisted and finally my heart melted thanks to his sweet, loving, and kind ways. So in February, I came out for my Granny’s 90th birthday and it was then that we decided to finally take that next step and officially become a duo! Something about that beard just won me right over..

This year for our anniversary, we decided to do it big. So we made reservations at Born & Raised, a new steakhouse in Little Italy. Born & Raised opened late last year. It is the newest brain child of CH Projects. Not surprisingly, this group has also brought us a few of our favorite places such as Underbelly (OMG delicious), Craft & Commerce (amazing drinks), Polite Provisions (our favorite bar), and Soda & Swine (one word.. MEATBALLS). Born & Raised is an awesome blend of modern and old school. Think 1920s gangster meets late 1990s gangsta. See what I did there? As with all their other restaurants, the decor is fantastic. I’d love to redo our whole house as a copycat. Very Art Deco. Very Ian and Arielle. (Our game room is an Art Deco themed theater room.. Or will be if we stop going out to eat and actually start working on it!)

Let’s talk food and drinks! First of all, the drinks are amazing! I enjoyed my two cocktails immensely. The Old Fashioned is superb! The Whiskey Smash is top notch! I highly recommend going upstairs to the beautiful open air patio for a drink and the views. We started our meal with the tableside Caesar salad. This is not your run of the mill Caesar salad. It’s an old school, real deal Caesar salad. Handcrafted for you tableside by a suited waiter or waitress. Great portions, great ingredients. Insider tip, if you’re not a big fish person, tell them to go light on the anchovies! (We forgot this!) Born & Raised has many tableside options to choose from on the menu. You should definitely try at least one! We then got the French onion soup. The kicker in this is the cheese and crouton! A classic and one of Ian’s all time favorite dishes. So shocker here, we both got steaks. I got a New York strip and Ian got the Ribeye (boneless for both of us). These steaks were cooked perfectly! Simple and delicious. We then split the Robuchon potatoes and the smoky creamed kale. The Robuchon potatoes are whipped mashed potatoes made with a one to one ratio of butter to potato. I would love a bathtub full of these. I will leave it at that. We were too full for dessert, but they have this dessert chart that looks phenom.

When you go to Born & Raised, you are definitely there for the atmosphere. It transports you back to a different time and place. You get lost in the decor, menus, and culinary experience. The one caveat is that you must be prepared to bring your wallet. And any spare change you have. And then eat noodles for two weeks to make up for it. The food is very tasty, but you are definitely paying more for the experience. Great place for a nice night out of celebrations!