Can you hear me now? I said EAT AT VEIL!

Of course there are both upsides and downsides to eating at Veil. But since there's no question there are more upsides than down, we’ll start with the downs: Veil is too loud. Every gorgeous surface is hard, and even on a half-empty Tuesday night, we had to lean our heads together to hear our conversation over everyone else's. But that's it. That’s the only real downside. So the question is whether we can live with the noise. It makes us sad, though, because the food and the service are fabulous, and we'd like to be able to just suggest Veil whenever the occasion arises, but if the party is too big (ie more than 4) we can't, and if the plan is for a Friday or Saturday night, we can’t.

In the "not a downside, not an upside" category there is this: The first time you dine at Veil, you will not be able to find the bathroom. The doors are so subtle we felt like an idiot feeling our way down the hall pushing until something opened. But now we know.

On to the upsides. We’ll start with the drinks. Before we were pregnant, we loved Veil's exotic champagne cocktails, and we were feeling a little sorry for ourselves having to pass them up this time. But our very kind and attentive server said the bar would make any substitutions to drinks to make them virgin, and so we now have an official favorite virgin cocktail: watermelon puree, lime, muddled mint, and soda. In a martini glass, no less. We felt so pampered and so very special, we celebrated by having the tasting menu.

Portion control is not an issue at Veil, but since their dessert menu is heavenly, we simply thank the kitchen for leaving us a little room to enjoy the last course. The other night the tasting menu consisted of one perfectly sautéed scallop on a bed of leeks and chanterelles, plated as though it was on its way to a photo shoot. The second course was a little pile of the tiniest baby calamari, poached to perfectly tender, served on spicy chickpeas. The third course was Arctic Char, pale pink, tender and moist, served with its super-crispy skin on, with fresh and roasted tomatoes and olives, and so much flavor we practically licked the plate clean. For dessert we had the same peanut butter ice cream we had just read about in either Bon Appetit or Gourmet (we can’t remember which) and we will definitely be making it as soon as we relocate the magazine.

Our dining companions were just as happy with their choices, the scallops with cauliflower and pork shank, the heirloom tomato salad with salted fromage blanc, the striped bass, and the tuna loin. Every plate was remarkably beautiful, and we sent every one back clean.

Our server was attentive, helpful, and knew the menu backwards and forwards. The maitre d' will forever hold a special place in our hearts for bringing us an extra dessert that the kitchen had made by mistake. Which brings us to a last piece of advice when dining at Veil: Do Not Skip Dessert.