Just the 2 of Us: Tuli Bistro

I'm sure I posted about Tuli before when we first went there but it is still my favorite place . I've heard pros and cons about the service etc. but it has yet to fail me. Sue, Chris and I went there on Tuesday for a very belated birthday dinner for the three of us. We got there around 6:30 and there were 3 spaces up at the bar, next to the pizza oven. Yes, I got to sit by the pizza oven and it was rather warm especially on such a hot evening. It is actually the best place to sit because it is where all the action in the kitchen is. We had a great time interacting with the chefs. In fact Chris being Chris(loud and very out going) kept asking about the different pizzas and finally just told one of the chefs to make us one, the Salumi which he did. That was our appetizer and it was very good with a nice thin crisp crust. The waitress then came to take our order for dinner. Sue had the Panzanella, the Tuscan bread salad and Chris and I split the Harvest salad. Both salads were very good. I love their Panzanella because the bread is still crunchy not soggy like so many I've had and the Harvest salad had delicious roasted nectarines, pine nuts and goat cheese. At this point Chris is just practically having an orgasm over her salad.. chef Adam Pechal happened to be making a pizza in front of us and was supper busy with other dishes as well. Chris is pounding on the counter shouting "excuse me, excuse me"

He finally looks up thinking she's going to complain and when she tells him how much she loves the salad, the look on his face was priceless. He starts laughing and says he really thought "I don't have time for this" the look of relief was so funny. After that as busy as they all were back there they answered any questions we (I) had about cooking techniques etc and were so nice we had a good back and forth banter going on through the meal. Now, entrees were the Pan seared sweetbreads..cooked to perfection and delicious though nobody else wanted a taste, which was fine I didn't have to share. Sue and Chris got the Pork and Peaches, fire roasted Duroc pork chop with spinach and a peach sauce. They both raved about it, I had a taste and it was really delicious.
I think for desert we split a stone fruit cobbler w/vanilla ice cream. It was good but we were so full we barely put a dent in it. It was a very fun evening probably one of the most enjoyable that I've had in a while. The food is delicious, top notch.
For those of you who complain about the service.. I've never had bad service but go sit at the bar, if your waitress is taking too long, yell your order to the chef (be on his good side first) he will make it for you. Do sit by the pizza oven if you can even if it is warm there, it is the ideal place to observe the goings on in the kitchen and make friends with the chefs.