I tried this place in the old Park Place Gardens locale on Park Ave last Thursday (8 days ago) for dinner. They are only open for lunch on the weekends. If it weren't for this, I might have tried them earlier. I stopped by in the Spring and wasn't really impressed by the menu or the prices either. They are from the 310 group. This is supposed to be a Chicago style steak house. Another concept that isn't my bag. I came for a fly by at the bar of steak tartare. Covid (or public sentiment) made the place wide open. So, I "upgraded" myself to a mini booth at the bar. The back is big and really nice. I didn't realize it was there until I sat down. I probably wasn't in the mood for the formality even if I had seen it before hand. The menu (small) had a thing or two of value. I adjusted my plan and started with a salmon tartare at $14. It was ok. Not a ton of flavor. Nice plating. Some kind of black rough rock bowl. Three toast points. A cucumber base layer. Mustardy vinaigrette dressing. Micro greens. Some "American" caviar. I saw a show once on caviar from Florida. I wonder if they source it from there? The toast points overwhelmed the salmon. The caviar wasn't very good and isn't needed. The steak tartare was better. A rough chop. Not straight out of the refrigerator temp beef. Micro greens, capers, raw egg on top (nice color yolk). Beefy flavor. It came four roasted blue cheese toasts that were good (so much cheese) on their own, but, overwhelmed the beef. I like my acts to be solo acts when they can be. I don't think they need to hide their ingredients. Then again, I don't think pizza needs ranch dressing. The portion here was also more generous than the salmon. 2X. Same plating. The rest of the menu is mostly grilled meats. I think the ribeye was $68. It has been a while, but, I remember a ribeye at Linda's La Cantina was only like $24. The cheapest beef cut was over $40, I think. A teeny 4oz filet. Chicken was the cheapest thing. $32?. I forget. Two roasted vegetable entrees were the low water mark. A semi-reasonable entree was prime rib. I think it was only $24. I've never liked it. It was always too slippery for me. And it was always something of a joke to my family. The thing at the country club buffet that the families who thought dining at a country club was a special night out thought was the height of opulence. The place was dark in hue. Brick. Polished wood. Some gilding. A rectangular narrow bar area in front. A large square room in back. A glass wine closet. The selection seemed ok. There were six people at the bar. I think two or three tables of two in the back. Service was fine. Dressed up. They spaced the delivery. They made a point of it though. I wasn't aware that spacing an app and an entree has now become something you have to request. I believe they have been open for a full year. It isn't bad. They probably need to bring back (if they ever had one) a burger lunch service and drop the price on every beef option by $20. It was exactly the wrong kind of place to open at the wrong time. The expense account diner may never return. They need to think more Houston's (or Ruth's Chris) than Charlie Trotter's. Even if the meats are the best they can be from coast to coast, it still something anyone can do at home. And people in WP have their favs already. I don't even think they had aged beef. H Steakhouse at Dr Phillips has a visual aging room and other gimmicks. And I think they are cheaper.
*Travel Notes - SC/GA: Some notes on a trip to SC and GA. I started at Hilton Head. Good burger at Wayback Burger. Bad breakfast at Hilton Head Diner. In Charleston, I started with dinner at High Cotton (because of Samantha Brown). Ok she crab soup. Tile fish with sweet potatoes and squash "special" that wasn't. Tile fish must be in season. It looks cute. I though it was code name for monk fish for some reason. They said it was also a name for wreck fish. It isn't. That is a grouper like fish. I had lunch at the number one reviewed place (high on "rated" too) on Yelp. Poogan's Porch. It was good. Fried chicken (they said it was their thing) with great mac and cheese and collard greens. I had a caramel apple from Savannah's Candy Kitchen. Alex Guarneschelli said it was the "best thing she ever ate" on that tv show. I had dinner at Fig (Samantha Brown again). It was good. Sashimi of King Mackerel atop of rice middlins (a half rice thing you need to research) and sorghum popcorn (saw that on Bourdain or Zimmern in Ethiopia). Salmon roe and radish also. Least fishy mackerel I've experienced. Also, beef tartare in swordfish (not tuna) tonnato on toast. Cooked veal is usually paired with this sauce. And tile fish collar "chowder" fish cake with lardons. I bypassed the number one place (Husk) because I didn't like the menu the prepared for that day. Another restaurant had a sign recommending these places if they were too busy. Nice of them. I didn't research. Leyla, Blossom, Magnolia, Grill 225, Jim 'n' Nicks BBQ, Basil, Slightly North of Broad, Oak Steakhouse and 82 Queen (supposed birthplace of she crab soup). I had a mushy bbq pork sandwich at Duke's BBQ. I stayed at a place called Indigo Inn that was convenient. I spent a night at the Sanctuary on Kiawah Island. It can be $550+ for a bad room. It was $270 with tax this time of year. Nice place. PGA is at their Ocean Course this spring. If you want a look on CBS. I grabbed lunch the next day just outside that area at Kin Folk. It is on Johns Island. I had pulled chicken sandwich with Alabama white sauce. It's mostly a hot chicken place. I went to St Simons Island mostly for the barbeque at Southern Soul Barbeque on a friend's recommendation). It was worth it. I had a huge platter of good brisket with potato salad (very good) and mac and cheese (a little mushy). I grabbed a grilled cheese and cheeseburger at a one off fast food opportunity called Frosty's. There are two fancy hotels on SSI. Cloisters on Sea Island ($314+) and Lodge at Sea Island ($294). I stayed at a Hampton Inn that was $98 with tax and they gave me a $16 food credit. Sea Island is really part of SSI. I was more impressed with SSI this time around. Only one fancy place per trip though. There is also a spot on HHI called Inn and Lodge at Harbour Island. It was $140. 10% resort fee though. Georgia let you dine with no masks. Charleston had a mask mandate throughout the city that wasn't being enforced. No restaurant capacity limits though. None of the areas were very busy.
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