JOINTS: Capital Grille

I was lucky enough last night to have a truly fine dining experience.  A friend of mine, miss L, had herself a little birthday yesterday, so as a birthday present I decided to take her out to a nice steak dinner. ("I wanna buy you a steak dinner")

To be honest, my first thoughts went something like this...Texas Land & Cattle Co. or H3 Brothers in Ft. Worth.  Both are fine restaurants in their own right, but then I decided to wanted to do something really special for her.  Luckily, as she always is, miss L took matters into her own hands and got herself a reservation to Capital Grille, located in the Crescent in uptown Dallas.

If you're a vegetarian or someone who can't eat things that have faces, this place is must seem like the 4th level of Hell.  But for those that are looking for one of the BEST RESTAURANTS I'VE EVER BEEN TO...I know, bold statement...then look no further.

Filet Oscar...and yes, it tasted as good as it looks

Since it was miss L's birthday, they rolled out the red carpet for her.  The hostess greeted us warmly and quickly sat us at our table, which was decorated with birthday confetti and candles.  Our waiter, Steve, introduced himself and let it be known that the kitchen had a few special things prepared for us.  Miss L ordered a bottle of wine, and we were off!

The wine came out and two glasses were poured, and then Steve came back with two appetizers...the first was their crab & lobster cake with house-made tartar sauce, and the second was house-made mozzarella wrapped in prosciutto with heirloom tomatoes soaked in 12 year old Balsamic.  To say they were heavenly was to do them injustice.  The only thing that I could possibly see wrong with the meal was the mozzarella was cold, but delicious.  Seriously, I don't think I've had mozzarella that good before...and especially not wrapped in prosciutto!

We ordered our main entrees...Miss L went with the Filet Oliver (small filet with crab meat & Bearnaise sauce drizzled over the top of it) and I went with the bone in Kona crusted dry aged sirloin with caramelized shallot butter.  To say that this was one of the best steaks in my life wouldn't be a lie...it ranks up there with the very best!

Mine wasn't cooked this well, but it tasted sooooo good

My only complaints are minor and not at all worthy of writing here...but since this is food blog, I've gotta.  I ordered my steak medium, hoping to get a nice wet center...but what I got was medium well to almost well done.  No hot pink center, mostly cooked meat throughout.  The center was better than the sides of the steak, but for a place as renowned as Capitol Grille, and for the prices we were paying, I should have gotten exactly what I was ordering.  Miss L ordered her filet medium rare, but that little bastard almost moo'ed at us...it was RAW.  That was really the only thing that I could complain about the whole experience...but for a steak house, this is a pretty major flaw.


One thing that wasn't lacking was the customer service.  Steve was a professional waiter, and I don't mean that in a derogatory sort of way.   This man was a PROFESSIONAL...which is something that is kinda lacking in society.  The night was made special by the way that Steve treated us and waited on us, and he was really what made the night as enjoyable as it was.  I will probably go into this more in another blog post, but professional waiters (and professional bartenders) are some of my favorite people in the world.  Get to know them, chat 'em up, because if you do, you might find a friend for life...and get in good at some of the top restaurants in town.


The night ended with a surprise birthday cheesecake for Miss L and two glasses of champagne.  The night was really special, and I hope my friend had a good birthday.  Needless to say, the next time I want to impress someone, I'm taking them to Capital Grille!

Capital Grille
locations across the US
http://www.thecapitalgrille.com/

Dallas location...
500 Crescent Court
Dallas, Texas 75201
In the Crescent Shops & Galleries
214-303-0500

***UPDATE***
From now on, miss L will be referred to as "THE GIRLFRIEND", as she has become my culinary partner for the foreseeable future.  See what a nice dinner can get you? 

NEWS: Top Chef is shooting in Dallas

As it should be with you, Top Chef is shooting it's new season in and around Dallas!  Since there are only three things to do in this town (shop, drink, and eat), this would be a natural fit for the show. 

Check out the article on the Dallas Observer City of Ate blog, which has some scathing news about how the show demands places to pay for them to shoot there.

Now I need to start driving around town and see if I can stalk Gail Simmons.

Yes, I love you too Chubby Kid

JOINTS: Engine Co. No. 28

One of the things about my job is that I sometimes get to go to neat places, but I never really get a chance to explore or appreciate the place I'm at.  It's usually a business trip where time is of the essence, so my food choices are limited to what's near where I'm at.  However, occasionally I find a little gem I didn't know about, and that was the case with Engine Co. No. 28 in downtown Los Angeles.

I was pressed for time, so I needed someplace within walking distance of where I was in downtown, and right across the street was this old firehouse that someone had turned into a restaurant.  I checked the reviews on Yelp and it looked like it had some decent reviews.  I walked over with a co-worker and found ourselves a table very quickly.

First off, the service was great.  The manager came up to us and got our drink orders and said that since we were in a hurry, our food would be at the top of the queue.  In no time, out came our sandwiches, and I tucked into my cold meatloaf sandwich and cup of firehouse chili.

The sandwich was really good, though I think I would have enjoyed it more if it had been heated up just a bit.  It wasn't the normal kind of meatloaf that I was used to, but it was really good.  The chili took some getting used to.  I'm from Texas, and we're as proud of our chili as we are our barbeque, but this was more like a chili flavored soup with chunks of roast in it.  At first, I wasn't a big fan, but by the end of the cup, I was lapping up what remained with a chunk of bread.  The meal was done, we had our check paid for, and an enjoyable lunch was done in less than an hour on a busy Thursday afternoon.

The inside of the restaurant is gorgeous, and they've definitely kept the "old firehouse" feel to it...the pole is still there!  The waiters were friendly and efficient, the service was prompt but not rushed, and having the manager out there on the floor talking with us made us feel like we were big shots in the big city.

If I ever get the chance, I'll definitely be going back to this place...except next time, I'm going to get a bowl of the chili!

Engine Co. No. 28

644 S. Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, CA 90017
Phone: (213) 624-6996
Fax: (213) 622-8780
Email: information@engineco.com
Web: www.engineco.com

JOINTS: California Chicken Cafe

After a killer travel day, I pulled into my hotel in Sherman Oaks and immediately hit up Yelp to try and find some food.  The only thing I had consumed all day was a McDonald's Bacon, Egg & Cheese biscuit earlier in the morning, and it seemed like everything was trying to prevent me from eating.  There were a couple of choices within walking distance of my hotel, but the only one that had 4 stars on Yelp and a lot of positive reviews was California Chicken Cafe.  What the heck, I thought, I like chicken.

I walked over to the restaurant and saw what looked like a West Coast version of Boston Market.  There were a lot of healthy things on the menu, but I had picked out a few that were recommended in reviews on Yelp.  I started off with the 3 piece rotisserie chicken plate, and since dinner was on my office, I went with three sides of hummus, potatoes, and Asian side salad.

To start off, the chicken was mediocre at best....Boston Market has these guys beat pants down when it comes to oven-roasted chicken.  The skin was sticky and kept getting stuck to the insides of my mouth, but the worst part was the taste!  It had none!  I tried picking at the smell pieces of chicken, but it was a lost cause.

Luckily, the sides were pretty decent.  The hummus had a pretty strong cumin flavor, but it was good...there was just SO MUCH OF IT.  Seriously, I could have shared that hummus with everyone in the restaurant and still had enough to snack on later.  And the two pieces of pita they gave me for it didn't help put a dent in it.  I finally had to start eating it with my fork, which was weird.

I followed the advice of the reviews on Yelp and ordered the Asian side salad, and that was pretty damn good...made me wish I had just ordered the chicken salad instead of the rotisserie.  I enjoyed the entire thing until I got down to the bottom of my cup and noticed the big black hair there.  Telling myself that it was probably just one of my hairs, I continued on to the potatoes, which were another highlight of the Yelp reviews.  They were tasty, a little rubbery, but pretty damn tasty with their sauteed onions.  Luckily, the pre-hair discovery Asian salad and potatoes made up for the mediocre chicken & cumin covered hummus.

My final opinion is that while California Chicken Cafe might be a healthier alternative to Boston Market, it is NOT a better one.  Next time I'm in the Sunshine State, I won't be heading there for lunch or dinner again.

TxL&CC, you are not my friend tonight

Why do you hurt me so?

I just got back from a dinner at Texas Land & Cattle Company on Lemmon Ave and Cole, which is one of my favorite chain steakhouses.  I decided to do something a bit different, and I didn't order my usual Smoked Sirloin, which is a poor imitation of Hunter Brothers H3 Ranch smoked sirloin, which is damned near the best meat I've ever put in my mouth (insert joke here...(insert another joke about my "insert joke here" remark)).

Mine did not look this good

I decided to try the Bacon Wrapped Sirloin because...HEY!  I LIKE BACON!  I mean, I had some this morning, and my apartment still smells like it (mmmm....bacon).  What came out was a pitiful looking 6 ounce sirloin that must have been on it's way to becoming ground beef, but instead ended up on my plate.  It was tough, full of sinew, and the bacon was lank and unappetizing. 

Of course I ate it, and it was mediocre at best, but from now on, I will definitely be following my heart and not my head and ordering the smoked sirloin.

The mashed potatoes were good, though.