JLK

I do too!! Is anything going on in the space? PS Veiled?

The waiter called yesterday, plucking my cell phone number from the reservation. This was not a love connection. And yes, I realize that I seem to inspire odd behavior in some men (see Heritage India).

I took my mother to the downtown DC Capital Grille last night, thinking she'd love it, and she did. I much prefer Ray's the Steaks but without the ability to make a reservation or get my mother a vodka martini...well, she'd be less than thrilled. So off we went. It was fine IMO, spectacular from hers. *shrugs* But here's a question: do the waiters there always present a business card at the end of the meal?

Finger (Lakes) Food - NY Times

The Panache in Tysons is closer to opening. It's in my office building so we have seen the various phases. Looks like interior construction (of the dining room anyway) is about 50% complete.

2 1/2 stars from Tom Sietsema

Do you recall if there was a vegetarian entree (non-pasta)? I'm heading there tonight with a veg in the group.

I'm back in Winston so I might as well keep this travelogue (dining-logue?) going. There is SO much development going on in downtown Winston-Salem which, as anyone who has spent much time here will tell you, is very welcome. It's looking much less ghost town-like. While some of this development ain't worth shoutin' about (see Bruegger's, Quizno's, etc.), I'm very eager to check out the new "Wolfie's Frozen Custard" and an unfortunately named new cafe, Brew Nerds. Tonight's adventure was not terrible, but not great either. Mediocre is the right word. The space where Cafe 420 (or whatever it was called) became Hutch & Harris, a pub of sorts, back in January. Now, I did look at the menu before sitting down at a two-top in the bar area. I was not too optimistic about the large and varied menu which is described on the web site thusly: We’re talking Chesapeake crab cakes, a German-inspired stuffed flank steak roll, an eggplant dish from Turkey, four or so pasta dishes, a fried seafood dish called “South of the Border” Etc., etc. HH relies way too much on themes, promotions and catch phrases. Today was half price wine. There’s taco Tuesday and tuna Wednesday and even more promotions on the web site. If the place focused a bit more and threw out the horrible vinyl table cloths I spotted in the dining room proper, it might be ok. Service was friendly and efficient. Still, I was so hungry and I was not in the mood for any of the block’s other options (Foothills Brewery, a chain pizzeria, two very casual cafes, a pool hall and a tapas place that has always looked suspect to me) so HH is where I ate. Bummer. The menu was quite a minefield so I started slowly, getting the white bean chili to start, intending to order more. The ingredients were somewhat different than on the menu (scallions were included, not cilantro; it wasn’t spicy with chiles as described), but what really got my attention was the chicken, so pink that I confused it for ham at first. I had planned to order more food (and I am hungry now. Room service!), but instead called it a day. My bill pre-tip with a glass of ice cold fume blanc from Sonoma, which was whatever, came to just under $13. So it was an inexpensive mistake. If I have to go back, I’ll probably stick to things like burgers. In other news...both Cotton Mill and South by Southwest have closed. I was not impressed with my one and only visit to SXSW and planned to avoid returning. Cotton Mill didn't grab me like its sister establishment, Sweet Potatoes, after one lunch there, but I figured the place would hit its stride at some point. No such luck.

Why, Millie & Al's of course! That's where I watched on Saturday while consuming jello shots.

Even if Hell Burger didn't serve me the best burger I have had in, oh, a decade or so, I'd be very grateful for its existence. The price is right as I try to be a good girl and save money for an upcoming vacation. Plus, as much as I love my friends, on some work nights, the last thing I want is a two hour meal. I want to eat, chat and go home (to work some more). Tonight was just what I needed. I met two friends at Guajillo for margaritas before heading over to Hell Burger. My burger, cooked as recommended, with bacon (pretty crispy overall which is how I prefer it) and double cream brie, minus lettuce and tomato, was awesome with a dash of salt. I can see how it might be too rare for some folks, but all three of us loved it. One friend had her burger au poivre plus taleggio and mushrooms; the other also had au poivre but with gruyere and...I can't remember. They had sodas, and I stuck to water so my burger total was just under $10. Start to finish, our excursion was about 90 minutes which suited me perfectly. I have a big work event in just under six weeks so my brain is mush and I'm not a great dinner companion beyond that timeframe.

Re: the bread. Are you talking about a bread basket for the table? If so, Proof doesn't offer one, instead featuring housemade crackers. Oh, and the updated wagyu sashimi preparation does feature sriracha. I had it Saturday and loved it (then again, I love spice).

Sounds like La Madeleine's preparation.

Pro athletes LOVE CK. (I do not, but they get to pick the restaurant more often than not) Flowchart madness

Brunch at Bar Pilar was fine, nothing special. *shrug* I find that the French toast at both Saint Ex and Bar Pilar isn't eggy enough for my taste. Not very soft. Also, Bar Pilar serves weird syrup with it. It isn't commercial maple syrup OR real maple syrup. gnatharobed and I came to the conclusion that it tastes like watery honey. Not sure where to have brunch now that Colorado Kitchen has closed.

I visited The Cafe at the Drugstore (Wynn) several times during my stay. Not an inexpensive spot, but I was glad it was there. Case in point: my iced latte, about the size of a Starbucks Grande, was over $6. Add a pretty good blueberry muffin, as I did for a breakfast meeting that the Cafe, and you're up close to $12 somehow. Thank goodness for my corporate card. lol For another breakfast, a former client (now friend) and I went to the Terrace Pointe Cafe. Unlike a lot of Vegas resorts' 24 hour option, this Cafe is bright, sunny and offers a broad selection of mainly American dishes. My stack of blueberry pancakes arrived with the server smiling--the stack was about five inches thick. I passed about 1/3 of the stack to my companion who, fortunately, was hungry even after his own bacon-egg-hash brown-toast plate. I also had a plate of bacon - quality. Room service prices were pretty insane so on another day of my stay, I had lunch at the Terrace Point Cafe solo. The quantity options were pretty overwhelming so I ended up over-ordering. For an appetizer, I had pork pot stickers which I greatly enjoyed. My main was tomato bisque with "mini" grilled cheese. There was nothing mini about it though--instead the chef had cut a tradiitional sandwich into quarters. Tasty if not groundbreaking.

We went to SW Steakhouse @ Wynn for the client dinner. Our party of about ten had a really enjoyable dinner. The menu includes, but goes beyond typical, steakhouse fare. Although most members of the group stuck to their traditional tastes (lots of filet mignon), I went my own way and ordered the braised "Kobe style beef short ribs" for my main, preceded by a salad of green and white asparagus with quail egg, frisee and truffle viniagrette. I also ordered a side of truffled cream corn. In short, truffles for miles. The short ribs were terrific. Wonderful flavor and as tender as one would expect of the preparation. The meat was lightly coated in an Asian-style glaze that had only the tiniest hint of sweetness. Perfect. The dish was accompanied by truffled pomme puree (amazing) and root vegetables that in my wine-induced haze, I completely overlooked. While I loved the flavor of the creamed corn, there were bits of husk and corn silk mixed in that I could have done without. Unfortunately we didn't get to sample desserts. Our host very sneakily procured the check and asked us to join him one of his hospitality suites. They had an ice cream bar set up, but during the walk over there, my dinner caught up with me and I was too full for a sundae. The scene at SW was pretty fun given that the Olympic Men's Basketball Team was staying at the Wynn while in training. As we walked in, we were greeted by Kobe Bryant and family, and during the meal, lots of other players stopped by to great our group which, with one active player and two NBA legends, wasn't too shabby. I have no idea how many bottles of wine we drank, or even what the red was (the white was a Sancerre...details have been forgotten if ever known), but I would put it somewhere around two bottles per person. When I had an after drinner drink with my mentor (who lives in Vegas) at the nearby Country Club Bar and he spilled port on my new cream colored dress, I was so tipsy that I [almost] didn't care. I do now.

About 80 people sat in a special section of Busch Stadium that was set aside "for fans with peanut allergies and their families" during last night's Brewers-Cardinals game.

Sadly, it would be wasted on my client. I can just hear him ordering a plain burger ("foie gras? truffles? no!") well done. For another dinner, I'm being taken to Okada which is interesting because my friend isn't big on sushi either. Who knows.

Seemingly everyone not at the beach was at Open City this morning. Parking, as usual, was awfully hard to find (I ended up on 29th Street). I got my usual breakfast - French toast with Nutella and bacon - and my friend had the Open City omelette which he seemed to enjoy. Later, lunch consisted of one perfect slice of pepperoni pizza from Vace.

I'm glad this thread exists, not for the hilarity contained within, but to save me a trip to Murky. I happen to live on iced lattes. Who know I possessed such deviant tastes!!

Breakfast at the Cracker Barrel outside the entrance to Raleigh-Durham International Airport. The only other option was Waffle House and client's wife rejected that. Of course, right after we ordered she said "you know, I have gotten sick every time I have eaten at Cracker Barrell!" I was, like, "um, thanks for the info." It was nothing special (at all), but I made my flight on time.

I'm wondering if Heritage (Glover) is giving up the little-used bar/lounge space just above street level. Tonight it was dark and sort of cordoned off. I hope business is good in general though. It was very, very quiet when I picked up my carry out order (still, it was 9 on a Monday night).

gnatharobed and I sort of intended to check out Ray's Hell-Burger, but were waylaid by the deliciousness that is RTS. Being just a party of two, we were seated almost immediately. I always walk away from RTS feeling stuffed, but also gratified that it was money well spent. My hangar steak was cooked past the medium rare that I requested, but really did not suffer for it. The bernaise sauce with it was terrific. My friend's black and blue strip was INCREDIBLE (IMO anyway, I think she liked it too). Sides were great, as always, and there's some kind of magic in that key lime pie. Michael's spectacular outfit must be noted as the special Dinosaur shirt made an appearance (with plaid shorts and adidas flip flops no less). With everything (tax, 20% tip, food, one glass of sparkling wine each and a shared dessert), the bill was $48. A wonderful value.

Thanks, guys.

If you had to schedule a business dinner for ten people at the Wynn, where would you go? Sushi or "anything scary" is off limits per the client which leads me to believe we're limited to Italian, steak or the place with [what appears to be] a boring American menu.