Keithstg

54 minutes ago, Rovers2000 said:

Another great meal at the Grotto last night.  Brought along two colleagues who had never been and both had a great time.  I will continue to get the soft shells every time I'm there...they are wonderful.  Happy on a personal level for Dean but am sad that a place I have so many happy memories anchored to will be departing.  I'll be back at least a couple more times.

Wine Madness is just nuts - the 2006 Brunello Riserva from Costanti was awesome and a steal at the wine madness price.  

I was at the bar again last night. Cacio e Pepe and sirloin were great and the ‘01 Marcarini Brunate was both fantastic and an incredible deal. Be back next week!

18 hours ago, TrelayneNYC said:

I do like her writing style and a couple of her spotlights are on our list.

Still disagree with her on the stars though.

Her opinion of Chez Panisse is spot on. Alice Waters was running a coffee house until Jeremiah Tower came to town. Of course, she plagiarized everything he did, but somehow that fact has been lost to time...

Great meal at the bar last night. Enjoyed an '84 Laurel Glen cab with the meatballs, crab fettuccine, and an order of burrata. Was thinking of ordering a main but the half portion of pasta was pretty darn big! Was very pleased to see an almost completely full bar. May head in again tonight if the Nats are rained out! Sad we didn't get to the Grotto more often.

On 8/6/2019 at 9:17 AM, genericeric said:

My wife and I had dinner at The Grill Saturday night.  I knew going in the reputation - solid food but with prices that were hard to justify.  I'd never been to the Four Seasons before it changed, nor had we been to The Grill before.  Pleasant arrival and walk upstairs into the room that seems familiar from seeing so many cultural references over the years.  Sure, it is the first weekend of August, but at 7:30 the restaurant was half full, and the bar nearly empty.

I started with the Goose Terrine ($25 I believe), which was pleasant with olive and fig and a thin layer of foie mousse in the center.  Wife had a special for the evening - Gazpacho, which may have been our favorite dish of the night.  I intended to order the guinea hen, but ended up getting (my fault) the Larded Squab ($58), which is served partially de-boned along side its heart and liver separately wrapped in bacon.  The flavors were spot on, but even for a squab, it seemed exceptionally rare.  My wife ordered the Ham Steak with pickled pineapple, which was simply fantastic and certainly the best value (?) on the menu ($40).  Sides of Wild Rice Pilaf, Golden Nugget Potatoes and Dressed Tomatoes ($15) were fine - the tomatoes were slightly cooked, which wasn't my thing but my wife enjoyed them and can be a hard sell on tomatoes.  She finished with a scoop of plum sorbet, while I had the Strawberry Pistachio Charlotte ($20), which was fantastic.  One very good Manhattan ($20), and 4 glasses of wine between us came to $445, tip included.  The restaurant handled the wife's dairy challenges with ease.

Squab:

Food-wise, the restaurant was perfectly fine.  But there were enough service slips that shouldn't happen at this price point that I wouldn't return.  Overhearing two back waiters repeatedly arguing.  A head waiter checking in on a table with the phrase "Ya good?"  Wine ordered well in advance of entrees, but not arriving before the entrees.  The waiter picking up the check immediately after I signed it, while we were still sitting at the table.  None of these were cardinal sins (though the check being picked up is a pet peeve), but taken as a whole, are indicative of a service program that needs more professionalism.

At the conclusion of the evening, I grabbed a manager and asked if we could visit the lounge in The Pool (formerly a separate room in the Four Seasons, now a separate Restaurant owned by the same group as The Grill).  She went over and grabbed The Pool manager who came in, walked us over to the lounge, and was the exact kind of welcoming that I'd expected the entire evening.  THAT is the restaurant I'm eager to return to.

Funny enough, I was at the Grill last Monday with a couple of clients. The room remains beautiful, and was about 3/4 full at 8 on a Monday (in August), which is a pretty solid turnout in my estimation.  I didn't experience any of the service issues that Eric did above, thankfully, but do wonder if the waiter who said "Ya Good" came from Carbone, where things are a bit more shtick-y.

Our group had crab gumbo to start (x3) - our waiter talked me into it, as I'd planned on the scallop and snail fricassee. My clients loved the gumbo - I thought the seasoning was too assertive (which I realize is the point of gumbo), and hence the ample blue crab was wasted on me.

I re-upped from my prior meal with another pheasant claiborne - the presentation has changed - the dish is still made in a cast iron bowl with puff pastry surrounding it, but now a captain removes the lid and plates the dish, making it more composed, but I did lose out on the pieces of puff pastry. The dish remains fantastic though I preferred the more rustic set-up. My companions had a peppered filet and new york strip, along with some off-menu asparagus and spinach sides, whipped potatoes and fried tomatoes.

Adding in a couple bottles of wine and after-dinner drinks (no dessert), our bill came to a shitload. That said, I enjoy the room, the food is well-executed and the location is convenient for my clients. Given Eric's mention of the Pool's manager and service I would be inclined to try that out next time, reviews be damned. I've been to the Grill once with friends and once with clients. I'll go back to the Grill, but likely with clients from here on out - always fun to try new places with the crew and the breadth of the menu and setting here are great for business.

2 minutes ago, zgast said:

No - but seriously - please take one check and split it yourselves.  At a low price point, 30 separate checks are going to take this from low-margin to near money losing for a restaurant given the private room.  Credit cards charge a flat fee plus a percentage. 

Well said. There is a free app called Splitwise that will easily split a check any number of ways. May prove useful in this instance.

On 7/24/2019 at 10:24 AM, gena712 said:

Time slipped up on me and I forgot to set up a retirement lunch for my boss. Despite my procrastination, I really would like for it to be nice. 

The celebration would likely be during lunch on July 31. The parameters (in order of priority) would be:

• Allows a group of about 30 to have separate checks

Oh my God - 30 separate checks and notoriously cheap coworkers!?!?!? Best of luck.

Seriously, how about Masala Art? Mi Vida?

23 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

I've seen that chair umpire before, and I think she has been in some controversial situations.

Yep! Shriver was saying that she was glad that a woman was chosen to serve as chair umpire as a woman would better understand the emotions expressed on court. Huh?!?!

6 hours ago, DonRocks said:

Watching the Wimbledon post-match interview right now, Williams is absolutely at peace - it's really nice to see.

That was a very nice and gracious interview. Really appreciated it.

I did find Pam Shriver’s commentary on the chair umpire selection odd, though.

I also had bet on Halep, but didn’t expect essentially a flawless performance. 3 unforced errors all match. 3!

Amazing.

6 hours ago, DonRocks said:

I'll bet you haven't thought about this restaurant for quite awhile. 

Don't know about everyone else, but I still think about it every so often. Was an interesting spot, for sure. Was also thinking about Signatures the other day!

13 hours ago, DonRocks said:

Curious what everyone thinks about the level of tennis in the Strycova-Konta match today.

Didn't see it, but will take a look.

On 7/5/2019 at 10:53 PM, Keithstg said:

Gauff played very tight, which is to be expected. She has a bright future, but Halep would have dismantled both of them, and will dismantle Gauff on Monday if she plays like she did today.

As I was saying...

https://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/id/27147192/halep-halts-gauff-wimbledon-run-4th-round

There are levels to this - but absolutely no shame in not being ready for the top level at 15! Coco performed so well and has a ton to be proud of.

23 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

 but my takeaway is that Gauff didn't overhit; she started junking Hercog right back. That's a great sign of maturity from such a young kid (I've lost many a match to pushers who baited me into overhitting, and it's infuriating - it took a lot of growing up for me to get out of that stage).

Me too. Being called a “pusher” was one of the highest insults you could face back in the day. Wonder if that’s still the case?

A brilliant strategy would have been to either drop Hercog and draw her into net, where she was visibly uncomfortable, or loop forehand or backhands deep (not overhitting) and coming in behind a few of them. Instead they played like 3.0s do.

I played my weekly doubles round robin this am. It’s a rotating group but this week included two D-1 singles players, two open level players (one 40 and one 50ish), two club pros, me and a buddy. The unanimous consensus was that the match was poorly played.

the two d-1 guys were most generous in their commentary, but literally laughed when asked how they would have done against either player. Both did feel (as do I) that Gauff will be a star.

12 hours ago, DonRocks said:

As opposed to Steffi Graf, who had ... ?

Seriously, as an example, Hercog chips a backhand deep into Gauff's backhand corner. Gauff should do what with it, as opposed to chipping it back into Hercog's backhand corner?

It isn't as thought Gauff doesn't have a rip-roaring topspin backhand, but where do you hit it, and at what cost?

Djokovic could rip a two-handed topspin backhand down the line off one of these, sending the opponent on a dead sprint, but that's Djokovic.

377 weeks at no 1 and 8 Wimbledon titles (7 singles, 1 doubles), for a start...

The issue for me was that Hercog wasn’t getting backhands sliced deep into the corners - at least not consistently. The vast majority of ground strokes were bouncing within a foot of the service line. Gauff could have hit an approach, or rolled over a two handed backhand into the opposite corner, pushing Hercog back. She did neither, so instead we saw back and forth chips for 30 shots in a row.

Again, the match was riveting, but if anyone came away thinking that was high level tennis they saw a vastly different match than I did.

33 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

Why do you say this? I thought it was a riveting match, with both players having a *lot* to lose - big, big forehands, and wicked, slice backhands.

Both players had a lot to lose by definition - it’s a grand slam.

The match was riveting, but poorly played.

Simple chip forehand returns went unchallenged. Long backhand slice to backhand slice rallies where balls floated as if a 3.5 hit them (nothing wicked at all), and a general fear of taking an angle or coming to net, though that was Hercog.

And then there were the slice forehands from both, which were the same quality you’d see in a good high school or college match. Not approach shots, mind you, but generic floating slices.

Hercog has a good forehand and a serve, but that’s pretty much it.

Gauff played very tight, which is to be expected. She has a bright future, but Halep would have dismantled both of them, and will dismantle Gauff on Monday if she plays like she did today.

This position has been filled.

Enjoying the Gauff/ Hercog match for the competition, but honestly can’t remember a lesser quality of play in the third round of a grand slam.

ETA: what an impressive young woman. Really appreciated her signing autographs, engaging with fans etc. after the match.

Was just thinking about Joe H. Where did he go? Didn't always agree with him, but he always had an interesting opinion.

20 hours ago, reedm said:

A wonderful experience which I'd highly recommend to others on this board. My personal observations and pictures will be forthcoming. In the meanwhile, I recommend you sign up for a waiting list reservation and/or reserve a spot when you have the opportunity. 

I wonder if they have changed the waiting list reservation policy. We have been on the waiting list for several dates and have had emails letting us know a time had opened up, but alas have never been successful in getting through early enough to snag the table. Anyway, glad you had a great experience and we will keep trying!

Apparently I am not alone in my plight!

11 minutes ago, Pool Boy said:

Then there's the whole 'I am so over tasting menus' thing. It looks they have 3 to choose from, but I assume it means you pick one of them in their entirety - no picking this dish off of this menu and that one of of another, etc as long as the total combined courses are identical. 

You may choose any dish from any menu. No need to chose one menu or another in its entirety.

54 minutes ago, MarkS said:

At Charleston, desert or the cheese cart, is included with dinner.  These are current prices.  I think food and service is on par if not better then the Inn.

https://charlestonrestaurant.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/MENU-MAIN_06.03.19.pdf

3 courses $79	w/wine $135
4 courses $94	w/wine $164
5 courses $109	w/wine $192
6 courses $124	w/wine $222

At Le Bernardin, the tasting menu includes cheese or dessert at $225 (chef's tasting) or $187 (regular tasting). Wine parings round up to $370 (chef's) and $282 (regular). I think the food and service are better than the inn. Of course, like Charleston, Le Bernardin is nowhere near the Inn, and is a fundamentally different restaurant, so...

On 5/31/2019 at 5:04 PM, jca76 said:

it's been about five years since the bf and i went to the inn, but our impression of the ambiance was that it wasn't to our taste.  it's a bit too ornate/stuffy/like the home of my fictional very-rich-and-slightly-eccentric spinster great-aunt.  perhaps unsurprisingly, we also aren't fans of the old school european service/ambiance that michelin seems to favor; our tastes run much more to the komi/copenhagen model of fine dining, where the service is warm, the decor is minimalist, and the (interesting!) food is the star of the experience.  

so for those with more experience with the inn than i have: what are we missing?  i don't mean to sound snarky; i'm genuinely interested in understanding what it is that makes the inn so beloved.

I'm 5-10 years older than you and would say that maybe the inn isn't to your taste, and that's fine. You aren't missing anything if you can find experiences that you are interested in and value more - which is a good thing!

FWIW, I enjoy the inn - though the decor in the dining room is a bit much for me - I wouldn't necessarily call it dated - just a very defined point of view that isn't my own. The Claiborne House, as Don mentioned, is more my speed of interior design, and quite a bit lighter. 

I'm interested in traditional fine dining, and have done Noma, among others in that vein. My issue with Noma in particular, and the Copenhagen model in general, is that oftentimes the ability to create a dish, or do something "interesting", is more important than the actual taste of the food - and don't get me started on the nonsense "natural" wines pushed at many/ most of these establishments.

1 minute ago, DonRocks said:

I try, and try, and try, and keep trying to like her.

She makes it difficult. Her talent is undeniable, but she's a supreme front-runner, with a rapidly deteriorating attitude.

The NCAA's were on last week. Watching the men and women play for their schools was a study in sportsmanship, for the most part. Serena could learn a lot by watching them and their attitudes (and by watching the men - anyone in the round of 16 would beat her pretty handily and most won't crack the ATP top 250).

More horrendous behavior...If only it weren’t so predictable.

1 minute ago, mtureck said:

Last time I was there we were told to pick 5 or 6, if I remember correctly.

Either way, I just find something distasteful about a $18 upcharge during a $238 meal.  

I understand a big tasting menu upcharge for a super special ingredient...a perfect white truffle, real Kobe beef, etc., but adding a small (relatively speaking) upcharge for something that has always been included just strikes me the wrong way. 

Maybe Cameron just wanted a big raise. 

I hear you - I still remember being offered still or sparkling water at Il Laboratorio and being annoyed at a rather arbitrary water charge at the end of the evening (all bottles were shared among tables - I guess the charge was split?).

Last month we could pick however many cheeses. Would be a bummer if that's changed, or not consistently applied. Cameron was much less engaging on our last trip, though. Maybe having an off night.