My wife and I have enjoyed three terrific dinners at The Capital Grille restaurant at the new University Town Center Mall near Lakewood Ranch, FL (https://www.thecapitalgrille.com/locations/fl/sarasota/8056)
In addition to the excellent food, nice atmosphere, and good service, the tables were spaced farther apart than at most restaurants. This was particularly helpful in accommodating my wife's wheelchair, and in reducing the noise from nearby tables.
A. The First Dinner
My wife chose as her entrée the sliced filet mignon with cipollini onions and wild mushrooms for $45. Her side was the parmesan truffle fries for $11. The steak was perfectly cooked and tender. The fries were fantastic. When we took the leftover fries home and reheated them in the toaster oven the next evening, they were even better!
My entrée was the dry-aged steak au poivre with courvoisier sauce for $46, and my side was roasted wild mushrooms for $12. The steak was fantastic, and the mushrooms were good.
Our wine was a Spanish red - a 2012 La Vilella Alta Black Slate, a Priorat from Bodegas Mas Alta, for $55. It is a blend of 60% Grenache, 35% Carignan, and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. It is a creation of Michelle Tardieu, Philippe Cambie, and Eric Solomon. It was very nice.
B. The Second Meal
That meal involved trying their incredible hamburgers. They're expensive, but fantastic.
C. The Third Meal
The most recent meal was last night, when we celebrated a special occasion. My wife and I had the same entrée - seared tenderloin steak with butter-poached Maine lobster tails for $51. The tails were about from Maine and were about 3 oz. each. There were two modest-size pieces of tenderloin. Both the steak and the lobster were cooked to perfection and were delicious.
My wife chose the Parmesan truffle fries as a side for $11. This is a large dish and easily serves two. They also offer smaller servings. We've had them each time we were there, and love them.
I had a cup of lobster bisque mixed with sherry for $12. Unlike most lobster bisque, this one had very, very large chunks of lobster. It was fantastic.
For dessert, my wife had the flourless chocolate cake. It was a gift for our special occasion. I had the apple cobbler with caramel ice cream for $10. It was incredible.
Our wine was a bottle of Castello Banfi Toscana which was a mix of Brunello Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah. It was wonderful and cost $83.
Our server, Patrick, was exceptional.
Interestingly, the wine list was on a tablet, and included a section of 90+ wines. The tablet allows the display of more information about individual wines.
A nice service of Capital Grille is that they will let you email tasting notes to yourself.
When I mentioned my interest in wines to our server, he brought the sommelier to our table. We had a very nice chat with him. He mentioned that the Capital Grille chain's management allows him some freedom in wine selection.
The restaurant offers private wine lockers to lease at $350 per year. When leasing the locker, you have to buy one case of any of the many wines on the Capital Grille wine list. The locker owner can then stock the locker with any wines, and the normal $25 corkage fees are waived. Locker owners are invited to special tastings and other events.
No comments:
Post a Comment