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| - Well ... the Orchid and I had an event to celebrate (and as is my custom, I told no one; I don't do "happy-happy-joy-joy" and have been known to walk out of an establishment if they inflict this type of thing on me), and we had always had positive experiences at the Broiler. I phoned Palace Station, and was informed that the steak house is now the Charcoal Room. I figured, how much different can it be? I made rservations.
Come the night in question .. about five days ago. We walk in on time (7:15 pm), and the place was almost empty. Always a little scary in a "first-time" place. But, we went in anyway. Reactions and review follow.
Atmosphere. Typical "wanna-be-a-steak-house" decor ... lots of reds and oranges, subdued lighting, et cetera. Horseshoe booths. Two-top and four-top tables. Pretty standard. Note that despite being inside a busy casino, we had very little ambient noise during our meal. We did ask to be placed far from the entrance, specifically for this purpose; how much noise abatement was placement and how much was site design, I can't say. A nice touch.
Observation: the Broiler had an extensive salad bar, including the largest asparagus spears I have ever seen. (In the interest of full disclosure, the Great Bearded Bird is a sucker for a good salad bar, and LOVES asparagus.) No such amenity exists at the Charcoal Room.
Service. The hostess (I believe her name was Lauren) was pleasant and prompt, and got us to a table before I could stop talking. Nicely done, my dear. Waiter (Francisco) introduced himself within three minutes of our being seated, and told us he would be serving us with the aid of another staff member (female; I missed her name, unfortunately). Beverages were delivered quickly, and by my wife's request, soft drinks were served in the wine glasses (her only concession to the event being celebrated). Refills of beverage, questions about the menu, suggestions on dishes, and special requests were all handled quickly, pleasantly, and professionaly. Once again, nicely done.
Food. It starts getting just a little rocky right about here. The Orchid passed on an appetizer, and I had half-a-dozen oysters on the half shell, as I hadn't had oysters in several years. They were served in an aluminum contraption the size of a freight barge full of ice, with red cocktail sauce, grated horseradish and something that looked like a wine-based minionette. The oysters were good, but the person who shucked them needs some more training; every oyster had relatively large chunks of shell in them. Not pleasant having to fish them out of your mouth. (I know this old man needs more minerals in his diet, but seriously ...)
I went away from my normal carnivorous tendencies (that being a rib-eye), and tried the King Cut prime rib. Not bad, and prepared properly (medium rare, delightfully pink), but frankly, I've had better. I added scallops - another weakness of mine - but to my taste, they were not worth 3-for-$14.00. Side ordered the asparagus (as noted above), and again it just kinda fell short.
Orchid ordered the sea bass at the recommendation of our waiter, and that was spot-on. I had a taste, and as much as fin-fish normally isn't my go-to, I would order this again for myself in a heartbeat. Wonderfully flaky, moist and "ding-ding-ding" good. She ordered the creamed spinach - one of her favorite dishes - and picked another winner. She ordered the sweet potato, and was quite pleased with it. (I have never been a fan of sweet potatoes; I trust her judgment, as I didn't taste it.) Dessert time came, and whatever she ordered (I want to say the carrot cake?) she was also quite pleased with. (The Great Bearded Bird is diabetic, and therefore tries not to even pay attention to the sweets on a menu.) All in all, I was happy, but the Orchid was thrilled (and isn't that just the way it should be?)
Will I return? Probably, with a few mental notes about what NOT to order.
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On the Nighthawk 100-point scale: 90.
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