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| - I took my wife here for her 40th Birthday and they knew we were coming and the reason.
This was our first time here. We arrived minutes after 9PM.
The restaurant was dimly lit. The atmosphere was LOUD. Nothing romantic about this setting at all.
HOSTESS
Her greeting was like listening to an answering machine. We had a 9:30 reservation (90 min before closing) and got sat in front of a pillar. I could not see the Bellagio fountains that seems to influence everybody's reviews. About 20 min later, 2 tables opened up that were right against the glass. In my reservation I let them know it was a special occasion.
SERVER
Like the hostess, it was like watching blue man group after 3 straight performances.
Just going through the motions.
We were not interested in cocktails or wine, but were focused on some great cuisine. The server did stop once to go over the menu, but all he did was say "these are the apps, these are the pastas, these are the main courses" etc. etc. They must get a lot of people who never viewed a menu before.
We ordered the Misto fritto, Farmers salad, Fennel Black Cod, and wrapped Veal loin. (I did not take any pictures this time, I did not want my review to be a distraction of the occasion)
FOOD
My wife loved the complimentary bread which included dippers of olive oil, roasted eggplant and tomatoes, and truffle butter. The bread was varieties of an Italian Sourdough, foccacia, stromboli, and a vegetable stromboli.
They automatically split our app & salad which I appreciated.
MISTO FRITTO
The menu description was very vague, but I figured it had to be a spin off of fried calamari. Tempura battered squid, white anchovies, cauliflower, and the stems of chives. There were no anchovies in my plate, and happened to be my wife's first bite on her's which she did not like at all. I would not have known about the anchovies (which I love) if I did not finish her plate. The fry was perfect, and I really liked the seasoning which included rosemary.
FARMERS SALAD
The presentation was beautiful. Some of the vegetables (green & yellow squash) were almost shaved. It was a nice salad, but not much flavor. There were only 2 choices of salad on the menu and I chose this one. My wife ate only half of hers.
VEAL LOIN
There is a picture of this dish in the archives. 3 (2oz?) wrapped pieces of veal perfectly cooked. A few pieces of carrots and another vegetable. I tasted some sort of mustard on this dish with another sauce. The menu (again) was VERY vague. As I ate, I was wondering what the expense was in making this dish that carried a $38 price.
BLACK COD
Presentation was standard, Looked to be about a 5oz filet. My wife was half way through her dish without a sound. Knowing my wife, this means she did not want to disappoint me in saying she did not care for it. I tried a bite and thought it was weird for Cod to be so mushy. It was not pleasant at all. Maybe even undercooked.
My wife at all the vegetables and there was half of the filet sitting alone on the plate when the busser took it away. Sad that no one noticed that half of what was supposed to be the hero of this dish was being tossed out like a used tissue.
We passed on dessert because to me, dessert should be the perfect finish to a perfect meal which this whole experience was not. My wife liked the complimentary bread the best and I liked the Fritto Misto the best. There was some woman in a very loud group making noises that reminded me of farm animals in heat.
It shouldn't be this way in a restaurant of this price point.
I asked for the check (1app, 1 salad, 2 entrees) $116.00
As we were getting up to leave, a person came by with a dish that said happy birthday and had 2 biscotti"s , a cookie, a salted chocolate thingy and a lit candle.
Would have went better with a cappuccino but the check was already paid.
This was a disappointing experience, even more so because I wanted it to be special for my wife's 40th. She liked the complimentary bread.....
If I can say something positive and relative, I would recommend going to D.O.C G. instead. Same Chef, different menu. Been there 5 times and loved it.
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