Fine Dining Without Class: The Capital Grille

Fine Dining Without Class Part 2:
Guest Food Critic Lishes
 at The Capital Grille

The Capital Grille is attached to the Conrad hotel, and if you’re not familiar with the Conrad it’s a 5 star hotel and the CEO of Eli Lilly lives in the penthouse on the top floor, so you know it’s a great place to bring the entire family (screaming kids included) for a casual weekend…….not.

I didn’t get to walk into the Conrad itself as the restaurant has a separate entrance, but the place just screams luxury when you enter.

Here are some pictures of the interior, (it was actually quite dark in the restaurant when we were there). Definitely has the vibe of being a rich man’s restaurant, which made me extra thankful that I wasn’t the one paying for dinner!  The red arrow indicates which table we sat at.

Once we are shown our table a slew of waiters came by and placed napkins in our laps and handed us a menu. The menu by the way was physically HUGE; we’re talking like one of those novelty cards from the party stores huge. Only the front page was for food and the rest was devoted to their extensive wine list and other alcoholic beverages.

As they took our drink orders I responded the only classy way I knew how….”I’m dying for some caffeine, do you guys have regular coke here?”

Our lovely waiter seemed a little fazed by that but quickly brought me one…a little embarrassed I rectified the situation by drinking my soda with my pinky up for the rest of the night. My classiness was restored!

On to the appetizer I decided to be adventurous and try Lobster Bisque. I think I’ve eaten lobster 2 maybe 3 times in my life and I have no idea what bisque really is, and after I ordered it I was confusing it with gazpacho and I feared that I would have to force down some cold lobster soup.  I should note that while everyone else at my table had a salad I made sure to let my dinner host know that I did not like “rabbit food” and would have soup and not salad.

In the short time we waited for our appetizers we had another person come by with butter knives (for the bread I forgot to mention) and a soup spoon for me, which by the way they carried on a little gold tray. When our waiter sat my soup in front of me I was ready to dig, but a flurry of other waiters came by to pour sherry wine into my soup and offer cracked pepper as well (side note: after the pepper cracker was finished he graciously bowed and backed away from the table like I was royalty, and by accepting his offer for fresh cracked pepper I had fulfilled a void in his life).

This soup/bisque whatever it’s called was insanely good. The lobster was tender and sweet and the actual broth/bisque/soup part of it was a symphony of spices and heaven. I could’ve eaten a bucket of that stuff and have been happy, but the main course was about to come out.

I had filet mignon which I have had before (not there of course but I figured mignon was mignon). They also serve their sides ‘family style’ which means enough for 3 or 4 people. We decided on the French green beans with Roasted tomatoes and fennel and the Parmesan truffle fries.

First let’s talk about meat (insert sexual innuendo here). That mignon was amazing, the most tender and delicious piece of meat I’ve ever had!  The green beans were crisp and delicious and the tomatoes were very sweet. I was super excited to try the truffle fries. From my years of watching Food Network I’ve learned a few things…..Bobby Flay is the most annoying chef for me to watch, Joshie shouldn’t have won Worst Cooks in America, Stevie Famulari isn’t an artist she’s an idiot with a grudge against Kerry Vincent and truffle is the food of gods.

My host asked me what I thought truffle would taste like and I eloquently replied “I don’t know…trufflie?” I have to be honest and say after my first bite I was disappointed. I was hoping for an incredible taste sensation that would rock my socks off but it tasted bitter instead. I tried another and another and started to savor the fries drenched in truffle oil (and by savor I mean suck the flavor out of them).

The more I ate the more I loved them; the bitterness disappeared and was replaced by a garlicky taste with a bit of bite to it. These things were addicting the more you ate the better it tasted. It’s hard to describe the taste, but I would definitely recommend it for the adventurous!

Just as I thought I was stuffed silly, our host insisted that we all share dessert. We settled on crème brulee, and it didn’t disappoint either! A terrific ending to a terrific dinner!

It was a great evening filled with good company, great conversation and insanely good food. I would highly recommend The Capital Grille for celebrating something (like an anniversary, retirement or birthday).

I wouldn’t consider it a place to just “go out” because you feel like eating somewhere “fancy”. The wait staff goes to great lengths to take care of you and I guarantee you won’t see an empty glass as they are on the spot when it comes to drink refills.

As I was treated to this dinner by my business partner I can’t say for sure I know what the final price was, but just a rough estimate from the prices on the menu between 3 people we spent well over $220.

So again, while this is an amazing place to go,
save it for a special time when someone else is picking up the tab. ;-)

Thanks for your restaurant critique Lishes!  That was quick thinking remembering to put your pinky up! - Bo & Chicken