I was at Graham Elliot’s on Tuesday night. The A/C was not fixed in the dining room, but the air was flowing in the ladies restroom. It was slightly uncomfortable while eating and I almost didn’t want to leave the restroom as it was very refreshing.
We started with 2 Bellinis off of the deconstructed drink menu. The “amuse bouche” were quite delightful: peach chutney and panna cotta, geleed champagne, topped with a dehydrated peach slice. It also had some foam on it, but I don’t remember what kind.
The truffled popcorn and our appetizers, the kobe beef tartare and the gnocchi arrived next. I enjoyed the popcorn; we had fun trying to pick out the pieces that burst with truffle and salt. The tartare was okay, I generally expect more of a punch of flavours when I have tartare, like mustard, or pickles, or onion, but the flavour was much more subdued. The combination of the flavours in the gnocchi worked incredibly well together, the creamy yolk drizzled over the pecorino, the crunch of the asparagus, the aroma of the truffle… the only thing that disappointed was the gnocchi themselves. They were very dense and heavy, not pillowy in the slightest bit.
The entrees were the prime rib of pork and the loin of lamb. The pork was magnificent. The syrupy root beer glaze really complemented the tender pork, buttery grits, crunchy corn and watermelon chutney. The lamb was good, but I found my medium rare tenderloin to be rather gray and dry around the edges. I found the dishes to be well executed with good intentions, but not everything added up. We skipped dessert and headed to Hot Chocolate instead.