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Dish: Restaurant Week Reviews
Sometimes a diner just gets lucky and that was the case for me last night when I stopped by Acacia Mid-Town for Restaurant Week.
As most people know, Acacia offer half-off bottles of wine on Tuesday nights and they decided that Restaurant Week should be no exception.
Lucky me. It was either a huge savings or just meant two bottles were in order (I’ll let you decide which way I went).
As you might expect from the folks who started Restaurant Week, my dining experience was fabulous. Free valet, a drink at the bar and well-rehearsed execution kept Restaurant Week flowing at Acacia.
The experience was terrific: three perfectly timed courses, exceptional wine service (and service in general) and aromatic French press coffee to finish it off.
You can see Acacia’s Restaurant Week menu here; I opted for the scallops to start, crab cakes for my entrée and chocolate cake sandwich for dessert. All were terrific, but unlike my experience at La Grotta the night before, it was dining partners and not me who found the real gems on the Restaurant Week menu.
If you’re heading to Acacia, I recommend ordering the brisket, duck and sweet potato casserole cream brulee. Those were the menu items that truly shined. But don’t take my word for it, order what you want, whatever you get, you won’t be disappointed.
Has anyone else been to Acacia yet this week? What did you order? What did you think? Post it in the comment section below and read what others had to say. It makes ordering for Restaurant Week so much easier.
Tonight I’m heading to Julep's New Southern Cuisine … I know, it’s a tough job, but somebody has to do it.
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Last Entry:
It seemed like the last week of October might never get here, but at long last Restaurant Week is here. It’s that one week of the month where some of Richmond’s priciest restaurants offer a three-course prix fixe menu for just $25.09, $2.09 of which goes to the Central Virginia Food Bank and Meals on Wheels Serving Central Virginia.
As with every year, Richmond.com has you fully covered on Restaurant Week, including:
- The Restaurant Week Menus
- The Restaurant Week Guide
- And this, the Restaurant Week Review blog.
So tell us, Richmond, where have you been so far for Restaurant Week? Where are you going, what are you ordering and what’s good?
I stopped by La Grotta last night where I had the beef Carpaccio, sole and tiramisu for dessert, all good and all worth eating. Thanks to my dining partners though, I got to sample the Caesar salad and strawberry Grand Marnier cake, both of which I recommend over my first and third courses. As for the sole, it was the best entrée at the table, though both the spinach-stuffed ravioli and penne with prosciutto were strong contenders.
Over on Twitter I found out from @daneomite that the short-ribs, salmon, soup and banana dessert are fabulous at Helen's and a friend told me that Bacchus may have tweaked their menu from what I published, but that the grouper and short ribs there were also fabulous.
What about you, Richmond, what have you eaten? What’s worth ordering up for Restaurant Week?
And if you want more Restaurant Week discussion, follow me on Twitter @KarriPeifer. We’re using the hashtag #rvarw.
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Comments on This Post:
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Oct. 27, 2009
Reply to This PostI went to Julep's last night and had the steak which was very good. The mashed potatoes and broccolini that accompanied where good, not spectacular, but good. I had the salad for my app and really liked the dressing. The key lime tart was my dessert and it was a bit too sweet for me but still a good choice.
Tonight I went to La Grotta and had the carpaccio, penne with prosciutto, and Grand Marnier cake. They were all good and I'm glad I selected them. I tasted the spinach ravioli and it was superb and I also tasted the salmon which was very well cooked (meaning not overcooked).
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Oct. 28, 2009Reply to This Post
Went to Helen's tonight. Great food and atmosphere! We had the white bean soup and a organic greens salad with goat cheese to start- both were good and the soup was perfect for a chilly rainy night. I had the shortribs with mashed potatoes and spinach which was AMAZING and topped with some fried shallots; my date had the ham and swiss stuffed chicken breast, accompanied by mashed sweet potatoes and some greens-also stupendous. My date and i could not stop eating off one another's plates! Dessert was a bananas foster (yep folks its on fire!) and a decadent chocolate torte with chocolate ice cream; we definately got our sugar fix! Service was great as well, our server suggested a nice pinot nior for us. He was on point with timing and providing all we needed, and had a great since of humor. We'll will definately be back to try the regular menu!
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Oct. 28, 2009
Reply to This PostSo Helen's, La Grotta and Julep's are all good! I went to Acacia last night and it was FABULOUS. I'll update later. Where has everyone else been?
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Oct. 28, 2009Reply to This Post
Saving pennies. Damn economy. (But I hear Acacia's good!) :)
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Oct. 28, 2009Reply to This Post
We went to Bacchus Monday and shared the calamari and mussels with marinara; both were excellent. Scallops and duck caccitore were outstanding. The apple crisp was good but the chocolate peanut butter pie was so "horrible" I only let my friend have a very small bite.
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Oct. 28, 2009Reply to This Post
Hoping to have TJ's meatloaf tonight. Wish the quail was on the menu too; the pictures from the other day look outstanding.
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Oct. 29, 2009Reply to This Post
Mezzanine added grouper to the menu on Tuesday. (Not sure it's a regular thing.) It was fabulous on a bed of cous cous and a spear of tender brocollini. Two Marylanders declared the she-crab soup "pretty darn good." The apple tart, while not exactly a tart, had a flavor I'd never experienced in any cobbler, pie or apple pastry. Yummm, all the way around!
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Oct. 29, 2009Reply to This Post
Whoops, for Mezzanine, I meant rockfish not grouper! Sorry, folks!
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Oct. 30, 2009Reply to This Post
Great night at Acacia (our first time). Highlights included the crab cake entree and the rich chocolate torte with passion fruit panna cotta. The service, food, and atmosphere left us looking forward to a return visit.
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Oct. 30, 2009Reply to This Post
I have a highly coveted reservation for tonight at Mezzanine that I have to cancel! (Sick folks & other issues) Can't reach Mezz to cancel till they open later this evening. So if anyone is looking for a spot tonight there will be an opening for 4 at 8:30pm!!
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Oct. 30, 2009Reply to This Post
We went to Mezzanine on Wed. and it was wonderful. The plates seemed a bit smaller than on a regular night, but with an app and dessert, there was plenty of food. I was disappointed to see the rockfish instead of the tuna, but it was tasty. One friend got short ribs and loved them, another got shrimp and grits and said they were wonderful. Tiny little apple tart for dessert was delicious. Service was a little slow, but not too bad. Last night, we went to Bistro 27 and the portions seened HUGE after Mezzanine! Great service, a bit too loud to converse easily. I got the ravioli with pumpkin squash and it was very flavorful though could have used much less salt. My companions both got the pork which they said was the 'tastiest piece of tough meat' they've ever had. Apparently, it was very tough and hard to eat but the flavor was good. Wonderful, large bistro salad to start and I got the cheesecake dessert with fruit--yum --and they got chocolate torte, also delicious. Tonite is Helen's!
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Oct. 30, 2009Reply to This Post
Oh-- and has anyone been to Water Grill? Friends went Monday and said the apps/salads were good, but entrees were awful.
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Oct. 30, 2009Reply to This Post
Had Dinner there Thursday. I would not say the entrees were awfull but they were bland. The lobster risotto was a huge disappointment, sadly lacking in taste and lobster. The fried green tomatoes were another low point.
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Oct. 30, 2009Reply to This Post
Just got back from Six burner. I LOVED the butternut squash soup and my date enjoyed the plum arugula salad. Six Burner added buttermilk fried oysters to the appetizer menu but we did not try them. They looked amazing. I thoroughly enjoyed my roasted chicken breast with swiss chard and mashed potatoes, but the sauce surrounding the mashed potatoes was oddly sweet in my opinion. My date was obsessed with the salmon, with fennel and sausage shavings. I highly recommend it as well. Also, dessert, the cheesecake, though small, is better than the panna cotta, which is even smaller. I enjoyed the experience overall, though the choice of 90's rock in the background was quite odd.
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Oct. 31, 2009
Reply to This PostI went to Verbena on Weds. night and to Helen's on Sat. night. Both meals were excellent. The truffle butter with the roasted chicken and Papardelle pasta was so good. I almost didn't want to share a taste with my other dinner guests. I had the carrot cake for dessert which was very good and like the crystallized ginger on top. At Helen's I had the salad, short ribs and chocolate torte, all of which were fantastic. The torte was made with rich dark chocolate that complimented the rest of the meal perfectly. I suggest both restaurants for a Restaurant Week visit.
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Oct. 31, 2009Reply to This Post
The wifey and I went to Water Grill last night. She got the edamame hummus app and I got the fried green tomatoes; both were delicious. For an entree she had the grouper with lobster risotto and broccoli. The grouper was good, the risotto was a little over cooked but had good flavor and the broccoli was just broccoli. For my entree I had the salmon with roasted baby potatoes and braised greens. The baby potatoes were great, but the salmon and the braised greens were average at best. For desert we both had the pumpkin cheesecake (which is different than what is on the menu given to Richmond.com) and it was good but very rich. Overall we had a good time at Water Grill but it was slightly disappointing. The wifey went to Helen's earlier in the week with her sister and said it was much better. Kind of wish her and I had gone there instead.
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Oct. 31, 2009Reply to This Post
We visited La Grotta last night. Sole was good, but table-mates weren't wowed by the chicken or the pork. Sides were very, very salty. Also, we purchased one of the specials, a pasta appetizer that we later discovered was $50! That was quite a surprise!
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Oct. 31, 2009Reply to This Post
Tuesday night we went to Hondo's. Our first course was the caesar salad, which was quite good with a nice garlicky dressing. The only issue I had was that it had shaved pecorino romano cheese on top (as well as grated parmesean mixed in the salad), I don't like pecorino and the waiter saw that I'd pushed it to the side of the salad. When he learned I didn't like pecorino, he brought me another salad with just parmesean. We had a great waiter (Michael), by the way. For the second course we both had the sliced top sirloin (filet style) with mushrooms and sauce, and served with garlic mashed potatoes and ratatouille. The steak was cooked perfectly and the ratatouille had a very nice flavor/texture. For the third course we had the chocolate torte which had a raspberry glaze and the apple tart which had a pate sablee crust and served with vanilla ice cream. Both desserts were good. We enjoyed our dinner there and had great service, and will definitely go back.
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Oct. 31, 2009Reply to This Post
After a mediocre meal at Charles City Tavern Friday, we stopped at Bistro Twenty-Seven for drinks. We enjoy the menu there and the chef prepares creative and delicious food. It was packed, and were told it was their busiest night this week. We sat at the bar, had great drinks, and watched two busy chefs. Perhaps I looked hungry (well I did only eat about 1/4 of that Wagyu burger earlier at Charles City Tavern), suddenly Chef Carlos places before us a wonderful sauteed shrimp dish. The shrimp had a delicious spicy light sauce/broth with kalamata olives and little "balls" of couscous, which absorbed the sauce. Quite an unexpected treat. Those two chefs were slammed keeping all those hot apps and entrees coming out to a full house -- I don't know how they do it. Getting just a glimpse of what they do certainly gives one an even greater appreciation of the creativity, execution and timing involved. It's amazing what prep cooks, one bartender and a few waiters can do as well.
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Oct. 31, 2009Reply to This Post
I have to agree-Bistro 27 is wonderful! They have one of the best menus for Restaurant Week this year. We were extra happy because there was something yummy for the meat-eaters AND the vegetarians in our group. 27 is a gorgeous setting for the delicious food and the open kitchen provides a fantastic opportunity to catch the chef in action, perfecting each dish. YUM!!
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