Delmonico's

Delmonico's opened in 1837 and it was America's first fine dining restaurant. I was reading on their website, that Delmonico's is the birthplace of the Delmonico Steak, Delmonico Potatoes, Eggs Benedict, Lobster Newburg, and Baked Alaska. It was also the first diner where guests sat at their own tables, the first printed menu, the first tablecloths (lol?) and on the website it said "hamburger." So... I don't know, does that mean they came up with the hamburger? *shrugs*

The picture on the left is how it looks after you step inside and the picture on the right is what it looks like from the back. They have private dining rooms and lounges but we sat in the main dining room which I thought looked really nice.

The appetizer TORCHIO PASTA with roasted wild mushrooms, pancetta and black pepper. Let me just say... I WISH THIS WAS THE ENTREE. It's SO good. De-freaking-licious. If I had known I would of ordered this for the appetizer, the entree, and the dessert. This one is a MUST TRY. I'm glad I came here for lunch because if it was dinner I would of ordered the Scallops and Bacon and then I would not have been able to taste this deliciousness.

For the entree, I ordered the Classic Chicken A la Keene served over buttered noodles which was a big downgrade from the wonderful appetizer. : ( The buttered noodles were extremely bland... I've never had buttered noodles so maybe they are suppose to be that way? The chicken had some flavor but I guess it was just not my cup of tea. It was an okay dish but I would not recommend it.

For the dessert I had the Delmonico's Chocolate Mousse which was eh. My friend came here for dinner during restaurant week and said the dessert was better then so maybe... it was just this slice. It didn't taste fresh to me so I only had a few bites.

Also for dessert, their signature Baked Alaska dish! The French chef at Delmonico's created this new cake to celebrate the United States purchase of Alaska from the Russians. Anyway, it's made of banana ice cream placed in a pie dish lined with almond cake and topped with meringue. I was really full and only tried a tiny bite and remember it being okay (I'm not a banana fan =\), definitely an interesting dish though.

I came here for lunch during the Winter Restaurant Week and I will of course come back. TORCHIO PASTA. Hopefully next time I will get to try their steak : )

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Bobby Van's Steakhouse

Picture from Bobby Van's

I went during Restaurant Week for lunch and it was yum! Since there was construction outside the building I was not able to see how their store front looked like. For this Bobby Van's they have many rooms/sections, one of them is a vault! Although I was not able to eat in the vault room, my area was not too shabby.

Picture again from Bobby Van's

The complimentary basket of bread consisted of assorted breads and crackers. There was one that had raisins and nuts? I'm not sure what kind of bread it was but it was delicious. I would of ate more but our table ran out =(

For the appetizer I had the Caesar salad, I guess I'm a noob but I never had cheese sliced like that before and it was interesting to eat with the salad. Under all that were TWO croutons! I have to say I was disappointed at first because I didn't think there were any croutons, so it was pleasant surprise lol.

For my entree I ordered the Roast Pork Loin with banana polenta and port wine sauce. It was okay ... I'm not a banana fan and after this dish I guess I'm not a banana polenta fan. The roast pork loin was nicely cooked though, the meat was very juicy. As for the port wine sauce, it was a bit too strong for me (I'm not a sauce-y person).

I didn't order the filet mignon which had a $5 supplement charge although the menu online said that it was $10. It was a nice surprise and I wish I ordered it! I only tasted a bite but it was good. I'm not really a steak person or know much about it but I enjoyed it very much.

Now... I'm usually iffy with mousse but this chocolate mousse was just heavenly. It was so soft and so light. I LOVE crunchy stuff and on the side of the chocolate mousse, consisted of some crunch which complemented the mousse extremely well. I really enjoyed it but after a few bites I was extremely full so I decided to get it to go. Sadly it melted but I decided to eat it anyway because it was too good to waste! EVEN in it's melty state, it was delich!

Overall, I enjoyed Bobby Van's and for $33-$36 (with everything included) it was well worth it. The waitress was very aware of when we finished each course and just very attentive altogether. At the end of our meal, she even told us that they were extending restaurant week and how we should go again. I can't wait till the next one, I definitely want to go back!

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