This weekend I was swept off to Carmel by my lovely spouse for some get
away and relax time. In the context of achieving this we decided to
treat ourselves to a fancy meal. Not a lavish, opulent seating, but
perhaps in the realm of finer dining. After doing a little research;
Open Table led us to Grasing's. Pair up one highly decorated Chef Kurt
Grasing, with celebrity Chef Narsai David as a partner, and you have
yourself a pretty impressive meal, one would surmise.
Our
reservation was a 9pm on a Saturday night, when we arrived, the
restaurant was busy, but not filled. We were seated in a small window
seat, the window box actually being part of the seating. It was stuffed
with oversized pillows that made seating somewhat less than comfortable,
and wrangling the falling pillows became a chore of which both of us
would have to participate.
Our server was quite attentive; He
even brought a small flashlight so that we could see the menu in the
dimly lit dining room. He described the specials, and the Soup du Jour;
Vegetable Beef Barley, which I found to be a very odd selection for this
caliber restaurant. There was a big push on the Dom Perignon, on sale
for $190, a significant savings we were told. During the course of our
meal we were helped by several members of his support staff. They
engaged us, and made us feel welcome, without being imposing.
Looking
for a light starter we opted for the Grilled Artichoke; Dungeness crab
salad, lemon vinaigrette, lemon-thyme aioli $13.50. The half artichoke
was grilled nicely, while there was no noticeable grill marks or char,
the smokiness was evident. It was filled with a salad of Dungeness crab
that was fresh, and flavorful, and the vinaigrette was the right balance
of acid to the sweet, rich crabmeat. The problem here was the diced red
onion. In fact, the raw onion flavor destroyed the balance of the crab
salad, and completely overpowered the delicate flavors of the dish. It
was served with some undressed field greens, and the aioli was very
heavy, similar to gloppy, whole egg mayo that you might find on a deli
sandwich. When asked, I was truthful about my opinion of this dish. Our
server thanked us for the feedback.
The main courses were next to
arrive. My dining partner chose the 16oz Bone-in Rib Eye $48. Served
with whipped garlic mash, and sautéed mixed vegetables. I chose the
Heritage Pork Medallions served over creamy polenta, shitake mushrooms,
bacon, fresh peas, red wine reduction $27.50.
The Rib Eye was
cooked perfectly; it had a great char, and was well seasoned. This was
the highlight of the meal for sure. The whipped potatoes were OK, and
that's about it. They seemed a bit watered down, well seasoned, but
lacking in substance. The texture was definitely the flaw, as was the
case with the vegetable. I like an al dente, veg, a little tooth to the
carrots, and broccoli. These were downright crunchy. You know, when your
knife makes that clinking noise as it hits the plate as the carrot
finally lets it through!
The pork medallions were also just OK.
Now I'm a lover of all that is pork, and this dish was like a marquee of
Oscar winning names to me; Pork, bacon, polenta, peas, wine reduction.
How could this go wrong, I love every element described! First and
foremost, where is the bacon? I'm not even sure I taste bacon in this
dish. Don't say bacon, if it's going to be hidden! Second; why are the
medallions of pork pounded paper thin? Points for not drying them out, I
guess. The mushrooms in red wine reduction with the peas were
delicious, but the same crunchy veg was on my plate. The real tragedy of
this entire dish was the polenta. It was as if someone had taken
yesterday's polenta and crumbled it on my plate, then tried to hide it
under the pork. I even tried to reconstitute it by stirring some of the
tasty wine sauce into it. The menu said creamy polenta, could you at
least have to courtesy to stir a little cream or butter into it to make
it edible! Once again our server was thankful for the feedback, but did
nothing to correct the culinary faux pas.
Dessert comprised of a
simple crème brulee, and two spoons. The top was layered with sliced
strawberries; white, flavorless, and crunchy. Guess what, strawberries
are not in season! The custard was nicely flavored, with a great
texture; however, it was presented in a very thin ramekin, so the ratio
of bruleed sugar to custard was complete off. Most of the topping was
peeled away and discarded.
In summary, Grasing's in Carmel, with
all of its accolades, celebrity Chefdom, and awards was somewhat
disappointing. While the service was good, and the staff was very
friendly, they failed to make us feel like they were taking
responsibility for the kitchen shortcomings. The food was clunky and
lacked finesse. The finer and not so finer details that could have made
our dining experience remarkable were completely overlooked. Sorry to
say that Grasing's Costal Cuisine truly missed the mark.
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