Our Anniversary Dinner at The Grill at the 1913 Room - A Review

(Image from the Amway Grand Plaza web site)

For our second anniversary, we decided to eat out.  Now that we no longer have the many wonderful Chicago steakhouses to choose from, we decided to check out one of the top places for steak in our new locale.  The Grill at the 1913 Room is said to be one of the best.

Overall, our dinner was quite amazing.  It was a beautiful evening with an unseasonably warm temperature.  Since we were eating mid-week there were only a few people in the restaurant so we were able to get a table with a window view away from other diners, lending itself to a quiet, intimate dinner for two.

Mr. Gooch had leaves of baby spinach with toasted pine nuts, roma tomatoes, applewood smoked bacon and maple-mustard vinaigrette as his starter and I had the torn leaf Caesar salad with shaved La Mancha, Manchego.  Mr. Gooch said it was one of the best salads he had ever had.  Very high praise and it set the bar high for the rest of the meal. 

The main course was where things got a bit dicey.  Mr. Gooch's was wonderful.  The 10 oz. Prime filet of beef tenderloin with a pistachio crust and Stilton Cream was cooked to perfection.  However, my selection, the 12 oz. grilled Prime dry aged New York Strip with herb butter, was overcooked.  Way overcooked.  It was still tasty but cooked almost to well done, definitley not the medium rare that I ordered. 

Now, before you get as upset as I did about the wrong doneness, the manager was quite embarrassed about the wrong preparation and offered to get another New York Strip prepared as I ordered it.  However, at this point, I decided against it since I was so hungry that I didn't want to wait another 10 to 15 minutes to get another steak.  Especially since the savory aroma of Mr. Gooch's cooked to order steak kept wafting across the table toward me.  So I kept my steak and they removed the entree from the check without any argument.

The capper to the evening were our desserts.  There are not enough superlatives to describe how amazing they were.  I had the Milky Way, a chocolate tower with baci mousse, a trio of sauces and Amarula Liqueur.  Mr. Gooch had the Chocolate Composition, a rich chocolate cake topped with dark chocolate raspberry truffles, Manjari chocolate shards, and candied orange with a duo of sauces.  There was even a sugar cookie with Happy Anniversary written on it in milk chocolate included in the plate of my dessert.  They were both absolutely divine, creamy, chocolately, beautiful, works of art, fruity and a perfect end to a wonderful night. 

I wish I had a photos of our dinners to share with you, but I had left the camera on the hall table.  Maybe next year.

Here's wishing you all a memorable anniversary dinner of your own this year!!

Happy Anniversary To Us!

Monday is our actual anniversary but Mr. Gooch has to work. So last night we went out to celebrate.

Mr. Gooch made all plans and the night's activities were a surprise until just before we left. Turns out we had reservations at Smith & Wollensky in downtown Chicago. S&W is where we went the evening we got engaged so it was the perfect location to celebrate our first year of marriage.

The evening started out perfectly with no traffic holdups on our way into the city. For those who live in Chicago, you know how rare that is on a Saturday night. Even though we were early, there was a table ready and we didn't have to wait. Again, another rarity.

Our starters were the crab cake for Mr. Gooch and the Cesar salad for me. I just love a good Cesar salad and the one I was served was a good one. The dressing was creamy with just a hint of sharpness. Just the way I like it. Mr. Gooch raved about the crab cake, saying the crab was so sweet and the lumps were just huge.

We ordered steaks for our main course. I had the bone-in rib eye with the Cajun seasoning. Mr. Gooch had the New York strip also with the Cajun seasoning. We both loved the seasoning and had to ask our waitress Carrie how it had the great taste without the "burn" that you get with many Cajun spiced dishes. Apparently the steaks are marinated in a Cajun flavored oil versus the spices being rubbed right onto the meat. Once the steak is grilled, more of this oil is applied to the cooked meat. So we will now be on the hunt for a great Cajun oil so we can try to reproduce this same taste at home.

Our side was hashed potato. This dish had a crunchy crust with soft buttery texture underneath. Very very good.

Photo: Anna Grafton/The Daily Pennsylvanian

The crowing glory was dessert. The signature 7-layer chocolate cake topped with a cow shaped chocolate cookie for me. Mr. Gooch had the New York-style cheesecake.

There was enough left over for us to have leftovers tonight. Just as good the next day.

I would recommed Smith & Wollensky for any steak or seafood lover.