Tag Archive for: filet mignon

Perry Street Chophouse

Posted by Liz and John Attaway, 11/20/22

Perry Street Chophouse is nestled on Perry Street in downtown Lawrenceville! This brand-new steak house invites guests to cozy up in one of their large, blue velvet booths, or warm up to the large bar. While there, peruse the wide variety of small plates like this pork belly, to salads and soups, as well as large plates like venison or seafood, and of course, steak with sides and toppings. Let’s eat!

We started with one of our favorite bites, the Crispy Braised Pork Belly. The pork is warm and fatty with a ton of flavor and creaminess. It is atop a sweet potato bed that’s earthy and sweet, plus crumbled nuts for crunch. Must try. To juxtapose the meatiness of the pork, we went with the Kale Chopped Salad. It is a bed of kale and other leafy greens that’s earthy and crunchy. Dotted with funky feta cheese, crunchy pepitas, and root veggies, it’s an all-around great bite. The vinaigrette is icing on the cake, just the right amount that mild and adds tang!

For our dinner we opted for the fantastic Filet Mignon steak. It is perfectly seasoned outside and tender and juicy medium inside. It’s hearty, meaty, and tangy when you add the garlic from the side. Can we PLEASE talk a about the Brunt Brussels? We LOVED the brussel sprouts with it’s earthy and tender sprout base then topped with a dousing of cream, tons of savory flavor from the bacon and tang of the shallots. One of the best brussels we’ve had all year.

The other dinner plate we enjoyed was the Broken Arrow Ranch Venison Loin. It is served medium with a fantastic peppery crust outside. The moat of sauce is divine, savory, tangy, buttery and creamy! On the side, the mashed potatoes are creamy and garlicky, perfectly seasoned, you won’t want to share.

They also have a great wine selection, cocktails, and beer.

Venison Loin
Kale Chopped Salad
Burnt Brussel Sprouts
Filet Mignon
Bar

Jackson’s Steakhouse in Pensacola

Not too far from the blue-green ocean at Pensacola Beach, the historic downtown Pensacola vibe is quaint, yet vibrant with breweries, shopping, and delicious dining. On one of those picturesque corners sits Jackson’s, a steakhouse staple where Pensacolans go for a good steak, cocktails, and dessert for any occasion. Everything from the decadent chocolate mousse to the crunchy red snapper, fantastic filet mignon, earthy brussel sprouts, to the tender lamb lollipops, plus the cocktails, everything you get at Jackson’s is a food adventure.

What’s better with a steak dinner than a cocktail? We got the fantastic off-menu blueberry martini, as well as the sweet and sassy BAMA Buck. The martini was recommended by our waitress and turned out magical with the tart and tangy berries up front mixed with the citrus and booze on the back. It was a refreshing yet potent sip! As far as the BAMA Buck, with whiskey on the back and the sweetness of strawberry on the front, this cocktail is sweet and boozy. It was just the right balance between the two. I’ll have another, please!

On to the delectable food, we started with the lamb lollipops. The lamb was seriously tender and wonderfully seasoned lamb bites. It was perfectly paired with an earthy, bright shaved brussel and radish salad. These two go so well together with the meatiness of the lamb and the earthy, crunchy of the salad. As far as the entrees, John got the flavorful filet mignon and I got the amazing red snapper, plus we paired it with some delicious brussel sprouts. These brussels are so good the guy next to us said he’s now a brussel sprout believer because of these! We agree, they’re rustic, earthy, tart, tangy, crunchy, and meaty. It’s all the adjectives you want to hear when describing these gems.

For our main entrees, the filet mignon was perfectly cooked medium steak with a tender inside and light grill outside. With the garlic on the top, it ended up being meaty and tangy with the right amount of smoke. But, the best dish of the night was the Red Snapper! Can snapper be decadent? Yes, the very definition of decadent with a ginormous piece of fish that literally melted in your mouth. Topped with a cracker crust that gave it a light crunch, lemon, butter, and herbs, it was simply divine. Crunchy, buttery, flaky.

Even if you don’t have any room, you have to stay for dessert and get the chocolate mousse! It was rich and decadent chocolate base, then a buttery, toffee, crunchy surprise at the bottom. On top an in-house made whipped cream brought it all together. Perfection if you ask me.

What do you want to try at Jackson’s?

Ovide: Best Restaurant in Sandestin

Posted by Liz and John Attaway, 5/23/21

The majestic hotel towers into the baby blue sky and casts a shadow over the parking lot below that’s dotted with high end cars and guests anticipating the inside. Walking into the Hotel Effie, you’re greeted with a beautifully decorated lobby and hotel bar and lounge just to the left. Then, beyond, tucked in the corner is Sandestin’s newest and BEST dining experience, Ovide, by Atlanta’s (and Athens) own High Acheson. Every bite and sip you put in your mouth are vibrant and alive with flavor, like the sensational filet mignon, savory prime beef tartare, uniquely wonderful farm egg, rich blackened mahi mahi, and fantastic cocktails! Let’s dip in.

Ovide’s cocktail menu and program are top notch with two spectacular cocktails, Sun Kissed and Shore Leave. The Sun Kissed is a balanced cocktail that juxtaposes the bitterness of grapefruit and piney alcohol. This reminds us of an afternoon sipper that oh, so refreshing. Our favorite cocktail was Shore Leave. With warm rum, sweet coconut, earthy rose wine, bright lime, cachaca and more, this has a brightness and sass! We enjoyed the flavor complexity of this one!

Starting out with some of the bites, the ones we sampled were the farm egg and prime beef tartare. We seriously loved the uniqueness of the farm egg with so many good flavors in one dish! Savory egg sits on a bed of collard kimchi that adds spice, crispy rice for a good crunch, earthy peas, and tangy onion for one amazing bite. Our tip is to mix the ingredients all together for a savory, spicy, crunchy, and earthy flavor explosion. After this light bite, we opted for something a little heavier. The prime beef tartare is piled high and topped with a savory egg. This tartare is thick, rich, meaty, and has a good amount of creaminess. Once you top this amazing meat dish with the egg, crispy fired onions, and earthy mustard, it’s a tasty bite. Definitely get all the ingredients on the crunchy toast, which puts is up there with one of the best bites of the meal.

For our main course, we made some good decisions trying the blackened mahi mahi and the filet mignon. The flavorful and flaky blackened mahi fish paired so well with the tart pickled cauliflower, crunchy kohlrabi, and divine red pepper sauce that gives it a kick. It ended up sweet, creamy, rich, and slightly earthy when you mix it all together. Yum. The best bite of the night had to be the filet mignon. With pepper encrusted, maître d’hotel butter, and mushroom jus, this steak had a little bit of everything. From the crunchy and slightly charred outside to the succulent inside, it was rich, meaty, buttery, and savory over-the-top good! You won’t want to share.

As the meal winds down, the sun begins to set. We sit just outside the restaurant is what looks like a library speckled with books and library-esque décor. We talk over our meal and agree we will have to come back to Ovide when we come back to Sandestin. What do you want to try?

Cru Food and Wine Bar Atlanta: Wine Oasis

Posted by Liz and John Attaway, 7/27/20

On a bustling corner at The Battery Atlanta, there’s a wine oasis dotted with bluish-purple umbrellas, marble tabletops, warm vibes, and surrounded by several colors of delicate flowers and greenery. Cru Food & Wine Bar at the Battery Atlanta has mastered the art of superb wine procurement from magnificent champagne and Smell the Roses flights to a wide variety of dishes that compliment the wine on their menu. We can’t think of anything better to pair your favorite vino with than a solid charcuterie or small plate, and even a succulent filet mignon. Wine not join us on a culinary journey from our time at Cru Atlanta?

What’s the first thing you think of when you think of wine? Charcuterie and cheese OF COURSE. Yes, all caps. Cru Food & Wine Bar has exemplary flight pairings with carefully curated list of cheeses and meats. We got the Premier Cru which boasted of salami, prosciutto, soppressata, and manchego cheese and accompanied with a selection of pickled vegetables, tasty mustard, and rustic bread. What a great way to start our wine journey. To go with it we opted for the Smell the Roses flight which had 3 delicate and well-balanced Rose wines. Our favorite was Chateau Gassier Esprit. It was crisp and light with a delicate amount of tart, apples, citrus-like notes. Plus, who can go to a wine bar without sampling at least one champagne? The one we sampled was the Laurent Perrier Brut La Cuvee from France. It was everything a true champagne should be with brut bubbles and a slight tart finish. What’s your favorite wine varietal?

Beyond your traditional wine bar fare, Cru Food & Wine Bar also offers a wide array of sharable plates. The Ahi Tartare is mild and tender with creamy avocado, crunchy cucumber with a hint of earthiness combined with bitterness of the olive. I (Liz) don’t usually like olives (AT ALL) but the combination of the avocado, cucumber, and tomatoes, cuts the bitterness, while the olive actually adds to the flavor. Mix all the ingredients up on the plate and add some of the rustic bread, it’s a great bite. After something light, we decided on something a little heavier, like the Wagyu meatballs. With wagyu as the main ingredient, these meatballs are the right amount of meatiness, yet lighter than expected. Paired with a bright and light sauce that we loved, topped with basil that added a good amount of earthiness to balance the richness of the meat and the creaminess of the cheese. Our tip is to cut the meatballs up and pile all the ingredients on the rustic bread for a solid complete bite.

Want something a little sweeter? Cru Food & Wine Bar has these goat cheese beignets that are surprisingly decedent treat. Almost dessert-like, we’re in love with the creaminess and tart of the goat cheese, the crunch of the beignet, and the sweetness of the honey. That last touch really adds a ton of rich, sweet flavor. The secret ingredient in this dish, though, is the mascarpone. It lightens up the goat cheese and gives it more of a creaminess to the inside. Make sure to get every bit of honey, beignet, and filling into one bite and get ready for a flavor explosion. This was the biggest surprise of the night and ended up being my (Liz’s) favorite thing!

Earlier we asked what’s the first thing you think of when you think wine, but now we have a follow up. What’s the second? Before you answer, you were thinking steak, right? We knew it and this one is filet mignon at that! This beauty is a perfectly tender piece of meat cooked medium with the right amount of seasoning, sauce, and the tart of the blue cheese. The tasty sauce on the plate around the steak was a chianti-based that was slightly sweet to balance out the tart of the blue cheese and heaviness of the meat. Add in the earthiness of rosemary to round out the flavor! On the side, the au gratin potatoes are like a hearty potato pie with layer upon layer of cheese and potatoes, which goes so well with the sauce. It was also paired with green beans that had the right crunch and seasoning, adding a little hint of freshness and brightness to round out the succulent dish.

Sipping on a cool glass of champagne, we relaxed in the shade and just watched people walk by Cru Atlanta. The people around us glasses clinked, and the light sound of chatter filled the warm summer air. We couldn’t eat another bite, so we just sat full and happy. We know it’s hard but if you could choose one thing to try, what would it be?