William Douglas Steakhouse – Cherry Hill, NJ 7-16-2010

For my birthday Rishel wanted to take me out to eat. She knows I love steak and we wanted to try this place out for awhile now. She made the reservation for 6pm because we were also going to see the movie Inception at 8pm.

When we walked in we were greeted very nicely by the host. Rishel gave them my name. We soon encountered some confusion with the host. He began to sit us when another gentleman (maybe the manager) came over and asked him a question. The manager then grabbed some other menus and gave them to the host. We were seated in a bar-lounge booth, which I hate because I like to sit directly across from the person that I’m eating with. As soon as the host left, the manager rushed over and asked if today was my birthday. I replied yes, and then he promptly told us to come with him. He then sat us in a private booth that was against the wall. To describe it, the area was just like a private dining room big enough for four guest. The room was decorated with pictures you would expect at a steakhouse. It also had curtains for privacy. The manager then said he thought we would like the private booth better. It was very close to the piano, but the music wasn’t overwhelming at all. Already, I was impressed with our treatment. I wasn’t overly dressed at all. I only wore some shorts and a simple graphic T-shirt. Yet, we were still treated like VIPs.

I began to look at the menu and saw something that surprised me. At the top of the menu was “Happy Birthday William!!” was printed. Rishel told me she told them it was my birthday. I was amazed by this.

We ordered for the appetizer, the Kobe Beef Carpaccio with Shaved Parmesan and Capers for $9.  For entrees, Rishel got the Petite Filet Mignon 8oz Center Cut Tenderloin with Béarnaise -$28. I ordered the Cowboy Ribeye 22oz on the bone  - $35. For sides we ordered half fresh Broccoli $3.50 and half Lobster Newberg Potato Gratin $4.50.

 

Our waiter took our orders and we ate bread while we waited. Another surprise came around the corner when our waiter brought to us a complimentary Amuse-Bouche. It was a Pan Seared Scallop with Risotto. The scallop was cooked perfectly and the Risotto was excellent. Then came our Carpaccio. This was prepared perfectly as it should be. Everything was fresh. The Parmesan tasted great with the Kobe beef. It couldn’t have been done any better for a steakhouse classic.

Our steaks soon came out and I always like to see if they get it right. Especially when I’m  paying for a $30 steak. One thing i notice right away is that my steak was  beautifully marbled. Both of our steaks were cooked perfectly. Of course I ordered mine medium-rare. My steak was juicy, tender, and very flavorful. I ate everything. I did try Rishel’s steak and it too was very tender and cooked perfectly. Sorry for the picture, I was so hungry!

The things that stuck out as bad were very few things. One, the broccoli was undercooked. The Signature Lobster Potato Gratin lacked luster for me. As I was eating my steak I thought I found a hair on my steak. Upon further examination and confirmation from the manager, it was a paint brush hair that is used to baste the steaks with butter. Even so, that should not make it onto the plate.

We both wanted to forgo dessert because we wanted to make the movie. We told our waiter we wanted the check and she left us to go get it. When she came back, she had a small little chocolate cake with some berries and a candle on top. What actually topped it off was the piano guy was playing happy birthday as she brought in the cake. No, I was not charged for the cake or the Amuse-Bouche.

This restaurant exceeded my expectations for my birthday. It would be hard to top that restaurant experience for my birthday next year. I will definitely go back here when I want a perfectly cooked steak and superb service.

Ritz Seafood – Voorhees, NJ 7-24-2010

So, my girlfriend has been bringing up this place whenever I ask her, “Where do you want to eat?” The name definitely needs some work. Ritz Seafood? They took the name of the strip mall? Well, I was in an adventurous mode to try something different.

As soon as we (my girlfriend and I) walked in it was very cramped with a small bench to wait. No host was at the door and we waited a few minutes before one of the waiters spotted us. There were two sides of the restaurant. One side was the table dining and the other was high stool bar like tables. The waiter was very friendly and seated us promptly after seeing us at the door. I noticed that the restaurant was packed. I always like seeing that on a Saturday night, so things were looking up.

I noticed right away that this was an Asian influenced restaurant. The walls were riddled with tons of Asian cultural objects. A tree on the bar side! Christmas light in the front near the door.  Just very weird objects throughout the entire restaurant. Apparently they never heard the expression “less is more.”

I wanted to get the Ahi Tuna with Two Caviars and Rishel (girlfriend) wanted the BBQ Jumbo Shrimp. The Tuna was labeled as a signature item and featured on Food Network’s “Best of” for $12. The Tuna was served on the bottom of a martini glass. I thought that was a little unnecessary as well, but I guess they wanted to match the decor. The Tuna tasted good. It was fresh and the two caviars went well with the tuna. However, my martini Ahi Tuna was gone in seconds. Portion size was too small and the price was too big.  The BBQ Shrimp were wrapped in bacon and stuffed with wasabi. The shrimp were over cooked and chewy. The sauce was tasty though and helped me forget how overcooked the shrimp were. Yet again, portion size was too small. The app came with 3 shrimp for $9. Maybe I would consider that a value if they weren’t over cooked?

For entrees, I decided to go with the Pan Roasted Sea Scallops with Wild Mushroom Risotto & White Truffle Essence. Sounds good right!? Another let down. Everything was over cooked again. Scallops, Risotto,and it wasn’t even seasoned. It was a very bland dish. The mushrooms were nonexistent. Maybe it’s my fault for ordering Risotto at an Asian seafood restaurant that was in disguise as a regular seafood restaurant?

Rishel went with one of the salad specials that the waiter suggested. I didn’t really know what she ordered because I usually don’t pay attention to salad specials when they offer them. As soon as the dish came out I saw that it was very sloppy. I have never seen a salad prepared in this way before. It was a full Romain lettus bunch that was thrown on the grill for a few ticks. Covered in scallops, shrimp, crabmeat, and a Caesar like dressing. Like my dish, the scallops , shrimp and crabmeat were all over cooked. Rishel didn’t know how to eat it. I basically had to cut the bunch up for her to eat. The dish was just complete laziness on the chefs part.

The highlight of the meal was desert. The Coconut Cream Pie was featured as another Food Networks “The Best Thing I Ever Ate".” We decided to go with that. It was a very good pie and the portion was more than Rishel and I could finish.

I don’t think I would ever go back. All of the food was over cooked and overpriced with no flavor at all. The decor reminded me of a chain restaurant with a bunch of weird crap on the wall. The food was very sloppy and presentation was over done. With all the awards they splashed on their front windows and website, I expected more. I ended up with a surprise of Asian influenced food when I walked in and overcooked bland dishes as I ate. Tip, change the name!

There were some good things about this place. The tea selection was enormous. The desert was excellent. The staff was very pleasant.