I would give this place a 4/5 stars.
This was the long awaited night at Wright's Tavern. It is so difficult to get reservations here that you have to be up at midnight when a new month opens and you need to be ON IT to get a reservation in a regular dinner time.
So, on Sept. 1st I was up at 11:59 pm and secured us a table for 2 at 6:15 p.m.
The place is very small. There are only 12 tables. There were places for 4 people at the bar, but I don't know if those are reservations or walk ins. I'm thinking reservations, because I sat facing the door and I watched the hostess turn A LOT of people away.
After standing for about 15 minutes (so tiny there is literally no place to wait) for people before us to vacate the table, we were seated at a small table for 2 in the middle of the room. Not Mike's preference. The tables were close to each other no matter where you sat in this place. It is that small!
They are white table clothes with big roll white paper over the top. So on each table is a glass with pencils in it...so you can draw on the paper...I guess. I found that odd for a restaurant of this caliber.
The menu is small. Their wine list is not available online. That always bugs me.
We each started with a cocktail...and I'll have to say they were REALLY good. I had what was called a Pink Lady. It had vodka, raspberry something, lime and egg white froth. It was refreshing and tart. Mike had a gin martini. It had a "side car" which just means more martini in a cruet on the side in ice.
Oh, by the way...it is DIM in this place...so all the photos look dim.
Another thing that was not super fun about this place was that it was loud. The walls are old brick and the old tin type ceiling make all the sound just bounce around. It was difficult to talk and enjoy a quiet moment.
The food here is expensive. The bread is made by Union Loafers in south St. Louis and it is a yummy warm sourdough loaf. The butter is a whipped dolop with olive oil and herbs in an indentation in the center. I have always had a problem with people who think the bread is a course. I don't want them to take away my bread when my salad and entree arrive. I want to not eat the bread before, so I can eat it with my salad and entree. But, when you have a table this small, it becomes and issue of space. We literally didn't have enough room for all the plates on this small table.
I decided to get a Caesar salad and have the crab cake appetizer as my entree. The salad was too big for one person...unless it was there whole meal. I'm sure they were trying to justify the price, but no one needs salads to be platter sized. It was good.
The crab cake was a nice size...much bigger than I usually see, but it was in a spicy remoulade. I wish this had been on the side or in fancy dots around the plate. Crab is such a delicate flavor that I don't like some spicy sauce with every bite. The crab cake was good with lots of big lump crab meat. I could have done without the sauce.
There wine list was heavy on French and Italian red wines. We got a bottle of Laely cabernet for just under $100 and that was one of the cheaper wines on the menu. They went up to almost $2,000! Our waiter said we got the last bottle of Laely and my thought was...you need to get some more affordable bottles of cabernet on your wine list!
Of course the reason we came to this place is because it is known for steak. Mike got a filet. It came with pomme frites (homemade french fries). The filet comes in an au poivre sauce. Which is a cognac and black peppercorn sauce. Mike wished it wasn't on the plate. He probably should have asked for it on the side, but you hate to dis a chef on their signature dish. He likes a little sauce here and there, but most of the time he want a steak with just salt and pepper on it and no sauce. The french fries were hot and crispy and good.
Dessert was something I had heard all about on line. They have this amazing hot fudge sundae. So, of cource we ordered it. It has a big dolop of homemade whipped cream on the top and they pour the hot fudge on tableside. Then, it has 12 different toppings you can put on yourself. Cookies, Gummy Bears, regular M&M's, peanut butter M&M's. little Heath bars, maraschino cherries, hazelnuts, Rolos, and more...Twelve!! It was every bit as good as it looks.
I mean...steak and ice cream...this is Mike's kind of place.
The bill was crazy huge. I think this is one of the top three highest bills we've ever had for the 2 of us. Was it worth it? Will we go back? I don't know. It is hard to get a reservation. It is small and kind of cramped. It isn't quiet and intimate. The food is good but not over the top great. I'm glad we went once.
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