McCormick & Schmick's

10/02/2007 Posted by westie2

We arrived approximately an hour after our 7:15PM reservation, but were greeted with Happy Birthday wishes and seated in a booth as requested. A bountiful mixed green salad with bleu cheese and candied walnuts in a light vinaigrette dressing was shared. My wife's entrée was cashew crusted tilapia with Jamaican rum butter and tropical salsa which came with crisp green beans and white rice. I ordered the pecan crusted catfish with Cajun remoulade sauce that was served with mashed potatoes plus a mix of crisp green and yellow beans. Service was attentive and the food delicious. I used a $25 gift certificate received after joining this chain’s Preferred Guest program. We shared a spinach salad with fennel and cranberries tossed with a basil dressing that sounded much better than it tasted. We each ordered the seafood fettucine – rock shrimp and bay scallops in a garlic cream sauce. This dish was very tasty, but the bay scallops were the smallest I have ever seen. We started off with the fried calamari appetizer with three sauces which were light and flavorful. My wife ordered the swordfish “au povre” which was finished in a pomegranate demi glace, chanterlles, asparagus and a truffle potato cake. I ordered corvine devon port, similar to seabass, which was roasted in pecan honey butter and accompanied by Brussel sprouts and fingerling potatoes. Both dishes were excellent though on returning home, I googled corvine devon port unsuccessfully. We finished the meal by sharing a gingerbread crème brulee. The total bill pre tax and gratuity after deducting the $75 gift certificate came to 75 cents. After this meal you could have trussed me up because I was already stuffed.

Pros: Consistency, fresh ingredients, good service

Cons: None

04/16/2007 Posted by mdboyz

After miserable experiences this week at Seablue (MGM Grand - see my review) and David Burke (Venetian) I was beginning to wonder if it was possible to find decent service anymore in Las Vegas. Fortunately McCormick and Schmicks has restored my hopes. McC&S is a chain with restaurants in most major cities. What's clear is that they have perfected high quality seafood and service, and their size allows them to develop excellent quality control methods over ingredients, preparation and service. There were 16 of us in my group tonight and the service was unexpectedly professional and attentive (our server was "S-Jill" on the check; she did us the favor of not introducing herself as if we were supposed to become chummy best friends like so many restaurants seem to encourage.) Our orders were take at the right time and everything was delivered when desired; the wine galsses didn't run empty and she didn't annoy us with the constant "How's the food?" interruptions like the waitress at David Burke. Instead we had meticulously prepared food. For starters we had fresh perfectly shucked oysters with a trio of sauces (watch out for the horseradish as it will definitely clear your sinuses) and wonderfully crispy calimari also with a trio of sauces. My halibut was a suprising delight, grilled and served over rice and gingery julienned vegetables, in a base of a rich citrusy saffron sauce with balsamic drizzle. It was much more enticing than this description sounds as the flavors and textures complimented each other beautifully. Even with cocktails, dessert, some nice wines from Stags Leap and Clos du Val and a generous tip well above 20% the total was less than $100 per person. Yet this meal was far better in every way than the meals I had earlier this week at Seablue and David Burke, both of which were over $200 per person. I'll be back again.

Pros: Great food and service, reasonable prcies (especially for LV)

Cons: Slightly loud didning room, but nothing like the din in most resaturants on the strip