for the love of good food...: Grand Hyatt Steakhouse

Tuesday 20 September 2011

Grand Hyatt Steakhouse

To secure a table at 8.45pm on a weekend, a booking about five weeks in advance had to made. This restaurant being one of the hottest restaurants at the moment, we had to see for ourselves what the type was about.

House garlic bread

After ordering we were told that our meat will take around 45 minutes. To wait we munched on the house garlic bread which was well toasted with fresh garlic, herb and butter. The crunchy exterior and fluffy and soft made for a very tasty start to the meal. It's impossible to stop at one!

We decided to skip the appetizers and go with several sides and two mains to share. I have however, heard their crab cakes are amazing and am already planning my next visit.

White Aged Cheddar Macaroni and Cheese ($75)

The Steakhouse's take on mac & cheese was very good. Not thick, stodgy or heavy at all. The macaroni retained a bite to it and the bread crumbs added a crispy element.

Onion Rings ($75)

These huge onion rings (larger than my palms) weren't for me. The batter was 'doughy' although I liked that the onion itself inside were so soft they gave way to the slightest force. The thick batter also meant when it got cold a little while later, it had lost any crunch.

Creamed Spinach ($75) was another side dish we had. Another steakhouse classic, the Grand Hyatt's version was surprisingly light and delicious. Although I did ask them to skip the nutmeg (can't stand the spice) and they substituted herb for us.

Main event - Canadian Angus Porterhouse ($1450/36oz)

Although the menu recommends the porterhouse for two, this will easily feed three. We had it medium and medium it came, although a little more rare on the sirloin side. The bit of fat clinging to the sirloin gave it lovely flavour, whilst the leaner side of tenderloin lacked the 'beefy' taste. To go with this beauty you can pick from a few sauces and a wide selection of mustards. We had the red wine and mushroom sauces, and I had the truffle and the whole grain mustards.

The truffle mustard is heavenly!!

Nebraska USDA Prime Rib Eye ($550/18 oz)

The rib eye was pretty massive... The ones I have had elsewhere now seem tiny. This cut definitely had more flavour to it and was perfectly cooked. Texture wise, I would say it was in between the tenderloin and sirloin from the porterhouse. I enjoyed this with the truffle mustard more than any thing else.

The above fed the five of us very well and we weren't able to order dessert as we were so full. The steaks are reasonably priced for this establishment but I wish they had smaller cuts of a few cuts of steak (they only do 8oz size for the USDA Prime Tenderloin and Japanese Wagyu), so a table for two can have the option to go for two different cuts... plus dessert!

I am contemplating my next visit to try their crab cake and very famous apple crumble with soft-serve...