Seasonings from zed 4519/18/2023 ![]() ![]() And that’s particularly unfortunate, because when you’re paying $50 a head for unlimited amounts of food, fatigue is the only enemy you have. No matter how much variety there is, all the sugar and cream gets old really fast. Beets were paired with a raspberry dressing, and pineapple-sweet enough on its own-was baked with brown sugar and pushed by our server as the perfect first course. ![]() Warm three-cheese biscuits were brushed with a cloying tangerine butter. Perfectly rendered lamb chops were overshadowed by baked-on goat cheese. A delicious pork sausage was paired with a honey mustard-horseradish sauce. Within the 13,000- to 18,000-square-foot footprint they encounter a cozy lounge. But there was a theme to the food here: It was all sweet, cheesy or, often, both. Guests enter ZED 451 via a two-story glass atrium outfitted with a black slate tile floor, dramatic fireplace, lush greenery and a sweeping staircase that leads up to a rooftop lounge with its own fireplace and bar. Likewise, the harvest table options were impressively fresh, and they seemed to be replaced every three minutes. Every piece of salmon, chicken, beef and lamb I tried was cooked to a deliciously tender and juicy consistency. But whoever is cooking the meat is doing a good job. When pressed about whether he cooked the food, one of our “chefs” backtracked and said he was merely responsible for cutting and serving it. Whether the servers are truly chefs is doubtful. The vibe at ZED451 is stylish, yet fun and relaxed, both in the restaurant and at the rooftop. At ZED there’s a gimmick, too: We’re asked to believe that the people carrying the dishes to us are the chefs who actually cooked them. This one includes some very tasty bar bites from the Zed451 kitchen, beer on both bottle and draught, and hand-crafted seasonal cocktails, like the 'Peach Caipirihna'. At churrascarias there’s a gimmick to this: The people carrying the meats to your table are called “gauchos,” and they’re dressed in high-waisted riding pants and poofy blouses. “Would you care to indulge?” they ask, and before they can slide a portion onto your plate, another server is at the table with a different dish. Almost instantaneously, men holding enormous skewers of meat approach. Which is to say that meals here follow a very strict formula: Diners start at a salad bar (the ZED term for these is “harvest tables”) then, when they’re ready, they signal (by conspicuously placing a river rock on the table) that the protein parade may begin. But other than that, the restaurants are almost exactly the same. And sure, maybe Sal didn’t have great cocktails like ZED’s crisp cucumber-sage martini. Yes, ZED looks completely different-the space is now gorgeous, sunny and sprawling. But with all due respect, that’s a ridiculous claim. I can definitely see us going back for the actual experience or just another steak craving with another mocktail that was quite surprisingly delicious.ZED451 would like you to believe it is nothing like Sal & Carvao, the chain of churrascarias it bought, renovated and moved into. I appreciated having a decision making process for the whole experience. My experience at Zed 451 was sensational! Gold status for sure. Greg agreed with my eating habits and the waiter offered us the bar menu which had the most perfect selection of three fist sized steak samples and we had a side of mashed potatoes to split. Gregory gave me the decision to make and my sentiment was that it would be too much food for one sitting and I simply wanted steak. Also that the second course consisted of about seven different meat choices in which chefs walk to the table and offer the sample. The waiter explained that the salad bar was where we begin and that we could walk around to the other food bar stations and pick food. We took a seat and it was explained to us that the “experience consisted of three courses for one price. As the host escorted us in we passed a few food salad and others. All we knew was that we were hungry and wanted to dine-in. Once inside we were greeted by the host who asked whether we wanted the dining experience or bar. I told him I’d never been and his curiosity led us inside. While walking back to the stop we missed I pointed out Zed 451 the Brazilian Steakhouse. So we took the bus heading to Bellwhether ( one of Gregs’ favorite places) and we just so happened to pass up our stop. However when we went by to visit they had been gone for a while and the place was up for sale sadly. ![]() I knew I couldn’t get steak tacos from our usual spot at Flash Taco on Milwaukee, but the Cuban place, Cohiba in Lakeview came to mind because the last time we checked it out I was mesmerized at the seasoning of the steak and grilled onions. “I really just want some steak!” I told Gregory that our child (still in womb) was desperately craving steak on Saturday October 27th. ![]()
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