SER will be the best steak-house in Dallas
In April I blogged about a ‘preview’ visit to the new restaurant called SER at the Anatole, you can read it here. Recently I was invited back to try out some of the other items on the menu as the food team led by talented chef Anthony Van Camp fine-tuned the menu prior to the new restaurant.
From the press release, SER will offer “prime cuts of the finest beef, the freshest of seafood, and unique appetizers and side dishes that will clearly differentiate it as a new style of Dallas steakhouse.” That was pretty evident when it came to tasting the food, sampling dishes like Wagyu burger with caramelized onions and sriracha mayonnaise and the cheese and charcuterie plate that included prosciutto from Iowa and a goat feta cheese from of all places Waxahachie. Of course the meats were cooked to perfection too, especially the Berkshire pork chop with black truffle vinaigrette and the Colorado rack of lamb served with a morel mushroom sauce.
When it came to desserts I was waiting for the “same old, same old tried and tested” steak house desserts that roll off the Sysco truck into the kitchen and was pleasantly surprised. As the team talked about the dessert offerings that evening we were told that we would be tasting the Valrhona chocolate truffle cake, cheesecake panna cotta and lemon pie (to satisfy the ‘steak house’ crowd)
I hate the word ‘satisfy’ it reminds me too much of a Weight Watchers ad I once saw saying you should eat until you are satisfied. Good chefs are not in the business of ‘satisfying’ customers, especially high-end restaurants like I know SER will be. The lemon pie tasted good, I was satisfied with it. The truffle cake was impressive especially as on this occasion it seemed the cake had as many layers as the Anatole had floors.
We had to wait for the last dessert for the ‘wow’ factor though. Thomas Welther, the executive chef at the Hilton Anatole had given Anthony Van Camp the challenge of creating a unique cheesecake and I can tell you the result – A sort of molecular gastronomique panna cotta cheesecake frozen to -270 degrees before being smashed into bite size pieces – had everyone in the room buzzing and reaching for their cameras.
That was the dessert I was waiting and hoping for when I read the word ‘unique’ in the press release. That was the type of dessert along with appetizers like the tempura-fried lobster that will have customers on the journey home (passing dozens of steak houses selling ‘lemon pie’) licking their lips and longing to return.
SER opens 1st October and I can’t wait to go back. You can make reservations here