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For
Arthur's owner Mohsen Heidari, it must have been like receiving that
initial invitation from the American Association of Retired Persons.
"May I be the first to congratulate you on reaching your 50th
Business Anniversary in 1996," began the letter from the Stephen
Fossler Co. of Crystal Lake, Ill. "It's an accomplishment you
should be very proud of." |
| Had
his steakhouse passed the half-century milestone without his knowing
it? Mr. Heidari, the fourth owner of Arthur's, started doing some
research. Someone recalled that the restaurant used to celebrate its
anniversary in June. This was learned in July; it appeared that the
50th birthday would have to be after the fact. |
| Happily,
it turns out that the Stephen Fossler folks, who make personalized
foil "anniversary seals," were as premature in launching
their sales pitch as the AARP is. (Believe me, you'll get your first
card from the retirees' organization long before you expect it.) |
| Arthur's
won't be 50 until 1998, so Mr. Heidari has a couple of years to plan
its golden-anniversary bash. It should be a good one, but don't wait
until then to visit. An ordinary night at Arthur's can be extraordinary. |
Since
buying the steakhouse eight years ago, Mr. Heidari has given it a
glamorous face lift. The old Arthur's was a dark, carpeted, masculine
place. The new boasts black-and-white Italian marble floors, high-backed
mauve chairs, banquettes covered in a floral pattern, lots of sheer
pale curtains and two stunningly oversize chandeliers that were made
for a California hotel. |
| Four
circular booths are set into alcoves and partially curtained. You
can't move the curtains for more privacy, but those tables still have
to be among the most romantic in town. And it doesn't hurt that the
soft background music is all Nat King Cole. Or that the staff performs
its tasks so smoothly and discreetly that you're barely aware when
a water glass is being refilled. There are nice flourishes, too. A
pre-dinner gimlet is brought in a small carafe, embedded in ice, so
you can fill you glass as you wish. |
| The
food by executive chef Fred Amari and chef de cuisine Peter Cristobal
equals the setting and service. Mr. Heidari says he still considers
Arthur's a steakhouse, but the menu goes far beyond most steakhouse
fare, with lots of seafood, veal, fowl and a couple of pastas. Prices
are below those of most upscale steakhouses and entrees come with
vegetables. |
| Appetizers
include all the oldies but goodies: escargot, smoked salmon, shrimp
cocktail and our pick, steak tartare, an oval of freshly minced, lightly
seasoned raw beef sided by heaps of chopped red onion, egg, capers
and perfect toast points. Crab Lorenzo was an indulgent casserole
of crabmeat, mushrooms and cheese. |
| Bluepoint
oysters tasted as briny fresh as any oysters I've had in Dallas. Their
cocktail sauce was accompanied by all the things that people add to
it - lemon, grated horseradish and so on. More unusual, the waiter
also brought a tiny bowl of red wine vinegar and suggested we try
dipping our oyster in it. Different. And delicious. |
| Lobster
bisque, floated with a puff pastry crouton, was burnt orange in hue
and intensely flavored by both shell and meat. We found a nice chunk
of the latter in the soup's depths. Caesar salad is made tableside
- so you can have as much (or little) anchovy as you like. The dinner
salad held lots of buttery bibb lettuce and blue cheese vinaigrette
was nicely balanced. |
| Steaks
start at $17.90 for a rib eye and go up to $19.90 for a T-bone. Medallions
of Beef Arthur, rosy twins of tender meat, wore crowns of flaked crab
and were lapped with dual sauces - bearnaise and madeira. The meaty
chops in a rack of lamb were herb crusted and cooked exactly to the
medium-rare requested. |
| Grilled
snapper, a thick, firm fillet, was finished off with lemon and capers.
Crisp-skinned roast duck with peppercorns and brandy sauce was excellent,
too. All entrees came with a tiny, slightly waxy potato and a mix
of vegetables. |
| At
lunch, I told my companion that since Arthur's is a steakhouse, one
of us should try another steak. There's a grilled sirloin and a filet
mignon. But osso buco in Marsala sauce over fettuccine was a special
I couldn't pass up (and that veal shank was every bit as meaty and
moist with gelatinous bits here and there as I'd hoped). My companion
couldn't resist boned trout with garlicky scampi sauce. |
|
Dinner
desserts included delicate, high-rising souffles that soaked up
chocolate and Gran Marnier sauces like sponges. You also can choose
a fresh berry sauce. For any souffle, order ahead.
An Arthur's classic is the almond ball, a globe of vanilla ice cream
rolled in freshly toasted almond slivers and drizzled with chocolate
sauce. Cream caramel was pale, but silky; cheesecake was light and
pleasantly undersweet.
Arthur's
has two racks of wine in the dining room plus two small wine rooms
with tables. Accordingly, the wine maven should be able to find
something pleasing on the lengthy list and there are reasonably
priced wines for the less demanding.
If the Nat King Cole music has been replaced by live music coming
from the bar, you might want to move there for your after-dinenr
coffee. Arthur's has long been known as a meeting place for older
adults (weekend nights bring out many AARP members, I'd wager; midweek,
the crowd was slightly younger). Any night, the scene is lively
with dancing and flirting.
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