Corporate dining can be an adventure or a drag. It usually depends more on the group than the food. The Rampant Oenophile enjoyed good food and better friends at a business event last night at Costa D'Este, the new Gloria Estefan hotel in Vero Beach, Florida.
We had a big group, so got the best seat in the house at Oriente, the hotel's premier restaurant. It's Cuban Fusion menu offers loads of fresh fish ceviches and entrees, as well as terrific meat dishes.
As we enjoyed drinks then dinner, everyone at our table agreed that the restaurant is finding its way with its food and drink. The bar offers all of the notable basics for good mixed drinks and premium spirits. What Oriente lacks at the moment is a good wine list. Both bottle services and wines by the glass are very limited, and the bartenders both offered White Zinfandel as a substitute for the telling absence of the Ravenswood, Oriente's only Zinfandel offer.
We first tried the 2003 Sterling Merlot, but the last glass of the bottle was marred by soot and debris. It shouldn't have needed decanting, so this Rampant Oenophile wonders if bottle storage was off, or we just happened on a bad bottle. Regardless, when brought to the staff's attention, we didn't get any credit or apologies. Disappointing, but not surprising with such a new facility.
The 2004 Wild Horse Pinot proved a treat. It was the only solid Pinot available by the bottle, and served slightly cooler than I expected, but again, the restaurant is still new. Everyone is still getting used to the stoves, chillers, and apparently the wine cellar.
The Wild Horse Pinot is a Central Coast wine, light and refreshing, with hints of cherry and berry. I didn't notice the vanilla promised on the bottle, but this wine makes up for it with no aftertaste, great legs, a full bouquet, and no tang. Overall, an exceedingly pleasing wine. With a local vendor price of about $22, it's not necessarily an everyday wine, but it's also something to be enjoyed more frequently than just special occasions. I'm adding it to my cellar this week.
Give Oriente about a month to find its way with its menu, and comment to the staff if the wine list isn't better developed. There's no excuse for such a beautiful site and an imaginative menu to be hobbled by a weak wine list.
We had a big group, so got the best seat in the house at Oriente, the hotel's premier restaurant. It's Cuban Fusion menu offers loads of fresh fish ceviches and entrees, as well as terrific meat dishes.
As we enjoyed drinks then dinner, everyone at our table agreed that the restaurant is finding its way with its food and drink. The bar offers all of the notable basics for good mixed drinks and premium spirits. What Oriente lacks at the moment is a good wine list. Both bottle services and wines by the glass are very limited, and the bartenders both offered White Zinfandel as a substitute for the telling absence of the Ravenswood, Oriente's only Zinfandel offer.
We first tried the 2003 Sterling Merlot, but the last glass of the bottle was marred by soot and debris. It shouldn't have needed decanting, so this Rampant Oenophile wonders if bottle storage was off, or we just happened on a bad bottle. Regardless, when brought to the staff's attention, we didn't get any credit or apologies. Disappointing, but not surprising with such a new facility.
The 2004 Wild Horse Pinot proved a treat. It was the only solid Pinot available by the bottle, and served slightly cooler than I expected, but again, the restaurant is still new. Everyone is still getting used to the stoves, chillers, and apparently the wine cellar.
The Wild Horse Pinot is a Central Coast wine, light and refreshing, with hints of cherry and berry. I didn't notice the vanilla promised on the bottle, but this wine makes up for it with no aftertaste, great legs, a full bouquet, and no tang. Overall, an exceedingly pleasing wine. With a local vendor price of about $22, it's not necessarily an everyday wine, but it's also something to be enjoyed more frequently than just special occasions. I'm adding it to my cellar this week.
Give Oriente about a month to find its way with its menu, and comment to the staff if the wine list isn't better developed. There's no excuse for such a beautiful site and an imaginative menu to be hobbled by a weak wine list.
1 comments:
We went this week and had similar problems. Great apps, but no real wine list, and not quite what we expected.
Give them a month. A new restaurant takes time to get squared away with all of their kitchen equipment, processes, menus, staff, etc.
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