Another year of the Dine Out Festival in Vancouver has arrived and our first and probably only choice we attended to was the Black + Blue steakhouse in downtown Vancouver.
We heard many good things about this place but wow, such a low rating on Urbanspoon! This made us quite worried about it as we have not been here before. $38 seemed to be a steal if you compared it to the prices on the regular menu. We didn’t read through the reviews but perhaps the general consensus is the pricey menu was one factor triggering such low ratings.
We had early reservations for Saturday at 5:30pm. The Dine Out was fully booked previously when we tried earlier in the week, but we must have gotten lucky with a cancellation. As it was early, there were hardly any customers when we arrived. We were greeted at the door and given a table for 2 near the window at the entrance. It looked like a cozy and quiet corner which we didn’t mind. We read about the noise level getting to high levels at different parts of the restaurant. The hostess was clear that we had to be out by 7 PM, which we didn’t mind but the tone she used was not very friendly. It felt like we were being kicked out before we even sat down.
Our server however was very polite and brought us water right away. He then explained the Dine Out menu option as well as the a la carte regular menu options.
The restaurant was very elegant with three levels, with the Bar being in the centre. They even have a meat locker near the back showing off the different cuts of aged beef.
The restaurant also has a vast collection of wine, some of which appeared locked up:
We started with a humble house red wine which was about $7/glass. The server brought the wine in separate wine decanters and elegantly poured it for us.
While waiting for our orders we had a chance to tour the rest of the restaurant. There was a lounge area on the 2nd floor and some more tables on the 3rd floor which gives you a nice bird’s eye view of the restaurant. Strangely, you have to hike up to the top floor to get to the restrooms. While heading to the washrooms, we saw some VIP private rooms that can fit maybe 10-15 people. I asked the server about an elevator that was nearby our table and he explained that it actually leads to separate restaurant (owned by them).
Both of us ordered the exact same thing from the Dine Out menu. The soup arrived - Beer, Bacon & Cheddar Chowder:
It was a rather small serving, don’t let the soup bowl fool you, it was very shallow. Although it was presented nicely, the soups were both luke warm. It tasted alright but would have been tastier if it was hot.
The star of the evening was the main course which was a 5oz pepper crust tenderloin, cooked medium. It came with some yam fries and some veggies on the side (broccoli, red beet and some sprouts).
The tenderloin was gorgeously tender. Although it was borderline medium rare to medium near the edge, we didn’t mind because undercooked is better than overcooked. It was seasoned well and presented nicely.
The server was attentive and topped up our waters and cleared our empty plates efficiently. The restaurant was just about full house when it got to 6:30pm. Our desserts came just on time, it was a chestnut almond cake with apricot jelly, lime meringue and salted caramel sauce.
It was composed of 3 different flavoured layers over some light caramel sauce on the bottom. The dessert was excellent as it was not overly sweet.
Overall for Dine Out, this was a superb deal for AAA tenderloin. The restaurant interior was very elegant and the server was very friendly and accommodating. It was our first time at this restaurant and seeing the regular prices, we thought we’d be facing snobby atmosphere, but that was not the case at all. Although we were told at the beginning that the table was needed by 7pm, the food came at a well timed pace so we did not feel rushed. We had to leave by 7pm anyway to catch a movie so timing worked good.
When we picked up to leave, the staff and managers at the door all greeted us with a farewell, good-bye which made us feel very valued.
SFDD gives 3.5 out of 4 Delights.
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