Romantic Restaurants

Posted on February 15, 2012 by The Jab

UPDATE: Fleur de Lys in San Francisco closed in 2014 after 44 years in business.

In honor of that uniquely American celebration of love, Valentine’s Day, I thought I would share a few of my favorite romantic restaurants. Starting with the most wonderfully over-the-top romantic steak house of all, the Gold Rush Steak House at the Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo, CA. Many steakhouses go for the dark woods, mens’ club look, but this one is for couples! I believe it opened in 1967, but I have not confirmed that yet.

I snapped this photo of the Gold Rush Steak House on my first dinner there in 2000

In San Francisco my pick for the most romantic historic restaurant in town is Fleur de Lys, opened in the late 1950s, and purchased in 1970 by the maître d’hotel Maurice Rouas, who still runs it, with Alsatian chef Hubert Keller at the helm. It was remodeled over the years (and even closed for a while due to a fire in 2001), but now it is an elegant, plush room with a large chandelier and a gorgeous flower arrangement in its center. The food is primarily classic French, but with California touches like local, seasonal ingredients and healthier preparations. The service is impeccable. It is still one of the finest historic restaurants in a city of trendy restaurants that come and go, so it deserves a mention here on Le Continental, despite its contemporary decor. Here is a vintage postcard view of the interior.

On the east coast one restaurant stands out for me as a romantic destination: The Mai-Kai in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The Mai Kai is easily my favorite restaurant in the entire country, because it is the only large Polynesian supper club left from a time when they existed all over the country, and because…well, it’s just fabulous beyond belief! I always have a hard time describing it to people who have not been because there is so much to see and I don’t want to ruin the surprise. So I will just recommend that you go as soon as you can, and the first time you visit, go with your spouse, lover, or partner for a romantic dinner show for two. It’s also fun with a group, like at the Hukilau festival that occurs there every year, but I think one’s first visit is best as a romantic night out for two. More on the wonderful Mai-Kai in a later post.

Romance should not only happen on Valentine’s Day. Visit these places anytime for a special date!

Gold Rush Steak House
100 Madonna Road San Luis Obispo, CA 93405
(805) 543-3000
Open 5pm – 10pm Mon–Sat; 4pm – 10pm Sun

Fleur de Lys
777 Sutter St., San Francisco, CA 94109
(415) 673-7779
Open Tue-Th 6pm-9:30pm; Fri 5:30pm-10pm; Sat 5pm-10pm; closed Sun-Mon

Mai-Kai
3599 North Federal Highway Fort Lauderdale, FL 33308
(954) 563-3272
Open daily at 5pm

Original Joe’s Reopens in San Francisco

Posted on January 28, 2012 by The Jab

It used to be my favorite restaurant in Northern California (which is why it’s featured on my blog’s header), before it closed due to a fire on October 12, 2007. Original Joe’s was one of the most well-preserved classic restaurants anywhere (though it opened in 1937 the decor was mostly mid-century). The food was good too, if you stuck with the meat choices like steaks and chops, the Joe’s Special or their signature hamburger sandwich (two menu items common to all the Joe’s restaurants in N. Cal.). And the veteran waiters (like Angelo, who retired in 2005) were as entertaining as watching the cooks from the exhibition kitchen counter seats.

A couple of years ago it wasn’t looking promising for Original Joe’s reopening, despite a grant in 2010 of $50,000 from the City of San Francisco for its reopening in the name of local history and neighborhood revitalization. You see, it was located in the Tenderloin neighborhood, a place of SRO hotels, the down-and-out, winos, and drug addicts.

Then in 2011 came the news that Original Joe’s would reopen, but in North Beach instead of in its original location. Surely a great business move for the family, who told the press they labored long and hard over the decision to stay put or move. But to me it didn’t look promising because I’ve seen too many classic joints remodeled beyond recognition or moved to a new space decorated in a retro style that never feels like the original. I felt betrayed and vowed never to eat in some “new” Original Joe’s. Well, I am eating my words on seeing the photos of the new place. Designer Anthony Fish reused the original bar stools, recreated the original booths and signature open kitchen counter seating, and brought over the mermaid wall decoration, bricks, and wood ceiling treatments that were in the original’s bar. Even the menu is a reproduction of a 1950s design, with vintage graphics and all of their classic dishes retained.

photo by Molly DeCoudreaux for EaterSF

Mayor Lee Rings In Original Joe’s Glorious Return Today – Eater Inside – Eater SF.

Original Joe’s
601 Union St., at Stockton, San Francisco. (415) 775-4877
Open Sun-Wed, 10:30am – 10pm; Thu-Sat, 10:30am – 11pm

Postcard Panorama

Posted on January 23, 2012 by The Jab

Canlis’ Charcoal Broiler Atop the Portland Hilton – Portland, Oregon, a photo by What Makes The Pie Shops Tick? on Flickr.

Canlis’ Charcoal Broiler – Portland, Oregon

Via Flickr:
Epicurean dining at one the world’s most beautiful restaurants and lounges…with a sweeping vie of the city from Oregon’s tallest building.
Canlis’…also in Seattle and Honolulu

This Portland location is closed, but the Seattle restaurant is still open! Although remodeled in 1984, 1996, and in 2005, it retains its large picture windows and rock walls. A beautiful and elegant restaurant with excellent food (by all reports – I have yet to dine there).

Canlis
2576 Aurora Avenue North, Seattle, Washington 98109
206.283.3313
Open Mon-Fri 5:30-close, Saturdays 5:00-close, closed Sundays
Attire is dressy. Men should wear a suit or sport coat.

Stockyards Restaurant and 1889 Saloon, Phoenix

Posted on January 6, 2012 by The Jab

In 1919 Edward Tovrea opened the world’s largest pen feeding stockyard in Phoenix, Arizona, which operated on 175 acres and could accommodate 300,000 head of cattle on their way to market anywhere in the U.S. In 1947 a restaurant opened in the center of the stockyard, designed in a mid-century modern architectural style.

original Stockyards Cafe, 1950 – photo from Stockyards Restaurant’s Facebook page

original Stockyards Cafe interior – photo from Stockyards Restaurant’s Facebook page

The original Stockyard Cafe burned down in 1953, and in 1953-54 a large new restaurant was built, connected to a new administration building for the yard.

Stockyards sign, 1954 – photo from Stockyards Restaurant’s Facebook page

The restaurant still exists in the same location today.

The neon sign “Since 1889” is incorrect. The current restaurant dates back to 1954 (1889 refers to the 1889 Saloon) – photo by The Jab, 2008

The interior of the main restaurant (planned and decorated by Helen Tovrea) has been remodeled several times since 1954, most recently in 2005. However, on my 2008 visit I liked the decor of large booths and wooden tables and chairs, large wrought iron western-style chandeliers, with old photographs, western paintings and artifacts on the walls, plus a rock fireplace. But the bar (1889 Saloon) and adjacent lounge are the most spectacular and original rooms in the restaurant. There is a beautiful intricately carved mahogany bar that looks like it’s over 100 years old, but it was actually built in 1954 by local cabinet-maker Russ Kapp, who is still around at 91-years old (he also made the carved wooden bar stools that are still intact). The lounge, called the Rose Room, is surrounded by gorgeous murals depicting Gay 90s scenes, painted by Catherine Patton of Pasadena.

Catherine Patton finishing the murals in the cocktail bar - photo from Stockyards Restaurant's Facebook page

Catherine Patton finishing the murals in the Rose Room, 1954 – photo from Stockyards Restaurant’s Facebook page

Rose Room, 1954 – photo by stockyardssteakhouse.com

The booths have been replaced by tables and chairs, but the murals are still intact, as seen in this photo I took.

photo by The Jab, 2008

I didn’t take any photos of my dinner, but I remember enjoying an excellent steak. The steak menu (of aged, corn-fed beef) is extensive, offering a Porterhouse, two sizes of ribeye and New York strip, three sizes of filet mignon, two sizes of sirloin, a Chateaubriand, and even a buffalo ribeye.

Stockyards Restaurant and 1889 Saloon
5009 E. Washington, Phoenix, AZ 85034
602-273-7378
Open for lunch: Mon–Fri 11am–2pm
Dinner: Mon-Sat 5pm-9pm, Sun 5pm-8pm
Happy hour M-F 4pm-7pm

Jocko’s Steak House, Nipomo, California

Posted on December 28, 2011 by The Jab

Continuing our tour of Santa Maria County (California) barbecue restaurants brings us to the tiny town of Nipomo, just off of U.S. Highway 101. In 1957 brothers Fred and George Knotts opened Jocko’s restaurant, naming it after their father, Ralph ‘Jocko’ Knotts, expanding it into the current building in 1962. The decor is simple mid-century design, with open beamed ceilings and cement-block walls, decorated with a few western touches and taxidermy animal heads in the bar.

According to Jocko’s web site ‘Jocko’ means monkey. Perhaps they should have proofread the sign!

This place is extremely popular and is reserved well in advance (which isn’t a guarantee that you won’t wait), but I dined without a reservation in the bar, which I preferred over the dining room because it’s darker and has taxidermy.

While they are open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, what you really go there for are the steaks cooked over the oak barbecue pit, which gets going at 4:30pm every day except Sunday, when it’s fired up at 1:00. The menu has four steaks offered: a filet mignon, a New York strip, a spencer (rib-eye), offered in large and small sizes, and a top sirloin, also offered in large and small. The prices are very reasonable, considering the size of the steaks and that meals include relish tray, salad, potato or rice, garlic bread, beans, dessert, and coffee. Other items from the oak pit include lamb and pork chops, sweetbreads, spare ribs, chicken, ham steak, ground beef, beef ribs, and linguisa! Plus, you can get extra-large steaks for $10 more (the steaks are big already).

I love a restaurant with good placemats!

I ordered the “small” Spencer since it was lunchtime, which was big and thick (the large is incredibly huge). It was cooked perfectly medium-rare on the rare side with a great crust, and the meat was pretty tender, though the steak was definitely USDA Choice, not Prime, so it wasn’t as good as an aged Spencer from a Prime steakhouse. It had a lot of fat to trim off the edge too, but it was still worth the cost. All of the side dishes were good. The lettuce on the salad was very fresh and the beans and salsa were house made.

Jocko’s is worth a detour off 101 for a huge decent steak, perfectly cooked, with all the sides at low prices. The service was friendly, but I strongly recommend making a reservation and going early or on weekdays to avoid long waits even with a reservation (or just eat in the bar).

Jocko’s Steak House
125 N Thompson Ave Nipomo, California 93444
(805) 929-3565
Open Fri-Sat 8am-11pm,
Sun-Th 8am-10pm

Le Continental

dining and drinking with The Jab

Tag Archives: steakhouse

Romantic Restaurants

Original Joe’s Reopens in San Francisco

Postcard Panorama

Stockyards Restaurant and 1889 Saloon, Phoenix

Jocko’s Steak House, Nipomo, California

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