I once had a happy hour at McCormick & Schmick's and was disappointed at how small the bar was... and at how unspectacular the food was. I can't even really remember what I ate that was so boring. I think it was calamari, but I can't be sure since it was THAT forgettable.
A friend had a huge dinner party here, and I decided I hadn't really given M&S a fair shot, so I went along for the ride.
We had the back room all to ourselves, which was very nice. Our group had a prix fixe menu, from which we could pick a salad, an entree, and a dessert for $26.95.
It took forever for our waiter to finally start taking orders, and even longer for me to get a refill on the wine I'd gotten at the bar. Our waiter was very professional and polite, though.
So I ordered a caesar salad, the steamed seafood bowl (mussels, lobster, shrimp, clams, and corn in a garlic white wine sauce), and creme brulee. The caesar salad was average. I've had better caesar salads, and with how easy it is to make a good caesar salad, I think that's really saying something.
A friend had a huge dinner party here, and I decided I hadn't really given M&S a fair shot, so I went along for the ride.
We had the back room all to ourselves, which was very nice. Our group had a prix fixe menu, from which we could pick a salad, an entree, and a dessert for $26.95.
It took forever for our waiter to finally start taking orders, and even longer for me to get a refill on the wine I'd gotten at the bar. Our waiter was very professional and polite, though.
So I ordered a caesar salad, the steamed seafood bowl (mussels, lobster, shrimp, clams, and corn in a garlic white wine sauce), and creme brulee. The caesar salad was average. I've had better caesar salads, and with how easy it is to make a good caesar salad, I think that's really saying something.
Now, I'm sure it's difficult to cook mussels properly, but if you specialize in seafood and charge a pretty penny for it, you should know how to cook the damn things. Nearly half of my mussels were tightly shut. In case you don't know, you should never force open a closed mussel and eat it, for it may very well make you sick. I didn't bother complaining because, honestly, I'd never eaten mussels before, so I had no idea whether or not I'd like them. I didn't. Discovered I don't much like clams, either. I already know I'm not a lobster fan, so that left corn and shrimp for me to enjoy. Essentially, I made the worst dinner decision possible. That's partially my fault, but I would've eaten all the mussels anyway had they been cooked properly. I did, actually, eat everything, with the exception of the closed mussels, despite not liking it.
Meanwhile, the conversation at my table danced among my friend's boy problems, Metalocalypse vs. Spinal Tap, sushi, and nearly jived into bathroom issues somehow. (?) One girl at the table got a bit inebriated and revealed some info that she, soon after, seemed to regret sharing. Instead of immediately shutting up, though, she shelved her regret, opened up some more, and ordered another glass of wine. Good entertainment.
Finally.... DESSERT! This was the best part. The creme brulee was much better than the same I'd had at Justine's. M&S's creme brulee was very creamy and eggy, but in a good way.
Meanwhile, the conversation at my table danced among my friend's boy problems, Metalocalypse vs. Spinal Tap, sushi, and nearly jived into bathroom issues somehow. (?) One girl at the table got a bit inebriated and revealed some info that she, soon after, seemed to regret sharing. Instead of immediately shutting up, though, she shelved her regret, opened up some more, and ordered another glass of wine. Good entertainment.
Finally.... DESSERT! This was the best part. The creme brulee was much better than the same I'd had at Justine's. M&S's creme brulee was very creamy and eggy, but in a good way.
I was a bit surprised at my bill. I'd forgotten about the two glasses of wine I'd ordered until I saw the damage. I'm glad I noticed that gratuity was already added. I said in my review of Sagra -- and I'll say again -- that I hate restaurants that add gratuity automatically. I know most of them do it only for large parties because they're afraid they won't get decent tips, but I think that's fodder, frankly. Back in the day when I waited on large parties, I only ever got ripped off by one group (a bunch of rednecks). I think restaurants count on you not noticing the already-added gratuity so that you tip more and they, in turn, don't have to listen to their servers gripe about only being paid $2.12/hr.
I really didn't think what I ate was worth $26.95. The creme brulee was the only good thing, but if I'm going to pay $26.95 for it, there'd better be the phone number of a decent-looking man who will pledge his undying love for me hidden inside the ramekin.
The second best part of the meal was the fact that we each got a $20 M&S gift certificate. Now, I didn't think very much of their food, sure, but you can bet your bippy I'll go back to use that gift certificate.
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