The Capital Grille. From the cuisine, wines, service, and design, is a must visit dining experience. We talked to Michael McNamara, Managing Partner, on what makes the experience so great.
What is your brand promise? “The feel that we are going for is a private club that is open to the public. We provide a welcoming and public dining experience that builds exceptional guest relationships through personalized service. It’s relaxed yet spirited, not stuffy, not pretentious. “
What sets you apart? “Our dry aged beef program. Our in-house butcher hand sculpts the steaks daily, overseeing the dry aged process. We dry age the steaks 18 to 24 days to maximize the flavor and the tenderness. We have a very high-tech temperature and humidity-controlled walk-in cooler. If it’s off by a degree, we get a text. The freshest seafood we bring in daily and our award-winning wine list separates us. What brings it all together is the impeccable anticipatory service.”
Special events: “For birthdays and anniversaries, we have special confetti for the table. For anniversaries we bring a rose to the table, a personalized greeting card, a champagne toast and complimentary dessert platter that says, ‘Happy Anniversary’ or ‘Happy Birthday’ and one for first time guests as well. “
Valentine's Day: “The chef will have features such as Japanese A5 Wagyu, Australian Wagyu that are super tender, like butter. Surf and turf paired with jumbo lobster tails, complimentary chocolate covered strawberries and roses. We will feature this on the 13th and 14th.”
Signature dishes: “The fried calamari, porcini mushroom rubbed bone in ribeye with a 15-year aged balsamic reduction, a bone-in Kona crusted dried aged New York strip with shallot butter with a coffee rub and our seared citrus glazed salmon. Sides…lobster mac and cheese, and dessert our Capital Grille cheesecake.”
Wines: “We have 30 wines by the glass and 350 labels, from entry level to high end.”
Capital Butcher program: “We offer any of our freshly butchered steaks to go. We include our rubs, like the porcini or Kona rub, the steak sauce with cooking instructions. “