Dinner -- 7/11/08

Elite Circle Grille
2132 S. Valley Hills Dr.
Waco, TX 76706

254.754.4941

http://www.elitecirclegrille.com/

5:45 - 7:05 PM

Ramona: Tanqueray & tonic, Caesar salad, filet mignon, loaded baked potato, glass of Penfolds Koonumgo Hills Cabernet-Shiraz (Australia), Tootie buttermilk pie with strawberry sauce

Jim: Tanqueray & tonic, Caesar salad, 14 oz. rib eye, loaded baked potato, glass of Penfolds Koonumgo Hills Cabernet-Shiraz (Australia), Tootie buttermilk pie

Shared Appetizer sample (potato skins, wings, chicken tenders, fried mushrooms, onion rings) with three sauces (ranch, honey mustard, barbecue)

When I lived near Baylor back in the early '90s, I ate here frequently, then it closed for a couple of years, then new owners bought and renovated it. We ate here a couple of years ago when it first re-opened, and we were definitely not impressed. However, we have gone over our list of disappointments, and we have decided to give them all a second chance. This is the first in that series.

The appetizer sample plate was huge -- we couldn't finish it all, and every item was hot and tasty. I especially liked the fried mushrooms. We ended up bring some home, along with our pie, which made a great late-night snack. The pie slice was generous and tasty. I skipped the strawberry sauce, because I prefer to taste the actual pie by itself.

The beef is advertised as "Nolan Ryan Guaranteed Tender All-Natural," and that sounded promising. Promise kept! This was definitely better beef than last time. My rib eye was tender, but I thought there was a little too much pepper in the seasoning. It interfered with that first contact with the taste buds, but it did not entirely kill the taste. After the first couple of bites, I scraped some of that off, and I would consider it perfect.

The baked potatoes were also good.

Two minor sour notes: we were not offered bread, because the server assumed that since we had an appetizer, we would not want it. Wrong! Bread is key to any meal, and while it is probably a good thing for our waist lines we didn't have it, and we probably might have said no, maybe, it would have been nice to have been offered.

The second note of souricity concerned the wine. Once gain, my old complaint -- nothing at all from France. In fact, I thought the wine list was boring -- with only one or two exceptions. I chose the Penfolds, because we have had that before and liked it. It has a spicy flavor, but our mistake was getting a glass. I think this bottle may have been opened a day or two before and not properly re-corked. It seemed bitter to me and on the verge of going to vinegar. Neither of us finished the glass.

The bottom line is, we are taking this off our list of "no return." We will be back, albeit with a more careful wine selection -- and a weather eye out for that bread!

-Jim