Jonathan and I ate at a new restaurant in Austin last night called Bess. It is apparently owned by the actress Sandra Bullock although we didn't see her when we were there.
The restaurant is physically beautiful. Low ceilings with thick wooden beams, exposed brick walls, brick columns, and a fireplace create an intimate setting that made me feel like I was in cozy home. The top of the bar is made of one solid piece of pewter and it is really chic and lovely. The crowd was young, hip, and attractive. It is clearly a great see-and-be-seen place.
The menu is intended to be a combination of American comfort food and French bistro fare. The common denominator for both types of cuisine is that the ingredients are simple and should be well prepared. This is where it all falls apart at Bess.
We started with cocktails and an appetizer of steamed mussels served with an herb and bacon ragout and grilled ciabatta bread. The mussels and the sauce were delicious. It was a light and flavorful appetizer that I would order a second time. The "ciabatta bread" that was advertised was really one piece of over-toasted French bread. In fact half of the piece of bread was actually charred. Mistake number one.
I ordered the cheeseburger as a main course with a side order of macaroni and cheese. Anyone who knows me knows that I love macaroni and cheese. In fact I am a huge fan of any pasta that is liberally coated in nearly any kind of cheese. The cheeseburger that is described on Bess's menu sounds very interesting. It is described as ground beef and sausage mixed together, grilled and topped with sharp cheddar and grilled onions on a potato bun. Doesn't that sound great? I thought so too....until it arrived at the table.
The first and most obvious problem with the hamburger was that the bun was at least twice the size of the burger. So I removed the bread from the meat. Cutting into the burger really required a hacksaw but all they gave me was a butter knife. No matter, I am persistent. Once I had sawed off a piece of the burger I noticed that it appeared to be quite well done. I had actually requested the the meat be served rare but our waitress informed me that because sausage was mixed in with the beef, the chef couldn't serve it rare. No problem, I understand.
The first bite of the burger was a disappointing experience to say the least. It was overdone to a spectacular degree. I have never chewed on an old boot but if I were to imagine the experience it would be pretty much the same as tasting the hamburger at Bess. The meat was so tough as to render itself nearly inedible. Terrible. I tasted it a second time, regretted it, and decided to focus on the carbohydrate portion of the meal.
The french fries that came with the burger were fantastic. Crunchy but not overdone and spiced perfectly. I would go back to Bess just for the fries. As far as I am concerned the fries were the only redeeming menu item.
The macaroni and cheese is baked and served in small cast iron skillets. Maybe that is why it seemed so dry and bland. The chef didn't use enough cheese in the recipe and it wasn't particularly flavorful. I would not order that dish again. If you live in or are visiting the Austin area and you are in the mood for some delicious macaroni and cheese I would recommend Eddie V's. Eddie V's has the most amazing truffled mac and cheese...I am getting hungry just thinking about it!
Jonathan's entree was far tastier than mine. He ordered the steak frite which was well prepared and quite delicious. I think that if you decide to eat at Bess your experience will depend entirely on what you order. The food that I ordered was terrible which, in my opinion, was particularly unforgivable since it's not that difficult to prepare a decent burger. Macaroni and cheese, also, is not terribly difficult to prepare. In fact, I would recommend to Bess's management that if they can't improve their macaroni and cheese that they just serve the Kraft version as that never disappoints.
For desert, Jonathan and I shared the chocolate pecan pie served a la mode. The pie was very good and was made with a homemade crust. The ice cream was homemade vanilla bean ice cream which is not something that you find in your average restaurant. We really enjoyed our desert and the homemade ice cream was a lovely surprise.
On a scale of 1 - 10 I would give the ambiance and service at this restaurant a 7. On the same scale I would rank the food as a 3. I would return to Bess for cocktails, appetizers, and/or desert but I wouldn't eat a full meal there again.
Eat at Bess at your own risk.
The restaurant is physically beautiful. Low ceilings with thick wooden beams, exposed brick walls, brick columns, and a fireplace create an intimate setting that made me feel like I was in cozy home. The top of the bar is made of one solid piece of pewter and it is really chic and lovely. The crowd was young, hip, and attractive. It is clearly a great see-and-be-seen place.
The menu is intended to be a combination of American comfort food and French bistro fare. The common denominator for both types of cuisine is that the ingredients are simple and should be well prepared. This is where it all falls apart at Bess.
We started with cocktails and an appetizer of steamed mussels served with an herb and bacon ragout and grilled ciabatta bread. The mussels and the sauce were delicious. It was a light and flavorful appetizer that I would order a second time. The "ciabatta bread" that was advertised was really one piece of over-toasted French bread. In fact half of the piece of bread was actually charred. Mistake number one.
I ordered the cheeseburger as a main course with a side order of macaroni and cheese. Anyone who knows me knows that I love macaroni and cheese. In fact I am a huge fan of any pasta that is liberally coated in nearly any kind of cheese. The cheeseburger that is described on Bess's menu sounds very interesting. It is described as ground beef and sausage mixed together, grilled and topped with sharp cheddar and grilled onions on a potato bun. Doesn't that sound great? I thought so too....until it arrived at the table.
The first and most obvious problem with the hamburger was that the bun was at least twice the size of the burger. So I removed the bread from the meat. Cutting into the burger really required a hacksaw but all they gave me was a butter knife. No matter, I am persistent. Once I had sawed off a piece of the burger I noticed that it appeared to be quite well done. I had actually requested the the meat be served rare but our waitress informed me that because sausage was mixed in with the beef, the chef couldn't serve it rare. No problem, I understand.
The first bite of the burger was a disappointing experience to say the least. It was overdone to a spectacular degree. I have never chewed on an old boot but if I were to imagine the experience it would be pretty much the same as tasting the hamburger at Bess. The meat was so tough as to render itself nearly inedible. Terrible. I tasted it a second time, regretted it, and decided to focus on the carbohydrate portion of the meal.
The french fries that came with the burger were fantastic. Crunchy but not overdone and spiced perfectly. I would go back to Bess just for the fries. As far as I am concerned the fries were the only redeeming menu item.
The macaroni and cheese is baked and served in small cast iron skillets. Maybe that is why it seemed so dry and bland. The chef didn't use enough cheese in the recipe and it wasn't particularly flavorful. I would not order that dish again. If you live in or are visiting the Austin area and you are in the mood for some delicious macaroni and cheese I would recommend Eddie V's. Eddie V's has the most amazing truffled mac and cheese...I am getting hungry just thinking about it!
Jonathan's entree was far tastier than mine. He ordered the steak frite which was well prepared and quite delicious. I think that if you decide to eat at Bess your experience will depend entirely on what you order. The food that I ordered was terrible which, in my opinion, was particularly unforgivable since it's not that difficult to prepare a decent burger. Macaroni and cheese, also, is not terribly difficult to prepare. In fact, I would recommend to Bess's management that if they can't improve their macaroni and cheese that they just serve the Kraft version as that never disappoints.
For desert, Jonathan and I shared the chocolate pecan pie served a la mode. The pie was very good and was made with a homemade crust. The ice cream was homemade vanilla bean ice cream which is not something that you find in your average restaurant. We really enjoyed our desert and the homemade ice cream was a lovely surprise.
On a scale of 1 - 10 I would give the ambiance and service at this restaurant a 7. On the same scale I would rank the food as a 3. I would return to Bess for cocktails, appetizers, and/or desert but I wouldn't eat a full meal there again.
Eat at Bess at your own risk.
3 comments:
You lie - I saw you eat a leather boot with a side of fried shoe strings just the other day. Hee, hee. Good review - I'm just disappointed by the results.
I would only eat a leather boot if it was deep fried and covered in cheese. When are you going to blog again?
I just blogged :) And did some fabulous art - top that!!
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