By
Mark Goldberg
Whether
youve come to the Fontainebleau
Hiltons new Bleau View restaurant
for dinner or Sunday brunch, the first
thing youll notice is the quality
of the service you receive.
Well, okay, not the first thing. That
would be the incredible view of the Atlantic,
the hotels tropically landscaped
gardens and rock grotto pool with its
own waterfall, all visible from the wall
of windows that wraps around the east
side of the room. Inside, the restaurants
bright Mediterranean piazza stylings
rich mosaic tiles, sparkling fountain,
wall murals surround comfortable
high-backed banquettes and contemporary
seating.
But next comes a team of seasoned waiters
who have made a career of service at the
Fontainebleau. Fifteen, eighteen, twenty-five
year veterans, these goodwill ambassadors
of fine dining can answer every question
about the menu, make certain your meal
is delivered quickly and correctly, and
can reminisce about serving Frank, Sammy,
Liz and even Liberace. Surprisingly, each
one of these professionals is currently
on a ninety-day probation, because new
General Manager Simone Valente is a perfectionist
who wants everything just right. Experience
and supervision spell impeccable service.
Mediterranean
cuisine at dinner
In contrast to the elaborate brunch, dinner,
in the capable hands of chef de cuisine
William Zuppas, is simple and straightforward
Mediterranean.
The classic antipasto ($9) is a colorful
platter laden with thin slices of prosciutto,
slightly-smoky Calabrese sausage, coarsely-ground
sopresata country pork salami, pungent
aged parmesan, olives and gorgonzola cheese.
The centerpiece of his Portobello salad
($8) is marinated in balsamic and herbs
before grilling. The meaty mushroom cap
is sliced, fanned atop wild greens, splashed
with balsamic vinaigrette and sprinkled
with manchego cheese. Sharing the plate
is a pungent, chilled Mediterranean couscous
salad, studded with bits of walnut, olives
and tomato. Moroccan bronzed shrimp ($12),
a plateful of sweet and flavorful U10
beauties set over Moroccan tomato and
mushroom couscous, are rubbed with harissa
a Moroccan seasoning based on spicy
red pepper, before grilling, then plated
in a fiery harissa fish fume.
Risotti change nightly. Our red bean Tuscan
risotto ($16) was a far cry from the traditional
Arborio rice. Organic short grain brown
rice cooked with red beans and a variety
of vegetables created a health-food treat
that was very tasty, light and refreshing.
The quintessential Mediterranean fish
dish: cioppino, fish stew or bouillabaisse,
is here frutti di mare ($30), a light
lobster broth, infused with red pepper,
and loaded with sea scallops, shrimp,
whole calamari, two enormous prawns, and
fresh fish of the day. Meat doesnt
lag behind: filetto marcantonio ($29)
is a tender, perfectly cooked to order
filet mignon served over a ratatouille
of tomatoes, fennel, eggplant, pine nuts,
pancetta and parmesan in a simple red
wine reduction.
Desserts ($7) are worth the calories.
They run from the standard tiramisú
to a delicious peanut butter Bavarian
torte a Bavarian cream mousse with
a light cake center, and a chocolate mousse
dome, a sort of tartuffo with a dark chocolate
cover protecting the light and dark chocolate
mousse layered with cake, fresh raspberries
and blueberries.
Sunday
brunch extravaganza
The Sunday brunch ($42) actually deserves
its own review. Its off-season,
and the Bleau View is serving 200 diners
every Sunday. There is, of course, a waiter
and a bus boy for every station, so there
is never any clutter on your table. You
are greeted with a Would you like
champagne, a mimosa or a Bloody Mary?
and then you enter buffet central.
Start on the right, where youll
discover gravlax, smoked salmon, baked
salmon, assorted cheeses, blintzes, an
omelette station, a variety of seafood
salads, and fresh fruit. Along the back
wall, an enormous table offers sushi,
chilled Maine lobster, oysters, snow crab
claws, prawns, shrimp, and three different
types of caviar.
Take your time the brunch lasts
five hours. The pasta chef serves penne
with porcini, baby artichoke, broccoli
rabe, and grilled portobello. Enjoy some
lobster ravioli. Or go for a bowl of Caribbean
seafood chowder, a spiced bouillabaisse
loaded with fresh lobster, scallops, and
shrimp. Meats? How about Cajun style pork
loin with boniato; chicken breast stuffed
with cornbread, apricots and raisins;
prime rib; Grecian leg of lamb, and mini
filet mignon.
Most amazing is not the amount of food
available, but that each item is well-prepared,
flavorful and fresh. Nothing has the chance
to dry out over a Sterno flame before
it is replaced with fresh items. And many
of the dishes change every Sunday.
Desserts from fruit tortes to mousse
cakes, custards to tarts to triple-dipped
strawberries take up half the room,
and far outshine the ice cream and waffle
station. Of course, dessert demands coffee,
and your waiter brings it to you in an
individual French press.
From dinner to the most impressive brunch
on the Beach, Bleau View has thought of
everything. Including free valet parking
for brunch and dinner.
Bleau
View
** |
ADDRESS:
|
4441
Collins, in the Fontainebleau Hilton,
Miami Beach. |
PHONE:
|
(305) 238-2000. |
HOURS:
|
Dinner
6 to 11p.m. nightly, Sunday brunch
10 a.m. to 3 p.m. |
FOOD:
|
Mediterranean
at dinner, international at
brunch. |
SERVICE:
|
Impeccable. |
PRICES:
|
Appetizers
$5 to $12; entrees $14 to $33. Sunday
brunch $42 (including valet parking),
$19 for children 12 to 4, free for
kids under 4. |
ATMOSPHERE:
|
Modern
setting overlooking tropical vegetation
and waterfall. |
WINE:
|
A good list of well-priced reds and
whites. |
RESERVATIONS:
|
Suggested. |
SMOKING:
|
Separate
smoking section. |
CREDIT
CARDS:
|
All
|
HANDICAP
ACCESS:
|
Yes |
PARKING:
|
Complimentary
valet with dinner or brunch. |
Mark
Goldberg is a dining critic and a freelance
copywriter.
|