|
Steakhouse is a cut above By Mary D. Scourtes
JULIAN'S HERITAGE
BOTTOM LINE: Fashionable steakhouse is a prime choice for carnivores.WHERE: 256 Second St. N., St. Petersburg: next to The Heritage Holiday Inn
HOURS: 5 to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 5 to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday
CREDIT CARDS: All major
RESERVATIONS: Yes
SMOKING: Yes
CHILDREN'S MENU: Will accommodate requests
HANDICAPPED ACCESS: Yes
CALL: (727) 823-6382
R E V I E W
ST. PETERSBURG - USDA prime meats.Fresh seafood.
An extensive wine list ... almost two dozen premium wines served by the glass and more than 200 by the bottle.
A sharply dressed staff in a handsome setting.
One can be mighty pampered at Julian's, but for heaven's sake, it's in a Holiday Inn, not The Plaza.
Intelligent, sophisticated servers are always welcome, but one was too stuffy for my taste. It's OK to loosen up even in a fine restaurant.
Before menus are even presented, servers educate guests over a cart of plastic-wrapped meats, discussing in depth the quality of the food and the cooking techniques of the chef.
Should you miss some of the details, and you will, a written list is provided.
Carpaccio of beef tenderloin and five seafood items, including shrimp cocktail, served warm, are Julian's great beginnings. The menu also offers three salads.
Just check the lining of your wallet before you indulge in too many fine extras.
Appetizers are $4.95 to $10.95.
Vegetables, starches and crumbles of bleu cheese (and the salad it goes on) are additional costs.
Entrees are $17.95 to $32.95 and include steaks and a variety of chops, which can be accented with sauces such as shallot demi-glace, bearnaise and peppercorn.
For starters, a lovely crusty bread whets the appetite with a pretty pink Tuscan bean spread.
Salmon, grouper, shrimp and lobster round out Julian's menu. Kudos go to most of the sea fare:
A sherry-spirited lobster bisque is velvety smooth, filled with hearty bites of lobster.
The gumbo is a sassy blend of seasonings and seafood.
Fat crab cakes are served on Asian slaw with a pretty pepper coulis.
Four beautiful, biscuit-size, moist and flavorful scallops are enhanced by a summery red radish and cucumber salad.
Only an order of grilled calamari is lackluster. Perhaps the fried kind has more snap.
The grilled lobster tail with drawn butter is a behemoth, perfectly cooked.
Colossal Shrimp and Scallops are lusty specimens, served with a lovely cream sauce fragrant from citrus.
Or choose Sicily's Own Veal Chop, accented with garlic, white wine, capers, basil and kalamata olives.
The center-cut pork rib chop, served on an Asian barbecue sauce, is not as zesty as some Oriental blends I've tasted.
A 16-ounce New York Strip was overcooked on our first visit, but was a perfect blend of juicy pink meat on our second trip.
Desserts are luscious - especially a frozen Grand Marnier souffle.
Dinner for two at Julian's is about $100 with two entrees, appetizers and desserts.
Dining review
Julian's at The Heritage
