Stonewood Grill and Tavern Disappointing

I remember when the Stonewood Grill and Tavern at 612 E. Bloomingdale first opened up and it was standing room-only from the time they opened their doors at 4 p.m. until closing time at 10 p.m.(11 p.m. on Friday). My friends and I once sat for an hour on a Tuesday evening just for cocktails and appetizers while we held an impromptu business meeting in the waiting area. The clients were extremely impressed.

The tide has turned on this little ex-piece of heaven as I wouldn't take them there now on a bet. I don't know how it happened or when it happened; I just know it did. I haven't been here for four or five months now and this has been a favorite meeting place of mine since they opened their doors but I'm saddened at what I see.

I went to Stonewood the other night fully expecting my first five-star rating for this column and it all started out fantastic. We were met by an extremely personable hostess who looked at my daughter and smiled. She told my little girl that she looked a little too old to be getting a kid's menu so she gave her an adult menu and my girl beamed. Great start to dinner--making my child happy is a great way to get to me at any time.

We sat at a window booth and I immediately started inspecting everything. The wine glasses were polished and sparkling. The silverware was polished to a high sheen, then wrapped in ironed napkins. Plateware was perfect as was the window sills, blinds and air vents. Not a speck of dirt to be found--kudos. I don't quite understand what the artwork is saying but that's not why I am here.

It was a perfect start to my dinner. Then I looked over to the faux candle by the salt and pepper shakers and I had a flashback to a restaurant I did earlier this year and a weird fear overcame me. What if these faux candles were some type of harbinger of doom? I'm laughing right now but it's odd that the three places I have seen these candles were all failures--including here.

Our waiter came out and he seemed competent at first but that quickly changed. I'm not going to say his name because I don't want him fired--just trained right. He delivered our drinks quickly and soon after, we had fresh hot bread in front of us. There were four different types of bread (asiago-topped wheat, cranberry wheat, ciabatta and soft pretzel bread) and my favorite was the soft pretzel. 

He only brought out a couple of pieces at first so we split two pieces three ways and they were delicious. We waited for the rest to come with our meals. It did arrive later but the asiago bread was cold while the cranberry wheat was stale--odd.

Our server kept disappearing and it seems like the only time he even walked by his two tables was after I caught the hostess’ eye; this happened three times so she knew where he was hiding—that’s even more than aggravating!

My wife and daughter got the ribeye, baked potatoes and the Chef's vegetable medley. The ribeye was darker than I would expect from a restaurant, but the inside was a perfect med-rare. That goes to prove the age-old adage that the only time you need a hot high flame is when you are cooking a rare steak. 

The potatoes were a little too yellow as far as I was concerned and I could see where the peeling was starting to separate from the flesh.  We were there only a half hour after they opened and I can’t seem to wrap my head around the fact that we were eating more than hour-old potatoes. The vegetables were cooked right but less than impressive--they need more pizzazz.

Now to my disaster of a meal; I ordered the grilled rosemary and garlic lamb chops—never again. I received six scrawny and overcooked lamb chops that they forgot to put rosemary on but I am smiling as I tell you how good the cabernet demi glace was. That was the best part of the meal.

The garlic mash potatoes had a grayish sort of hue about them and were quite gummy. Somebody forgot to add cream and/or butter to mellow out the glutin in the potatoes. The asparagus was edible but should have been a bit more crisp, al dente, as it were.

This used to be a top-notch place to go but I’m only giving them two stars and hoping they fix the problems soon. They are a super clean place so we can go straight to the food. Chef Mike, they need you!

1 Star--Wouldn't go back on a bet

2 Star--Would have to go back, but only on a bet

3 Star--If I was in the neighborhood and hungry

4 Star--Would go out of my way even if I wasn't hungry

5 Star--Would make reservations and wait in a line