Last Call

After almost 20 years at The Phoenix I have been presented with an opportunity with a growing restaurant company. In the battle of stasis vs. motion, the latter triumphed.

I have enjoyed the company of many of you over the years at The Phoenix, be it in the restaurant or for a private event. The friendships gained will always be treasured.

Thank You and hopefully our paths shall cross again.

Kent Vandersall

Tomorrow Night's Menu

Click on image to enlarge

Open Wednesday March 31

Yes, take note of the special two course dinner for $20.10 per person. The full menu will be up here tomorrow but the first course options will include the standards such as Lobster Bisque, Phoenix Salad, Crab Cake, Caesar Salad and the entree selection will have seafood selections such as Salmon and Snapper, as well as meat lover items such as Filet Mignon, Surf and Turf, and Lamb. We'll even include a couple of bar type items for those who want to listen to some Jazz and have a quick bite at the bar.

As an added bonus, I attended a wine sale recently at one of our local distributors and I was able to purchase some Marraso Malbec, 2006, from Argentina, at a very attractive price. We'll pass those savings along to you, so if you dine with us on Wednesday night you can obtain a bottle of this nice red wine for only $15. It's not offered by the glass, only the bottle.

So now you have a few good reasons to visit us on Wednesday - you can have a two course dinner for $20.10 and a nice bottle of Malbec to go with it. Again, the complete menu will be posted here tomorrow. Hope you can make it in on Wednesday.

Open Friday for Lunch and Xavier BB

The NCAA basketball Tournament is here! The Xavier mens basketball team plays on Friday at 12:30 so we'll be opening the bar and the dining room at 11:30am if you want to stop by for a casual lunch, a drink or two, and watch the Musketeers decimate the Gophers from Minnesota.

We are preparing four lunch entrees and they are all only 5 bucks. We'll have a Cheeseburger, Fish Sandwich, a nice entree salad, and a Turkey Breast Sandwich. Reservations are not necessary but if you're sure you're going to stop in, give us a holler just to be certain we've got a table for you.

Whatever wasn't touched on above is in the flyer below. So plan on knocking off from work early and having lunch and an early happy hour at The Phoenix.

We are Catering at Music Hall

CSO and Cincinnati POPS pre-performance dinners served in the Critics Club. These are 3 course seated dinners for $35 per person and that includes the tax and gratuity. Payment is "at the door" the night of the event and credit cards are accepted. The next dinner is tomorrow night and they are by reservation only.

Reservations are made through The Phoenix by phoning 513-721-8901. The menu changes for each event and tomorrow's menu is a Wedge Salad first course, Chicken with Prosciutto and Provolone entree, and Lemon Layer Cake for dessert. These aren't fancy dinners but they're good. Doors open at 6pm and we begin serving at 6:30pm.

If you are unable to make it tomorrow night, there is another dinner next Saturday on the 20th of March.

Restaurant Service Issue?

Or not? Charging for forks is a bit much but the back and forth in the comments reveals a split in the blame game. It does look like a fine piece of pastry. Your thoughts? Read about it here.

Happy Birthday Dock Ellis

Legendary major league pitcher Dock Ellis was born on this day in 1945. He is no longer with us, having passed in 2008, but he was involved in several memorable and controversial incidents during his major league career. One of those took place here in Cincinnati.

On May 1, 1974, Dock thought he would make a point by beaning every hitter in the Reds lineup. He successfully hit the first three Reds batters - Rose, Morgan, and Dreissen - and attempted to hit Tony Perez, but Perez eluded the pitches and walked. Dock then threw the first two pitches at Johnny Bench and with that, his manager, Danny Murtaugh, pulled him from the game. In the sissified baseball world of today he would have been tossed before he hit batter number two. But that's a topic for another day.

Dock is also the pitcher who gave up Reggie Jackson's mammoth homerun in the '71 All Star Game in Detroit - the one that hit the light tower on the roof! A couple of years after this, Dock had the opportunity to face Jackson again, and promptly beaned him in the head. He apparently had a temper.

But his status as "legend" was sealed in 1970 when he pitched a no-hitter against the San Diego Padres while high on LSD. Years later Dock narrated to an interviewer his recollections of that event, and recently this interview was made into an animated short that is worthy of some sort of award. So if you have 5 minutes to waste (and who doesn't?) then check out the video below. The voice is that of Dock Ellis, and both the narrative and accompanying animation are priceless as they say.

RIP Dock. You were one of a kind.

Skewered

Alice in Wonderland (the movie) that is. By Nigel Andrews in the FT. It's usually not fun to see any endeavor get panned, since tearing down is always easier than building up. But when it is done so cleanly and directly, like a surgeon with a scalpel, it should be shared.

You can read Nigel's opinion of the movie here. I think I'll wait for it on video.

Wine Dinner Menu

Here is the menu for tomorrow night's wine dinner beginning at 7pm.

Reception Wine - Fat Monk Rose

*****

Oysters Rockefeller, Side Salad of Spinach and Arugula

Villa San Juliette Sauvignon Blanc

*****

Trout with Lemon Tarragon Cream

Fat Monk Riesling

*****

Pork Tenderloin with Cranberry Balsamic Sauce
Green Beans, Orange Rosemary Gremolata

Villa San Juliette Romantique Reserve

*****

Gorgonzola Stuffed Filet Mignon
Fingerling Potatoes, Red Wine Sauce

Villa San Juliette Petite Sirah

*****

Lemon Mousse


Seats still available. All of the above for $60 per person including tax and gratuity. Please phone 513-721-8901 for reservations.

Wine Dinner Wednesday, March 10

Very excited to be hosting this dinner next Wednesday featuring a four course dinner accompanied by four wines from Villa San-Juliette Winery. Time and pricing detailed below (the price is per person and includes tax and gratuity). You can obtain more information about the winery here.

Robert Mondavi 1999 Reserve Cabernet - Free!

We still have some openings for dinner tonight in the restaurant so call us if you want to get in. And we'll be pouring some free samples of Robert Mondavi Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, 1999, that we've had in the cellar for a bit. This little gem will run about $150 a bottle, if you can find it, from a retailer.

We'll only be pouring it for guests having dinner with us, and it will be a 2oz. taste per guest, and it will only be served to those who say they saw this on the blog. In other words, we won't offer it, you'll have to bring it up. It's our way of saying thanks for checking the blog.

Hope to see you tonight.

Celebrity Deathmatch

Anybody else miss this great show?

We are now Twittering

Yes, if you Tweet, you can click on the icon to the right and start following Kent's Twitter updates about ... well, who knows what. Probably miscellaneous musings about minutiae (+1 for the alliteration) and probably last minute Phoenix specials, updates, and the like. The more followers the merrier, so even if you're not into the Twitter thing, refer us to a friend who is.

Open This Saturday, February 27

We will be open for dinner this coming Saturday. You can make reservations by phoning The Phoenix at 513-721-8901. For those of you who have lamented the lack of Saturday night openings, here's an opportunity.

You can take advantage of this in either of two ways. You will note that the menu below is priced in typical ala carte fashion. So that is one option for you.

The other option is to take advantage of our special Prix Fixe menu that works as follows:

Choose any three food items for you meal - Starter, Entree, and Dessert; or Starter, Side, Entree (if you don't care for the sweet stuff).

Choose a wine to start, and then another if you wish, and another...you get the idea. The wines are included in the Prix Fixe. You can start with a white and switch to red and then back again, you can stick with one wine all meal, or try 5 or six different selections.

The choice is yours and the wine and the food is all packaged together for $55 per person (before tax and gratuity).

Here are some of the wines we'll have open and be pouring that night:

Acacia Carneros Chardonnay
Clos du Bois Chardonnay
Kenwood Sauvignon Blanc
Drylands Sauvignon Blanc
La Villa Pinot Grigio
Louis Jadot Beaujolais Villages
MacMurray Pinot Noir
Mondavi Private Selection Cabernet Sauvignon
Red Rock Merlot
Louis Martina Cabernet Sauvignon

So join us this Saturday and dine the traditional way, or make it your own personal wine and food extravaganza.

The menu is below (click on the image to enlarge)

Newsflash - Quintessa Wines

We have a last second opportunity to host a tasting of Quintessa wines this Wednesday, February 24. Apparently another venue fell through and we are more than happy to step in and accomodate. I know this is last minute but it's a fine opportunity to taste some truly exceptional wines.

Because we're springing this on you we will keep the format really simple. Here is how it will work:

*The tasting will begin at 7pm and the wines will be presented by Dina Clark from Huneeus Vintners.

*We will start out with the Illumination Sauvignon Blanc, followed by three single block Cabernet Barrel samples of Quintessa (from two vintages), and conclude with the Faust Cabernet Sauvignon.

*There will be no food served during the presentation of the wines so this is not a dinner.

*The presentation should last about 45 minutes. The tasting will take place in the Chefs Dining Room.

At the conclusion of the tasting we will open the bar and set up an informal, yet tasteful, light buffet for those who wish to stay and have something to eat (on our dime) and maybe finish with another cocktail (on your dime).

The cost of the tasting is $40 and that includes the 5 wines and the end of tasting light fare. If you've had Quintessa wines before, you realize what an opportunity this is.

You can find more information about Quintessa here.

You can read about the Illumination Sauvignon Blanc here.

And you can read about the Faust Cabernet Sauvignon here.

Call The Phoenix at 513-721-8901 to reserve a seat for Wednesday!

Valentines Thank You

To all of you who dined with us on Valentine's Day Weekend, a big Thank You from The Phoenix. To show our appreciation, anybody who dined with us in the dining room on Friday, Saturday or Sunday of that weekend has earned a $50 gift certificate to a future event in the restaurant!

To claim this gift certificate you have to send an email to info@thephx.com and it has to be received by us no later than 6pm tomorrow, Monday February 22. That gives you about 30 hours to check this blog. We will give one certificate to each paying couple who dined with us Valentines weekend. So if you claim your prize, please let us know the reservation the name was under on Valentine's Weekend in the body of the email.

As to the next event(s) in the restaurant? Well, we will be open next Saturday evening (the 27th) in the dining room with an ala carte menu and alternatively an inclusive prix fixe dinner with several wine selections included in the price. Details will be up on the blog tomorrow.

We also have a wine dinner scheduled for March 10 with details later this week as well. So check back early and often and hopefully we'll see you next Saturday.

Snow Day

Snow days have always been good for catching up on some reading. Especially with the internet, the volume of material you want to read dwarfs what you actually have time to read.

Between rounds 3 and 4 of snow shoveling today I got to this article in The Atlantic about the long term national fallout from the recent economic malaise here in the US. If you're interested, you can read it here.

Super Bowl Winning Card

If you entered the Super Bowl Contest, a winning card would look like this:

1. Saints
2. Under
3. Manning
4. Over
5. Under
6. Under

If you're curious, there were zero shots of Kim Kardashian during the game (thanks largely to Reggie Bush not scoring a TD) and zero mentions of hurricane katrina. Obviously Phil Simms and Jim Nance had the under on that one.

We trust you kept your scoresheet and can compute your level of winnings. But we also have a record of all the entries so if you need assistance give us a holler.

Valentine's Day Special

On Saturday and Sunday this weekend we will be offering a special prix fixe couples dinner for only $99. The image below spells out the specifics. Some reservations are still available on both Saturday and Sunday as of this writing.

Also, on both nights we will be offering valet parking for your convenience, the ladies will receive a rose on these nights, and on Saturday evening you can enjoy a carriage ride in Downtown after dinner. All of these amenities are compliments of The Phoenix. The carriage pickup and drop off will be outside of our front door on Race street, and will be running until 10pm.

So there's all kinds of reasons to get out of the cold and join us at The Phoenix. And if you're not into all of that lovey dovey Valentines stuff, swing by tomorrow, Friday, as we'll have the Jazz starting at 7pm and a bistro style menu in the dining room and bar.

Valentine's Day(s) Weekend Menu

Below is the menu that we will be offering this Valentines Day weekend - Saturday, February 13, and Sunday February 14. The menu may be tweaked here and there as we play with the recipes, but by and large this is the final version.

We are accepting reservations at 513-721-8901. We will also have an inclusive prix fixe couples special on these nights, and the extent and pricing for that will be unveiled in a later post.

We sure hope to see a lot of old friends at some point over the three days we'll be open. Besides, you don't want us sending this guy after you! So be here or be square as they say.

To view the menu in a larger format, click on the image.