The Food Baby: Fleming's

The Food Baby bottom line:

GO TO Fleming’s for happy hour.
That’s all.

A few nights ago, a fab friend Kristen and I went to Fleming’s for their “5 for $6 ‘til 7” - which includes five appetizers and five glasses of wine for $6 each…..until 7:00 PM. Clever!

Now, as I’m sure you have heard, Fleming’s is an extraordinary prime steakhouse, and I WILL be back soon enough to give you a review of a sure-to-be incredible filet mignon. I’ve had dinner there once, a long time ago for Restaurant Week, and it was fantastic. That said – this review is not of the beautiful steaks, but rather the beautiful bar food!

So here’s the deal:

Discover 5 for $6 ’til 7 — 5 tempting appetizers, $6 each, served nightly until 7 pm at the bar:

Tenderloin Carpaccio
Sweet Chile Calamari
Wicked Cajun Barbecue Shrimp
Seared Ahi Tuna
Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail
Fleming's Prime Burger

Kristen and I decided on the Tenderloin Carpaccio, Calamari, Ahi Tuna, and the Burger. She had a dirty martini (dirty girl) and I had a gorgeous glass of earthy yet fruity Catena Malbec…well worth the splurge (14 bones is a splurge for me).

As we discussed how to solve the problems of the world, our carpaccio arrived. A huge, festive looking plate brimming with cheesy crostini, perfectly arranged carpaccio slices drizzled with a caper creole mustard sauce, and a little nest of basil and shredded cheese which gave the whole thing a caprese vibe. Everything came together so harmoniously! Who knew bar food could be so posh?

Sexy Carpaccio

At the same time the ahi tuna came out. On a scale of whack to amazeballs…I’d say this was “very good”. The tuna tasted very fresh and came with a ridiculously spicy mustard sauce (the spice had to be wasabi. It was intense). But, when used with caution the sauce was actually pretty great with the tuna.

Seared Ahi Tuna

At this time I did an ocular scan of the dining room, and couldn’t help but notice that the crowd was 98% male. Literally, almost every person in the dining room was a business-y looking dude in his 40’s eating a steak the size of a baby. I mentioned this to Kristen and she goes “Duh. Broker dinners”. Now, I work at the bank too, but it’s in the technology dungeon of nerdbombs, so I don’t know much about these so-called broker dinners. But Kristen does. She’s a baller.

On to the hot dishes. The calamari and the BURGER. Yes, that’s BURGER in all caps, because I’m really excited about it. In fact, let me get through the calamari comments so I can talk about the BURGER. The calamari wasn’t that great. A little undercooked and blah. There, done.

Lame

Okay, back to THE BURGER. This PRIME BURGER with peppered bacon and cheddar was out-of-control delicious. Every bite was a flavorgasm. I can’t even pinpoint what made it so freakin good…maybe the prime beef, or the salty bacon, or maybe some magical leprechauns sprinkled a secret blend of seasonings on it. Who knows. Who cares? Go to Fleming’s and get this burger. Oh and PS, it came with an oversized onion ring and some crazy good chipotle-type special sauce. Go now. Seriously.

This picture does not do it justice.

Lastly, our server Jamie was super friendly and awesome. When she asked how everything was, I said “I have a huge food baby”. And she said “OMG I always say food baby! Seriously I always tell my friends I have a food baby!” And I screeched…”IHAVEAWEBSITECALLEDTHEFOODBABY.COM!!!!!!!!!!” We’ll be back to see you Jamie!

How will I ever go back to regular bar food after this?

-Lauren