Paseo Grill

[escan]

Ate here for lunch today....located in the Paseo next to Cathy's. It's their first day to be open and the restaurant has a great facility. The layout and decor was really nice.

Lunch prices were very reasonable. I had the ensalata caprese sandwich with proscuitto (wonderful), which was served with fried green beans (weird, but also great!). All sandwiches are served with the fried green beans. My cost for lunch? $6.50.

I checked out their dinner menu and it is quite a bit more expensive, ranging from $15 or so for pasta to $60 for Kobe beef, but still really reasonable IMO.

Seems as though this will be a nice addition to this part of town. I'll def. be back for lunch and will try dinner soon.

[metro]

Thanks escan, I was wondering when they would be opening. I'll have to eat lunch there soon.

[windowphobe]

Sixty bucks for Kobe, I'm told, is pretty inexpensive.

Then again, I flinch at $10.99 a pound at the supermarket, so don't listen to me.

[Pete]

A friend just went and had wonderful things to say about the food, atmosphere and service. Said the strip was particularly good, as was the caeser salad.



Here's a recent article from OKC Business:


Paseo rising
Posted: Monday, June 26, 2006

By Pamela Grady
pgrady@okcbusiness.com

Oklahoma City’s historic Paseo Arts District, a small retail community well-known for its aura of artistic flair filled with studios, galleries, eclectic shops and Galileo Bar and Grill, is welcoming a new neighbor into its district.

Appropriately named, Paseo Grill is scheduled to open its doors July 10 at 2909 Paseo, Ste. A, next to Kathy’s on Paseo.

Joe Jungmann along with Paseo Grill LLC partners, Melodie Walker and Lesley Rawlinson, have been in the restaurant business for several years, and when the opportunity arose for the trio to take their experience and investment and put it into their own restaurant, they took the leap.

“Things are really coming together,” Rawlinson said.

She said the group currently is working diligently to add the finishing touches to the interior of the restaurant by selecting tones of reds and beige for its walls to lighten the dining area, but keeping its black accents. Tables have been brought in and booths with fine fabrics complement the interior design.

The owners also are working with a curator to display works by local artists, with pieces available for sale on a consignment basis.

After spending countless hours to perfect a menu, Walker, corporate executive chef of the eatery, describes her selections as international cuisine with a classic American influence.

“Melodie’s taking every dish she loves from the entire world and putting it together...we’ll have fish flown in daily, it’ll be good stuff,” said Jennie Poe, Paseo Grill’s wine steward.

An appetizer menu consisting of Hearts of Palm and Artichoke Salad with Cherry Wood Smoked Salmon, Shrimp Cocktail, Shellfish Cakes, Tomato and Mozzarella Caprese and an authentic Lebanese Hummus bi Tahina are among many selections that will be available on opening day.

“The assorted cheese and fruit platter is going to be so fun. Jennie helped me compile this,” Walker said. “Because she’s so knowledgeable about wine, she’s also very knowledgeable about cheese. We have 18 different cheeses from all over the world that I want to feature, maybe three or four at a time.”

Poe said there are 75 cheeses they currently are trying to stock, but they’ll start with 30.

The list of entrees will boast Tenderloin Beurre Machand de vin, Kobe Strip Steak - Black Label, New York Steak, Surf-n-Turf and a featured Sushi to name a few.

“The food is very simple here. I’m not one to bury things under sauces or different toppings. I like to have them as enhancements to the food. My secret in cooking is get great quality product in the back door – make sure the meat is as good as you can get it, great quality, very fresh, cut in-house, that it is absolutely the freshest I can get and that way I can control the cutting,” Walker said. “I like to season it with the most basic ingredients and I let the flavors of the food come out and speak for themselves.”

As the seasons change, Walker plans to make additions to her menu.

In the meantime, Poe has compiled a list of 70 fine wines with prices ranging from $25 to $500 a bottle. From the wine selection, 20 will be available by the glass and all wines will be temperature controlled.

“We’ll be switching them out about every three months,” Poe said. “As it starts getting cooler, we’ll bring in more Pinots and lose a few of the whites, so it’s very adapting. We’ll keep it flowing with the menu.”

Poe said they also will serve an array of desserts served with dessert wines.

Nearby business owners are quite optimistic about the new restaurant coming on board.

Sandi Burden, co-owner of Galileo Bar and Grill, said she’s excited about a new restaurant coming to the Paseo District.

“When we first opened eight years ago it was still a little rough down here, but over the years the neighborhood has grown and the neighborhood has gone from being mostly rental properties to home ownership,” she said. “So the neighborhood has changed a lot. Things are better and we’re glad to see the Paseo Grill open in the area. I live only a few houses down from the Paseo Grill and I’ll be eating there on my way to work.”

Paseo Grill will be open from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for lunch and 5:30 to 10 p.m. for dinner Monday through Friday and from 4 to 10 p.m on Saturdays with Sundays closed.

[escan]

Okay...went back again for lunch just to make sure and still loved it. I had the Ahi tuna salad (cooked rare) and my friend had the pork tapas. Both of us were extremely happy and, once again, service and atmosphere top notch.