From time to time I add a review of a restaurant that isn’t in Indy, but within a drivable distance—for me that is about 3 hours (I have kids after all), particularly if it is really good. We were visiting hubby’s family in Columbus, Ohio and snuck out for dinner on our own. We ate at “M” which is Restaurateur Cameron Mitchell’s signature restaurant. Cameron Mitchell is a very recognized name in Columbus because he has several different restaurants there. In Indy, you may be familiar with Mitchell’s Fish Market which was originally started by Mitchell, but after the chain went nationwide, it was sold to a larger conglomerate.
Anyway, we had a great meal at M, and it is a very upscale restaurant with a fairly sophisticated menu, and it was quite busy. This got me to thinking about why Indy has such a problem supporting our own local places in the same echelon. I mean, you can’t make the argument that Columbus is such a larger city or that they have more money or whatever, and they seem to be able to support good, locally run, high end restaurants.
As for our meal, I had the “cones” appetizer to start which consisted of 3 sesame cones filled with crab salad, lobster salad and tuna tartare. It was good, but not the star of the night. The ingredients were good quality though and the presentation quite impressive. Hubby had the house Caesar salad, which was a unique twist on the Caesar adding nice chunks of blue cheese, arugula in amongst the romaine, and sourdough croutons. The dressing was parmesan garlic. It was outstanding. I normally don’t eat Caesar dressing out because hubby makes the best one at home with a recipe from his mother, but this could stand up with the best of them.
Anyway, we had a great meal at M, and it is a very upscale restaurant with a fairly sophisticated menu, and it was quite busy. This got me to thinking about why Indy has such a problem supporting our own local places in the same echelon. I mean, you can’t make the argument that Columbus is such a larger city or that they have more money or whatever, and they seem to be able to support good, locally run, high end restaurants.
As for our meal, I had the “cones” appetizer to start which consisted of 3 sesame cones filled with crab salad, lobster salad and tuna tartare. It was good, but not the star of the night. The ingredients were good quality though and the presentation quite impressive. Hubby had the house Caesar salad, which was a unique twist on the Caesar adding nice chunks of blue cheese, arugula in amongst the romaine, and sourdough croutons. The dressing was parmesan garlic. It was outstanding. I normally don’t eat Caesar dressing out because hubby makes the best one at home with a recipe from his mother, but this could stand up with the best of them.
My entrée was what made this dinner so yummy though. I had the halibut seared and served with homemade crab and corn stuffed raviolis, all over freshly shucked corn and in a sweet corn emulsion and some nice skinny asparagus on top. The fish was cooked properly (not dry as a bone) and everything went together perfectly. It was my little reminder that corn season is coming soon, and I can’t wait! And those little raviolis were light and delicious, and you could actually taste the crab inside.
Hubby had the “steak in a bowl” which was a filet cooked to order over blue cheese potatoes with a nice piece of duck liver on top as well as a black truffle sauce (and you could even see the truffles in there!). It was also very very good (we actually switched halfway through). It was quite rich (duh) but all the flavors went together quite well. I preferred my fish to it, but hubby preferred the steak. So either way, you can’t lose on these dishes.
The dessert was the only thing that didn’t come together; it was a caramel/banana bread pudding with lots of cashews on top. There just wasn’t anything special about it.
If you are in Columbus and want a very good high end meal with polished service and a beautiful atmosphere, give M a try. I doubt you’ll be disappointed.
M Restaurant
2 Miranova Place, Suite 100
Columbus, OH
614/629-0000
www.matmiranova.com
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