16 October, 2008

The BEEFY Series Part 5 - Morton's The Steakhouse

Mentioned the word “Steak” and Morton’s The Steakhouse will probably come to mind as the pinnacle in classic steakhouse experience.

Located at a hidden corner on the 4th floor of
Mandarin Oriental, entering into the restaurant immediately transport one from a simple boring main façade to a voguish interior of dim lighting and sounds of fine tableware clanks.

Being HFB’s virgin trip to Morton’s,
Tina, our maître d' for the evening, rattled off what seem like a scripted introduction of the various cuts of steaks, as well as seafood, that the restaurants serve as mains before the start of the dinner.

Following that, the dinner commenced with the much raved about
Onion Loaf that HFB was looking forward. A colossal loaf of a bread, that was probably the best complimentary bread that HFB have eaten – served crisp on the exterior and fluffy on the inside, the whiff of the onion exude from the bread when one yank opened, yet it remained subtle on the palate without too overwhelming. It is so good that it goes with butter as well as on its own. And if one is too tempted to finished it, HFB’s advice to you is – DON’T – as Morton’s is also renowned for their generous serving portion.

Two appetisers were chosen that night – the first being ½ dozen of
Pacific Oysters on the Half Shell ($36.00). Served the way HFB expected it to be – on a bed of ice that is, the oysters were fresh but not the most meaty. Thus for $6 a pop, HFB doesn’t found it to be value-worthy.

The latter was that of the
Lobster Bisque Soup ($30.00) that was big enough portion for 2 – but HFB found the single small piece of lobster meat swimming within laughably wretched. While the soup reeked of essence, it was VERY salty towards the end of it, such that HFB have trouble finishing it.

The mains in Morton’s don’t come with any sides thus a serving of
Creamed Spinach, for two, costs an eye-popping $22.00. Serving portion was a gargantuan affair, but what HFB like was how lightly salted and smooth it was to consume. However, too much of the cream and the “jelakness”, or fullness starts to set in.

The
Sautéed Mushrooms ($15.00) were satisfactory. Done al dente and comes with a nice bite, it was salted to taste.

The celebrated dish that evening would have to be the
Aged Australian Filet Mignon ($79.00). Nicely char-grilled on the outside, the lean cut was perfectly executed to medium-rare, exuding sweetness on this tender piece of meat.

It was definitely the best piece of steak HFB had tasted so far, and rated higher than the Grade 9 Wagyu Ribeye at Astons, as HFB prefers his steak to be “beefy” – something that is lacking in a piece of well-marbled wagyu.

Regrettably, the Morton’s
Legendary Hot Chocolate Cake ($25.00) failed to live up to the tag that evening. Urged on to “die, die” sample the chocolate cake by all my peers who had dined at Morton’s before, it came slightly over-baked and was dry and bitter on the outside.

Portioning the cake also did not reveal an oozing molten chocolate that HFB was highly anticipating. The only saving grace was the scoop of
In-house Vanilla Ice-cream that tasted very good.

Overall, service was generally good and accommodating, but dinner for two costs $316.60, inclusive of 2 glasses of house-pour wines and taxes, which is very expensive and (steak aside) not value-for-money. Excellent mood created by the furnishing and lighting was also ruined with mindless chatters from various tables as well as the consistence singing of birthday songs (10 times over a 2.5 hours period) – absolutely not recommended for a romantic dinner for two.


Rating

Food: 3.5/5 (4.75 for the Filet Mignon!!!)
Service: 4.5/5 (Friendly, personal and accomodating)
Ambience: 2.5/5 (4 without the noise & birthday songs)
Price: 2/5 (Only the beef is valued for money)
Total: 12.5/20
5 Raffles Avenue,
4 floor Mandarin Oriental
Singapore 039797

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13 comments:

homeladychef said...

Oh I see...After reading your comments, I will not go Morton, will rather visit Aston because of the pricing!! I think I can find some good cuts from King Albert's Park Cold Storage or Liang Court's basement supermarket. Thanks for sharing! :)

Anonymous said...

The picture shown that foods is nice.. ;) So, dun always let the picture tell story.. :)

Anonymous said...

nyum nyum... thanks for sharing.cannot afford.
will go try one day if i accidentally found $500 on the floor.. nyumnyum

Anonymous said...

Wow, the steak looks really really good. I feel hungry just looking at it, even though I only just had dinner!

noodles said...

I would like to eat the steak (and only that) at least once!

His Food Blog said...

homeladychef: Erm... different league - Morton's steak is worth the price I reckon! Btw, I don't recall seeing good cuts from KAP Cold Storage. But I know Meidi-Ya @ Liang Court has it, and also Isetan Supermarket @ Shaw Centre.

fooi: LOL. Thanks fooi.

kitkat: You're welcome!

jenny: Yep. It was - by far the best piece of steak I had tried.

T__T: Yes, you should!

homeladychef said...

What I mean is that my mouth was salivating until.....you mentioned the $$. It's way too ex for me. :( Nevertheless, I'll try one day if there's a chance. Thanks for sharing! :)

Anonymous said...

Hey there

I think Morton is only good for the mains and the onion bread.. and actually that would fill u up very well. But a pity your cake turned out bad cos the last time I tried, it was goOD!


and yes the place is meant for special occasions, the night i went there were a few birthdays and a marriage proposal! but i thought it was sweet though.. the place is filled w so much happiness

- ty

Anonymous said...

the cost is pretty high, but then again its mortons.

i think next time, we can just go for the steak, and have our dessert somewhere else.

interesting post. thanks for the review.

His Food Blog said...

homeladychef: Heh. Your welcome.

ty: Agree. Steak and onion bread was VERY good. Yeah pity about the cake cos I was looking forward to it.

Lobang: Thanks! Please share your experience and let us know if you are going. :)

Anonymous said...

The mentioning of Lobster Bisque soup made me wants to drink some soup again haha.

Davis said...

Morton's steaks are pretty gd...though priced a little steep. Would definitely head back if in the mood to indulge.

Another of my recent fav beef quest is at SWISS GRILL!! (Bistro arm of Swiss Butchery near coronation plaza). By far one of the best steaks at very resonable prices. They serve really amazing burgers and hot dogs too. Do check it out! Cheers.

His Food Blog said...

Hi Davis

Your are paying your money's worth for the quality of steak you are getting at Mortons.

As for Swiss Grill, I passed by and had a peek - didn't thought the prices were reasonable if you ask me - Astons is, but definitely not Swiss Grill.

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