Two weekends in a row I’ve had to shower and wear something nice, what is going on with this world? Were the Mayans right? I even put cologne on! Are you in shock yet? After eating at Capital Grille, I think I could get used to this type of lifestyle. I want to apologize about the pictures, it was very dark inside and I didn’t want to use the flash and disturb everyone else while they were eating.
5197 Big Island Drive
Jacksonville, Florida 32246
(904)997-9233
Location: It’s at the St. Johns Town Center, down at the end where Cantina Laredo is and directly across from Mitchell’s Fish Market.
Food: I decided that it was way past due to take my mom out for one of my reviews, so I took along the woman responsible for creating such an awesome guy like myself. Everyone say hi to Pat (shameless bragging: she is a shit hot Realtor here in Jacksonville…follow her on Twitter) feel free to tweet her and tell her thanks, she has offered to pay me $1 if I stop typing “Anyways”. Silly grammar Nazi.
Right when you walk in, you will see a wall of what I call “liquor lockers” where I think if you are rich enough, you can rent one of those bad boys and keep your very own special bottles in there. They have nameplates on them, so that’s what I assume was going on. It pretty much announces to everyone waiting for a table “yeah, I got some cash” lol. I can’t wait till I’m that rich, where I have liquor stored all over town waiting for me. Could I put a nice aged bottle of Boone’s Farm and a 4 pack of Bartles & James in there?
On to the food! Once we were seated, we were quickly greeted by Jennifer Loesch (aka J-Lo, she told me that, I didn’t come up with that lol). Let me just say this, ask to be seated at one of her tables. She was extremely knowledgeable in everything from wine (her husband is from wine country) and steaks (she is from Nebraska) and lastly, she was very nice and took care of us extremely well. Oh, also, I was there for the the “Generous Pour Wine Event”, but I don’t know much at all about wine 
That is where Jennifer really helped us out. I won’t focus on the wine in the write up, but if you have any questions while there, please ask your server, they are more than helpful and very educated on wine. The Generous Pour Wine Event is where they have had a Master Sommelier pair the wine with each course. I figured since a “master” paired it, I would just go with the flow and it was all great!
The first item to come out was our Amuse Bouche, which was the Smoked Salmon (Menu description: The freshest salmon, cold-smoked in Maine. Then given our complementary accents of capers, dill mayonnaise and zesty onion pita crisps). If you don’t know what an Amuse Bouche is, it’s: A little bite of food to amuse the mouth and invigorate the palate. In “common fat man” talk, it’s what you can fit in your mouth with one bite…a snack 
It was pretty good, the tuna was nicely seasoned and the onion crisp was a nice touch. A+. Next up, the Pan Fried Calamari with Hot Cherry Peppers (Menu description: Calamari sautéed in garlic butter until golden crisp.Then tossed with a house blend of peppers for a nice, fiery finish.) By far, this is the best Calamari I have had to date. This was awesome! I will warn you though, it is very spicy. So if you don’t care for that level of heat, they will put the peppers on the side, no problem. I couldn’t get enough of this, it was that good. I even took the leftovers home and threw it in a pan the next day and cooked it up (way better option than microwaving it right?). When I come back to The Capital Grille, I may order this for every course lol.
Now come the entrées! I ordered the Bone-In Kona Crusted Dry Aged Sirloin with Caramelized Shallot Butter (Menu Description: A wonderful flavor combination with caramelized shallots, seasonings and coffee rub to create a first-class steak many guests claim as their favorite). All I have to say is HOT DAMN! I knew once I saw there was a coffee crust, I had to try this and it lived up to the hype. I absolutely loved the steak, it was cooked perfectly, the coffee crust was a nice touch and the Shallot Butter was delicious. Can I get that butter in a 5 gallon to go bucket please? My mouth is watering just thinking about this steak again. Between this steak and the one atRuth’s Chris I think I’m hooked on high end beef. Definitely worth the money for this steak. The sides we ordered were the Lobster Mac & Cheese and the Sautéed Spinach. Both of these were excellent as well. Both me and my mom really enjoyed the spinach and my wife enjoyed the leftover lobster mac we smuggled home to her.
For dessert, I ordered the Cheesecake with Fresh Seasonal Berries. There were a few things that I liked about this cheesecake. If you noticed, it comes out round and if you look closer, you will see there is creme brûlée like crust on top to add some crunch to it. Add in the fresh berries and it was a perfect way to end the meal. It was light, not over the top rich and the berries were nice and sweet. Perfect!
Extras: All in all, a great meal. Including the added $25 per person for the Generous Pour Wine Event, the total bill was $207 for two people. Not cheap, but you get what you pay for. The food was good and the service was great. I will definitely be eating here again…