Mesa Grill

It was decent….by no means a stellar meal. Absurdly over-priced, but I guess that’s what you get at a celebrity chef’s restaurant. Had bones in my BBQ Duck Blue Corn Tortilla appetizer. My 16 spice chicken was adequate, but parts of it were too burnt to get good flavor (hope you like cardomam if you eat this one). Fellow patron was quite disturbed by his 3 oz piece of Mahi that he paid $28. Not ansurdly horrible, but also not something I would recomend to people.

Pros: Great service. Didn’t feel fake whatsoever, just genuinely natural service. Food was prompt and very flavorful. Beer selection was right on the money. You can have a regular conversation without having to raise your voice. The complimentary baked good are always a welcome treat.

Cons: Overall interior wasn’t impressive, felt old and tired. Bit pricey compared to the portions we received. Though you can barely hear the music, it wasn’t audible enough to get the full experience of what the restaurant was all about. Scrambling service can often be distracting.

Overall: Chef Flay’s flagship restaurant reminds you why bold flavors and simple foods made him so popular. Almost everything on the plate made me want to go home and somehow mimic what he’s done or somehow alter it. The cornmeal crusted oysters with green curry sauce was delicious. It had a great crunch and didn’t have that strong shellfish taste when dipped in the sauce. The Pork Tenderloin with Bourbon Ancho-Chile sauce was seasoned perfectly and tender. My only problem with it was it felt as if it were waiting in the kitchen for a few minutes before it got to the table and was served lukewarm. The sweet potato tamale with pecan butter was awesome and the perfect compliment to the dish. The sleeper hit of the meal had to be the assorted cookie tray. Bite sized cookies of all different sorts. I believe there was a homemade smore but made with almonds and walnuts. All in all, this was my third visit to Mesa and it surely was not a disappointment. Good food and good people, but only if you have a good sized wallet.

My wife and I have been watching Bobby Flays various episodes on the Food Network for years, and had an opportunity to eat at the Mesa Grill today.

We had no problems with the reservations, but thats the only positive comment I have.

It started with a haughty greeting from the Maitre’d, and similar attitude from the waitress.

We ordered appetizers and entrees for lunch, with the anticipation of a vibrant and stellar lunch, to makeup for the the large dish of attitude from the staff who couldn’t afford to eat in their own employers restaurant.

I ordered the fried green tomatoes with blue crab salad, and the cornmeal chile relleno.

My wife ordred the Goat cheese queso, fundido, and the Pressed roasted pork tenderloin sandwich.

To sum it up the flavors were understated, and not astounding, to put it into one word, ‘normal’.

Bobby shame on you, it sounds like the mice are running the show while the Cats away. And they are no Ratatouille staff.

I suggest NOLA in New Orleans Lousisiana an Emeril LaGasse restaurant for delivery of a fantastic tastebud arousing meal that will leave you Astounded.

My unbiased opinion

Amazing… Chef Flay’s creations are packed with flavor/spice… AMAZING 16 spice rubbed chicken, corn tamale, tomato cheddar soup…

the food here was good… let’s see, everything i ate here was good, especially the pecan crusted tamale that came on the side of my entree. can get expensive after appetizers, wine and dessert.

friendly staff, fun decor, was packed on the saturday night i was there, but that’s expected on a saturday night at any decent restaurant.

I had brunch there last Saturday. it is a nice southwestern restaurant. food is good. I ordered the sirloin steak tortilla and egg. The steak is tender and taste good. The dishes are creative. Dessert was good too, couldn’t believe that I was eating brunch. The atmostphere is nice and good for gathering.

In my top three favorites of all time. Pricey but worth it. Really interesting flavors; everything i’ve eaten there has been unique and so tasty.

I’m not surprised Mesa Grill doesn’t always receive high marks on here, despite Bobby Flay’s fame… I think people just walk in with too high of expectations and neither the food nor the service here really come close. Not to mention the decor is a bit tacky and by no means elegant.

Don’t bother coming here during RW, or order off the RW menu because I’ve realized that they always offer the same few items year after year (chopped salad, soup, quesadilla, chicken, etc.) However, some other items I have tried have been pretty interesting and flavorful. The shrimp tamale and tuna nachos for appetizer, chile relleno, burger, and pan roasted shrimp are all solid options. The shrimp tamale is probably my favorite thing here, very complex and garlicky that’s unlike any other tamale I’ve had before, although I am partial to tamales. But then again I don’t think I’ve paid almost $20 for a small tamale dish anywhere else in my life either.

While Mesa Grill can put a dent in the wallet, and may not blow you away in terms of the overall experience, it’s a satisfactory southwestern restaurant in a city lacking of good or interesting mexian/southwestern food. The bread basket is also excellent, among my favorite anywhere (love the jalapeno corn muffins!)

Everything went well and some interesting flavor combinations but also very pricy as would be expected with a name like that attached to it.

Food was well executed and well flavored. However, there was nothing striking or amazing. Just very good. I have to say despite the fact that the food was very good, nothing was very remarkable.

My hubsand is a HUGE fan of Bobby Flay. When we had a business trip to NYC we had to check out Mesa Grill. It was amazing and so beautiful. we loved it so much that when we went to Vegas, we had to check out the one there.