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McCormick & Schmick’s

By: The Lady of The Night Out

Why should you eat at McCormick & Schmick’s?

In a democracy, the wisdom of the masses rules. McCormick & Schmick’s netted the RJ’s “Best Seafood Award” this year. The kitchen staff must be on a first name basis with their Fed Ex driver because the restaurant flies in 40 different types of seafood daily. I find it amazing that a restaurant in the desert can serve more fresh fish than eateries I remember in my former hometowns: Chicago and New York City. And both of those metropolises have shorelines!

Who should eat at McCormick & Schmick’s?

Seafood lovers. The menu changes every day to ensure the freshest fish in season.
Oyster lovers. McCormick & Schmick’s flies in oysters daily from all the best beds. I have a weakness for the super sized Hama Hama’s from the Hood Canal in Washington. Explorers, order the half dozen sampler. And here’s a word to the wise: McCormick & Schmick’s serves real horseradish, so use discretion when mixing your personalized dipping sauce.
Folks on a budget. If you don’t mind eating super early or real late and dining in the bar area, McCormick & Schmick’s offers some of the best seafood values in town. That includes a whole lobster, beautifully presented and perfectly steamed, for just $12.99. One order of fried calamari was all I needed to eat at 10 p.m. A great dinner for $1.99! Happy hour stretches from 3:30 to 6:30 and 9:30 to 11. You do have to buy a drink.
Landlubbers. While seafood is the main attraction, this restaurant serves a mean meatloaf. You can even order a half pound cheeseburger with fries, baby back ribs or prime steaks. Carnivores have nothing to carp about.
Salad lovers. This restaurant serves some unusual salads that are the perfect summer fare. McCormick & Schmick’s serves one of the best Maytag blue cheese salads in town. Another winner is mixed greens topped with briny Belgian anchovies.
Folks homesick for the East Coast. The décor features dark wood paneling, speak-easy style lights, and high ceilings with Tiffany-esque murals. The furnishings remind me of the set of “Road to Perdition,” the recent Tom Hanks-Paul Newman movie.
Canadians homesick for home. Eating at McCormick and Schmick’s is a marine geography lesson; the menu denotes the home base of each catch. Many of the best offerings come from Canada.
Someone with a secret. Some of the booths have curtains you can pull for perfect privacy.
Lounge lizards. McCormick and Schmick’s has an active bar scene, especially during the bargain dining hours.
St. Patrick’s Day celebrants. A calendar above the bar lists how many days to the new green beer-soaked celebration.
Diners who believe casinos and cuisine don’t mix. Nary a video poker machine in the place.

Who shouldn’t eat McCormick & Schmick’s?

Diners with decorum. The bar gets pretty rowdy on St. Patrick’s Day.
Gourmets who have a chain reaction. McCormick & Schmick’s is an upscale chain restaurant like the Palm, Roy’s, or Fleming’s. GM John Hinchliffe treats the restaurant like it’s his own place. But it’s still the same thing you’d get in D.C. or Denver.
Folks on a budget. If you eat in the dining room during prime time, the food is worth every penny but still relatively expensive. Lobsters cost $35 and a good fish entrée at least $20. It’s easy to get shell shocked.

Ok, so what’s the food like? My Big O award goes to the steamed Manila clams. A clutch of clams circles the broad bowl. The broth is uber spicy; the hot pepper flakes brought tears to my eyes. A pool of drawn butter sat in what looked like the mouth of a volcano. The butter added a velvety richness to the already meaty clams.

The Prince Edward Island mussels, also an appetizer, were a mountain of mollusks rising from a steaming sea. These bivalves were big and buff. The raven-colored shells sat on top of sautéed onions, carrots, and thin strips of fennel which were arranged like a college bonfire. Chunks of tomato added a splash of red to the mix.

Both dishes make a dramatic appearance. The waiter places the shell bowl on top of the food bowl. Allan, our waiter, raised the bowl with as much aplomb as if it were sterling silver. Don’t wear nice clothes ---plucking clams and mussels from their comfy homes is a deliciously messy undertaking.

Ahi tuna lovers: here’s a new twist. This appetizer features ahi seared in a flash so the center of the fish is still sushi cold. The velvety, satiny tuna purrs. Cold, crisp cucumbers bathed in tart vinegar create a flavorful foil for the tuna. A snowfall of black sesame seeds dusted the entire plate for the Expressionist art look. Chopsticks are an option.

More conservative diners can opt for the Fiji Island mahi mahi. This super-sized steak is lightly covered with chunky cashews and then grilled. The pearly flesh flakes at the touch of a fork; the taste is pure elegance. Playmates include string beans dotted with garlic, carrot slivers and snowy crunchy white rice. A sweet, fruity mango sauce skirts the rim of the dish so you can add where appropriate.

Anchovies are like Scotch; you have to develop a taste for them. If you crave that salty blast, try the mixed greens with Belgian anchovies, which are beautifully arranged like a fan on the plate. This salad gives surf and turf another meaning: the leafy greens have an earthy taste while the salty anchovies aptly represent the sea.

If you can’t decide on a particular fish, have a stew that includes the perennial favorites. The San Francisco-style seafood stew starts with a broth infused with fennel. The bowl is packed with calamari, clams, mussels, and shrimp. The bib looks good on everyone!

Dessert in the Desert: I’m not a dessert person, but you have to save room for the upside down apple pie. The moniker means the crust is on top. What a tasty crust this is! No boring pastry. This crust mixes in caramelized walnuts for crunch. Apples and nuts are a marriage made in heaven. Then add a scope of extremely cool vanilla bean ice cream and a drizzle of gooey caramel.

Items to avoid: Skip the Rhode Island blue point oyster stew. The oysters were lovely but the creamy stew is much too bland. The Baja California yellowtail arrived too dry; all the flavor must have stayed in the kitchen. And the British Columbia salmon, cooked and served on a cedar plank, was good but not great. The Cannery buffet serves the same dish and it’s tastier there. In general, we found the appetizers were uniformly scrumptious while the entrees batted 500.

Favorite waiter: Allan.

History: Bill McCormick and Doug Schmick formed the restaurant 30 years ago. Currently there are 39 restaurants open with three new ones in construction. Each restaurant’s chef can add his or her own idiosyncrasies to the set menu.

Summing Up: The variety of fresh seafood sent me reeling! McCormick & Schmick’s sets the standard in LVNV for oysters, mussels, and clams; this eatery consistently serves the best bivalves. The Happy Hour offerings are unbeatable for the price. Why pay retail? We found the appetizers were awesome but the entrees were hit and miss.

Where is it? Off Flamingo Road between Paradise and the Strip. The address is 335 Hughes Center Drive. The phone is 702.836.9000.

Website: http://www.mccormickandschmicks.com

By: The Culinary Curmudgeon Lady of the Night Out

This year McCormick & Schmick’s snatched the RJ’s Best Seafood Restaurant award from the Red Lobster. Finally, good taste has prevailed. It’s not that I don’t trust the vox populi, but pah-leeze. In my opinion, the two restaurants aren’t in the same league. When it comes to quality, they are oceans apart.

The Curmudge has figured out the answer to the conundrum: I’m sure LVNV diners voted for Red Lobster because it sounds like a seafood emporium. McCormick & Schmick’s. What kind of restaurant is that? The founders’ names offer no clue as to the cuisine. Here’s an educated guess: a neighborhood Irish bar. The moniker is not as confusing as Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse … but almost. Here’s some advice from any old salt: if you want to win again next year, consider a name change. That works. Really. Do you remember who Accenture used to be?

The tappas trend is riding a wave of popularity in LVNV, creating a sea change in the way people eat. I’m not sure if McCormick & Schmick’s purposely planned to dive in. The appetizers – which are just like tappas -- are fantastic; we sampled three-quarters of the offerings and each one was better than the next. But the entrees were a gamble and I don’t like the house odds. On repeat visits I ordered two appetizers and a salad and netted a four star repast.

I want to know how often the waiters close those curtains on the booths in the back. Once the curtain is drawn, anything can happen. It’s like the privacy of your own home. I thought the new Las Vegas mantra was, “What happens here, stays here.” I love the idea of something fishy happening at a fish restaurant. Now that’s congruent.

Oh, I’m supposed to curmudge about the food. I love squeezing fresh lemon juice on oysters. But throwing lemon slices on top of the steamed mussels and clams adds an acrid taste to those savory shellfish. Pile those lemons on the sides, boys and girls. It’s always been a childhood rule that’s served me well as an adult: don’t let certain food groups touch. In case you were wondering, here’s the answer to the riddle: Accenture used to be Anderson Consulting. Or was it PWC?

Aired 01 August 2003

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