Biloxi: Beau Rivage - Port House Restaurant

[Brandon]

Has anyone been to this restaurant in the Beau Rivage? Can you tell me what you thought of it?

Looks neat: http://www.beaurivage.com/pages/din_port.asp

[Brandon]

just read this about it, ouch:

The walls of The Port House dining room are made entirely of glass and house some of the most stunning salt-water aquariums to be seen. The effect of being completely surrounded by water and tropical fish is calming and relaxing, which is exactly the type of atmosphere one needs when about to spend $150 on a single entrée.

[Brandon]

and more:

Steakhouse nostalgia
Beau Rivage transforms Coral into Port House
By JOY JONES
THE SUN HERALD

A chic mid-century meal might have started with a shrimp cocktail, followed by a Caesar salad served table-side, and a Porterhouse steak with baked potato. It likely would've started with a couple of martinis and been topped off with the epitome of Eisenhower era vogue - baked Alaska flambé.

Just as the martini experienced a revival in the '90s, these classic steakhouse favorites are enjoying renewed popularity. Case in point: Beau Rivage's new Port House restaurant, which features contemporary cuisine with a nod to mid-century nostalgia.

The restaurant, formerly Coral, recently underwent a transformation with a new design and menu. Port House still has the serene feel of Coral, carried over by the presence of the restaurant's signature walls of aquariums filled with colorful tropical fish, sharks, and coral. Updates, created by Chicago restaurant architect Jordan Mozer, include glass mosaic floor murals, ornamental metals and frosted light fixtures. Combining functionality and beauty center stage is a floor-to-ceiling wine tower.

The menu, created by George Goldhoff, vice president of food and beverage, and Joseph Friel, executive chef, is extensive. It features steakhouse classics alongside dishes with a decidedly nouvelle cuisine flair.

"The menu suits the local people and what they expect," says Friel.

.

. "It's basically a steak and seafood restaurant with seasonal variations and contemporary cooking."

Since the restaurant opened in March, the most popular starters are the lobster bisque ($ and the foie gras terrine ($1 , which is made in-house from either Canadian or American foie gras. West Coast basil-fed escargots is another new item that is given a down-home twist.

"We made it more Southern in its presentation. We don't do it the French way and stuff them back in their shells. They are sauteed in a fine mirepoix and finished with truffle butter," he says, noting that the combination brings out the "truffley" flavor of the snails.

In addition to the bisque and a corn and crab chowder, the menu features Plaza oyster stew in a nod to Friel's previous position at the prestigious Plaza Hotel in New York City.

"It fits in well with the cuisine down here. People love seafood and cream and that's what it is," he says.

Seafood fans will find making choices difficult at Port House. Fresh fish is delivered to Port House daily. In addition to a daily fresh Hawaiian fish, choices include seared ahi tuna ($2 , steamed grouper with ginger and garlic ($26); and the biggest seller, whole Dover stole with hazelnut butter (marketprice).

Though there are traditional Coast dishes, such as Biloxi-style blue crab fingers, it's the spiny crustacean from colder waters that gets top billing. Lobster dishes range from "classic, old-style cooking" of lobster Thermidor to trendier items such as lobster tempura appetizer with Asian dipping sauces ($22).

The chef says including the Thermidor, a former haute cuisine mainstay, was a good choice. "People say, 'Gee, I haven't seen that on a menu in long time.' It's been very well received."

All of the steak served at Port House is prime and dry-aged, and Friel is proud of that, noting that less than 1 percent of beef served in the country is dry-aged.

Steaks, ranging in price from $30 to $100, include 8- and 12-ounce filets, a 14-ounce New York strip, a 16-ounce ribeye, and a 24-ounce Porterhouse.

The priciest item on the menu is the 14-ounce Kobe New York strip at $100. Kobe beef, originally bred from Wagyu cattle in Japan but now bred in the United States, is so expensive because of its intense marbling.

Of the Kobe dishes, Friel says, "You can definitely taste the difference."

Other items under the steaks and chops section include a roast free-range chicken, double-cut lamb chops, veal rib chops and duck steak and leg confit. In traditional steakhouse fashion, sides such as truffle-mashed potatoes, broccolini, or baby carrots, are extra.

Port House also offers dishes for fans of raw food - and they aren't wrapped in seaweed. There's the classic steak tartare "21" ($15) and then there's the more contemporary tuna tartar ($12) which is prepared table-side by the waiter with wasabe, quail eggs and sesame oil.

"It's quite a show," he says.

In the dessert department, creme brulee is the No. 1 seller. Other items, ranging from $8 to $10, include baked Alaska, molten chocolate cake, house-made gelato and frozen whisky souffle.

Friel says guests enjoy the food as well as the atmosphere of the 170-seat restaurant, which features a lot of two-tops for romantic dining.

"It's much more alive. It has a real different feel," he says. "And everybody still enjoys the fish."


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Port House

Where: Beau Rivage.

Fare: Steaks and seafood.

Hours: 5:30-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 5:30-10:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday.

Details: 386-7737.

[Brandon]

more:

The Coral is actually called Port House now. There has always been a strong emphasis in our company on dining options. The Beau Rivage is right in line with the great traditions of Bellagio, MGM Grand and Mirage. We tend to be more than just a gaming company. In fact, our revenues between gaming and non-gaming are probably close to 50-50. And giving a lot of options, I think, is an important piece of our marketing strategy and what makes us very unique. Obviously, no one else can do that. Port House, which you mentioned, is a steak and seafood restaurant that is set inside a room that has four 10,000-gallon aquariums as the walls. So you literally dine inside an aquarium. We just spent almost $2 million remodeling Coral over the last several months and we re-opened it a couple weeks ago. It has really changed the entire look and feel of the restaurant. It is very much cutting edge. We’re actually re-doing another restaurant, which is a Japanese restaurant called Take Maku. We’re completely re-doing it, renaming it, retheming it, and changing the direction of the menu. It’ll be opening the first part of June.

Speaking about the new Port House,

I’m curious about the staff, amount of upkeep, and expense involved with

those aquarium walls.

We have four full-time employees in our aquatics department. I’ve never worked anyplace that had an aquatics department! A lot of times I’ll bring people on tours of our property during the day and we’ll walk in there and you’ll see the workers in diving suits in the tanks. Even when you look at the tanks, you can’t really appreciate the depth and the total volume of the tanks until you have something to compare it to. A man or a woman swimming around in a wet suit with oxygen tanks on their backs gives you a real perspective of how large these tanks are. And they’re filled with hundreds of fish, including numerous species of sharks and all sorts of beautiful tropical fish. It’s a very stunning presentation.

[ShagMan]

I've been wanting to go for a while, I knew of it when it was the Coral or whatever, previously... I've heard the aquariums are breath-taking, and the prices are pretty breath-taking, too

[Xster]

I ate there approximately two years ago when it was still "Coral." Great food and very pricey. Haven not seen it since then. The tanks are Fish Only with fake colored corals and rock formations. But pretty cool looking at the great number of fishes swimming around.

I like the tank at the Caesar's Palace mall in Las Vegas also.

[reeferpuffer]

i went when it was called the "Coral" and yes, its pricey! but man oh man, was it awsome to see...HUGE aquariums!

[tbmoore]

maybe we should hold one of our meetings there??

[Melissakins]

I'll just order a dessert and coffee....