Craft Grill

Craft Grill is one of the neighborhood's more upscale eateries.  We came in with a large party the other night.  Overall I would say we had a good experience, but there were some rough spots.

We parked in back as recommended (and because we had to) and walked through the office building. Not a good start.  The hallway smelled like it had a sewage problem and there was a high-pitched alarm going off.  Probably a temporary issue.  Things got better once inside--we had called ahead, so even though it was crowded we were seated in about 5 minutes.

We started off with the deviled eggs, and they were excellent--a nice smoky filling topped off with bacon, which makes everything better and was absolutely true in this case.

The entrees were more of a mixed bag.  I had the South of the Border Salmon, which comes with cotija cheese, roasted pumpkin seeds, grilled corn, avocado, and salsa verde.  There was a lot of grilled corn and I could not find any pumpkin seeds.  The salmon was good, cooked just short of being overdone.

Also in our party: A catfish platter with jalapeno hush puppies and gouda grits.  Both of the sides were first rate--perfect texture on the hush puppies and a nice heat.  The catfish itself had a very good batter.  My dining companion knew his catfish, and said this was probably not channel catfish (the most common kind, and in his view the best).  Probably blue catfish.

Another entree: Chicken and biscuits.  A huge portion--three biscuits with great big chicken breasts, one would make a full meal.  The chicken was nice and tender and breaded well.  The biscuits had good flavor but were rather dense and a bit overdone.

The chicken and waffles was a bit disappointing.  The rosemary-infused syrup had a great aroma, but the waffle was again somewhat dense.  The chicken was quite dry, pretty much inedible.  At least the Texas Mule the diner had with the meal was a good one.

The Dixie Chick sandwich was another huge portion, but it was very well made and tender, and our diner nearly managed to finish it.  The kids had competently executed burgers and pasta.

We went for dessert.  The signature item is a waffle sundae.  Nicely presented, but the waffle was the same density as the other one, and other than that it was ok--ice cream, whipped cream, and some nice candied pecans.  The apple pie was first rate, can recommend it--it's an individual pastry pocket fried and glazed, and served with ice cream.  Excellent pastry and a very good filling.  We also had the banana pudding, which was a hit--light and a little fluffy, with scrumptious banana flavor.

Service was competent and timely, in keeping with the atmosphere.  The restrooms were in good shape for it being a busy Saturday evening.  Overall I would say it was a decent experience, but kind of pricey for what we got.

My Yelp Review