McCormick & Schmick’s Now Open
The long-awaited Raleigh location for McCormick & Schmick’s opens today. The high-end chain was rumored to be going into about 12 different new projects in Raleigh at one time or another, but in the end they settled on Crabtree’s dreadful parking deck expansion.
The restaurant is basically seafood’s answer to Sullivan’s, and if Wednesday night’s grand opening party is any indication, M&S will be a perfect fit for a market needing high-end seafood that even land-lubbers would like. The decor is extremely buttoned down, contemporary with a hint of Asian influence. Three stained glass light fixtures over the bar honoring the area’s major college’s remind us that we aren’t in Anywhere, USA. While we were able to sample only a small portion of the menu at the special event, the samples were all we needed to know that their deep-frying techniques and sauce-making are spot-on.
They’ve done a couple of lunches this week that have already gotten rave reviews. My trusty sources started out with the delicious Shrimp Flat-bread Pizza appetizer (w/ tomatoes and mozzarella). It was just under 12″ in diameter and had a very thin crust. Next, they moved on to the Bacon and Blue Cheese Chopped Salad and the Seasonal Mixed Greens Salad. Both were delightful. In fact, they commented that a fantastic lunch for two would be for each to get a salad and share a pizza.
Given that these are hungry folk, they moved on to the entrees, and weren’t disappointed. They ordered an entree salad, Classic Bay Shrimp Louis, which featured much lettuce, small (but numerous) shrimp, and an excess of 1000 Island Dressing. Dressed properly, they said, this salad would have been a big hit. The other entree was the Stuffed Shrimp, which was fantastic. There were only two shrimp, but they were large and filled with a delicious crab stuffing.
The highlight of the meal came at the end, with the Tiramisu Cheesecake. While this pair does like their Tiramisu, they said this was the finest dessert they have ever eaten, which carries a lot of weight (no pun intended) with this observer.
We have some good mid-level seafood restaurants in Raleigh, but there haven’t been any that are good for those wanting a top notch business meeting, special occasion, or fine dining experience. McCormick & Schmick’s has done well in some of America’s classic seafood cities, and Raleigh will fall right in line.
Below you’ll find the menus for McCormick & Schmick’s opening day. The first image is the Dinner Menu, with the wine list following. The third image shows the Lunch menu, with the wine list following. Due to the large format of the originals, it was necessary to section the menus before scanning, and reassemble the images electronically. Please pardon any format inconsistencies or strange lines running through portions of the images.
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July 10th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
In a location that I will never again visit (Crabtree’s traffic flow was designed by a mouth breather), in the days of $4 per gallon gas and collapse of the housing market, I’m thinking the time and the place are all wrong for something like this.
Are we ready for the Sullivan’s of Seafood? Maybe not. But the Olive Garden or even the Applebee’s of Seafood would be better appreciated these days.
July 10th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
For high-end seafood, Raleigh’s already got an outstanding choice: Fins. And it’s a heck of a lot easier to get in and out of than Crabtree Mall. And even better…it’s not a chain!
This? Eh…it’s ok. For mall food.
July 10th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
I’ll have to check this out. Crabtree traffic has never bothered me as much as others. Honestly… it’s traffic – if it’s that big of a deal, then stay home. I’ve eaten at Fins 3 times and have been less than impressed, so hopefully this is a nice alternative.
July 10th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
Good points. This post is not meant to slight Fins, which is an excellent high-end dinner option. In my mind, though, I don’t think of Fins as a “seafood restaurant”. I think of it as a fine restaurant with a great chef…that serves a lot of seafood. M&S is going right at Bonefish and 42nd St.
As far as the economy goes, I’ll believe the 45+ minute nightly waits at the Cheesecake Factory, PF Changs, and the Angus Barn any day before I’ll believe what the news is feeding us.
July 10th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
Is the Happy Hour menu you posted temporary or a regular special? These seem to be great deals!
July 10th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
I’m not sure about how long they are offered. You are right, though. They are great deals.
July 10th, 2008 at 4:42 pm
“In my mind, though, I don’t think of Fins as a “seafood restaurant”. I think of it as a fine restaurant with a great chef…that serves a lot of seafood.”
Well stated. I’m not sure the two restaurants can be directly compared.
“As far as the economy goes, I’ll believe the 45+ minute nightly waits at the Cheesecake Factory, PF Changs, and the Angus Barn any day before I’ll believe what the news is feeding us.”
People will always pay for a good meal, or even one they expect to be good. I see this place being as packed as any of the other Crabtree chains on a Friday night.
July 11th, 2008 at 9:20 am
I’m always up for seafood and look forward to checking it out. I do think they should talk to an image consultant about that logo. It’s a couple of steps removed from Long John Silver. At least Crabtree is close to town. It is far, far better than navigating Capital Blvd. And as I have stated on another blog, I once met a friend for lunch at Brier Creek and it seriously took me over 45 minutes to get there and parked from DTR. I could have been in Burlington as quickly. Crabtree traffic is looking better all the time.
July 11th, 2008 at 9:40 am
Uh Oh! I think this pretty much puts the nail in the coffin of Raleigh’s other seafood restaurant “The Hookup”. What were The Hookup’s owners thinking when they came up with that concept. Let’s open a seafood restaurant at the sight of a former seafood restaurant that didn’t work. If I want Calabash style seafood I’ll go to the beach!
McCormick and Schmick’s is a welcome addition to the Triangle and is actually geared to attract the business travelers who stay at the nearby Crabtree Hotels. I’ll venture in there once or twice for a meal, but the business travelers and regional shoppers from Down East who come to Crabtree are who will keep it in business.
July 11th, 2008 at 5:09 pm
Plus there’s a huge, scary movie-size crab munching on the logo! It HAS to be good.
July 14th, 2008 at 8:13 am
We tried M&S last night and I must say we were not impressed with the food. Very good service, excellent atmosphere, great selection of food, but the prices are not justifiable, IMHO. I would go back to try something else, but I am afraid I won’t make regular visits there.
Very good place for visitors, who look for a restaurant they are familiar with.