Lemaire
101 West Franklin St. (Inside the Jefferson Hotel)
Richmond, VA 23220
804-649-4757
www.lemairerestaurant.com
American | $$$
Located in the stately Jefferson Hotel, the dinning room with all it’s dark wood reminded me of the Edwardian Room at the Plaza Hotel in New York. A nice change from the modern era flashy noise enhancing decors of many restaurants.
Whipped butter and home-made bread are a nice start.
We started with this Jumbo Lump Blue Crab Cake that was the best I have had. For a whole host of reasons it takes a good bit to get me to order seafood when I can’t see the sea from the restaurant. I am glad I ordered the crab cake, it was extraordinary. When I mentioned how good it was to the waiter he told me the chef adds a pureed scallop to each pound of crab. I asked the waiter 2 more times about this thinking I did not hear him correctly.
When you order steak you get a serious knife. It really wasn’t necessary, the steak was so tender you could cut it with a butterfly.
I enjoy a Sous Vide steak.The asparagus was perfect, just a little bit of crisp to it.
My wife had the Pan Seared Rockfish. She really enjoyed it and said she would order it again.
For my dessert I chose the Fluffernutter Candy Bar with a Brownie, Peanut Butter Marshmallow, and Salted Caramel Brittle. Chocolate and peanut butter, you can’t go wrong.
My wife had the Peaches & Cream dessert. It is a light White Chocolate Cheesecake with Peaches and Hibiscus. She is not a big cheesecake fan but said this was one of her favorites.
The wait staff was excellent on par with what you would expect in a better restaurant. The noise level with low making it a pleasant romantic dinner.
Consider arriving early for your reservation to take the opportunity to wander the beautifully restored 120 year old hotel.
