Venegas Has Closed. New Restaurant Coming

The Vengas Prime Filet in Fulton has closed, but there is a big sign on the window saying that a new restaurant is coming soon.

Anyone know what new restaurant?  Anyone know the plan?

There has been talk that Robert Gadsby would take over the space in Maple Lawn.  After eating just a bit at his new Laurel barbecue place, I'd be happy to try out a restaurant that he runs.  I'd heard that folks have had a hard time with the space and the Maple Lawn rent.  I'm hoping for whoever makes the next run.

Tournedos Of Filet At Venegas Prime Filet

We eat out infrequently so I tend to prefer dishes that I know that I can't make at home.

That's how I ended up ordering from the "chick" part of the menu at Venegas Prime Filet in Fulton.  Mrs. HowChow went true "steak house" with a filet and a side of macaroni and cheese.  But that empty plate style -- a steak and nothing else -- seems odd to me.  I was captivated by dishes where the skills are more obvious.

"Tournedos of Filet Mignon."  I had to ask how to pronounce the dish, and it was obvious from the first bite that I wouldn't know how to whip it up.  Slices of steak, cooked perfectly, layered on top of sauteed spinach and potato pierogies, then topped with garlic butter shrimp.

Sun Reviews Venegas Prime Filet

Venegas Prime Filet got a review in the Sun today, but they might not have wanted this kind of attention.

The reviewer liked the steaks, but didn't love much else.  Provided some serious criticism about sauces, side dishes, service, and so much else.  I still haven't eaten at the new Fulton restaurant, and I still want to give it a try.  Other folks were talking it up as recently as last night.  (Comment, DK?  Pick a Blogger nickname!)

Link: Venegas Prime on Brew Notes

I still haven't eaten at the Venegas Prime Filet in Fulton, but Ben liked his steak and talked it up on his Brew Notes blog.  Good food, although pricey enough to be just a special occasion place.

First Reviews of Venegas Prime Filet in Maple Lawn

No one should issue a final judgment on a restaurant from its first few days, but it's great fun to hear about the new places like Venegas Prime Filet in Fulton, which opened last Friday.

The beaujolais nouveau of restaurant reviews arrived this weekend, and Cathy & HowICook both spent real time to write their opinions -- and even snap cell phone photos.

First, HowICook reports on Venegas meal from beer to dessert. He highlighted that golden chocolate dome, which makes me file a complaint against Venegas about its lighting because the dessert photo looks more like a fuzzy UFO. Clearly, they're not lighting this place to maximize cellphone photos. It's a common failure. I can't snap a single roll

in Sushi King. How can they expect food bloggers to work in these low-light conditions? But enough about me. On to HowICook's comment about Venegas:

I took the family to Venegas Prime Filet tonight, Sunday (11/22/09). Sadly, the tree that was the trademark of Oz is gone and replaced by a modern oversized light. Being a beer guy, they have 4 drafts available with 2 from clipper city which was nice considering Ranazul (owner’s other restaurant just across the street) has none. Beware the price of a draft beer is a bit steep. They served 4 different complimentary breads with honey butter which were all good.

The menu has a nice variety of fish, meat and prime beef. The prime beef appears to be reasonably priced. We ordered the cheese plate (2 out of 3 were special) and 5 entrees (monkfish, rockfish, prime flat iron steak (wow!) with truffle butter (too subtle), citrus pasta & French short rib). All the dishes were nice presentations with nice garnishes. Additionally we ordered the reasonably priced accessories, cauliflower gratin (a really nice puree), mashed potatoes (still not serving the roasted garlic variety) and the brussel sprouts (wow

The standouts were the monkfish, flat iron steak and the short rib (actually a bit too fatty but wonderful beefy taste with nice fried shallots, and ‘to die for’ gnocchi). For dessert, we all got a taste of the unbelievable decadent golden chocolate dome. It too was ‘to die for’. The service was very good and almost too attentive. Finally, I asked the waiter about the chefs and the sous chef showed up at our table. She asked about our meal details (commented on the beef short rib dish being hers from beginning to end) and showed real interest in our comments.

This is a place where you need to savor the details. It’s not the overall great experience they’re striving for yet but if you look close, the details add up to a good experience. Trying to keep costs reasonable, we didn’t try any of the appetizers, soups or salads. Next time, I want to sit in the bar area and order these especially the interesting appetizers. They remind me of Ranazul.

Second, Cathy reports some hiccups on Saturday night at Venegas. Liked the bread. Liked the atmosphere. But nothing really grabbed her.

We tried Venegas tonight (Sat 21st.) Since I was familiar with the layout of Oz, I requested a table that was not near the kitchen on our Open Table reservation Thus, we were seated a table away from the kitchen. Perhaps Open Table does not forward our comments? It wasn't too bad, though.

They were out of an entree and side dish we wanted (chicken, and garlic mash (but they had regular mashed potatoes?) This was an early evening reservation, so not sure why they were out of these common items. Bread was good, and the honey on top of the butter was a nice touch. Atmosphere was decent, more modern casual than romantic. Staff was very pleasant, but I would have expected the owner to visit the tables on it's opening weekend. No personal touch.

Overall, it was an average experience, and there are not enough items on the menu that I personally liked, and nothing really special to make me want to go back. Still looking for a restaurant in Maple Lawn that I want to frequent!

Please do add your opinion below if you have eaten at Venegas. I love that HowChow is a place where people can exchange their views. I'll caution anyone that a restaurant changes over its first weeks and months. But it's still good to know what people are saying . . .

Venegas Prime Filet - Opening November 20

Venegas Prime Filet will open in Fulton on November 20 -- according to the restaurant's Web site.

Thanks to the anonymous tipster, who also said you can make reservations on Open Table. Venegas Prime Filet replaces oZ Chophouse in the Maple Lawn development. When oZ Chophouse closed in August, there were talks about a new steakhouse from the owners of Jordan's in Ellicott City and Ranazul in Fulton across the street from oZ. Now, Jordan's is closed, and Ranazul's co-owner Carlos Venegas is opening the new steakhouse on his own.

Anyone know if there is a soft open coming in the days before the 20th?

(Update: The first reviews are coming in about Venegas. Please put your opinions on the page with the early Venegas reviews. I'm closing comments on this post so that all the reviews appear together..)

While I'm mentioning the closed Jordan's, I noticed that Bistro Blanc has publicized that it hired four of the top servers from Jordan's. They actually mentioned them by name: Dale Davis, Michael Stagg, Gabrielle Cordone and Robert DiGiovanni. I figure those must be good waiters if they're mentioned by name, and I'm glad that they moved to a good restaurant. Improving service always helps -- especially in light of my last evening at Bistro Blanc where things didn't go smoothly.

Venegas Prime Filet - Coming This Month?

Venegas Prime Filet sits like a birthday gift -- wrapped up and waiting to be opened.

The steakhouse announced by the owner of Ranazul to replace oZ Chophouse in Maple Lawn still says on the door that it will open in November. On Sunday, the windows were still covered in paper, but the name -- first announced in September -- is posted on temporary signs above the doors.

Opening a restaurant is hard work, so I don't always expect them to open on time. But I'm looking forward to seeing Venegas Prime Filet, and I know that the new Azul 17 in Columbia had a soft open weeks ahead of the public announcement. Has anyone heard talk about when the grills will fire up in Fulton?

If you're looking for something new in Maple Lawn, the Sidamo Coffee & Tea opened last week across from Venegas and Ranazul. If you need a steak before Venegas opens, click my post about local meat markets so you can pick out your own.

Meet "Venegas Prime Filet" - The New Maple Lawn Steakhouse

The new steakhouse planned for November in Maple Lawn will be called Venegas Prime Filet.

When oZ Chophouse closed in August, there were talks about a new steakhouse from the owners of Jordan's in Ellicott City and Ranazul in Fulton across the street from oZ. Now, Jordan's is closed, and Ranazul's co-owner Carlos Venegas is opening the new steakhouse on his own.

The solo venture will be dubbed Venegas Prime Filet, according to the Maple Lawn newletter. The talk is still about opening in November.