Friday, January 11, 2008

The Mint is Open


For months now, those of us at YSU downtown have watched the progress across Fayetteville St. The alley beside One Exchange Plaza was turned into a lovely outdoor seating/patio area. And finally, The Mint opened.

We knew it was going to "upscale southern cuisine." And from a few peeks in the window, the interior looked to be quite plush. So we couldn't wait to go. Last night at 5:30 the office shut down and the whole gang walked across the street for a drink.

As mentioned in several articles, the building used to be a bank. And at the main entrance is the vault door. But once inside, and maybe I was just too overwhelmed to notice, the interior didn't feel anything like a bank. My favorite were the huge, high-back, tufted booths. It seemed the perfect place to hang out with friends and enjoy a fabulous dinner.

We were just there for a drink, so we headed up the spiral staircase to the bar. I would hate to have too many drinks and have to go down those stairs. The pattern on the carpet combined with the spiral stairs could make for a nasty accident.

Anyway, the bar is spectacular, with several high tables and a lounge area. The whole place is very impressive and once you see the menu you'll know that you're in a unique place. The wine seemed a little pricey. I'm a chardonnay drinker and used to paying $7-9/glass, but the "good" chardonnay was priced at $14/glass. So I opted for the $5 Amstel Light. They don't really have appetizers that you can share at the bar. We did try the crab cakes, and while they were tasty, they were the size of a 50 cent piece and you only got 2 to an order. So, what I'm trying to say is that this place is fancy.

I love a good restaurant, and upscale is fine, but I guess I'm just disappointed that it's not going to be the kind of place I can stop by regularly after work. It's just too expensive. I think it will be a destination restaurant, for special occasions and entertaining business clients. Riviera, The Globe, and several other places have many entrees for less than $20 and they have really good food. Having said that, I hope it does well. Especially after learning how much we all paid for it.

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