1 North Belmont
Earlier this month I celebrated my birthday at One North Belmont, a French restaurant in Richmond, Virginia.
My earlier visit here almost 2 years ago was interesting: I had promise for this place. Some things, like their foie gras appetizer (with cherry gastrique) was sublime. Their lobster entrée, however, was undercooked. The soup was delicious, and presentation was very refined.
This time around, the restaurant was empty (on a Monday night). We were the only customers. Service was good, but not as formal as the first time around. The foie gras appetizer was ordered again, but this time, the sublime quality was all gone. The flavors weren’t as magical, and the toast it was served on was dry and crumbled. It was day (or 2-day) old and disappointing.
The salad of beets was curiously presented, and looked quite interesting.
Only one type of beet was presented; I think the dish could have been enhanced with more dressing, some bolder flavors, and a variety of beets.
Beets came along for the ride in my steak entrée. I mean, if I had beet salad, why continue the tradition in the next dish? Please… I had beets. Give me something else. The sauce, topping, and flavors with the beef tournado was fine; the steak ultimately was a tad disappointing.
We skipped desserts. The coffee was good.
After eating here the first time, I had just experienced Daniel in New York. I had tasted a little bit of Daniel here in Richmond. But now, I am not so sure. For me, 1 North Belmont has dropped a few notches. There is creativity and some fine ingredients afoot, but for the prices, I can’t still recommend it.
August 20th, 2007 at 2:03 pm
One North Belmont hasn’t been the same since Scott left a couple of years ago IMO. He made the place special. Now, it’s overpriced and inconsistent.
August 22nd, 2007 at 3:16 pm
we are not huge fans of 1 north anymore either. the only thing worth going for now (we think) is the coffee service and sometimes the souffle (i think it is the only place in richmond that serves one)
September 5th, 2007 at 5:22 pm
I cannot belive the bad reviews for 1 north belmont i belive some of you are sadly mistaken. First off i have had several excellent meals at belmont, and i belive the choice you made in entree’s was your down fall, you could go to ANY resturant and order beef tenderloin why would you go to a place with such unique menu items that you do not find ANYWHERE in richmond and choose a filet? I usually order the dover sole and it is always wondeful, my husband has ordered both the duck and Buffalo and they have both been stellar! I am highly recommend 1 north belmont for the great food and service, yes the prices are a bit high but you get what you pay for!
September 5th, 2007 at 7:00 pm
Leslie:
I did not “get” what I paid for. All said, the beef was the best of the three courses. We have the choice to disagree, of course. But the Messy Chef contends that the meal was lackluster. Stale toasts? A salad hardly dressed? A dining room where we were the only guests for the entire evening?
September 5th, 2007 at 7:49 pm
We do have the choice to disagree you are correct on that, but like i have said i have had several wondeful dinners at 1 north belmont, and think that diner’s may get the wrong impression of this great little gem in carytown. We can agree to disagree but i do think you should try one north belmont again maybe try something other than an ordinary “steak” and you did not happen to mention what your dinning companion had or what he or she thought of their meal?
September 22nd, 2009 at 7:49 am
My wife, niece, and I had lunch about 130 Sunday afternoon back at the end of May, and it was great. I was going in not knowing what to expect, only that it was a local restaurant not too far from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, and that it was supposed to be pretty good. Acacia on Cary was my favorite restaurant in the world, and I was hoping this would assuage a bit of my loss.
A couple or perhaps a party of three was coming out as we were going in, and there was another party of two and a party of four finishing up as we were seated. The waiter was a little less than formal, but our niece was not that much older than he was, so it didn’t bother me that much. Frits’ neice was acting as sommelier, and brought back a favorable reply on being able to buy the Gloria Ferrer by the bottle instead of by the glass, although we had decided our orders by the time that answer had been obtained, and by then had decided to go with a beer, a scotch, and a martini instead.
Our niece had the duck barbeque en croute, which she reported as very good, my wife had I can’t remember what, ditto, (maybe the waldorf salad), and I think she also had the soup, which was also very good, and I had the scallops, which turned out to be sensational. My martini, also, was about as perfect as a martini can be.
After our lunches were served, Frits himself came out and asked about everything. I asked what the greens were on my plate, which I told him was stunningly good, but ribbed him about the quantity. $16 dollars for 3 scallops?? He offered that it was lunch, after all, so how much and how many did one get at dinner. Six, for $24, he calmly replied. I replied to him again that the dish was absolutely fabulous,and that next time I woul be coming back for dinner.
A week later the newsletter came in the email, and the lunch scallops were up to $17. But still worth it, imho. Still gotta do dinner next time.
I am a bit dismayed by the poor reviews though. Undercooked Lobster! Yikes! I tried cooking my own first lobster tails at home on the grill not too long ago and also undercooked, myself. My guests were kind enough to allow and insist that I throw them back on the fire for another five or seven minutes or so. I am sure 1 belmont would have also been willing to do the same, but I do understand how intimidating it would be to suggest it was done less than to perfection.
I think I may try the steak tartare next time. Or the sole. And definitely we’ll have to split a dozen oysters and an order or two of snails. Yes, lunch was $130 or so, but for three, including an entirely voluntary 25% tip, and entirely worth every penny. Can’t wait for dinner next time!