Creative XO deliciously defeats steakhouse boredom

By GAIL CIAMPA
Journal Food Editor

• See the menu.

XO Cafe always seemed misnamed. With all its dark woods and lush ambiance, it felt too manly to carry the name "cafe."

It makes far more sense as the newly incarnated XO Steakhouse, with a beefed-up menu, the addition of an intimate wine room for nearly private dining, and more decadent artwork to arouse the senses at every turn.

Steak houses across the nation are thriving these days, thanks to diets named Atkins and South Beach. XO owner John Elkhay has proven himself adept at seizing the moment to capture the needs and desires of the dining public and serve them on a trendy platter.

He opened Ten Prime Steak and Sushi to cater to dining groups of varied tastes. His Big Fish restaurant expanded on the public's insatiable appetite for seafood. So the new XO as a steak house is a natural fit.

Our party of four arrived early as the first diners on a recent Saturday night. I hoped that as he got busy, our most-enthusiastic waiter would settle down. But even as the restaurant quickly filled to capacity, he was there, glowing at every turn.

Big Fish cocktail

The first decision he assigned us was to select sparkling or still water. We chose the latter. Then we had to consider cocktails or wine. There were some appealing by-the-glass wine offerings and some knock-your-socks-off cocktails.

I tried the Big Fish, served from a half-size shaker into a martini glass with a neon ice cube. It was a perfect blend of Midori, Cruzan Pineapple Rum, Bacardi Coconut Rum and pineapple juice. Its lime green color reflected beautifully with the pink-lit cube and the flavor transported you to the tropics, if only for a second.

My husband and our friends ordered wine, a South African Sauvignon Blanc from Graham Beck and a Kenwood Zinfandel. The superior glassware -- large, thin and making a nice ping -- is an elegance seen in far too few restaurants.

Our waiter was effusive about one of the night's specials -- an appetizer of sea bass. There was a whole, freshly caught bass in the kitchen, he reported -- it still had the spear mark. While this would have turned off a PETA sympathizer, it overwhelmed my husband, who ordered it straight away. Indeed, it was an exquisite piece of fish served with a fermented black bean sauce and candied shallots.

Equally exceptional was an appetizer of tempura-grilled Maine lobster. It was half tail, meat intact, and grilled. On top was a second piece of lobster, meat from the claw, this one done in tempura batter. It was delicately adorned with a corn coulis, a thin, sweet puree flavored with tarragon.

The Caesar salad is heralded on the menu as "The way it should be." It starts with a head of heart of romaine lettuce. The dressing was amazingly light and balanced. Though I couldn't detect the slightest flavor of anchovies, chef de cuisine Ben Lloyd told me later that the house dressing does include anchovies but not predominantly. That's part of the way-it-should-be thing. Fresh lemon juice adds to the tanginess and just-right acidity.

A bread basket surprised with a serving of rugelach as well as slices of a crusty peasant bread, served with butter pot.

Dinner delights

For dinner, we chose three entrees from the house specialties and I opted for a naked 20-ounce Black Angus Delmonico Ribeye. This is my favorite cut of meat for all the flavor it imparts. Most of the meat on the menu is Black Angus. In a perfect world it would be dry aged, but it's not.

XO serves all its steaks with a choice of sauces. I chose XO sauce, a house-made steak sauce in the A1 style but with far less sugar and a base of tamarind. Other sauce choices includes bearnaise, brandy and peppercorn, and Lloyd's favorite, an Argentinian chimichurri made with parsley, a touch of oregano, and finished with raw onions.

As for the specialties, the grilled tuna steak was a nice thick cut and served over a lobster "orzotto," a creamy risotto-style dish with chunks of lobster and orzo pasta instead of rice.

The dish Steak Frites is so named because when it's served, all you see are the housemade fries piled like a mountain on the plate. But underneath is a 14-ounce piece of hangar or flank steak, marinated with an espresso rub. It's cut into eight or nine pieces. My friend found a vast range in steak temperature in those pieces: The first few were medium rare and the last few medium to medium well. She said it didn't detract from the dish.

As for the fries, they were a hit. They are XO's truffle fries, double fried like French fries, then tossed in truffle oil and mix of salt and Parmesan cheese.

The XO Filet, the most expensive dish on the menu at $35, is 10-ounce filet, served with thin slices of scallops draped across the meat. A bed of roasted asparagus sat all in a row beneath the steak. It was prepared as ordered and the varieties of color made it a lovely sight to behold. The filet was not just tender but flavorful thanks to a macadamia nut butter.

The steaks and chops come a la carte, so I ordered straw fries with tomato salt. When I asked Lloyd about it, he said the salt is made from dried tomatoes and it's their play on the idea of ketchup and fries.

How very clever, like everything at XO. Our square bottle of Fuji water fit into a square bottle holder. The old pizza oven is gone and in its place is an elegant wine room, a private dining alcove with custom-made mahogany wine racks forming the walls so outsiders can see in, but not so much. A glance towards the ceiling reveals a ceiling print of Fernando Botero's painting The Letter, depicting a woman lounging naked on her bed, eating orange slices while reading.

At some point, our senses got so overwhelmed we forgot to order vegetables for the table. A tempura mushroom dish made with portobellos, or the grilled vegetables side dish, would have hit the spot.

On to dessert

Though tempted by the cheese course, when assured by our waiter that the chef would pair a lovely dessert wine with it, we had already been seduced by dessert, which you order at the beginning of the meal.

A trio of cremes brulees comes in a multi-tiered serving contraption. On the night of our visit, the selections were a most delicate ginger, vanilla and a robust coffee.

I shared a lemon tart brulee with my husband and, based on the earlier offer of wine pairing, asked our waiter to see if the chef would suggest an after-dinner wine with it. He suggested a glass of Perrier Jouet Grand Brut, and I have to say, it paired beautifully. That is, with what little I ate. It was more tart shell than lemon by the time my fork reached it. Dessert is just not meant to be shared.

But I digress. Lloyd told me later he does indeed like to recommend wine and food pairings. He developed an interest in the subject while a student at the New England Culinary Institute in Vermont, where he worked with a master of wine. He knows that the proper pairing results in both food and wine tasting their best.

XO Steakhouse has an extensive new wine list offering multiple vintages of some labels, including Caymus Special Select as well as Beaulieu Vineyard George Latour Private Reserve. There is an expanded by-the-glass selection with more than 20 wines available, including Mazzocco River Lane Chardonnay and St. Francis Cabernet.

At a steak house, it seems inevitable that the meal be boring, what with all the meat and potatoes. But with faux risotto and tomato salt on fries, it seems like XO is finding a way around the boredom.

That said, you will pay for the experience, with steak prices in the $24-to-$32 range, side dishes $5 to $9 and appetizers starting at $9 for calamari and going to $18 for the XO signature Bento Box, which offers four appetizer/side dishes in a distinctive box.

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Details, details

XO Steakhouse, 125 North Main St., Providence, (401) 273-9090. Casually upscale. Reservations accepted. There is no wheelchair ramp into the building. No highchairs. Open daily for dinner at 5 p.m., serving until 10 p.m. except on Friday and Saturday until 11 p.m. V, MC, AE, DIS. On-street parking with free valet Thursday through Saturday except on WaterFire nights. Appetizers cost $9 to $18. Entrees cost $17 to $35. The wine list is $6 to $13 by the glass; $29 to $338 for a bottle.

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If you like Ten Prime Steak and Sushi, Mill's Tavern or the Capital Grille, you'll like XO Steakhouse.

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Bill of fare

Dinner for two at XO Steakhouse might look something like this:

Big Fish cocktail . . . . . . . . . . .$10

Kenwood Zinfandel . . . . . . . . . . .$7.50

Tempura-Grilled Maine Lobster. . . . . $14

Caesar Salad. . . . . . . . . . . . . .$8

Black Angus Delmonico Ribeye . . . . . $32

Steak Frites. . . . . . . . . . . . . .$24

Straw Fries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . $5

Tempura Mushroom Fries. . . . . . . . .$5

Sampling of 3 Creme Brulees . . . . . .$7

Tax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $9

Tip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $21

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $142.50

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XO Steakhouse