by Ronny Green
You don’t have to tempt me with a good time when it comes to the Bentley Room inside the historic Hotel Bentley downtown Alexandria. Whether its brunch, lunch, or dinner, I’m always down to pass a good time over some good eats and strong drinks. My biasness sometimes jumps off the page when I’m writing these reviews; particularly, whenever I have a good rapport with the chef. This evening my guy Chef Matt is on duty and the kitchen crew is ready to serve up the goods.
We kick this little soiree off with a tag team champion selection of oysters. My taste buds where dancing from the buttery garlicy goodness of the chargrilled oysters; cooked perfectly with no burnt edges followed by the oysters rockerfeller packing a multi-layer flavor combination of the spinach dip and parmesan cheese. Squeeze a little lemon juice and some hot sauce over them, and I give them a 20/10! Lamb chops are always an option especially when they are painted with parmesan garlic butter and paired with a side of cabbage that’s been cooked down and paired with smoked sausage. This cabbage is straight out of grandma’s kitchen on a Sunday afternoon good.
Just as I thought our dinner couldn’t reach higher gastronomy heights, Chef Matt delivers a hefty serving of jumbo lump crab au gratin; emphasis on the jumbo lump crab meat with fresh pepper jack, white wine, and blackened seasoning. Then, there’s the fried ravioli, swimming in a bacon ranch madurai wine sauce served with marinara that I completely overlooked as I was too focused on dipping the other half of my ravioli in the bacon ranch sauce.
I did not have much room for dessert, but I couldn’t leave without a couple spoons full of Chef Matt’s apple pie bread pudding with homemade oatmeal crumble and a caramel almond whip cream. Without hesitation, I had to get a to-go box and bring the rest home.
If you’re in CenLa, you can plan accordingly and make The Hotel Bentley a staycation destination. Mix the throwback charm of this historic landmark with some fine dining and libations and you might leave just as partial as I am.
