KO Prime

KO Prime - 90 Tremont St (Beacon Hill, Park St)

The inaugural progressBoston food post! Unfortunately, it's been a little too busy to post lately, but last night's dinner was certainly worthy of the effort. As part of Restaurant Week, Ann and I were joined by a couple of my friends, John and Danielle, at KO Prime. Centrally located near both Park St and Downtown Crossing, it was our first time eating there and I must say I was impressed.

I would describe it as a chic, upscale steakhouse. There's a nice bar area by the entrance with the usual modern fixtures. The staff was very friendly and accomodating. It's probably the fanciest restaurant I've been to in Boston, with a premium placed on presentation. The dinnerware was all oversized and sparkling white. The soup was poured from a pitcher into a bowl containing a garnish in the middle.

I ordered the Market Greens Salad for my appetizer and of course the 10 ounce Grilled Skirt Steak for the entree. I must say the special menu was not the most extensive with only two choices for appetizer and entree. However, it is a steakhouse so you pretty much know what you're going to get. The dressing for the salad was really too strong. However, the steak was probably the best I've had in Boston. It was three thin slices stacked on top of each other over a potato puree with an onion marmalade on top. The marmalade added a lot of flavor that was nicely balanced by the potato. By the time I got to the last piece, I had used the marmalade, but that was no problem. The flavor of the steak really came through and it was very good with a hint of pepper. For dessert, the only option was Grilled Cornmeal Pound Cake with Fruit Compote. I though the Pound Cake was very nice but thought the fruit was too candied and too strong. I'm not a big fan of mixing in fruit with my dessert (though I love fresh fruit salads) so you might not want to take my word on it. The wine list was extensive and expensive, but we were able to settle on a very nice Cabernet from Mendoza, Argentina for $40.

I was a big fan and am very glad we decided to go for Restaurant Week. That said, the price of the regular menu is certainly very hard to justify except for the most important occasions.