Le Colonial

Went to Le Colonial for dinner with a friend... 

This time I got smart and park at the garage instead of paying $9 for valet after 6pm.  

I got a Mocktail of Spring (Mua Xuan) which has blueberries, lemon juice, Sprite, mint.  And my friend got a Saketini.  Very refreshing at these hot during the day, cool during the night's dinners.

This is Ca Tim Nuong, which is Japanese eggplant with basil lime fish sauce.  It was actually quite delicious.  I do recommend that.

This is the monkfish with various herbs.  It's not bad but not off the chart either.  I wish the chunks of monkfish were bigger instead of the small size.  As you know, it just leads to disasters everywhere.

We also got the Ca Song, which is Ahi Tuna, tomato, seaweed, cucumber on top of Taro Chip.  I don't mind the Taro chips, but again it's not anything superb that I have to come back for.  I like that it's a great tapas but not enough to fill you up.

This is the Goi Du Du, which is a green papaya salad, with carrot, lime dressing.  Again, nothing to write home about.

For dessert, the Pineapple Flambee caught our eyes, so we decided to try it.  So, it's pretty, but taste doesn't quite match.  It is essentially a slice of pineapple, which is nice and sweet.  Also watery.  Instead of really flambé per the name, it really is brûlée-d.  They added a layer of sugar on top and torched.  What you can't see very well, is that the pineapple is surrounded by cream and ice cream in the center.  

Well, here in lies the problem.  Your pineapple is already naturally sweet, and you add a layer of sugar, so I felt like I ate a mouthful of sugar, and mind you I've got a sweet tooth.  Then, the water started to seep out to the cream on the side, and it became this weird mix of mess.  Now the coconut passionfruit ice cream in the center is good.  As a matter of fact, both of us were fighting over it.  But, really it's a waste of $9.

Like a few of the restaurants in the complex, you're really there to people watch more than their food.  And sadly, with awesome decor they have here, this is exactly the case.  The bar is upstairs, and it is where the seen or be seen crowd congregate, which sadly drives the standard of the food down.  I highly expect that food in this complex should have the food to match the price point and view.  For crying out loud, my view was Harry Winston's awning.  Our server's belt is from Ferragamo, so the food needs to match the picture.  I've had better faux Vietnamese food in hole in the walls in fraction of the price.  But now I know.

Le Colonial

4444 Westheimer Rd

Houston, TX 77027

713-629-4444

http://www.lecolonialhouston.com