III Forks

Rochelle Koff4/29/2010

The dust has mostly settled at Hallandale’s Village at Gulfstream Park. Business is underway (or coming soon) at dozens of new stores like Crate & Barrel, Pottery Barn and West Elm and over 20 restaurants and clubs. Judging by Saturday night (the last night of racing season) elegant steakhouse III Forks is an early favorite. A well-heeled crowd packed the 350-seat restaurant, the seventh location for a Texas-based chain that also owns Cantina Laredo, III Forks' next-door neighbor at Gulfstream.

Ambience: III Forks has a sophisticated setting, with dark woods, vaulted ceilings and glass-enclosed wine rooms showcasing 1,500 bottles, from a $28 Chateau St. Michelle reisling to a $1,900 Screaming Eagle cabernet. The sprawling space, which opened Feb. 11, is divided into five dining rooms, a patio and bar. The coziest might be the Legends Room, with beaded chandeliers and black-and-white photos of icons like President Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe and Frank Sinatra.

What Worked

• A terrific III Forks salad -- a summery mix of Granny Smith apple slices, toasted pecans, blue cheese and field greens in a lightmaple walnut vinaigrette
• A rich seafood medley featuring a delicious two-ounce crab cake, bacon-wrapped diver scallop meunière and two chilled shrimp with a zesty cocktail sauce
• An 18-ounce, bone-in rib-eye, perfectly cooked medium-rare with a warm, rosy center, phenomenal charred crust and flavorful marbling
• Juicy and buttery tender 16-ounce Wagyu New York strip
• A glistening, moist & juicy grilled grouper served with a slightly sweet coconut beurre blanc sauce
• A wonderful blackened fish sandwich (lunch only)
• Asparagus with sliced toasted almonds
• A side of button mushrooms in a potent Maker's Mark sauce
• Too-much-of-a-good-thing Six Cheese Potatoes - sliced Idaho potatoes topped with a bechamel sauce plus asiago, provolone, Cheddar, Parmesan, mozzarella and Monterey Jack
• Gigantic six-layer chocolate ganache cake with ultra rich icing and toasted coconut. Heavenly bread pudding – challah in a decadent bourbon-pecan-caramel sauce, served with house-made cinnamon ice cream and strawberries