Z Grille
Seafood Nachos – Grilled Calamari, Shrimp, Lump Crab, Corn Salsa, Queso, Jalapenos, Pickled Onions, Poblano Crème
WTF Fries – Black Truffle Salt, Manchego Cheese, Chives
Dr. Pepper Fried Ribs – Meat Candy
The Original Chicken & Waffles- Cornflake Sage Fried Chicken, Bacon & Caramelized Onion Waffle, Bacon Maple Syrup, Pink Peppercorn Butter, Applewood Smoked Cheddar Grits
Espresso Caramel Bacon Pecan Z-Nut
Wrapping up the trip, a 6am flight back to Las Vegas set to occur just eleven hours later, it was after perusing the World of Beers that we entered Z Grille and although we had reservations the decision was made to sit at a hightop juxtaposing the bar in order to watch the end of yet another football game – the setting perfectly fine, though the ‘bro’ style service was unexpected from a space considered to be one of St. Petersburg’s better dining venues.
Loud and high ceilinged, with trendy décor inspired by everything from skateboard culture to a Lucha Libre “Last Supper,” Z Grille features the cooking of Beard Award nominated Chef Zach Gross and located in the fashionable part of St. Petersburg yet quite different from the surrounding cocktail and craft beer chaos the upscale-American menu features plenty of whimsy, yet much like the service the focus seems more content in being clever than executing cleanly as textures as well as flavors frequently lack.
Beginning with a duo of signature starters it was to a large bowl of crisp fries dusted in cheese and truffle scented salt that the meal began and although admittedly quite tasty the large portion eventually became redundant, a textural mélange of seafood and vegetables tinged in acid and smoke far more interesting bite-for-bite, though the heft of the queso eventually left several chips simply too soggy to enjoy.
Moving on to mains, actually another raved appetizer alongside what some call the best fried chicken in town, suffice it to say that the ribs tenderized in a bath of Dr. Pepper were fall-off-the-bone supple and lick-your-fingers good while the “original” Chicken was pleasantly crunchy but far too heavily laden in sage for my friend’s tastes – the accompanying waffle far more successful in marrying unctuous onions with pork beneath a drizzle of maple as notes of smoke wafted from the creamy grits below.
With my buddy at this point ordering a crisp cider in place of dessert it was perhaps the first time in history that I envied his decision to forgo sweets in favor of booze because as much as our server would have liked us to believe the “Z-Nut” was Zach’s rendition of Ansel’s Cronut the tiny $9 ring was actually quite awful as layers of lamination dared not stand up to far too much time in the fryer, let alone a substantial layer of pork and caramel lacquered pecans that would have probably been better all by themselves, and definitely without the unnecessary coffee sauce.
http://www.zgrille.net/
