This week the wife and I headed downtown to have dinner on Fremont Street. I’ll be honest, I don’t make the trip downtown that often but that could change after the meal we had inside The D hotel and casino.
We went to Joe Vicari’s Andiamo Italian Steakhouse. The first Andiamo steakhouse was opened in Detroit over 20 years ago and now there are nine locations in and around the Motor City. The D is all about Detroit, and last year they opened another Motown eatery – American Coney Island Hot Dog.
Hot Dogs are good but it ain’t Steak. I can tell you this much, I have a new respect for Detroit cuisine after my visit here. As you walk in the entrance you go down this long brick hallway, almost like a hidden passage way, to the hostess stand.
There we were greeted by a lovely young girl who took us to our big private booth. I have to admit being distracted by the beautiful sight and, no, I’m not talking about the lovely hostess. It was the dessert cart parked right as you walk in. That’s simply not fair. More about that later.
I was extremely impressed with the décor inside, which would compete with anything on the Strip. As we sat down we had a waiter and his assistant at our table immediately getting our drinks and bringing out bread with a house-made tapenade, which was excellent.
We passed on an appetizer because I had desserts lock into my brain from the cart at the entrance so I didn’t want to risk being too full. The wife ordered the Filet while I went with one of the specials that night – a sea salt crusted Prime Rib. All the steaks are aged 30 days in house and are Stockyard Premium, meaning these steaks grade out to be in the top 8% of all beef in the United States.
Remember, my dad owned a meat packing plant so I know my meats.These steaks and prime rib were as good as it gets. We ordered a baked potato as a side. The sides are big enough to share. They fix your potato tableside with your toppings of choice.
Before we got our main dish the waiter brought us out a sample dish of pasta, compliments of the chef. I asked if that was something they do all the time or was I just special (just kidding, I already know I’m special).
The waiter said since this is an Italian steakhouse they always give a sample of the pasta when people just order a meat dish. This is both a classy and smart gesture. Both myself, and my wife Lori loved the pasta and would come back just for a pasta dish.
So now they have a shot at my business no matter if I’m in a steak mood or a pasta mood. Andiamo Italian Steakhouse truly is not just a steakhouse. The filet came with your choice of a complimentary steak sauce. The wife ordered their signature sauce called Zip Sauce and it was tremendous.
As stuffed as we were from dinner, it was time to look at that dessert cart once again. We opted for something they called a gourmet Kit Kat bar. I just called it Chocolate Heaven and it was the perfect ending to a perfect meal.
As good as the food and décor were, I have to say the service was even better. The combination of the three gives Andiamo Italian Steakhouse my highest rating, 4 Forks!
Marco D’Angelo is the senior handicapper at Pregame.com. He co-hosts FIRST PREVIEW every Thursday night at 11 p.m. on ESPN 1100 AM/98.9 FM. Follow him on twitter: @MarcoInVegas. Contact him at [email protected].