The Capital Grille Restaurant or Wine Cellar that serves food?

At the corner of 6th and Pennsylvania lies a magnificent glass meat showcase, displaying prime cuts of beef. Grabbing the attention of Washingtonians daily, the Capital grille boast a vast array of over 350 wines to compliment their large selection of prime cuts of beef. All dried and aged to perfection. Resembling "the Oak Room" in decor, the Capital Grille is a long time favorite of Washington, DC's elite. Minutes from the Capital and several federal government buildings, reservations are strongly encouraged but not required. Upon arrival (15minutes early for my late lunch reservation) I was cordially greeted by 2 bubbly hostesses and seated in the private dining area, which has open seating during the lunch rush when not reserved. The wonder of the private dining room is not the privacy nor the classic french doors and classic hardwood decor but the wall to wall wine cellar. Yes the entire room is separated by a glass wine cellar displaying some of the most exquisite domestic and international wines. You could very easily take a virtual trip to Venice or Rome on your lunch break with a wine selection for each menu item, as well a Salomone on staff daily for the wine novist. This is very encouraging because the classic upscale nature of the restaurant could intimidate some guests but not me. After taking in the lovely scenery, we were approached by our waitress (a shorter Paula Dean, with less of a southern drawl), but seemingly excited to be our waitress. She dives right into the "Capital Grille" experience, explaining the menu layout, introducing the Restaurant Week menu, announcing soups, specials, and catch of the day. Pairing each item with a suggested wine. Clearly she was no amateur waitress, and I was impressed. Their uniform resembles a chef coat, which told me she is defiantly a pro.

After opting out of the liquid lunch (alcoholic beverages) I settled on the restaurant week menu, which included much less variety than I expected. 3 choices for each course (3 course lunch; soup/salad, entree, dessert), which is not bad considering the regular menu is Ala cart (everything must be ordered separately for the Jr. dinners). Although its 2:00pm on a Friday the restaurant is still full, however this doesn't appear to be a challenge for the "Capital Grille". I watched the head chef at the kitchen's Pass (Opening from kitchen to the dining room with a counter top where the Chef plates and executes the food) send food flying out of the kitchen like a well oiled machine. Hungry diners in DC on their lunch hour, leave very little room for error, and I have to say they met the expectations. My food was no exception. A simple Cesar salad with toasted bruschetta croutons, roasted half chicken (yes I order chicken at a steakhouse. I wanted to test they efficiency of the rest of the menu) mashed Potatoes, and Key Lime Pie. Although tender and tasty, it didn't have that wow factor to justify the $40 price tag (on the regular Menu). There was nothing special that made it any different from any other roasted chicken including the one I make at home, actually mine is 10 time better. The mashed potatoes were heavy, full of butter and cream, not the best. (Cheesecake Factory has them beat, wait I have them beat on that too!) The server was kind enough to let me switch for the Famous creamed spinach, sadly again nothing that grabbed my taste buds. (perhaps I should have opted for the wine? Does the wine add the flavor to this bland fair?) It's not bad but when you are at a 5 star restaurant there has to be something about the food that make me want to come back and the food didn't do it. The decor,  wine and the other selections may prompt me to give it another try. Perhaps it was my selection but I was not impressed. The restaurant week price $20.95 per person + tax and tip, on the regular menu $40.00 per person + tax and tip. I don't see the value in either. I felt like they extracted the taste from my meal and injected it into the check. I haven't given up on them totally, because they are a steakhouse, so I'll have to sample that next time. However as for this trip, I'm stamping it under construction. Overall experience 2.7, Quality of the food 2.5, and the Customer Service a 4. Thanks for training the staff in the art of providing a fine dining experience, now lets get the Chef to inject some flavor and creativity before my next visit.