Delivery
No
Payment
Credit Cards Accepted
Parking
Parking Lot
Good for Kids
No
Attire
Dressy casual
Alcohol
Yes - Full Bar
Reservations
Yes
Cuisines:
Steakhouse,
Bar,
Seafood
Price Point
$$$
$ - Cheap Eats (Under $10)
$$ - Moderate ($11-$25)
$$$ - Expensive ($25-$50)
$$$$ - Very Pricey (Over $50)
WiFi
No
Outdoor Seats
No
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02/19/2010 - Mixed experience at Park East
My wife and I went to Park East for Valentine's Day as our first time to this establishment. It has had a relatively solid reputation as being one of the finer places to eat in Pueblo. Our experience was mixed. There was some good and some bad.
Neither my wife nor I are eaters of steak. The only meat we eat is fish. This is probably our first mistake. Park East's reputation is as a steak house first and foremost. But in my opinion, a restaurant that seeks to position itself as "fine dining" needs to be guaged on all of its menu offerings. The House Specialty section of their menu exhibits far more than just steak.
For an appetizer we ordered the Shrimp Cocktail ($12.99). Being a land-locked inland community I expected to be served a spread of tiny slender pink shrimp as is typical of grocery store cocktail trays. But I was pleasantly surprised at the large size and quality of the four miniature-lobsters they brought out. They were clearly not as fresh as one would experience in a southern coastal town, but considering this they were excellent.
My wife ordered ordered one of the "House Specialties"; a plate of Portobello Mushroom Pasta ($14.99) with scallops for an additional $3 and a salad. Having been put in the shrimp mood by the excellent appetizer, I decided to push my luck by ordering the Beer Battered Shrimp($17,99) also with salad.
The waitstaff wasn't warm but attentive enough and kept bringing rolls and butter. Our server seemed to push her politeness through gritted teeth. I empathized considering that she is working on Valentine's Day. I try to be understanding. She kept the drinks refilled but snatched them away with almost intolerance of our need for attention. It was the tense sort of service that dares you not to complain or "I'm going to talk trash about you in the kitchen." Nobody likes that feeling. But we're all human. Nothing personal.
For an establishment that touts itself for its ambience and elegant atmosphere that even features the works of local artists on its walls, one would expect maybe a slight effort by the kitchen to make a salad appealing. The tasteful, squared white china held nothing but a handful of limping and browning iceberg lettuce with half of an unripe cherry tomato, which I guess was an attempt at garnish (being that someone actually took the time to slice it in half?). I would have been embarrassed to serve something of such base quality. My first thought as they were served was "I should've ordered the soup." We tolerated them half-heartedly commenting to each other that mass-served side salads from Wendy's are better by an order of magnatude. But we ate, giving more attention to the rolls. Surely the entrees had to be an improvement.
Cool drinks and chilled shrimp sensitized us to the lack of heat in the dining area. We both kept wanting to put out coats on. So we looked forward to our hot meals which arrived without too much wait.
My gamble on another fine shrimp experience paid off. The tempura-style beer batter was fresh and the shrimp were again a generous size and delicious. Probably the best I've had in a town this far inland. Some resturants that serve freshly battered shrimp don't give you many, but this portion was generous enough to satisfy me and share with my wife. The mashed potatoes were fine and the green beans were fresh (not canned) and perfectly done.
The first thing we noticed about my wife's Portabella Mushroom Pasta was that there were no portabellas on it. My wife, being somewhat of a mushroom connesuer, was disappointed to see the dish made with bland champanions, otherwise known as plain grocery-store whites. Perhaps the general population around here doens't know the difference? Sad. Not only that, but the hopes of warm food were dashed since the food was actually barely room temperature. On a winter night like this it felt downright cold. The pasta: a plain spaghetti. And to complete the dish, the $3 scallops were raw and slimy in the middle. A big disappointment, especially after such a dismal salad.
Not wanting to spend more on our unfolding gamble of Park East, we passed on dessert and opted to enjoy something elsewhere. Overall we would not be able to recommend this restaurant for anyone looking for a fine dining experience. Perhaps they grill a great steak and you've got to take it for what it's worth. That's fine. But if that is the case then Park East is doing itself a disservice by positioning itself as an establishment of refined cuisine.
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