Scarduzio’s Steak | Sushi | Lounge (Showboat Atlantic City)

This new restaurant located inside the Showboat Atlantic City is a hidden gem. I almost wonder if patrons on the casino floor know about this Italian steakhouse that makes their own pasta and sauces, the brainchild of acclaimed chef and owner, Chris Scarduzio.

I came to the restaurant unannounced before my scheduled reservation. Upon entering the restaurant which has beautiful décor including an extravagant knife set hanging on the wall, we were greeted promptly by manager Robert Grabowski. As a food blogger, I will intentionally crash a reservation sometimes to see what the actual service response is like for the average patron when they enter a restaurant. Scarduzio’s passed that test as they greeted all persons promptly.

There is something to be said for a restaurant that pays close attention to detail.

First up to the table was this delicious trio --cornbread, Lavash French flat bread with sesame and parmesan and Rustic Italian bread. The butter was seasoned with a tasty kick-ass black lava salt which is literally sea salt scraped off of lava rock. How’s that for culinary detail? (Chef Giancarlo Generosi who is actually the chef for Scarduzios broke it down for us). The cornbread was made from scratch and was amazing. Tasting the chunky corn kernels in the cornbread gave it a very nice taste. The cornbread was sweet, but not too sweet. The Lavash was flavorful as was the Italian bread. But, the cornbread stole the show in the bread department.

Photo on left: butter sprinkled with black lava salt

Before diving in fully with entrée options, we were served Scarduzios signature appetizer, homemade cavatelli pasta with spicy tomato butter and sundried tomato pesto,—great and hearty.

I also had the Diver Sea Scallops made with fregola sarda (which is pasta or Italian couscous) and pancetta cream. Excellent. What made this dish spectacular was the temperature. The pasta and cream was at a slightly lower temperature than the scallops allowing your tongue to taste every bit of natural goodness.

My non-foodie friend (i.e. just cares about the taste, not the particulars) ordered the tuna tartare with masago, cucumber, jalapeño, caper and crispy wonton from the sushi appetizer menu. Although I am not a fan of sushi in general (with the exception of California rolls), I must say that Scarduzio's sushi was awesome. The fresh ingredients and texture of the Sushi made this appetizer refreshing. Not bad for $15.

Traveling off the menu a bit, we decided to try the special for the evening which was sesame Ahi tuna with seaweed salad and spicy sweet sauce courtesy of Chef Generosi. The tuna was well cooked but very tender. Once again, this dish had this “temperature texture thing” going on which makes their dishes spectacular. Chef Scarduzio informed me that once their food is cooked they let it sit for a little bit (I think there is more to his secret).

Now for the main feature—the steak (all steaks served at Scarduzios are USDA certified prime beef), which I also ordered with a lobster tail since that was a special for the evening. I ordered the 12 oz center cut filet mignon well done (photo on left, $43). My guest ordered the 8 oz Tajima Wagyu filet (i.e. Japanese steak, $85) medium rare as our wonderful server Ming recommended (photo left). My steak was served well done, yet very juicy. I love Scarduzio’s presentation with their steaks—especially the roasted garlic clove on the side of the dish with a rosemary towering from it where you simply spread the garlic over the steak with your knife for optimum taste.

My guest’s Tajima Wagyu filet (photo on left) was superb which is saying a lot since I am not a fan of medium rare anything. It was tender, very moist, juicy, but not runny.

Desserts

We ordered two desserts: Peanut butter cheesecake with miniature vanilla milkshake with chocolate straw (left) and a pistachio crème brulee with Bacardi Rum 151 proof. The peanut butter flavor is more prominent than the cheese with this dessert. However, I ate most of this great dessert when it set at room temperature where the cheese and peanut butter flavors compliments each other perfectly.

Our pistachio crème brulee, which was fired up table side and was very nice dessert to wrap up the dinner. The brulee was so good I even saved some to eat for breakfast the next morning.

Check out Chef Generosi, server Ming and the crew fire up the brulee.

Check out photos of the Scarduzios' lounge, sushi and drink bars.

BAJAN CHEF SAYS "REDUCE SALT INTAKE"

BARBADOS (September 18, 2011) - "Cut back on table salt!" That's the message from a Barbadian chef and entrepreneur who wants Caribbean people to abstain from over-consuming salty foods following reports of tragic life-altering strokes and other serious medical conditions.

Chef Derek Went of Went Caribbean, a company which offers healthy Caribbean lifestyle support, said while the Caribbean region is known worldwide for its culinary exploits and some of the most flavour-filled foods, the region was playing "Russian Roulette" with its food preparation and consumption habits.

Went Caribbean is keenly focused on reducing the high incidence of chronic, non-communicable diseases by offering a variety of products and services which promote a healthy lifestyle.

"I am all for maintaining the diverse culinary traditions of the Caribbean, but let's make sure we do so without compromising good health," Went asserted, proposing a switch from table salt to moderate amounts of sea salt as a healthier alternative.

The Caribbean chef promotes sodium-free, healthy spices and herbs in Barbados, across the Caribbean, and soon to the Caribbean Diaspora communities in North America.

In addition to avoiding excessive quantities of salt present in today's over-consumed processed foods, he also urged drinking pure water, checking blood pressure, daily exercise and other dietary habits - as recommended by medical doctors and qualified nutritionists - which were key to a healthier Caribbean and an economically sustainable health care system.

Went Caribbean, supported by the Barbados Entrepreneurs Venture Capital Fund (known as BIM Ventures), promotes its WentWorx line of all natural, aromatic seasoning blends which contain no salt, no sugar, no MSG and no artificial preservatives. "You can definitely reduce the salt in your meals without sacrificing authentic Caribbean flavour when you use WentWorx blends," he emphasized.

WentWorx products currently contain naturally occurring sodium in health sustaining proportions.

For further information visit: Went Caribbean on Facebook