Tableside service is a lost art. It´s dinner theatre, and at Bourbon Steak, Michael Mina´s new steakhouse at The Americana, the show takes liquid form.
Sleek dark-wood carts rove the dining room, inviting you to order the Japanese Whisky Ceremony ($17 to $28) or the Tableside Bourbon Flight ($30).
The Japanese Whisky Ceremony offers the pour of your choice from one of the biggest Japanese whisky collections in America and comes served “tornado-style” in a giant Bordeaux glass with big ice spheres sloshing around.
Opt for the flight and you´ll be served tiny drams of three different bourbon whiskies, each paired with a different garnish. On a recent visit, the bourbon selections were presented in escalating order of intensity: Hudson Four Grain, paired with tangerine; Colonel E.H. Taylor, paired with smoky-cinnamon cassia; and the bolder 1792 Ridgemont Reserve, which matched beautifully with dried coffee beans from boutique roaster Lamill.
Tableside, each garnish is heated with a handheld torch until smoldering, then covered with a tumbler so the glass can absorb the aromatics without overwhelming the natural flavor of the spirit. The whiskey is poured into the glass and you´re ready to rock(s).
The bottles in the flight rotate regularly, so each time it´s a novel experience.
Unlike real dinner theatre, though, you won´t need to fake the applause at the end.