Bedford [Closed]
This entry was posted on 12/12/2008 4:10 PM and is filed under New Openings, New American Upscale.
CLOSED -- FALL 2009The chef has great credentials. Robert Gadsby's first stop in Houston was the highly regarded Noe in the Omni Hotel. He took a break, tried out to be an Iron Chef, and then became a consulting chef to Soma. Now he's opened his own restaurant named after the English town in which he grew up. Located across from the Glass Wall on Studewood in the Heights, Bedford is in a new brick exteriored building with a decidedly contemporary feel. The bar has a sleek sexy ambiance; the cocktails were nicely prepared (delicious blue cheese stuffed olives) and reasonably priced. There's an outdoor seating area and another bar for dining near the kitchen. The interior is warmly lit, but there's a decidedly minimalist feel to the dining area with an Asian influence. And, while it's hard to describe, the layout seems disjointed.
We dined at Bedford within a week of its opening. We weren't impressed. Perhaps they rushed in this economy to get the place open by the holidays. Our waiter said the staff hadn't been given the opportunity to try any of the dishes. He hadn't even seen a number of them. And the menu isn't that extensive. Price points were reasonable -- appetizers in the low double digits and entrées in the low to mid-20's. For a brand new restaurant, the service was very good.
But the food pretty much missed the mark with every dish we tried. Be forewarned that the menu descriptions are, to put it nicely, creative and not necessarily descriptive of the dish. Although we can't recall any references to foam or other molecular niceties, the menu aims for the same cutting edge concepts and combinations as are popular with many chefs today. Picky, conventional eaters may have trouble finding something to order. We note that the menu posted on the website has changed since we dined there, so the chef is listening and evolving.
The amuse bouche was wild mushroom risotto, oddly topped with flavors of grape, pomegranate and red curry. Too much going on and too sweet. We shared the signature tuna roll appetizer that we thought would be sushi like but turned out to be cooked tuna in lightly fried rice paper. Despite our initial confusion, it was tasty enough . As was the foccacia style bread with olive oil. There was nothing resembling the billed potato cauliflower hash on the plate with the seared halibut (alongside carrots and not the advertised haricot verts). The waiter had no clue as to the whereabouts of the missing hash, but came back to the table after talking to the chef to tell us that the hash was represented in the sauce. Come on. Hash is not a sauce, particularly a smooth one. The pork belly entrée (not on the website menu) was moist enough but lacking in taste. And, although better for our health, it lacked any of the tasty fat you typically find on pork belly. The side of apple cider pudding, although served in a cute little crock, was a heavy bread pudding that was likely warmed in the microwave as it had hot and cold spots. The quail entrée was declared to be very good although the solo quail on the plate looked kind of lonely. When we were informed the only chocolate desert was unavailable, we headed for ice cream at The Chocolate Bar.
We wish Chef Gadsby well. We hear there were no tables available on a recent Saturday night. But, it's unlikely Bedford will see us again soon unless it's for a drink and an appetizer at the bar. When we're really hungry, we'll be back to the other new Heights entry to the Houston dining scene -- Textile.
1001 Studewood Street
713/880-1001
http://www.bedfordrestaurant.com/
