Golfing Gourmet: Hearty Central
On the day the Carson Valley Inn opened back in the mid-1980s, the little cowtown of Minden, Nev., must have felt something akin to a seismic shift. The newfangled-yet-down-home hotel-casino, today the biggest in the Carson Valley and a popular pit stop-plus for visitors and locals alike, filled a void no one had realized existed. But exist it did, and the “CVI’s” forward-thinking owners took advantage. Pity poor “Sharkey” Begovich, a big good ol’ boy who, for what seemed like centuries, had served mega-slabs of prime rib to hungry gamblers at his joint in Gardnerville, a couple miles south down Highway 395. He also collected native American artifacts and hosted a yearly boxing extravaganza in a cow pasture out back. He was a character and a good businessman, but he was in for some stiff competition. Now Sharkey is long gone, the cow pastures have turned into housing developments and golf courses and the CVI continues to flourish in its position as king of this Northern Nevada micro-destination’s hotel-casino lineup. It also continues to find new voids to fill — including the one in many a golfer’s gut after a lovely round among the cottonwoods and sagebrush at one or both Genoa Lakes tracks, or at family-friendly Carson Valley Golf Course south of town. Its food has always been a strong point, but when the new Fiona’s Bar and Grill was moved from its old location two doors down into its new home just off the casino floor, that strength increased tenfold. This place isn’t just about good food served honestly. It’s great food prepared with note-perfect attention to detail, in a noisy and fun-loving semi-steakhouse atmosphere where real live cowboys, septuagenarian RVers, weekend gamblers and travelin’ hackers can coexist in peace and culinary harmony. That was the goal in Fiona’s previous digs, where since 1988 it had served all CVI comers in a more open, atrium-like setting that was comfortable enough but didn’t quite fit within the Minden-Gardnerville vibe. After all, this is the kind of hotel where you can simmer in one of the two indoor Jacuzzi tubs next to the second-floor pool and fitness center, and look north out floor-to-ceiling windows on the pastureland that borders the parking lot, complete with haystacks and split-rail fencing. How many modern-day hotel-casinos have that kind of old Nevada flavor within wedge distance? One, and you’re readin’ about it. Anyway, about a year ago the decision came down to move Fiona’s into the main building, replacing a high-end steakhouse called Michael’s. “That was a nice place, but it was a special-occasion type of place,” said Bill Henderson, the CVI’s longtime sales and marketing honcho and one of the best golf group organizers in the business. “We needed something here with more energy, a more open and inviting atmosphere. Fiona’s fit the bill. To be honest, it’s something we should have done a long time ago.” So, in early May, with all red leather, button-down vestiges of Michael’s retired in favor of a more laid-back, casual design — big salad bar, unclothed tables, breeze-in-out bar and a bi-level dining room aglow under slow-turning ceiling fans and sunset-tinted walls — Fiona’s was reborn to big crowds every night of the week. And as the region’s golf season got rolling in earnest, groups started showing up to pored over the ambitious, variety packed menu and stave off 18 holes (or more) of hunger. “We’ve really seen a lot of them making reservations on the weeknights,” Henderson said as the FG review crew (myself, my wife Emelie and our two girls — Madeleine, 10, and Marjorie, 7) neared the homestretch of our meal. “They’ll show up in groups of eight or 10.” No big, boisterous golf gangs were in evidence on this Friday night, but we could hear plenty of golf talk wafting from nearby booths and tables. “We’re playing Sierra Nevada (now Genoa Lakes Resort Course) tomorrow,” one guy said. “We’re teeing off a 8 a.m.” In that case, better load up now, buddy. And he did. So did we. The girls, born writers (imagine that) who relished the chance to contribute to this review, decided to forego the kids’ menu and get serious. Turns out both of them fell victim to the ol’ “eyes bigger than stomach” scenario, though they did their best to keep up with the grown-ups. They also fell immediately in love with Sabrina, our young server, whose smile was as genuine as her knowledge of the menu was comprehensive. “The waitress was very, very helpful and nice,” Marjorie wrote. Sabrina rattled off the evening’s specials, one of which, smoked buffalo prime rib, joins the rotation every Friday and Saturday night in 12- and 16-ounce sizes. Being an Atkins convert from way back (since January, that is), I pounced on the big cut. It happened to be right up my meat-lovin’ fairway, and I doubt whether even Sharkey, the town’s erstwhile prime rib king, had ever featured buffalo on his menu. After consulting with Sabrina Emelie went for seabass, served on a ratatouille bed with yellow and red pepper coulis. And the girl’s big-people choices? Lamb chops for Madeleine — a first for her since Mom’s not a lamb person, and it never finds its way to the dining room table — and pasta primavera for Marjorie. Every entrée includes a trip to the soup and salad bar, and for a kicker I ordered a somewhat incongruous appetizer of coconut and almond-crusted prawns with orange marmalade sauce. Then again, how incongruous can it be within a wide-ranging lineup that touches on several cultures, from French (escargot) to Asian (vegetarian black bean egg rolls, hot Hunan shrimp), to old-school continental (oysters Rockefeller)? And that’s just the apps — fitting in a place whose stated motto is “it’s better to dine in a bar than drink in a restaurant.” Tough to argue with that logic, even if you’ve got kids in tow. The main menu ventures across the board, too. Call it the culinary equivalent of a golf course that’s rife with strategic choices, many ways to play each hole. By our reckoning, you could take a seat at Fiona’s every night for a year and never have to order the same exact multi-course meal twice. Crave it, seek it and you’ll find it: Steak after familiar cut of steak (three sizes of filet mignon, “baseball cut” top sirloin, rib eye, porterhouse); chops of lamb, veal and pork; ribs; “knife and fork” pork ribs or beef short ribs; three kinds of chicken, plus duck; and an impressive seafood selection, including lobster, abalone (!, $50 a copy) and combos with whatever meat you want. Dive deeper and you’ll come up with scallops and a longtime FG favorite, cioppino (spicy tomato-based seafood stew). Then there’s the prime rib, a “house specialty.” The familiar beef version comes in four cuts from 10 to 32 ounces (that’s a full two pounds of cow, for those keeping score), but we may never go back down that road after downing the better part of a softball-sized one-pound slab of smoked buffalo rib, lovely and lean with a slight gamy flavor. Even the girls liked it, and it might have ruled the night if not for the sidedish I chose to go with it — creamed spinach topped with melted cheese that ranks as the best we’ve ever had. “It made me like spinach” the notoriously picky Marjorie offered. Enough said. Oh yeah, she gave her primavera thumbs-up, too. And Madeleine? “My corn muffin was good. My lamb chops looked good in a metal bowl with a black outside bowl. My baked potato looked fresh in a white bowl. My lamb was like steak, although a bit different. It also had mint sauce, which you can’t really taste except for a small hint of mint. “My food was OK, but Dad’s buffalo and creamed spinach, and Marjorie’s artichoke heart from her pasta was very good. I am waiting for dessert.” And the winner in that category was: Dirt Pie, the CVI’s version of mud pie, with triple layers of ice cream (coffee, vanilla, chocolate), crushed oreos, chocolate shell and whipped cream, with a caramel drizzle. “The best dessert I’ve probably ever had,” Madeleine gushed. And trust us, she’s had plenty of them, though the New York cheesecake with raspberry sauce (served room temperature, as it should be — another detail covered to perfection) deserves an honorable mention. The rest of our CVI visit was spent digesting this amazing meal overnight, followed by a couple of hours in the pool just two doors down from our room. Then it was time to head back home to Reno, and as we made our way up Highway 395, I gave more than once glance toward the mountains on the western horizon, where the two Genoa Lakes courses comprise a delicious one-two punch. Figure in a Fiona’s meal, and you’ve got one of Northern Nevada’s most surprising golf-and-grub threesomes. Even Sharkey couldn’t argue with that. FG FIONA’S reader comments
comment on this article
|
current issue
The Birdie BunchJuly-Aug 2007
|
SubscribeToday!
Sign up for home-delivery of the award-winning
FG Magazine and you could be our next winner!
Subscribe today for a chance to win win cool gear.
