THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED Baleen

THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED Baleen Restaurant Review:

There is crystal blue water everywhere as you drive over the brief causeway to exclusive Grove Isle for a dinner at that resort's swank Baleen restaurant. The indoor dining room is richly decorated steak house-style with oak-paneled walls, mahogany furnishings and cozy booths around the perimeter. Lovely space, but stuffy compared to sitting on the semicircular patio amidst diaphanous white linen curtains billowing in the breeze. The food provides a bold contrast to this soothing setting. Appetizers include wood-roasted shrimp with roast garlic and tomato confit, and good old American oysters Rockefeller, but don't neglect the wondrous raw bar selections like caviar, farm-raised oysters and tartare of the day. Main courses are also available dressed and undressed, the former featuring dishes like herb-crusted Pacific sea bass with fennel and leek stew, and Chinese fried snapper with coconut rice and black bean vinaigrette, the latter referring to various fish and shellfish that can be ordered simply roasted, grilled or sautéed. Desserts are likewise rewarding in a big way, especially the warm Valrhona Volcanic chocolate cake that is baked to order and served with freshly-churned vanilla ice cream and berries. Sunday brunch is one of the best.