The Weekly Eater
Meritage aims to be different,
but looks familiarMeritage chef/partner Mariano Lalica started with the right idea of standing out by steering clear of the crowded Pacific Rim pack of restaurants, opting to go with French and Italian, two popular cuisines.
But there's no escaping geography. With dishes such as Pacific blue crab cakes ($8), guava barbecue prawns ($9) and pan-seared ahi and foie gras ($26), it seems a good 50 percent of the menu comprises Pacific Rim staples. There's nothing wrong with fence-sitting, as long as diners aren't misled. Meritage's menu is "French and Italian" only as interpreted by and for Americans.
That said, I'm hoping this restaurant has more staying power than the restaurants that came before it. It's otherwise getting to be pretty lonely here on the row.
One point in Meritage's favor: the decor. It has the look and vibe of a real restaurant, a definite improvement over former tenant Casa Donaldo's tacky lace and Ferno's clownish mustard-and-orange color scheme. Meritage is tastefully appointed in Gallic blue and white. Upstairs, a simple white curtain blocks unsightly windows for a vintage supper-club style ambience.
The staff is green, but that's to be expected for a restaurant just a week old. I thought they'd need some breathing room, but now is as good a time as any for the curious to come around, while there's a mini Italian film festival going on through Thursday at The Art House at Restaurant Row. (Go online at www.starbulletin.com/2002/10/09/features/story3.html for the schedule.) A little synergy should be beneficial to both. For diners, that means getting 10 percent off the cost of entrees in this getting-to-know-you stage -- just show your festival ticket for the discount. You'll also receive complimentary wine -- not the greatest grapes but what do you expect for free? -- while Meritage awaits its liquor license.
BY KEN IGE / KIGE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Rock Shrimp Risotto is graced with a simple show of daisies at Meritage.
For now, dinner is your only option. You might start with the wild mushrooms gratinee ($5) with shiitake, oyster and crimini mushrooms in a sweet basil cream sauce, topped with Parmesan. The mushrooms were toastier than they should have been, but timing should get better as the kitchen staff adjusts to new equipment.
The Meritage Seafood Martini ($8) is a pleaser from Lalica's days at Acqua. Pea-size morsels of rock shrimp, lobster, ahi and tomatoes are layered in a martini glass and splashed with balsamic vinaigrette and topped with wasabi tobiko for a refreshing, if a bit salty, appetizer. It's very light so won't spoil your dinner, even if you hog the whole glass. It wouldn't hurt to increase the size of the shellfish. It was hard to discern which was which when coated with the vinaigrette.
Follow with Caesar salad for a minimum of two ($7 per person) prepared tableside, or warm spinach salad drizzled with champagne fig vinaigrette and whole pistachios.
Figs and pistachios pop up more on this menu than at any other restaurant in town, and are quite welcome.
No doubt the most popular dish here will be the braised veal shank cassoulet ($23), served with garlic sausage and Calypso beans. I was also pleasantly surprised by the grilled Long Island duck confit ($17). Generally, I find few restaurants that can prepare duck as well as Chinese restaurants. Here, the duck is slow cooked to render the fat, and seems to have been run under a broiler until the skin is nice and crisp. It's served with savory accompaniments such as balsamic syrup, halved figs and a ginger-pear sauce.
Elsewhere, a roasted rack of lamb ($23) is topped with a pistachio-herb crust and served with rosemary merlot sauce. Pan-seared ahi ($26) is paired with foie gras and served with a wild mushroom risotto.
The lobster wasn't Mother Nature's best in a dish of lobster fricasee ($19), and I'd love to tell you how the garlic prawns ($20) turned out in a dish of roasted prawns and tomato-basil cappellini, but they left out the main ingredient.
BY KEN IGE / KIGE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Tiramisu.
Don't trust your waiter to tell you about the souffle of the day ($7) before meal's end. Otherwise you'll end up waiting 30 minutes for dessert. Row movie-goers might also keep in mind that this is a good place to chill and chat afterward, over coffee and desserts such as tiramisu ($6), a hot banana sundae ($5) or macadamia nut mocha mousse cake ($5).
If all goes well, Meritage might survive long enough to build some kind of heritage. I'm hoping this will start a revitalization at the Row.
Restaurant Row, 500 Ala Moana Boulevard / 529-8686 MERITAGE
Hours: 5 to 9 p.m. daily
Food 
Service Ambience Value Cost: About $55 to $85 for two without drinks
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Nadine Kam's restaurant reviews run on Thursdays. Reviews are conducted anonymously and paid for by the Star-Bulletin. Star ratings are based on comparisons of similar restaurants:
To recommend a restaurant, write: The Weekly Eater, P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu, Hawaii 96802. Or send e-mail to nkam@starbulletin.com
excellent; very good, exceeds expectations; average; below average.
