Ray’s Killer Creek
1700 Mansell Rd
Alpharetta, GA 30004
770.649.0064
Friday night is date night in our household and this past Friday was no exception. Since the most recent season of “Top Chef,” I have been curious to check out Atlanta cheftestant Tracey Bloom’s cooking. The recent news that she took over the kitchen of Ray’s at Killer Creek was enough to push us OTP for an evening of wining and dining.
The drive from Midtown to Alpharetta barely took us 30 minutes and gave us just enough time to work up an appetite for fine dining. The restaurant itself was beautiful and we could see right away that the service was going to be top-notch. The friendly greeting from the manager and server’s formal uniform and friendly manner were a perfect start to the night.
It took us all of two seconds to decide to start with a classic – oysters Rockefeller ($12) prepared with Pernod creamed spinach, bacon and hollandaise. Six large oysters on the half-shell arrived at our table moments later accompanied by two very dirty, very delicious vodka martinis. The oysters were wonderfully prepared managing to maintain that salty oyster flavor underneath the cloaking of cream and bacon. We also decided to split a classic wedge salad ($8) before moving on to our entrées. The iceberg wedge was served with blue cheese dressing, Maytag blue cheese, bacon, tomatoes and green onions. As someone who shies away from the pungent strength of blue cheese, I was a bit wary of this salad (I won on the oysters so I had to succumb to my dining partner’s preference here…) however, I was pleasantly surprised. The iceberg lettuce was incredibly cold and crisp, and both the blue cheese crumbles and blue cheese dressing were mild enough for anyone to enjoy. The creaminess of the dressing and the crispness of the lettuce were a lovely combination and a great pre-dinner course.
The main show arrived shortly after we polished off our salad in the form of one 16 oz. rib-eye paired with blue cheese scalloped potatoes and a large onion ring (nightly special, $50) and the Salmon Oscar ($30). The rib-eye, ordered medium, arrived piping hot and perfectly cooked to temperature. The only disappointment with this dish was the obvious lack of seasoning on the meat. A tiny bit of salt would have made this dish superb. The blue cheese scalloped potatoes were a yummy combination of creamy center and crispy edges. Delightful.
The Salmon Oscar was served with mashed potatoes, grilled asparagus, sautéed jumbo lump crab meat and béarnaise sauce. Unfortunately, this dish was the least successful dish of the meal. The fish, ordered medium, came out quite a bit overdone which really dried the fish out. The mashed potatoes also begged for some serious seasoning help. Stop skimping on the salt! Luckily, I was so stuffed by this point I honestly didn’t mind not eating too much of my entrée.
Overall, this meal was definitely enjoyable and the great service pushed it into the “we will return” category although next time I’m going to order the burger. I hear it is a must have!
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Re:Killer Creek review
I Take issue with the “Stop skimping with the salt!” comment. Many are on low salt diets. Salt an be added effectively to most dishes at the table. (Pasta may be an exception.) A few restaurants – one being the newly opened Alpine Bakery Trattoria in Alpharetta – do not offer salt or pepper. One has to ask for them. Killer Creek provides both.
Ray’s Killer Creek has, however, discontinued their once popular Sunday Brunch. I was told that they couldn’t break even without 250-300 diners. Alas, a casualty of our economy. Their substitute menu was pedestrian with tough waffles, eggs that were not prepared as ordered and just 2 modest sized strips of bacon. $9 vs $20. I know they tried to raise the price of brunch but that simply exacerbated the problem caused by the economy. Let’s hope the brunch comes back when things improve. Tom Blaisdell