In This Issue

Brant Point Grill-
Unmatched Cuisine, Exquisite Setting

Dining at Brant Point Grill is always a treat!  Part of the luxurious White Elephant Hotel, this fine dining restaurant has unmatched views of Nantucket Harbor and a high level of hospitality in its lounge and two dining rooms.  The location is just far enough from town to escape the hustle & bustle, but close enough to walk back into it.  It’s the ideal place to relax in elegance.

This season there’s even more to look forward to at Brant Point Grill:  new Executive Chef Frederick Bisaillon has brought the food up to the high standards of Nantucket’s finest! 

The Brant Point Grill serves breakfast, Sunday brunch, lunch, and dinner.  And they have an All Day Menu and a Bar Menu. Described by Bisaillon as a “classic steakhouse and classic seafood house rolled into one,” portions are generous and prices lower than we’ve seen in some time.  Among the selections on the current Spring Menu is the “Stimulus Steak,” a 10-ounce Angus Flat Iron that tastes far richer than it’s modest $15 price.  Also through early June, the restaurant is offering a three-course $22 Lunch with eight entree choices that include an American Kobe Beef Sandwich, FireCone Salmon Salad, and Skillet Roasted Clambake. During Restaurant Week (June 1 to 7), Brant Point Grill will serve a special $39 three-course menu in addition to their regular offerings.

The indoor dining room at Brant Point Grill is summery and elegant, light and spacious with a gently curved wall of large windows adding an even greater sense of space.  Tables are very simply appointed with fresh flowers, crisp linens, and silver settings.  It’s a lovely spot for special occasion dinners—a dining room where dressing up won’t make you feel out of place.

Handsomely clubby, the Brant Point Grill lounge is a fun destination all its own, especially if you’re partial to martinis, single barrel bourbons, vintage ports, or single malt scotch.  Many enjoy the lounge as a great place to come for a little something before dinner or to while away the evening, especially during the peak summer months, when live jazz is played nightly.  The Bar Menu is a nice mix of “Lite Bites,” “Raw Bar,” and “Bigger Bites,” with tasty offerings such as Crispy Chips and Shrimp Ceviche, Crab Cake Poppers, Kobe Steakhouse Sandwiches, and Lobster Rolls.  Raw Bar morsels are available by the piece or in three different sizes of Samplers perfect for sharing.  Every day in the lounge between 2:30 and 5:30 pm, Brant Point Grill serves Après Beach "Jump-Starters" — a specially featured appetizer for $1 with the selection changing.  According to manager Jonathan Ruppert, there will be additional “surprises” through the season “to keep things fresh.”

Our favorite table at Brant Point Grill is on the Harborview Terrace overlooking the manicured lawn and Nantucket Harbor beyond. It’s more casual than the dining room without sacrificing the elegant touches and attentive service.  During lunch, the sunshine glints on the water, faint laughter of families enjoying Children’s Beach drifts over on the breeze, and guests can watch the boats sail in and out.  As evening approaches, the sunset paints Monomoy in a pink glow before surrendering the sky to moon and stars. With clear sides that can be drawn or dropped and heaters tucked unobstrusively into the awning, the terrace is comfortable during all weather—fair and foul.

The waitstaff in every area of Brant Point Grill are well-trained and professional, and they work together seamlessly.  They’ll guide you through the menu and attend to your needs.  Despite the elegant surroundings, the ambiance is not stuffy.  The staff here will make you feel warmly welcomed and relaxed.

   

Chef Frederick Bisaillon took the helm of Brant Point Grill this January after a decade Off.  He first came to Nantucket in 1995, fresh out of culinary,  and was hired by the White Elephant.  After three summers, Bisaillon felt ready to broaden his horizons, and so he moved to the opposite coast. He spent the next decade traveling, learning, working with top names in the business including Mario Batali, Anthony Bourdain, and Bobby Flay.  At the end of 2008, Chef Bisaillon found himself working for a top hotel in the Bahamas, “managing 10 restaurants and a staff of 180, but I wasn’t cooking anymore...I wanted something smaller where I could touch the food every day.”  When he was contacted by a headhunter who told him of a hotel on Nantucket looking for a chef, he knew it was meant to be: “It was fate...no matter how far away [from Nantucket] you go, it always pulls you back.  I feel like I’m back home, like I never left...I have lost my tan, though.”

Chef Bisaillon’s emphasis on fresh ingredients and his expectations of excellence are evident in every dish.  Top quality meats and fresh local fish, all seasoned right and cooked well are hallmarks of Brant Point Grill.  The chef’s hand can be seen in many details and special touches on the menu, and the Creativities served at dinner reveal his French influences and Caribbean flair.

	The dinner appetizers are a well rounded mix of hot and cold, light and hearty.  Chef Bisaillon’s Charcuterie is something you don’t want to miss! A beautifully presented platter of house-smoked duck breast, salmon seasoned with pastrami spices, folds of salami, a tongue-and-cheek terrine showcasing delicate veal and lamb, and a silky-smooth chicken liver paté that could easily pass as foie with its buttery taste and sweet notes.  Whole grain mustard, grilled slices of baguette, and puckery pickled vegetables accompany.
	The chef prepares two soul-warming soups, both New England staples that are very satisfying on a cool spring evening.  His hearty Portuguese Kale Soup was a table favorite.  The broth is light and flavorful, the kale fresh-tasting and crisp, and the spicy chorizo adds just enough heat to make your taste buds tingle.  Bisaillon’s New England Clam Chowder is the best we’ve had this season!  A recipe the chef has refined over years of cooking, it has impressive depth of flavor.  Velvety but not too thick, the chowder is chock full of clams, potato, onion, celery, and bacon, all diced very small, so one flavor doesn’t overpower the whole.  Fresh kernels of corn add sweet crisp pops, and a hot, fried whole belly clam is the crunchy garnish.  We’re convinced this chowder could handily win the Nantucket Chowder Contest this fall.
	A Nantucket Crab Cake has been on the Brant Point Grill as long as we can remember, but never quite like this!  Chef Bisaillon’s palm-sized version has a delightfully crunchy panko breading and is delectably moist inside.  Gently formed so the large chunks of sweet crab stay intact, the cake is studded with tiny bits of crisp pepper and an accent of lemon brightens the flavor.  It’s served on a chilled relish of grilled corn, red onion, and bell pepper with a thick smear of lemon aioli for dipping
	Another favorite is the Baby Rocket Salad.  The peppery arugula is tossed in a lavender honey vinaigrette, sprinked with crushed walnut brittle small enough to actually cling to the leaves, and served in a chilled bowl with juicy slices of grilled stone fruit.  The salad sparkles with flavor and freshness.
	Entrees at Brant Point Grill is where the moniker of “Steakhouse” hits home.  Selections are simple and a la carte:  each choice showcasing a single ingredient cooked to perfection and full of big flavor.  The Prime New York Steak is an impressively thick twelve ounces, tender and fine flavored, seared and topped with seasoned crumbs.  In a classic move, the chef serves it with a roasted marrow bone, which delighted several members of our party who immediately moved to scoop out the delicacy within.
	In true Steakhouse style, listed on the menu are sauces and sides to be matched to each entree.  For the steak, we like the BPG Steak Sauce with its hint of dijon and balsamic vinegar, though it’s heard to beat the classic well done Bearnaise.  The Mango Mint Chutney or the Orange Gremolata are better with the chicken or the fish. Among the half-dozen sides, we adored the Forrest Mushrooms, a seductively earthy mix of golden oyster, crimini, shiitake, and portobello sauteed with plenty of garlic.  The Steamed Asparagus is done right, the stems peeled back till they rival the tips in tenderness.   And the Onion Rings and Steak Fries are served hot and crisp and not at all greasy.
	One of the Brant Point Grill’s signature dishes is FireCone Salmon, cooked on the custom-made fire cone to impart a rich, woodsmoke flavor, then finished in the oven.  Thick, meaty, and full of flavor, the salmon is crisp top and bottom and medium-rare in the center.  The soft bed of fennel in saffron broth that the salmon is served upon is a pleasant accompaniment, but what makes this dish a standout is the skin. The fish is served skin on, and that salmon skin is crisp as a chip and sprinkled with sea salt.
	Also prepared on the FireCone is the All Natural Chicken Breast Chop.  Two chicken breast halves, each with drumette attached, are grilled on the fire cone and finished off with high heat that leaves the deliciously seasoned skin crisp and the meat moist and delicately tender.  The chicken is served with a single enormous clove of roasted elephant garlic and surrounded by a luscious pool of rich auburn-colored veal reduction.
	It was the Long Island Duckling from the “Creativities” section of the menu that stole the hearts of our team during our visit to Brant Point Grill.  The most satisfying dish on the menu, the duck is served two ways:  in a cassoulet and a sliced breast.  The individually sized cassoulet features meltingly tender duck leg confit prepared in classic French fashion with white beans and aromatics.  The tender breast is marinated in port, honey, orange, anise, and darjeeling tea.  With every bite, the rich taste of the duck and the powerful sweet-smoky spice of the marinade fill your mouth with warm flavor.
	The final course provides the perfect grand finale to a dinner at Brant Point Grill.  The selection includes savory and sweet, light and luxurious.  The Nantucket Cream Pie devised by Chef Bisaillon is a delicous homestyle presentation of moist cake glazed with chocolate, adorned with chocolate shavings, and swimming in vanilla custard.
	Pastry Chef Noel Corwin’s Lemon Tart is a sweet-tart refreshing treat on a platform of crust surrounded by lemon curd and topped with a fresh citrus salad.
	The Brant Point Grill’s “cheese plate” features a “triple cream cheese with attitude.”  The creamy and pungent Red Hawk cheese is served warm with a side of strawberries macerated in Grand Marnier and slices of cranberry nut bread specially made by Daily Breads.
	There is a dessert on the menu simply called “Chocolate” that is a sensuous mix of taste and texture that encompasses all that chocolate can be. Not in the mood for chocolate?  Order it anyway.  Small and carefully constructed, the layers of chocolate include a thin solid base, a soft and sweet hazlenut chocolate ganache, milk chocolate mousse, and dark chocolate with crunchy roasted nibs, and a curl of white chocolate. Brant Point Grill also offers an excellent selection of cognac, scotch, bourbon, port, sherry, madeira to accompany this final course.