Mountain Views News          Saturday, October 19, 2013

A9

FOOD & DRINK

Mountain Views-News Saturday, October 19, 2013 


DELIGHTFUL STEAK AT THE ROYCE/ LANGHAM

I MUST be living right! How else would I get an invitation to check out The Royce, the steak house 
at the Langham in Pasadena? I’ll call it an offer that no one should refuse! Upon walking in you 
will pass through their wine cellar, once seated, my server invited me to take a quick tour of the 
“wine cave”. Their complete wine list is so extensive that you would need all night to get through 
this dissertation! Lucky for me, on the other side of the menu, there were suggested wines that best 
compliment the current menu, well over twenty wines by the glass. While waiting for my dinner 
companion, I selected a Nicolas Feuillatte Champagne, ($20); my server brought the whole bottle 
over and opened it at the table, another nice touch, no reason for this critic to ask, “Is it fresh or 
not”. While sipping my pre–meal bubbly I took note of the incredible view of the acres of horseshoe 
gardens at the Langham, the tables are set up very smartly in half booths with pillows and seats on one 
side, very Manhattan-chic, I must say.

Steakhouses, in general, or “upper crest” 
Steakhouses in general, often follow the same 
pattern: great steaks, a la carte appetizers and 
vegetables. The prices at the Royce seemed to fall in line with other houses such as Arnie Morton’s, 
The Palm and Mastro’s. My 
objective was to ask as many 
questions that I possibly 
could, the most important 
being; “what’s the difference 
between The Royce, and all 
the other aforementioned 
special occasion steakhouse? 
Getting past the fantastic 
view, and the so far great 
service, I wanted to get to 
the “meat of the matter”, yes 
I went there! Chef Perry 
Pollaci, pointed out the 
obvious, the Prime Cuts 
are from the Moyer farm 
in Pennsylvania and are all 
grain fed, (grain fed didn’t 
start until after WWII) I was 
impressed. The chef insisted 
that I try the Rib Eye hailing 
from just north of us in Brawley Ca. All natural, and all cooked 
on a wood fire over white oak. Hmm… now, we’re talking! 
General manager Matt Nathanson explained that there are many restaurants that use a double 
broiler to cook steaks, but only a handful who have mastered the art of wood fired grill. The result 
was fabulous, and cooked to perfection; I kept my knife and my fork moving as if I had discovered 
gold. In addition, a Porterhouse 32oz steak is big enough to share. For you seafood lovers, GM Matt 
Nathanson told me that the Grilled Hawaiian Swordfish was a so fresh, it might just kiss you back! 

Working backwards to go forward, the appetizers 
are on the same level as the entrees, I was 
extremely pleased with Dungeness Crab Cakes 
($18), remember I’m from Maryland, and am 
able to spot an impersonator at 50 paces! This 
Dungeness Crab Cake passed the Dills test with 
flying colors! The Maine Lobster Bisque ($12) 
was full of lobster meat; in fact, I shamelessly 
asked the waiter did he put in extra just for me? 
“No, that’s how it comes” The star of stars was 
the Wagyu Beef Carpaccio ($18) simply great, 
and if I hadn’t ordered two other appetizers, I 
would have asked for seconds. For Vegetables, 
we shared the truffled spinach, and our potatoes 
were hand cut French fries ($7) yes, hand cut just 
like Islands does them! While these showed promise, I would’ve liked to have seen a traditional 
French cut, these were just too short. However, all and all a fantastic dinner with wonderful service. 

My final question to The Royce was… “How’s Business”? Matt replied, “while we have always been 
proud of our previous restaurants and award-winning chefs, we now have a steak house that we are 
happy to share with our guests and day visitors alike, In other words great!!!”

Fun little tidbits: All bread is delivered each morning fresh from the La Brea Bakery. There is an 
Ace Spades Champagne for $600, never had it, would love to. No room for dessert, we were stuffed. 
Closed Mondays. Dills Grade: B +

The Royce Steak House Langham Hotel, Reservations suggested (626) 568-3900

1401 S Oak Knoll Pasadena

CHICKEN PAPRIKASH

TABLE FOR TWO by Peter Dills

thechefknows@yahoo.com

INGREDIENTS

Kosher salt 

6 slices bacon, diced 

1 medium onion, chopped 

1 green bell pepper, chopped 

1/4 cup all-purpose flour 

2 tablespoons paprika 

1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram 

1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut in half 

2 cups low-sodium chicken broth 

8 ounces egg noodles 

1/2 cup sour cream 

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

DIRECTIONS

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a separate pot over medium heat, 
2 minutes. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook 3 more minutes. Combine the flour, paprika, 
marjoram and 1 teaspoon salt in a large bowl; add the chicken and toss to coat. 

Push the bacon and vegetables to one side of the pot and increase the heat to medium high. Add the 
chicken and any remaining flour mixture to the other side and cook, turning, until browned, about 6 
minutes. Stir together the chicken, bacon and vegetables and cook 2 more minutes. Add the chicken 
broth and bring to a boil. Stir, then reduce the heat to medium low. Cover and simmer until the 
chicken is almost cooked through, about 10 more minutes. Meanwhile, add the noodles to the boiling 
water and cook as the label directs; drain. 

Uncover the pot with the chicken, increase the heat to high and cook 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to 
low, stir in the sour cream and parsley and cook 2 more minutes. Season with salt. Serve over the 
noodles. 


Chef Perry Pollaci


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