No one, apparently, thought this part through. Never mind that customers coming for dinner aren't going to want to sit single file as they eat — when I sit down for a meal with friends, I want to sit down with my friends. The big problem is the tall wooden divider that separates the bar from the line. If it didn't already block your view of the kitchen, then the plates stacked on top of it (the plates on which food is served, upon which people sitting at the bar could breathe/cough upon) most certainly would. I guess in the end the point is moot, since not once in my many visits did I see anyone sitting at that bar. It's just one big piece of wasted real estate in a restaurant that doesn't have much to begin with.
I feel bad knocking this place, because it's obvious owners Gene Playter and Scott Helm (formerly of Clematis' Samba Room) are really trying. And I really want to like Gratify more than I do, which has to say something for what they've envisioned. If only the pair would lose their reliance on trendy small plates and focus on simple, comforting food, I think Gratify could be a hit.
Joe Rocco
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Gratify, 125 Datura St., West Palm Beach. Open for dinner from Monday through Wednesday 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m., Thursday through Saturday 11:30 a.m. to 3 a.m., and Sunday 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Call 561-833-5300, or
click here.
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A special of blackened local snapper I had on my last visit proved as much. The dinner-sized plate was loaded with two perfectly cooked, Cajun-spiced fillets of flaky white fish. Each was perched on top of a big helping of Louisiana-style dirty rice that was so imbued with tomato and spices it was like a Southern-fried version of creamy risotto. Best of all, the entire dish was just $18. It wasn't mind-blowing, but if Gratify served nothing but this snapper, I'd be there at the bar six days a week, sucking down pints of Arrogant Bastard between bites.
And maybe a seventh, too, for the prime sirloin steak, which at $20 for a whale of a portion is just as good a buy. For dessert, I'd do the house take on a grilled cheese ($10), two picture-perfect slices of Texas toast oozing with white Vermont cheddar. Alongside it is a cup of tomato soup so creamy-thick and chunky it makes Campbell's look like Army rations.
Now that's a gratifying dish — even if it does come with a side of bad potato chips. I really hope Gratify can fix those too. Hiding somewhere behind those burnt ridges is a pretty good restaurant.
