We decided to try this restaurant with another couple during Philadelphia's Restaurant Week. This is a great deal if you want to try a new, possibly expensive restaurant for a fixed amount of money. The menu selection was pretty good, but not great. There was about 4 of each, appetizer and main course and 2 deserts. I chose the she-crab soup for a starter, the grouper for the main and a chocolate cake for desert. Overall, not bad. The soup was creamy and tasty but not chock full of chunks of crab the way I would have liked it. The grouper had a Indian overtone to it, which was tasty but often overpowered the taste of the fish and rice. The basmati rice was very tasty but it was not completely cooks and had many hard kernels in it. The desert was quite good a thick, chocolate cake. The location of the restaurant is great. It features incredible views of the city of Philadelphia (19th Floor of the Bellevue) and the service and decor was top notch, but the food was a bit disappointing. The wine selection was huge, with prices ranging from $30 to above $300. Map:

Let's face it, a Japanese buffet is not very common. Typically, an Asian food buffet is chock full of Won Ton soup, General Tsos chicken and egg rolls. But, Minado is quite different. AS you walk in to the expansive dining room, you are quickly whisked away to a seat and asked for drink order from the wait staff. Kim and I ordered drinks and immediately went to take a walk around the immense buffet tables. There is a section for Japanese grill, a large spread of tempura seafood and vegetables, a seafood section full of Blue Claw crabs, King Crab legs, oysters on the half shell and pick-n-peel shrimp. The next set of tables featured fresh salads, seafood combinations and various cold dishes. Lastly, the sashimi, sushi and maki rolls tables featured about 3-4 different types of sashimi (no rice), about 10 different types of sushi (with rice) and about 20 types of maki rolls. All of the sushi was fresh, tasted great and offered lots of different variety; it was not all tuna and salmon. One of the benefits of a sushi buffet is that you can taste different types of fish that you would not normally try. Items like clam, eel, octopus etc are probably not popular with you are forced to purchase an entire roll. But, since you are not locked into anything particular at Minado, you can sample till you are blue in the face. Overall, we had a great meal at Minado. The service was fast and friendly, the food was tasty, fresh and varied and we left quite full, something not often experienced with a Japanese sushi meal. My only complaints would be the price of the meal, $27 a person on the Friday night we went and the overall decor of the restaurant. It felt more like a large hall then an intimate restaurant. This may be more a reflection of the buffet style, where people are inclined to eat longer so you need more tables, but who knows.

Well, another year, another birthday celebration. As my brother and I have gotten older, we have been relegated to a combined birthday celebration dinner out. This year, it was at McCormick & Schmick's. Overall, it was not a bad meal, just not a great meal and certainly not worthy of the price. The highlight of the visit was the semi-private space you are given for celebrations or parties. They are upstairs and you are free to be load and bring gifts, with no concern of disturbing any other guests. My dinner started out with a cup of crab soup, that was pretty good. Nothing earth shattering, but spicy and plenty of crab, so I cannot complain. The table also partook in a raw oyster sampler that was very good. The oysters were fresh, cold and tasty - they were the highlight of the meal. I ordered the monk fish, which was in a brandy sauce. The fish was plain and boring, the sauce did nothing for it. Kim had some tilapia that was coated in a pistachio coating. It was light and tasty, much better then my monk fish. Both my brother and my mother enjoyed the lobster (hey, we were celebrating here!) and it was done to perfection and tasted good. Desert was ordered and two brownie/ice cream sundaes were ordered and I enjoyed it. As for service, the manager came up to us in between appetizers and the meal due to the long delay between the courses. We did not complain, as we were enjoying the conversation and having a good time. But, obviously someone noticed and mentioned it to the manager and he stuck his head in and gave us an update. In addition, I ordered an after-dinner drink that never showed up, but made its way onto the final bill. I mentioned something and the waiter said it was at the bar. Well, I want a drink with my desert, not with my bill. He easily removed the drink from the bill and gave me the drink anyway. The food was just ok and I think we could have done much better at a smaller, less well known sea food restaurant. The price simply did not match the service nor the meal. The overall decor and the perfect semi-private rooms allowed our clan to fully enjoy ourselves. Next time, I think we'll go to Sansom Street Oyster House.