Saturday, August 20, 2011

Sublime Restaurant not so sublime on this visit - Fort Lauderdale

Sublime Restaurant
1431 N. Federal Hwy
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33304
954-615-1431
Open Tuesday-Sunday: 5:30-10 p.m.
Happy Hour at the bar: 5:30-7:30

By Jane Feehan

I can’t count the times I’ve eaten at Sublime and thoroughly enjoyed the concept, food, atmosphere, and gracious hospitality of owner Nanci Alexander, animal rights activist. Ms. Alexander walks the talk, firmly committed to her cause; she donates 100 percent of Sublime’s profits to organizations that promote animal welfare and a vegan lifestyle.

That said, my recent visit to introduce someone to this restaurant – and to vegan dining – backfired. Pot stickers ($5), an appetizer, appeared as if they had been sitting in the kitchen too long. Tough, flat, skimpy - not much larger than 50 cent pieces, these pot stickers kicked things off to a poor start. Then came the main course, Singapore Noodles (about $16) with vegetables. An unappetizing heap (at least a pound) of noodles was delivered with tiny fragments of vegetables scattered about on the edges of the plate. With little or no sauce, the noodles were barely edible.  Fellow diner ordered the Portobello Stack ($19) with spinach, tomato, rosemary and mashed potatoes. Nice ingredients but absolutely tasteless.  This too scored low in presentation.  We skipped desert.

Maybe a new chef is directing the kitchen? Sublime seemed nearly gloomy for a Friday night. BUT, I’ll return; I’ve had too many great meals there not to. I salute Ms. Alexander for her work, which includes founding Animal Rights Foundation of Florida (AARF) and for introducing Fort Lauderdale to ambitiously delicious vegan cuisine. She wasn’t there on my last visit; maybe that was the problem.



 Tags: Fort Lauderdale dining, vegan dining in Fort Lauderdale, vegetarian restaurants in Fort Lauderdale