View Restaurant Lounge

Address: 
Calhoun Beach Club, 2730 W. Lake St., Mpls., 612-920-5000, viewcalhoun.com

The Scene
Located in the former Dixie’s Calhoun space on the ground level of the Calhoun Beach Club, this hot spot affords a couple of spectacular views. One of them is the panorama of Lake Calhoun. It can be enjoyed from either the outdoor sidewalk café or through the sweeping floor-to-ceiling lakeside windows that frame the collection of high-tops, upholstered booths, and walk-around black faux-granite bar that anchors the spacious, contemporary, high-decibel cocktail lounge. The other view is of the lithe, hard-bodied, and stunningly dressed young professional crowd that has quickly made View into a summer mating ground. For a more subdued and laid-back option, there’s the elevated Palm Dining Room, so named for the small, planted palms set on risers along a row of banquettes.

Our Take
Dining at just about any bar-restaurant these days is predictable. There will be several ubiquitous bar snacks such as calamari (here, it’s lightly battered and mingled with hot peppers), coconut shrimp (View’s spunky dipping sauce is a standout), and skewers of grilled meat (pretty pedestrian), an assortment of salads and pastas for light eaters, and some “signature” entrées of beef, chicken, and fish. View conforms to the mold. Its food is competently prepared and attractively plated, but everything is too cautiously seasoned. Whether it was bland Asian chicken on skewers, lifeless angel hair puttanesca, or sauceless flank steak, I wanted to cry out, “Where’s the taste?” The kitchen deserves kudos for offering a variety of selections targeted at health-conscious diners. These include a vegetable spring roll that’s a bit too heavy on bean-thread noodles, a ground-turkey burger stuffed with a spinach-and-sun-dried-tomato mixture, Moroccan-flavored grilled tofu, and a special menu section that includes a smoked chicken breast, a fish of the day, and flank steak paired with a choice of a fresh green salad, steamed vegetable, or fresh fruit. The service crew is well-trained, attentive, and does a commendable job of managing pacing. But View is a place more notable for its views than for its food.

Practicing What He Preaches
The man in the kitchen is chef Joe Gentile, a veteran who has spent time cooking at the Decathlon Club, Rudolph’s, and, most recently, Dixie’s Calhoun. Along the way, his weight ballooned. So last year. Gentile started on a diet that emphasized smaller portion size and healthier ingredients. The result was a weight loss of close to 100 pounds and the decision to offer a menu of lighter fare for those with similar agendas.