text: Went back to VT last night to meet a friend, and the food, service and atmosphere was just as good if not better than my first trip here! \n\nFirst important tip: Wednesday is HALF OFF WINE night! Ya HOO! There are some exceptions on their \"higher end\" stash, but I can live with the other choices. So I ordered a Meomi Pinot Noir, and for half off, the bottle only came to like $20 or so! GREAT Deal since that's about what it is in the stores (yes I know, but I've come to grips with the dreaded price doubling of wine in restaurants). \n\nSo to start, my friend recommended the freshly made chips with ranch sauce. Perfectly crispy, a little salt, and yummy ranch dressing. Spot on. Personally I would have liked a TAD more salt on them, but no major complaints.\n\nSo I've seen their steak menu and after a LONG, HARD workout, I convinced my body that I need PROTEIN to feed those muscles of mine.......my brain fought back but the muscles won! So I ordered the 10oz Filet, cooked medium rare (of course - I'm not a fan of shoe leather), and opted for their cognac cream sauce. I make a killer Au Poivre with Congna Cream sauce at home, so I admit to being a little snobby when it comes to this sauce. Quite frankly mine IS better, but this one was pretty good. I'd recommend the Bernaise Butter over the Filet though.....that will be my next choice. \n\nFor my side I chose the Gourmet Mac and Cheese and the Spinach. Both were excellent! The Mac & Cheese was very good as the outside was crispy (i.e., slightly burned) and I LOVE THAT! My only addition would be to add a dash of Truffle Oil. But that's just me......I'm a Truffle Oil fool. The spinach was cooked perfectly as it was sauteed in olive oil and garlic, with the requisite amount of wilting yet maintained a good firm texture. \n\nOK so I've talked about the sauce, but have been remiss to describe the FILET! One word: PERFECTION! The quality of the beef was excellent (Prime???) but it's the way it was prepared that was awesome. The outside was crispy due to the apparent high heat oven yet the inside was literally MELT IN YOUR MOUTH tender! And as you can see in the photos, it WAS cooked perfectly to Medium Rare. All this really needed was a little butter on top (again recommend the Bernaise Butter) and it was truly superb! Coming from a Beef town like Chicago, I am singing this restaurants high and well-deserved praise!\n\nAll in all this was a GREAT meal! Very reasonably priced for the quality of food served, and the service is always very, very good. \n\nKudos to the Management Team at VT! Don't know if that's recently changed or what given some of the pooer reviews from the past. But this is my thrid time here and all three times, each has been FIVE STAR EXPERIENCE!\n\nBravo!