ZED451

Closed as of ⁶⁄₁

Ode to Zed451 (2008 – 2011):
It is with a heavy heart that I report the passing of one of my most favorite restaurants, ZED451.
For 3 brilliant years, this fine restaurant served fantastic food, great service and creative and brilliant drinks to Boca’s Mizner Park. It was an oasis of happiness where my family would celebrate special occasions and could always count on ZED not to disappoint our guests that we introduced to this place. The announcement on Zed’s website only stated that they were closing and thanked its visitors for their patronage, but did not give a reason for its closing.
Regardless of the reasons, all I know is that one of the best restaurants in Boca is gone.
We will miss you Zed. :(

The best of the churrascaria-​style, carve meat at your table kind of places in South Florida. Period. We have eaten at the big boys, Texas De Brazil and Fogo de Chao, and while they are excellent, ZED451, which tells you it’s not Brazilian (it’s not), is the work of culinary master chefs in the style of eating.
The cold tables are filled with exotic salads and tastes. I particularly liked the plum salad with a spicy-​sweet yoghurt dressing. The meat table is usually well appointed with meats and cheeses, and there are always two very tasty soups to sample. The desserts, if you have room for them, are amazing, as they have one of the best chefs in that category too.
The meats are the star though, and here ZED451 provides top quality and great flavors. The buttermilk sirloin is exquisite. They serve an amazing venison, and there is always some exceptional chicken, sausage and fish or crabcake that drifts over to your table.
The ambience is upscale, hip, and intimate. The floating candles in the middle of a bar seating area in the serving area are wicked cool.
That being said, I have to qualify this as a special event. ZED451 is extremely expensive. Worth every penny, but it will consume a bunch of pennies. You can spend less by just coming for the salad bar, but if you go for the full enchilada, be prepared to spend at least $ 60/​pp for dinner and a drink. More for wine, multiple drinks and dessert.
Also, if you come in a group, be warned that they now take a 20% tip off the top, good service or no. I’m not recommending it for groups because you can be looking at a huge bill for a party of 7 – 8.
Great bar with its own ambience. You could come here just for a drink or two and be delighted.

It is clear they are trying to make an upscale version of the typical «brazilian meat on a stick» place. And although the décor, price and service reflected an upscale tone — the stingy meat offerings made me feel like they were trying to rip me off. For $ 44, you need to have PRIME cuts of beef on that stick — not «rump roast» for heaven’s sake! And I don’t care how much crunchy salt/​herb rub you put on «sirloin», it’s still just sirloin.
They did also offer duck, lamb, venison, salmon, snapper and pork — but all of them were very so-​so in their presentation. I’m not sure fish could EVER be appropriately prepared «on a stick” — both of them were grossly over cooked.
Also, I ordered a «chocolate crème brûlée cake» — and my companion ordered the «caramel tart». For both of these, the presentation was very nice, but the taste was not. I didn’t even finish mine, prefering instead to take him it home for my (less than picky) son. (UPDATE: the next morning, the «less than picky» son said, «Mom, that chocolate cake sucked.)
So, all in all, this place was a disappointment for me. I will happily spend the money, when the experience (including the quality and taste of the food) is superior. But, this place fell vastly short of superior.

Super nice location and well designed space.
The salad bar was not so great. Three areas of exactly the same thing.
The guys that bring around the food are scarce and when they do come to your table they give you a tiny little piece of meat. If you ask for two pieces you get «a look»
The food that I had was good but I left HUNGRY!

In town on business, our group ate ay Zed451. Beautiful area of town (where the pretty people go to show). Décor was very nice, trendy and modern. Our wait staff was very attentive. Nice assortment of salads, meats and cheeses. Wines seemed to be somewhat overpriced, even for this type of restaurant. As the food started to come out I liked the assortment. Liked the mahi mahi, the pork belly although it was a little too fatty even for pork belly, loved the Morrocan chicken. The steak coming out rare (barely even warm) was not well received.
Overall the group enjoyed the meal and the experience but I thought it was very good, middle of the road based on my expectations.

So here I am with a bad case of insomnia and decide to write a couple of reviews and check back on the ZED 451 page to see if there have been any more disheartened souls who share my opinions of this place. I scrolled all the way down only to find my review had been «filtered». Was it something I said?
However, I read a quality review from David R. that pretty much sums up this place. If you really want to know what dining here is like, read the reviews from David R., Thomas H.W. and Joey E.
Don’t get me wrong, I wish the folks at ZED451 all the success in the world, but for some reason it really gets under my skin that a place that is so beautifully lousy gets such good reviews.

So, here’s what I’ve come to learn about Unilocal reviews: you can’t trust ‘em. Right now, you’re probably wondering, «How can that be?» It’s simple: we all bring to each dining experience a wide variety of history and expectations. Some folks are impressed by décor, some by service, others by the, gulp, food. Dining with your moody spouse (not mine! Just saying…) can turn a five star restaurant into a one-​star agony. A mediocre restaurant can see like a five-​star joint when you’re with friends and having a great time well-​lubricated by the drink-​o-​the-​day (many).
That being said, look at the reviews here for this over-​priced rug joint:
Greshka P. really liked it and gives it four stars. She really liked the service, the soup and the sweets. (Greshka, what’s with the «whilst»? You a Brit?)
Joey E. called it like he (and I) saw it: an over-​priced rodizio wanabe. Good call my brother.
Tim F. I just don’t get five stars. OK, you didn’t get ptomThe best place to eat in Boca? I thought that was Abe and Loiue’s, or maybe the Boca Diner. Oh well, perhaps Tim is a secret partner…
M R gets it right. The rest are sort of middling, each person focusing on another aspect. Some like the bar, some like the variety, etc. Almost no one discussed the quality of the food.
So, you just can’t tell — stars all over the place. But here’s my take from dinner with friends last night:
Environment: my daddy used to say, «You can’t eat the tablecloth.» and that applies to Zed, as well. Very fancy/​moderne interior, which translates to lots of right angles, glass, sharp corners, etc. And all this costs lots of coin. And all this coin comes from you, the faithful diner.
‘Nuff about the joint itself. On to the food. It’s very simple: this is rodizio manqué — something is definitely missing, and that’s the food. There was just so little of it! And what there was was lazily seasoned. This is no Churrascaria Plataforma, or even Seabra’s in Newark.
The service was annoying; our server was like a cop: there’s never one around when you need one. He was either hovering or absent — pick one.
The vaunted salad bar was just so-​so and the famous tomato bisque soup was tepid and over-​seasoned.
All in all, a disappointing outing at a second-​rate restaurant.

We recently had or company dinner here. Party of 21 people, we were accommodated in a private room. As soon as we all arrived we were told the «system» of the restaurant. First drinks. I ordered a specialty of them called «Apple Rosemary Tonic», this is gin, tonic, rosemary and apples floating, reminding you of a refreshing Sangria. They have other signature drinks, plus full bar to make whatever you like. Most impressive are their walls of wine, I’m sure you’ll find the perfect one.
After you have your drink of choice, you move on to their «food bar» where you’ll find soups, vegetables, pasta, potatoes, and so many more appetizers, and side dishes for their next step. But before that, I must tell you to try their Tomato soup — absolutely delicious!
Now, when you’re ready, grab a stone from your table and place it next to your plate, this way they’ll know you’re ready for the main course. In will come the server with different cuts of meat, chicken and fish. Our company had them bring out everything available — definitely more than I could it but — I did try a lot of them.
Here’s what I recommend:
The Romp Roast is a must have — juicy, deliciously seasoned.
The Moroccan Chicken — spicy but incredibly good.
Salmon — another you must try. Very simple, fresh taste.
The Buttermilk Sirloin — favorite one amongst many at the table.
The ones I didn’t like:
Pork Belly — terribly fatty.
Tempura Mahi — too dry
The other thing I would recommend is sticking to drinks the bartenders usually know. I asked one of them to surprise us with a purple color shot and it went wrong. But I really appreciate that he tried to please me.
Once we all had all we could eat, we were presented with assorted mini cupcakes, brownies, and more, beautifully presented. Was able to only try one, the carrot cupcake, and I would order it again. Not dry, perfect size, cream cheese frosting perfect, and just enough, not overpowering the cake.
Staff was amazing, from the one we met outside, making his way to start his shift, telling us a bit of the restaurant until we got to the door, to our servers who joked with us, helped us deciding on drinks and were very attentive.
Now that you’ve read this, don’t just take my word, go try it for yourself.

Located in the ritzy, trendy area known as Mizner Park in Boca Raton, Zed 451 looks chic from the outside. Once you step through the door, expect the same, fancy and elegant look that greeted you from beyond the entrance. That’s about the only saving grace of this restaurant.
Anyone that knows me knows that I absolutely LOVE Rodizios. For those that don’t know, a Rodizio is a type of Brazilian restaurant where the servers (Gauchos) bring endless amounts of food (typically steak) directly to your seat, completely alleviating you from having to do any more exercise than lifting your tongs to grab the next piece of colon-​destroying meaty goodness.
While this place is considered a Rodizio, I expected a little more frequency from the servers. My plate was empty almost the entire time. At other Brazilian steakhouses, namely Chima in Las Olas and Flamma in North Miami Beach, I consistently find myself in a losing battle to try and create room on my plate for the onslaught of various food items making their way to my table. Compared to Zed 451, I’ve seen more food handed out at a soup kitchen. I felt like a starving child, practically begging for the next morsel of food. I began accepting every piece of food that came by our table (even cuts of meat that I would not normally choose). I was left so hungry, that I felt like I would just take anything I could get. And at a glorified all-​you-​can-​eat-​buffet (which is basically what a Rodizio is), that is NOT how you should feel. Zed 451 is even worse than Texas de Brazil in this respect. I should never have my wine glass refilled more often than the food on my plate.
The selection was terrible: I got sirloin, mahi mahi, and sausage almost exclusively. Rib eye came around twice (once because I asked the Gauchos to go and get it), chicken came around once, and I really didn’t get anything else.
Our waiters were decent; they came by every so often to make sure we were okay. Now, we’d reserved a private room, and I suspect that is the ONLY reason they came by as often as they did (though the Gauchos seemed to do the complete opposite). The private room was really nice: Couches built in along the walls, and a central table that was wide as well as long, so that everyone could talk to everyone, all set in front of a wall of wine racks. I was very pleased with the ambiance of the entire restaurant, as well as the room where we were seated. Even the look of the salad bar was very cool, and inviting. Which brings me to my next point:
The salad bar was terrible. It looks very fancy, with several tables arranged in a circular configuration. However, most of the tables contain the exact same food items. You get a much better selection at ANY other Brazilian steakhouse (yes, including my much-​hated Texas de Brazil). It was that disappointing.
The only reason I gave Zed 451 a higher rating than Texas de Brazil is because the environment and look of everything is stellar. You get a good feeling the moment you walk through the door. I wanted this place to be good, but it definitely failed me. However, all of the things that were lackluster at this place (selection, service, variety, quality meats) are all things that can be corrected without too much trouble. Texas de Brazil lacks all of those things IN ADDITION TO lacking a nice atmosphere.
For the prices at Zed 451, I would skip this place whenever possible. However, I can honestly admit I was not surprised. The quality of every single restaurant I have tried in Mizner Park (with the glowing exception of III Forks Prime Steakhouse) has been incredibly poor thus far. It seems people enjoy the prestige of simply being in Mizner Park far above the quality of food. I am sad to say I will probably not return to Zed 451, unless a family member insists (and even then I will make an attempt at saving them the pain). If you want a Brazilian steakhouse, I highly recommend trying Chima or Flamma instead.

I definitely liked this place very much. What i liked most about this place was the interior. Unbelievable! Their main wine room is all glass, with a wooden table underneath a huge, half-​moon wine glass rack that holds wine glasses in sort of a rounded shape from completely vertical to completely horizontal, very very cool. Their outside seating area is very nice and would be perfect for the approaching winter months. The bar is both inside and outside, so you can reach the same tender at either convenience. They have a few private rooms for parties, one is for a 6-​top only and is right in the middle of the restaurant. I would suggest to anyone that you take a look at ZED’s website before going in there, get an idea of what this place looks like and get an idea of the menu too. This place is cooler then most other Brazilian steak houses because they give you way more choices then the others… ZED has an a la carte menu and a few options for the all you can eat option such as both the salad bar (which is awesome) and the meat/​fish portion for 44, or just the salad bar for 22… very cool and cost friendly… Unlike Chima where it’s $ 50 per person and thats all. Definitely check this place out!
Oh and their happy hour is 5:30 — 7:30, and its half off drinks and bar food. and it starts again at 9:00-close!

Visit of April 27. The Harvest Table is a work of art, except that many of the sauces weren’t consistently replenished. We went on a Tuesday evening and the restaurant was at 25% capacity but running on a skeleton crew. The couscous with aioli was the best of the Harvest Table, while the cauliflower with toasted pecan dressing was superb. The only member of the Harvest Table that needed flavor was the rice vermicelli with tofu. All the other flavors were exquisite and complemented each other.
The dilemma was with the proteins (and our waitress disappeared a few times). The chefs bring out the skewers of narrow cuts of various meats and they were all very good, particularly the buttermilk steak. But the cuts of meat are so small (1 – 2 ounces) and the chefs only dispense one at a time, it took two and a half hours to fill up in this all-​you-​can-​eat concept. It reminded me of the scene in Monty Python’s «The Meaning of Life» when the waiter kept asking the fat man if he wanted one more wafer thin bite of chocolate mint… but, in Zed’s case, the wafer-​thin servings scene was repeated over and over. The concept needs more generous portions so the people can get their fill and get on with their night. Beautiful and well-​built place nonetheless.

The food gets 5 stars from me. Endless variety of meats & salad dishes. Must go on an empty stomach!
As for the service, it can be better. The 2 times I’ve been there, our actual servers barely checked on us. Still highly recommend this resto especially on special occasions. The décor is lovely too!

To err is human. But to turn that error into a lifelong raving fan is what Zed 451 did today. I was so taken by the food, the service and ambiance that I wanted to ring in the New Year at Zed. When they lost my reservation and didn’t even call back when they promised to see if they could squeeze us in, my partner insisted that we would never go back.
Today we went for my birthday celebration because I really do love the place and she acquiesced on behalf of my birthday and our brunch was on the house when we shared our story of New Years woe. Not just the brunch but also the mimosas and valet parking and all! I felt like such a VIP that we came home and made reservations for 2 weeks from today to treat our friends in town from Blowing Rock, NC.
I’m a raving fan where a disappointed client used to be. Way to go Sarah! My 2,000 Twitter followers and Facebook friends will all soon know this story of transformation.

Zed… Where’s zed… zed’s dead honey, zed’s dead. (guess this movie line)
Excellent just finished Xmas dinner. We came at the open to start early and beat the rush. We left about 6:45pm and things started to heat up. What the missus and our neighbor liked was the attentive service. The chefs were accomidating to my neighbors special dietery needs and the meats were superbly prepared.
The vegetables were excellent. Got some great ideas for my next party. Thanks Tim for this reco. The butter cotch brioche bread pudding desert was to die for.

Zed (referring to «zero» if you’re in england) 451, is… a very shi shi location where you can blow a good bit of money on a very, very mediocre meal. The last time I felt this way was when I purchased an overcooked burger for $ 15.00 at a U.S. Open concession stand and walked away only to realize they forgot the cheese.
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. Here we go!
The Good:
Zero 451– oops, I mean Zed451, is eye candy. It is beautifully decorated with a drop dead gorgeous bar and outside seating area and it’s patrons are mostly young, wealthy, attractive, and if they go eat there more than once — stupid. The location, Mizner Park, doesn’t get much better. Zed is forced to compete with Chops, Tru Luck, Max’s Grill, GiGi’s, and the Soba Room (a favorite of mine) among others. Short of going to South Beach, it is a place to be seen if you are looking for that type of flair.
Some of the food, I emphasize «some» entries on the appetizer/​salad bar, are tasty. The bar that counts (the one with the pretty bottles behind it) will make you a very stiff, but expensive drink. Oh yes… and the servers are very polite — but that’s to be expected isn’t it?
(Pregnant pause) I can’t think of any other good things to say.
The Bad:
I’ve eaten here twice– I was disappointed both times and yes, eating here twice makes me stupid). I would have been furious, except someone else picked up the tab so I was only disappointed. The main courses that I had were overcooked and it was nearly impossible to get your hands on venison or any of the more exotic fare being carried around on skewers. At one point I waited by the kitchen door like a well-​dressed ninja, and personally escorted a server with skewers of venison to our table. Initially he resisted but subtle threats of bodily harm worked. He generously carved us each about 2oz of overcooked meat. I did get one rare piece of steak with a nice fat lump. I put the fat lump in the potted plant near our table; they seem apprehensive to carve you more if there is anything on your plate. As for overcooked salmon and chicken? All U-​Can-​Eat Baby! You will be visited by the chicken skewer fairy 5 to1 over any type of steak. The less expensive the offering, the more you will see it. I’m really glad they don’t serve SPAM.
It was a long, dragged out struggle to enjoy anything but dry salmon, chicken and occasionally beef. Thank goodness, they have a great bar (I mentioned that didn’t I) and some decent single malt scotches.
The Ugly:
If Zed451 were reasonably inexpensive I wouldn’t be so harsh. If Zed451 were moderately priced, I’d be a bit less harsh. But, since Zed451 is no bargain, I’d like to drop kick the owner in the jewels.
Overcharging a person for poorly prepared food should be a sin. If it is, these owners are doomed. Quite simply, cooking food in this fashion is a mistake, eating it this way is a bigger mistake. Ok so it’s kind of fun and different — once. Let me offer this insight… In order for salmon to stay on a skewer being toted about a dining room you have to overcook it. Period. There will be no succulent medium-​rare. When you walk around with a skewer of beef, carving off chunks for people what happens? First you have little or no ability to serve a particular doneness, second it bleeds out unless you’re one of the first to be served. Oh baby, do I love my meat overcooked and dry. There is a reason that some of the finest steaks (Delmonico, t-​bone) are served best, medium rare or on the bone. It keeps them juicy! Does Peter Luger’s serve NY Strip cooked on a skewer and carved stingily tableside? No. Why not? Because it would ruin it. Zed451 doesn’t understand that concept. Their concept is to WOW you with décor and tableside carving so that you’ll overlook the shortcomings of the food itself. It works on many people.
The Conclusion:
I won’t go here again, even for free… Ok, maybe for free, but you’ll have to get me drunk first and promise to cuddle afterwards.
If you want a good steak there are so many great places to go that the list is ridiculous. I’d start with your own bbq grill and a 1 ½″ bone-​in rib eye with nothing more than salt and cracked pepper, cooked to 130 deg., rested for ten minutes then topped with a spoon of rendered beef fat or herb butter just before serving. Oh, and a cold beer of your choice as a side dish.
If you love table side carving service, Zed451 isn’t on the list of places to go. There are a few Brazilian steak houses that miraculously pull it off, but Zed451 falls flat on it’s face.
If you wan’t be be overcharged for a mediocre, lengthy dining experience that will leave you frustrated, make a reservation. Granted, you will enjoy the décor, but it’s so nice inside, the disappointment of the food is all the more poignant.
But for the décor and a good bar, I would have given it one star. I still feel a bit guilty giving it two.
You’ve been warned.

A good dining experience. Definitely variety Galour!
The staff is professional.
The food is seemingly more of a mix than the restaurant wants to address. It really is a Brazilian Rodizio with accents of Asian, Latin American, American and Continental foods. The appetizer bar is really enjoyable, you are not limited to one simple order, be careful here and not get too full. I recommend the sauteed mushrooms or mini-​blue cheese wedge salads. As one reviewer posts, it also has a good diversity of cheeses from a simple cheddar to a British Stilton (strong).
The only draw back is that the location is in Boca Raton A.k.a. the ‘fourth’ borough of New York.

Very cool place although dropped a star because it is a bit pricier then I would value it at. Super cool décor and archtiecture/​design inside … looked to be a nice lounge area outdoors too for drinks and appetizers.
Friendly staff and extremely attentive service.
Food was great and tons of it. Unique concept but may not be for everyone given that you have to get up and serve yourself for the soup, salads (not your average iceberg types) and antipasta.
The chefs visit your table with lots of different proteins cooked a variety of ways … tried some things I normally wouldn’t have eaten!
IF you are looking for a quiet dinner out, this is probably not the place but if you a re looking for something fun and different, this is your place

I’ve been to the Chicago outpost of Zed a number of times, so I’m naturally using that as my measuring stick. With the notable exception of the hostesses, the new Boca version of Zed doesn’t really hit the mark.
The hostesses, while maybe not quite as attractive as their city peers, are far, far more pleasant. They took very good care of us… now, the restaurant wasn’t full (as opposed to Chicago, which is perma-​packed), so this might have been the result of boredom.
The rest of the experience was a bit off, however. Service was slow and slightly disorganized («I need a new fork» is a request that requires immediate attention), and the gauchos spent more time chatting up Bocahontases than circulating food. Said food was pretty tasty, but when you’re eating what amounts to Brazillian tapas, it works better if courses aren’t separated by 10 minute waits.
Growing pains all, perhaps, but I’m not going to be in a rush back.

I went here for dinner the other day… It just opened in Mizner Park… It is very good. But make sure you are hungry. The décor is amazing its a very stylish place. Everything is Grilled and Everything Tastes so good… a prix-​fixe dinner includes unlimited choices from the Harvest Tables with Italian meats and French cheeses. You also get access to all the meats. the chef is prepares different ones daily I believe… from Lamb, Chicken, Scallops, Short Ribs a huge variety. Then you also get access to all the salads and soups and little side dishes that you want… And then finally a huge assortment of deserts… Its well worth it… I recommend checking it out but only if you are very hungry and want amazing food…