Hotel restaurants will surprise you. Sometimes they're insultingly slipshod and indifferent; other times, you can discover a real find, as was the case recently.

It was lunchtime, two days before Christmas, and we were scoping the two restaurants at the Embassy Suites hotel, deciding which one best suited the nature of this column – that is, casual.

Doing our mini-tour, we noticed two things: We were the sole restaurant customers, and a visit out back verified that it was too cold to eat on the patio that overlooks the Tower Bridge.

The Tower Bridge Bistro's menu looked more upscale (Tuscan shellfish marinara, $17) than the Marketplace Cafe's menu (spicy barbecued chicken sandwich, $9), though there is overlap of some items, and all the dishes come out of the same kitchen.

Plus, the bistro's dining room looked more formal than the cafe's. Diners must deal with actual menus at the bistro, whereas the cafe's menu is posted above the cash register at the order counter. We're talking appetizers (coconut shrimp), salads (apple-pear haystack with pecans and goat cheese), sandwiches (burgers, grilled cheese), pizza, pasta and an intriguing 20-garlic-cloves rotisserie chicken.

We chose the cafe, which was well-arranged with comfortable chairs and tables, and merry with playful lantern-chandeliers.

My lunch pal Ann and I split a big bowl of minestrone soup topped with freshly grated Parmesan ($9), a margherita pizza (basil pesto and marinara sauce, fresh basil, sliced fresh tomato and mozzarella, to reflect the colors of the Italian flag, $10), grilled portobello mushroom sandwich ($9) and a prime rib French dip au jus ($11). Sandwiches come with fresh fruit, coleslaw or french fries.

I don't particularly like minestrone, but I ordered it because the counter person mentioned it several times and we wondered why. As it turned out, this was a marvelous dish in three ways: the flavors, the preparation of its numerous ingredients and the unique style in which they were served. I won't spoil the surprise, but definitely give it a try.

The fire-baked pizza showed off its fresh ingredients well, though the crust wasn't as crisp as it looked to be. After a while, it got a bit doughy. Still, the pie was a more-than-good package.

What impressed us most were the portobello and French dip sandwiches. The dark mushroom was moist and thick, arriving on a toasted ciabatta roll smeared with tangy basil pesto and topped with fresh spinach, tomato and provolone.

"This is the most creative one I've had," said Ann, who has sampled a lot of them at restaurants around town. "The pesto is the perfect addition."

The accompanying bowl of fresh fruit was certainly refreshing – sweet watermelon, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, boysenberries and pineapple.

We opted for the excellent French dip on crunchy-and-soft grilled rye bread instead of the suggested Italian roll. A stack of tender, thinly cut prime rib gooed up with melted Swiss cheese was stuffed between the hearty slices of bread.

The sandwich was made better by dipping it into the jus, a golden liquid awash in flavor and chunky with slices of sautéed mushrooms. A follow-up phone call revealed the jus is made from "boiling down the liquids" produced by roasting veal bones and vegetables together. The French dip sandwich was the most well-balanced version I've tasted. The house-made coleslaw was crisp, cold and a perfect match.

Call The Bee's Allen Pierleoni, (916) 321-1128.