Diving into the Columbus Social Marketing Scene at M by Cameron Mitchell

Taste Casting is an ingenious new company that harnesses the influence of socially networked individuals to spread the word about restaurants. The TasteCasting team enjoys a complimentary tasting, and then gets to work, armed with an assortment of digital cameras, Flip camcorders, Blackberries and laptops. The TasteCasting team broadcasts about their experience to their friends and acquaintances via blogs, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Whrrl, Flickr, and countless other of the latest social media tools. And before you get all jealous, you should know that Taste Casting is not limited to Columbus. They also have teams in 22 cities all over the US.

It was pretty much as close to a perfect night as you could get. Not only was the food stellar, but getting to sit with a bunch of foodies who are equally passionate about social media was such a treat. I took copious notes getting recommendations on restaurants, blogs, and food markets, only taking breaks to tweet and eat.

And boy, did we ever eat.

There were seven courses when all was said and done, thankfully, each one was just a tasting size. Erin Chittum, M's executive chef, came out towards the middle of the meal to talk to us about how she strives to incorporate fresh local ingredients. Even their cocktails are all made from fresh squeezed juices in house. They were not only fun, but delicious. Lisa (@xmainer1) and I both had the pineapple mojito but neither one of us was bold enough to finish off the vodka marinated pineapple chunks. The grape crush, made with fresh red grapes, looked even more fun.

The menu at M can best be described as nouveau American with hints of Asian flavors. There were many comfort dishes which were brought to a new level by luxury ingredients. The mashed potatoes were topped with lobster. The mac and cheese was topped with black truffle shavings. And the chophouse corn was flavored with bacon drippings.

Although the steak and eggs were incredible, a worthwhile cholesterol inducing treat composed of a filet mignon topped with a goat cheese hashbrown, a dippy quail egg, bearnaise, and caviar, the seafood is what I'll be craving. I thoroughly enjoyed the Maryland crabcake served over a fragrant tomato gazpacho and the porcini crusted white tuna with wild mushrooms. There were also some Asian dishes such as the tuna tartare infused with a bracingly fresh yuzu vinaigrette and the interesting wasabi pea encrusted tuna salmon avocado sushi roll.

We finished with a light dessert that really showed off M's attention to fresh ingredients. It was a simple peach soup with fresh berries and organic yogurt sorbet. The dish was simple, letting the sweet peach shine through. A perfect way to end the meal.

M is definitely a special occasion type of place. The main dishes ranged between $23 and $34. But they do have a couple of fun specials going on this fall so you can at least check out the dazzling decor, even if you don't want to spring for the full meal. Thursday evenings are wine enthusiast night, featuring 50% off all bottles of wine priced at $100 or less. Beginning October 1, there is happy hour every weekday with $5 glasses of wine and $5 martinis. On Fridays, sushi at the bar is half price.