Joanne K.
Yelp
Came for HRW brunch: 2 courses, 8 menu items to choose from.
My friend and I visited for the first time to try the HRW menu and celebrate her birthday. I had high hopes based on the reviews and elegant atmosphere - even considered it for my own birthday dinner - but now I'm not so sure.
Though I had a reservation, the restaurant was nearly empty when we arrived around 1pm. Still, it took a while for our server, Chad, to greet us. He apologized, saying he was handling something else, which we understood.
However, his tone during ordering felt passive-aggressive. He remarked we were speaking "too quickly" and complained about not being able to read the menu upside down. When we later asked for cocktail recs, he pointed out - a bit curtly - that we were looking at the happy hour menu (next to the cocktails), mentioned he doesn't drink, and left it at that. No offer to help or refer someone else.
We eventually asked another server for drink recs, and she was much more helpful. Chad's attitude improved later, but the awkward first impression stuck. On the bright side, the host, the helpful server, and the viola player were all lovely.
The food was mediocre. We had the avocado tartine, deviled blue crab (+$15), pain perdu, croque monsieur, and two cocktails - around $110 total. Both the tartine and croque monsieur had bread that was overly tough. Drinks were good, but overall, the uneven service and just-average food left us underwhelmed.