Thelma A.
Yelp
I don't think I need to come back unless there's a change in the kitchen. Not sure if there is even an executive chef or just a hodge podge of cooks who don't really know what they're doing?
It's not a cohesive menu, to put it mildly. It's completely all over the place. From sashimi, to pastas, to steaks. But we decided to give it a go anyway. The ambiance and setup is quite nice, so I had high hopes, regardless of the reviews. I had made a reservation for a friend and I for 8:30pm...reservation was so not necessary.
At no given time, were there more than 15 diners in what probably seats at least 70-80. Not a great sign, but hey...it's Wednesday.
Our server was sweet, but 'front of house' and servers can only do so much when the food just isn't up to snuff. To dismiss it as being "a bit pricy" is silly, so ignore those reviews. Because I will gladly pay more than what I did pay, if the food is stellar. It's not the prices that are the issue, it's the conception and execution that is lacking. (Our bill was $111 before tip for the two of us...with two glasses of wine each).
French baguette slices with a garlic-herb butter were placed on the table while we perused the menu and sipped our wine. The bread...not fresh, not grilled...not good...is just s ever sliced and slightly stale. We got the burrata to start/share and the "Watercrest salad". The salad was actually really yummy...the pomegranate champagne vinaigrette was spot on. That's where the major-yum-factor ended. The burrata, was served with this slightly sweet/super stale bread (different than the other sliced bread we got) that was just gross.
I asked if we could get some of the French baguette but toasted or grilled please. It came out one minute later, barely grilled. It was served with fresh tomatoes so that was ok, but not even the tiniest sprinkle of a finishing salt, which would have elevated everything. I asked for some salt...I got table salt. Sigh.
Then I had ordered the goat cheese ravioli and my friend had the squid ink pasta. The goat cheese used in this dish was definitely not a high quality goat cheese. More sour notes than anything else. And the whole dish had been conceptualized by someone who was just not sure what to do..."let's throw some grilled corn on here and maybe mushrooms, and HEY! Let's fry a piece of kale and chuck that on it too!" It wasn't awful, but IT WASN'T GOOD. Just a let down really.
My friend said her squid ink pasta was "interesting". She wouldn't elaborate, so I can't say much on it, but she ate about one third of it, if that tells you anything.
Our server asked if we wanted anything boxed up to which we said no way. It was sad enough when served immediately, I can't imagine what it would be like eaten the next day! He offered us A dessert...yup, apparently they only make one dessert. A churro ice cream sandwich. We figured if they only offer one dessert, it just be amazing. Wrong. One of the great things about churros is that they're crunchy exterior pairs so beautifully with that warm chewy center. Not this one. The flat churro disks are fried to the point of just being greasy frisbees. The oil was not heated high enough before dropping the batter in the oil, which just results in being grease-laden. The ice cream that it came with also just didn't taste right. (Our server did remove this from the bill though).
I wanted to like this place. It's a cute environment/ambiance/decor. But if the food isn't great, why go back?! If management/owners are reading this, it's time to change it up in the kitchen!
If half stars were an option, I would have scored it a 2.5 because of that salad, which was worth an extra half star!