Dennis J.
Yelp
Oh wow. Honestly, I was not expecting much, here in the middle of nowhere Illinois, but this was an egregiously terrible experience. Let's go through it!
They had two seafood specials which sounded great but tasted like trash. Soft shell crab is delicious unto itself, just asking for a lightly (tempura-style) fry with some seasoning and a light sauce. Instead, you could go for thick taste-less breading, "cajun" butter that has never met spices, and mashed potatoes that haven't met salt. Salt is essentially free, why are we being stingy with it?? Overall, it was edible enough I didn't want to send it back.
The halibut cheeks. No. Hard no. Overcooked like it was blitzed in the microwave to FDA-SAFE levels. And the lentils it came with were under cooked and tough at the same time. Genuine terrible combo.
I "wised" up and went with something more in their wheelhouse, a ribeye with veggies. If your thick steak has hash marks, it means you are cooking it poorly, and the lack of salt was obvious again. Those green beans had never met salt. Thankfully they weren't cooked to oblivion. But back to the steak, a medium rare steak should have its fat perfectly rendered, instead, we had tough meat and chewy fat. Bleak.
I was also asked if I wanted a drink WHILE waiting for a sample of two wines to decide which one I wanted for dinner. That's not good, if anybody is keeping track.
So. With dessert, I requested a single malt. The bartender had to come out to clarify which one I wanted (embarrassing). Then they brought it out on the rocks, when I wanted it neat. Then, my neat whiskey was cool & diluted. The bartender claimed twice they poured it neat (to the server and manager), but honestly that makes me wonder who's diluting their Scotch because something was awry.
Oh! And I asked for my bill to be split, $X on one card and the rest on another. Instead, the waitress charged $X on one card and the WHOLE amount on the rest.
While I waited for the manager (sorry, had to pull that card at some point), I noticed that at every other table, the waiter(ess) poured a portion of their carafe, but I got to do that for myself. Fun?
Is the food & drink & service always this terrible? I can't say. What I can say, is that, I would never, ever, step through these doors while anybody currently involved worked here. I still tipped 40% because I know that it might be difficult to hire competent staff during this difficult economic climate.
But seriously. Salt is (practically) free. Use it! But also, this wine list is actual trash. Jeez.
Edit: I bet the reused the same glass for the Scotch. That would explain the temp & slight dilution.
