Anne S.
Yelp
Appetizers:
- Squash blossoms were everyone's favorite appetizer. Who doesn't love gooey melted cheese?
- Octopus was nicely paired with some interesting sauces and such. I order octopus whenever I see it on the menu, and I've only had it cooked properly (i.e., not rubbery) a handful of times. This wasn't one of them, but honestly it's so hard to find properly cooked octopus that I don't really count that against them...seems like that just is how it is most of the time.
- Dip trio was fine, but could have been more flavorful. The most flavorful dip was SO incredibly spicy that I couldn't eat much of it.
Entrees:
- Maybe they took Kelly M.'s advice, because the lamb steak was perfectly cooked and tender. Two of us ordered it, at two very different levels of doneness, and both were pleased.
- Lamb chops (a special that evening) were a bit tough even though I ordered them rare (which they were). Not the highest quality chops, I suspect, given that it certainly wasn't the cook making them tough. Also, only two chops for something like $50. Yeowch.
- One of our dining companions said the scallops were really tasty. I have a shellfish allergy, so I'll have to take his word on that.
Drinks:
- Freezer martini was fine, but if they want to advertise a "house brine," they need to take a trip to the Elephant Room in Austin, which boasts the gold standard for a "house brine" that'll knock your socks off and have you ordering too many.
- Espresso martini was a generic espresso martini with pistachio crusting on one edge of the glass? This was the report from the person who ordered it. They said there was nothing "baklava" about the actual drink.
Service:
- Our waiter explained to us what tzatziki sauce is. We are elder millennials. I can understand explaining this to a table of boomers, maybe? (MAYBE.) But not people our age. Cringe moment. That said, he was such a sweet guy and was really trying hard.
- Honestly, all of the staff members we interacted with seemed like very sweet people who were trying very hard to create a positive experience, and I appreciate that. It's not a polished fine dining experience from the service side of things, but it has a bit of a neighborhood, family restaurant vibe (which of course it is) that I appreciate in a different way. It definitely feels like a place where you'd be treated like family if you stopped in more than once or twice.
- Staff could use some reminders about food allergies. I have a shellfish allergy (legit, epi pen, all that). I mark this on every reservation I make (including this one). My allergy was not explicitly recognized by our waiter (usually they're alerted by the hostess and will ask to identify which person at the table has the allergy), nor did he ask about any allergies. Shellfish is easy enough to avoid with a menu like this, so it wasn't an issue, but still.
- The manager (I assume?) came around as we had our entrees to see how we were doing. He was lovely. Checked in to make sure we were doing well, but wasn't intrusive or obnoxious about it. He knew how to treat every single table like a group of VIPs, and it was appreciated.
Ambiance:
- This is where they lose a star, honestly (and very possibly my repeat patronage). We walked in just before 6 pm on a Saturday evening. Almost all tables were still empty. Out of all the tables in the restaurant, they seated us at a table that sits all by itself at the end of the shotgun main dining area. It's wedged in a corner between the very utilitarian back-door emergency exit and the Point of Service computer / staff area (an open countertop facing into the dining room). We dined directly underneath the glow of the exit sign and tried not to talk too loudly about how disappointed we were, since the waiters were frequently all standing around at the service counter not 5 feet from us. If you want to increase the odds that a group of diners never returns to your restaurant, go ahead and seat them here. I don't understand why this table exists except that, sure, it's another place to squeeze four bodies and make money. But this table doesn't just have zero vibes; it has negative vibes. It has "yeah we think maybe you won't tip well so we're gonna stick you in the corner" vibes. It's even more of a letdown because it's right by the entrance to a more attractive, inner dining room (with pink walls) that I THOUGHT we were being led into...nope.
- Frankly, the majority of the restaurant is more "neighborhood family joint" than "Instagrammable entry in a mega-conglomerate." There's nothing wrong with that, but if you've seen photos of the bar in their lounge, just know that the rest of the restaurant isn't quite at that level. The lounge definitely has more "vibes" than the rest of the place. NOTE: we left before any DJ action began, but I can only imagine that the entire place gets pretty loud when that starts. It's all openly connected.
TL;DR:
- On the whole, delicious food. Ask not to be stuck at table 55.