Dennis S.
Yelp
Really disappointed.
We were looking forward to a return to Pork Belly after a pleasant experience last year. I was particularly excited to see they had a new chef and were revising the menu. I expected the new chef to have come in wanting to show off what they could do, and that the attention to detail and service would be top notch. Unfortunately not so much.
It was surprisingly quiet for a Friday evening. A main dining room right off the entrance even had the chairs put up on the tables, so they were clearly not set up for, nor were expecting, a lot of diners. Despite having advance reservations, we were led to a small table in the upstairs bar. I guessed that they were consolidating customers in the bar to be more efficient.
Wife liked a new specialty gin cocktail they had developed, and even had a couple of them. No draft beer, but an ok selection of canned beers.
An appetizer of bacon wrapped figs, recommended by the wait staff, was ok, a quite small plate, nothing I'd care to order again.
I could not tell at the time what the dressing on the farmhouse salad was, though afterwards I see on the menu that they called it a "poblano yogurt" dressing. It was just kind of strange and off putting.
Short ribs were by far the worst short ribs I've ever been served. Short ribs, slow cooked, and fall off the bone, can be a thing of beauty and deliciousness. This small piece was fatty, chewy, and entirely unpleasant. The fatty meat itself had no flavor, although the surrounding sauce was overwhelmingly intense. Not a balanced or appealing plate at all. The one thing I can say nice about it was that the mashed potatoes were good, and thankfully they made me leave not entirely still hungry.
Service was reasonably attentive, and shared between a wait person and the bartender. On top of a help wanted sign out front, they're clearly struggling with being understaffed.
I really want to give the love to local businesses like Pork Belly, but I can't imagine we'd ever choose to go back.