Gina W.
Yelp
I really, really wanted to love this place. But there were too many issues to give it any more than three stars. I hope anything I might have to say is helpful to the owners, though trust me, I don't give my words too much weight :-).
There are some things this place needs to work on, so I guess I'll give the bad news first. Our food took a very long time to come out and the place was not busy. We were a party of six. The brussel sprouts are a starter, and they came out last - way after our meal. Even so, the brussel sprouts were very underdone. (I did like the note of horseradish in the cream sauce.) Service is not very attentive, though not unfriendly. We asked our server an opinion on which entrée we should order. She really touted the "Grandma's Pasta Bake" on the specials menu. She described it to us. She said that it is cooked spaghetti, which is then combined with plant-based cheeses, put back into the oven and baked - she used words like "warm and melty" to describe how it came out of the oven. When the pasta came out, the cook delivered it - and he described it as spaghetti. We said, oh! We ordered the pasta BAKE." He stared at us, then turned and stared at the menu. He said he had no explanation as to why the servers described it that way, but that this had always been the recipe. It was not oven-baked. It was just spaghetti. Our server never mentioned it again, nor made any attempt to apologize or correct the situation. I'm not sure why she misrepresented it.
The butternut squash soup desperately needed salt, and the gnocchi that she had highly recommended was actually a plate of dense noodle dumplings. They would have been good, perhaps, in a (vegan) chicken and dumplings dish, but they were not gnocchi - which should be feather light, and melt in your mouth.
The very lowest point of the meal was the "Black Bean Brownie." I have a friend who is not vegan, and she had a lot of trepidation about trying a dessert with beans in it. I explained to her that beans make the dessert moist and fudgy. Not here. The brownie is a thin sheet of something very waxy. It has a lot of coconut oil and a strong coconut flavor, but the texture was definitely off-putting. I told her not to judge black bean brownies on this experience. :(
Paying the restaurant some compliments, I have to say that the decor is absolutely amazing. All of the furniture, fixings, and dishware has been handpicked and is immaculately clean. It is a very pleasant place to eat in.
I also have to say that I did enjoy the pasta sauce, even though it wasn't what we ordered. The corn chowder was good. I also liked the cream sauce on the brussel sprouts, as I mentioned, and the thing I enjoyed the most was the carrot cake. While it did not contain many carrots, it was a delicious cake that melted in your mouth. The peanut butter pie was okay, with a filling that was tasty, but a standard, store-bought crust.
We didn't have anything here that would send me running back. I think if your service is not the best, then the food should be amazing. I hate, hate, hate to give anything but a great review to a plant-based restaurant, since there are not that many and I am vegan myself. However, the business is becoming more competitive, and there are a few things on the menu here that need to be removed (the brownie) or reworked. With a little more precision in food and service, this place could go up a couple of stars.