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| - I can't believe I waited this long to check out ile noire. Can I move in? I felt that comfortable, like I was hanging out in my living room, if my living room had a glass wall filled with beautiful bottles.
When my partner in crime first mentioned that a birthday celebration being planned here for a friend, my immediate reaction was that he'd have a great time, scotch lover that he is, and I was sure they'd have something else for me. Well I had nothing to worry about, because they had lots of other options, including a nice selection of beers on tap, and decent wines both by the glass and by the bottle. I was particularly delighted by their gin list, and the option to have it on the rocks, as a gin and tonic or as a Martini. I ordered mine as a him and tonic, and I was surprised to receive a glass containing the gin and some ice, and a separate small bottle of tonic. The bottle was so cute, everyone ohhed and ahhed over it. It was also very tasty.
I was also impressed by the fact that the music was a decent level for most of the evening, making it easy to chat, unlike many other bars. Of course the closer to midnight we got the louder the music became, but that's to be expected. The music selection was great, a mix of 80s, 90s and 00s alterna rock, a little moody at times and more upbeat at others.
The only reason why I gave this review four stars is service. One waiter serving us was excellent. The other, not so much. It wasn't very busy when we first arrived and yet he had a major case of the grumpies. It seemed like he was avoiding us, and would occasionally come over, take one order and run away before anyone else could order. Our table often had lots of empty glasses on it. When I read through other reviews, it seems we weren't the only ones who walked out of there much more sober than we could have been if the service had been more frequent. I normally brush off bad service as someone having a bad day, but this really stood out.
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