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| - It really bugs me when a restaurant strives to be just a little better than mediocre. The food was good, but not great. The sangria was watered down with Sprite. The prices were a dollar or two too high... it was like this place thought, "I know, we'll serve burgers, a million types of beer, some trendy apps, and locates ourselves close to the university, but not on campus. We'll make a mint!"
Our family tried Cafe Hollander on a Saturday night, before it got busy. The service was actually quite good, and they took care to seat us at a table where my 5 year old would be more comfortable without us asking. We ordered a summer pear sangria and a draft Grimbergen Dubbel. The beer came out and it was barely filled over half way. We asked about it, and the waitress pointed to a line etched on the glass and said that's how far they pour. Ironically, the last 1/2 inch was all head, so it wasn't even actually filled that high... and it was labeled .25L, which would be 250ml. Later we noticed that in addition to being short of the .25, the menu actually said it was a 300 ml pour, so we were really shorted! At $6.50 a glass for the equivalent (when actually filled to the line) of 8.4 oz, that's a $13 glass of beer for a typical 16 oz pint!
My sangria tasted good, but watered down. It could have been the ice in the wine glass or the Sprite, but I don't think I've ever had Sangria without fruit in it!
We got a beet and avocado salad, and that was really good. I would order that again. We also ordered a blue belly burger. It was good, but not amazing. For $15, I would have expected something a little better... and you don't even get local/grass fed beef unless you order the burger that specifically advertises it!
My daughter had a kid's meal of buttered noodles, and that was a really nice kid's meal. In addition to the main course, the kids also get veggies with ranch dip and fresh fruit.
It was good, but not great. I feel like everything about that place - from the medium-quality ingredients to the packed-like-sardines table layout - screams "increase profit!" I wouldn't go there again, but if someone suggested it for a group, I wouldn't object. However, with so many other good restaurants with nice beer selections and good food in the area, I think they had better step up their game if they want to survive.
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