| rev:text
| - When I see 4 1/2 stars and over 60 reviews... expectations are set. Clearly I am in the minority, but deseo fell flat.
The service, from the hostess to the server to the bus boy was on point. In no way do I want to take away from the people who accommodated a late dinner, great job. The decor was fine, I still felt like I was in a hotel basement and I really got the vibe it used to be a sushi joint, but that wasn't really the issue. The issue was, for the amount and quality of the food... I felt like we got robbed.
My dinner companion tried to order our appetizer twice because he didn't realize we had already eaten it, and he is not missing any screws (that I know of). Delicious yes, substantial no; don't be fooled the kobe beef tenderloin on casabe flatbread is not as hearty as it sounds. It was the size of my hand cut into 4 smaller-than-tostitos-restaurant-style chips, and this coming from a girl who will fight for a seat at tapas joints. I understand the concept of ordering several plates and sharing, here you need several plates to yourself and you pay for it. The soup comes in a bowl bigger than my sink and contained literally a few spoonfuls; for what its worth the consistency on this dish wasn't too great... chunks that sunk to the bottom with super thin almost broth fill the rest of the space. The arroz tostado en cazuela was a fantastic side dish, and actually ended up being most of my dinner because more came with that, than my actual meal.
I don't really want to keep going because I know I am against the grain here, so put it down to an uneducated diner if you want to scoff... but I felt guilty when the bill came.
The place was not bad, by any means, but overall it was just A-OK when I was expecting a higher level of dining based off Yelp. I would be embarrassed to recommend this place for a certain price point dining experience, even to people with oodles and oodles of money to burn looking to eat latin american cuisine, in a faux sushi bar, at a hotel. I feel there are plenty of other places I would rather go for the money, although I'm not above admitting that improper expectations could be the reason we were so disappointed.
|