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| - I first heard about this place through a travelzoo offer. The deal required that I surrender the coupon when I placed my order, which always makes me a little apprehensive that the service or food won't be as good. I was also a little skeptical about how it would turn out due to some other reviews. Overall, I think this restaurant has a lot of potential but it is still a little rough around the edges.
Meal
1. Lobster Bisque - It was "ok". It was not memorable other than a thin visible crust appearing on the bisque. The type of crust that lets you know that I had the first bowl in a while. My gf had the mushroom soup which was ok but nothing special.
2. Thai Beef Salad - I'm not usually a salad person but it came with the TravelZoo offer and it turns out.. this was pretty darn good! The description says beef strips on baby greens but there's also plenty of other fun stuff to give each bite great texture and crunch (rather than boring old baby greens). The beef strips looked a bit small at first but remember, this is an appetizer, and it turned out that there was enough for almost every forkful. My only complaint is that it was bit heavy on the Asian inspired dressing.
3. Surf & Turf - Both my gf and I ordered the surf and turf. Presentation wise, I was a bit surprised and disappointed that that the restaurant had prepared 1 steak and cut it in half for each plate rather than cutting it before it was cooked so that it would look like we each had a whole steak. If you check out the pics, that's how it was served to us, I didn't cut it before taking a picture. That being said, this was the best cut of steak I've ever had under $50. It needed a bit of salt but I would go back to this restaurant just to get this cut of steak again. The lobster was also great. I also appreciate that the vegetables that it was served with weren't doused in butter.
4. Apple crumble a la mode - Don't touch the container.. it's hot! I love dishes that are prepared just for me. And a la apple crumble isn't served out of a larger dish, it's baked just for you! It's also served with a strawberry sauce that I didn't much care for.
Service
Our waitress was nice and the food came in a timely fashion. As I said, the restaurant is still a bit rough around the edges. The menu describes many ways that the lobster can be prepared (hong kong style, baked, etc..) and it would have been nice if she knew how the lobster was prepared as part of the surf and turf. It also would have been nice if the lobster claw was cracked or deshelled. Given that the restaurant is trying to appeal to an upscale clientele, it's a bit awkward to use a shell cracker at the table when you're dressed up.
Ambiance - Dark and upscale. Almost half of the restaurant was a bar and the other half was the dining area. Pretty quiet and very spacious compared to the Keg. Very roomy and luxurious booths that they give to couples (when 4-6 people could fit in them). But.. there were some weird acoustics and we could clearly hear our neighbours. I don't think our neighbours were shouting and we couldn't hear anybody else. So... you may want to avoid this restaurant if you are going to break up with someone despite having the big booth.
How much I paid - $65 for the travelzoo deal. They charged $28 for tax and tip. I added another $5 to the tip because the service was good.
Free Tip - There's a huge parking lot on the north side of the plaza. If you're coming in from Highway 7, take the second right (rather than the first) into the plaza. It will look like an office and you won't see signage, but all the restaurants are just around the corner. This is part of the same complex but people usually only park here for Demetre's and Dragon Boat Fusion Cuisine. If you're going to Maxx, park on the East side of this north lot and the Maxx is very close. This lot has way more spots and is way less frustrating than parking around Chako, Marlow, the Keg, etc...
Will I go back? The thai beef salad and the cut of the steak will be worth the return trip - even at full price.
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