| rev:text
| - Over the weekend I learned for the first time that the Brant House was no more and about four months ago it re-branded, renovated and reopened as The Citizen. A more casual cocktail restaurant and lounge with a menu focusing more on tapas sized sharing portions.
Our party of 8 had reservations for Friday evening to celebrate a friends birthday, an evening meant to be relaxing and enjoyable but ended up being riddled with bumps and band-aids.
To begin, upon arrival, I have to give them credit, they had definitely changed this place around. The decor, vibe and staff were far more casual and friendly than the Brant house once was. The stuffy patrons, the snooty staff, the food... all different! I thought "Self, this is the kinda place you'd like to come to... plus, hey look a that craft cocktails!"
We were seated around 8:30 and service was to say the least, very slow. With significant gaps between drink orders, drink deliveries, food orders and food service, it was after 10 pm by the time the first trickle of food began to roll out. I say trickle out because the kitchen, while potentially busy, struggled with timing on orders. A chorizo sausage appetizer shared by 3 of us, arrived about 10 minutes before the lobster roll appetizers ordered by the same 3 people - the other 5 guests received nothing for at least another 10 minutes. After which point we asked to speak to the manager twice, and then *poof* food began to roll out. I was surprised the first items to come out then were the cucumber and watermelon salads - something that could have easily come out far earlier. All food with the exception of one guests dinner kale salad arrived, said salad didn't arrive until most of us had nearly completed out mains meaning one guest had gone nearly 2.5 hours without food. Not good.
In terms of our server, I would have to rate her 2 stars or lower. I cannot speak to what other guests at our table experienced but I found our server to be unprepared and not very helpful. When I asked what kind of steak was used in the steak frites, she "didn't know" and didn't offer to find out. When I asked how the lamb was cooked? She responded "I'm not sure" so I asked her to look into that for me when she didn't offer. I also noticed a consistent trend amongst our guests orders, whenever a guest would ask how an item was, her response was "it's good." That's it, I asked for more details to which there was none. I can appreciate that someone might be new or unfamiliar with the menu fully, but to not know basics about their few main course options was not good. In addition, we went our entire meal without water being offered. It wasn't until the manager came over to speak with us that water top ups were provided - once we asked... again.
What I will say, to their credit, is that 90% of the food items (save for the lobster rolls) were fantastic. Perfectly cooked, expertly prepared, presented and a joy to eat. Now I can't say if the fact that we were starving played a factor in our relief/enjoyment of our meals... but as I said, I'll give them their due, the food was good. What was wrong with the lobster roll? Less than a table spoon of lobster could be found on an oversized brioche bun, a nice attempt/taste but poor execution overall.
My steak frites were amazing, slathered in bourbon butter and pre-sliced into easy to eat pieces - top 5 steaks I've had no questions asked.
So, what did management do once they came over to speak to us? They totally owned up. I have to admit, their management of our situation and the perfection of their food are the main reasons this review is a 3 star and not the 1 star it could have been. The manager apologized profusely citing the busy nature of the restaurant as the root cause of our experience (save for our less than helpful server). He knocked the three steak frites dinners off of our bill (approx. $90 in value) and 2 rounds of shots for the table. A kind and generous gesture which seemed to appease the group.
Other notes, cocktails are fair, not great. The negroni was very well done while the Old Fashioned was watered down and not well done compared to other spots in the area.
I hope that the majority of the issues we came up against are merely growing pains, their food is incredible and deserves to be sampled.
Eatcrest Out.
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