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| - I kept waffling between 2 and 3 stars, but then I realized that, no, things were not A-Ok (the 3 star rating) but Meh. I've experienced better (the 2 star rating) fit mostly where the food was concerned.
First and foremost I was hesitant to even write a review. Could I be impartial and simply review the food and service, leave all the negativity that has been swirling around this place and the owner considering I was in fine dining for years? Also I am a small business owner and was appalled by their behavior to customers and employees and was a bit embarrassed to even be giving them my business. On a lark I sent in a reservation request to their Grand Reopening and was very surprised when I got an email saying I was in. But I thought long and hard and decided yes I can and here it goes.
The food was ok, not horrible, not great, but there were execution problems that need to be addressed. First we got the cilantro hummus and the herbed flat bread. The flavor was good, bread was cooked well, no issues here.
Second we ordered the French Onion soup, my favorite soup in the world. The portion size was great, the flavor of the broth was spot on but there was hardly any cheese melted on the top. I like to get a huge chewy mouthful of cheesy goodness and I didn't because I couldn't, not enough cheese! Also there was barely any onions in it! Broth and bread basically made up this soup. Also it was so hot it scalded both myself and my fiancé. I know, soup should be hot, but this was way too hot.
I ordered for my main course the spinach and ricotta ravioli with basil pesto, bacon and mushrooms. I was shocked when it came out in a shallow bowl and looked like soup. The whole thing was literally swimming in the sauce. The sauce itself actually tasted quite good, but since it overpowered everything else in the bowl it made for a lackluster experience. I couldn't even taste the spinach and ricotta raviolis, such delicate flavors that didn't even have a chance. The mushrooms would have been lovely if there were a bit more of them and not cut so paper thin. The bacon and wilted spinach on top would have been another great flavor level but again, you couldn't really get your mouth to taste them.
We also ordered the gnocchi with tomato basil, exact same problem as the raviolis, it was a soup! The gnocchi were actually perfectly cooked and pillowy. Both the pasta dishes could have been great but fell flat.
My fiancé ordered one of the burgers, I was pretty full and didn't get a chance to try it but he said it was pretty good but the outside was charred. I thought the price tag of $14 was a bit much, especially since it didn't come with fries.
Last we had the creme brûlée, it was perfect, but I don't know how you could mess that up. The dessert case itself looked very inviting and if I wasn't full I would have opted to try a few more items.
On to the wait staff, everyone was brand new and while they were very friendly and efficient, none of them had tasted anything on the menu. This is appalling to me, how are they suppose to give recommendations if they don't even know what any of the food tastes like?
There was no craziness going on, the mood was actually quite subdued, Samy was going up to tables talking to customers, but didn't stop by ours. The place wasn't busy at all, but I guess they wanted the Grand Reopening to be not so hectic. Also the timing on our food wasn't bad, we waited about 30 minutes after our appetizers to get our main courses.
I said this would be the one and only time I go there but I think I might go back in a month or two, just to see if things have changed. Of course I will be keeping up on the going ons over there. Maybe they have learned from their mistakes, who knows, only time will tell.
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