| rev:text
| - I'd been interested in trying Brasserie 33 since it opened late last year and received generally positive reviews in the newspapers. Since then, however, I've noticed very mixed reviews on Yelp and Urbanspoon, so I wasn't sure what to expect when I finally gave it a try last night.
Upon entering I was immediately impressed by the modern, tastefully appointed space. It features a semi-open kitchen and a long bank of windows along Ellsworth that makes every table a window table. My companion and I were welcomed and seated promptly. So far, so good. Unfortunately, it was mostly downhill from there.
Our waitress gave us paper menus - odd, especially for a fairly upscale place, but not a big deal. She took our food orders, then, a few minutes later, came back to ask us if we wanted anything to drink. Strange; usually the drink order comes first, but again, not a big deal. I asked her if they had a beer list; she told me they didn't have a list, but named a few mostly lousy beers. OK, so the place is not big on beer. Given the numerous wine bottles adorning the dining room, wine must be their thing. Can I see a wine list, please? I'm told they don't have one of those, either. Why not? Because they get new wines frequently, she explains, so there isn't a fixed list. Well, why not just print up a new list each time it changes like every other restaurant? After all, the food menus had clearly just come out of the printer. She says that the wine guy can come tell us about the wines. So I'm supposed to sit there and listen to this guy describe dozens of wines and somehow try to keep track of all of them and their prices? No thanks, I'll stick with water.
After a moderate wait, we received our meals: a half duck and a scallops dish. The duck was large, but its preparation was lacking: a lot of the meat was dry and it was served with some kind of blandly sweet berry sauce. I couldn't even identify the berry. Your average Chinese joint does a better job with duck. It came with some scalloped potatoes, which were decent, and a baked tomato that tasted like a supermarket tomato in January; I'm not sure how this is possible in late August, the peak of tomato season. The scallops were a bit better, but mainly because of the scallops themselves; their preparation was nothing special. I certainly could have done a better job with them at home.
All told, the meals were not terrible, just thoroughly mediocre. I will give them this: even with just two main dishes and no appetizers or dessert, we left quite full. Still, it's absurd that this place charges $30 a plate for such fare. For the same price you can get a vastly superior meal at Salt, Point Brugge, Legume, any of the Big Burrito restaurants (including Soba, right across the street), and many more places. It's a shame, too; it's a beautiful space and a good concept (Pittsburgh sorely lacks an authentic French restaurant), but Brasserie 33 really needs to step up their game if they want to stick around.
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