Soulless food. That's what came to my mind while I was eating there. Let me explain.
I'm used to eat at restaurants where the cook actually puts a bit of his passion and style into the food. It doesn't need to be a great restaurant for that to happen... but everything I ate at Balthazar was bland and subpar.
I ordered a Spinach dip and a some ribs and want3d to try their beer combo. Most (or maybe all the) dish have a suggested beer to accompany the plate. My wife ordered some Squid General Taos and some fish and chips. I went the safe route, she chose to be a bit adventurous...
First off, they didn't have any of the beers that was matching my dishes... not even the one matching the ribs (which I guess must be popular). Then comes the taste. Or lack of... my spinach dip was alright. Nothing fancy. As for my ribs, I'm pretty sure I bought better ribs at Provigo, in the frozen isle... and for 22$, I would have thought they would give me a full rack. Nope, just an half... the sides were some veggies (which were ok) and some chips, fine slices of potatoes over fried that tasted like the bottom of a fryer... yum yum.
As for my wife, her General Tao Squids were mushy in texture, as if there were reheated... and her fish tasted ultra bland. No salt or seasoning. The fries tasted like regular frozen fries.
That's the kind of food you get when the cook is just following a recipe and don't care to bring anything to his plates... soulless.
Will I come back? I'll let you guess...