April Leclair
Google
I prioritize food when choosing a restaurant unless it's a special occasion calling for top-notch service. Hence, I will start with food.
We ordered the Brussels sprouts after browsing numerous photos on Google Maps, and they were pretty good. The dish included not only Brussels sprouts but also red peppers, mushrooms, and lime. The seasoning was well thought-out, but I wished the Brussels sprouts were crispier and hotter, perhaps served on a cast-iron skillet to maintain the temperature and crispness. I would rate them 4.2.
The medium-rare steak entrée was great; tender and juicy with creamy, soft mashed potatoes complementing it. The steak was slightly more cooked than medium rare, but overall, I was happy.
The poke was sweeter than expected, but extra lemons helped adjust the flavor. The tuna sashimi was decent but not extraordinary. I liked the ingredient combination of edamame, cucumber, black rice (though I would prefer sticky Asian black rice), and avocado sauce.
The teriyaki rice was my least favorite due to its blandness and small protein portion, but it was a healthy option.
Now, here are my comments on service. For your context, we arrived at 7:30 PM on a Wednesday. The first server returned after 3 minutes, but when we requested more time, she didn't come back for 15 minutes, requiring me to find another server. This second server eventually assisted us, but the appetizer was served without dishes from yet another server, causing another delay. The second server checked on us after we were done with the appetizer, provided extra lemons and water upon request, and the main dishes arrived a bit later, simultaneously. However, the extra shrimp with the poke bowl we ordered was forgotten and had to be requested again. Overall, I think the service could be improved.
Atmosphere-wise, I think it’s better to sit indoors if you want a quieter atmosphere, as there were teenage skaters right next to us causing a lot of noise pollution. They even got into a fight with one of the customers as they were outright rude and inconsiderate. They eventually left, but I think it’s better to avoid such situations by reducing the number of variables by sitting indoors.