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Cottage Bistro
Categories: Arts & Entertainment Jazz & Blues Nightlife Jazz & Blues Food Coffee & Tea Jazz & Blues, Coffee & Tea [Edit]
4468 Main StVancouver, BC V5V 3R3
Neighbourhood: Riley Park
(604) 876-6138
- Hours:
Mon-Sun 9 am - 1 am
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Music:
- Background, Live
- Happy Hour:
- Yes
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Smoking:
- Outdoor Area/ Patio Only
- Coat Check:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Good For Dancing:
- Yes
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
14 reviews for Cottage Bistro
14 reviews in English
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Review from Matthew C.
North Vancouver, BC
4/24/2012
Surprisingly inventive 'Nightly Specials' menu, coupled with a standard dinner menu and abundant wine list make for a fun meal. As usual, I substituted extra veg for bread/carbs with ease.
Came in on a night with a fun event, "Say Wha?" and had a blast! -
Review from Doug S.
Vancouver, BC
5/7/2012
Saturday afternoon jam session and the place was packed. Food was pretty good but come for the music! 3 till 7 every Saturday. Nice variety of musicians that change up every 20 mins or so (including a sax and trombone)
-
Review from Ed K.
Vancouver, BC
11/23/2011
The only reason I can figure that this place has a three star average is because it was once a decent place but must have changed ownership.
I had pretty close to the same High Ball drink special problems as a previous poster and for some reason my highball did not qualify for the highball special. I hate being nickelled and dimed to death and this place excels at it.
The service was rude to the point of being hostile, and I had to wait for ages before anybody even came to our table to offer me a drink. My water had lots of floaties in it so I couldn't even drink that while I waited.
The place was almost empty so I don't know why the service was so slow and why they would screw around with the drink special. I ended up not having anything to drink and the only food I saw delivered to a table was sent right back.
It makes me so mad that the owners would run a place like this, great location, not bad decor, good live music but the food, drink and service were bottom of the barrel.
If I could have given 1/2 star I still would have been over rating this one. -
Review from Tod M.
Vancouver, BC
9/8/2011 2 Check-ins Here
First, it should be noted that the night I went, there was a spoken word performance happening, so it was very busy.
THAT SAID... :-(
The food really was sub-par. The patty on the "deluxe mushroom burger" I had tasted like one of those preformed patties they sell at Costco in cardboard boxes of 24. In fact, I'm pretty sure it really was one of those burgers. Maybe a Safeway box, but definitely had that over-fatty, over-seasoned taste.
The burger came with fries which were COATED with garlic. I'm not talking about a lovely roasted garlic hint, I mean big chunks of early raw garlic cloves. I could smell an offensive amount of garlic before the plate was down on the table. Literally.
The rice in my date's butter chicken had the consistency of glue and the chicken tasted like one of those pre-formed "chicken breasts" they use at Subway. You know the ones they keep warm by storing it in warm water? Yeah. That kind.
And on top of that, we watched as a couple was seated beside us -- about five minutes after we sat down -- and got their food about 10 minutes BEFORE us. One of the two had completely finished her meal and our appetizer still hadn't arrived.
Our server was lovely and seemed apologetic, and we felt bad for her. When she came to take our plates away, and noticed we both left about 2/3rds on the plate, she gave us the "Was everything okay?" question. To which we answered: "No, not really. It was kind of gross." She went to the kitchen and came back about five minutes later to tell us that the manager wouldn't refund any of the meals. We hadn't asked for a refund, and it was nice of her to go to bat for us, but what kind of restaurant manager actually says NO to that when it's clear the patrons didn't enjoy the food!
It's a tough room to move around in -- one big room up front, then a thin hallway with tables jammed all the way down.
I can't take "It's because it was busy" as an excuse. If you know it's going to be busy (this was a monthly event that always fills up the house), you BRING IN MORE STAFF.
On the bright side, their decaf Americano was served hot. :-/ -
Review from Louise G.
****THREE AND A HALF STARS****
We must have at least 30 or more places bookmarked on Main Street on our 'to-try' list and this wasn't one of them. Main Street sure has a lot of interesting places on it, that's for sure. A buddy of mine who I refer to as 'my brother' was playing here tonight so we had to come for a meal, a drink, and some music.
Nice place. Well set up. Fully stocked bar and interesting menu. Reasonable prices. We opted for the burger and beer special for $12. A little bit of an 'oops' when the vinegar bottle's top came off and spilled onto my plate. Mentioned it to them and not 100% sure she really got it that it was broken. Got the same feeling when we ordered dessert and it was taking so long we wondered if the order had been misunderstood and then it appeared...MALIBUNANAs. Decadent.
Overall, a decent, fun, and relatively inexpensive few hours out. -
Review from Alex R.
Vancouver, BC
10/19/2010 1 Check-in Here
This place reminded me of a tiki bar.
Clean bathrooms, reasonable priced beers and the food (asian and veggie) was decent. -
Review from Emma G.
7/13/2010
My friends and I came here to watch an Olympic hockey game, because all the pubs were full!
The decor is fine, I guess. The tables aren't particularly cozy or comfortable but there's lots of them. Quite a few TVs!
The service is good, they're friendly and attentive!
The food is pretty good - super cheap and everything looks yummy! We had nachos and they were yummy. We ended up ordering a lot and our bill would have been pretty cheap except for the drinks.
My biggest issue! Most of us were drinking but those that weren't were having soda. The waiter kept asking if they wanted refills so they said yes. When we got the bill, they'd been charged for each individual drink, which was around $2-3 per round. For fountain pop?! Who doesn't offer free refills these days? That bugged me a lot. -
Review from Kaeleigh E.
Calgary, AB
8/26/2010
I've eaten here a few times.
Once with a bunch of pals to watch a hockey game. The food is pretty inexpensive but not great quality. It's passable though and it is a lively joint to watch a game.
I've also been a couple of times for the Jazz Night they have. It's kind of like a jam sesh with tons of local jazz artists from around town. It's wonderful music and with the burger + beer deal you really can't go wrong.
The fellow who runs the place is very friendly, very funny I can't remember his name but he's a good guy. Although I do think it's shady that they charge per soda. It's fountain, not coming from a can or a bottle. It costs 5 cents to him the least he can do is give refills especially if you order a meal! -
Review from Sarah A.
8/21/2011 1 Check-in Here
I went here to watch my friend's band perform. Great sound, very relaxed and casual atmosphere. I didn't eat here so I can't speak to the food, but they had awesome drink specials, including highballs for under $5 (I didn't think that was possible in Vancouver, to be honest).
-
Review from Roanna Z.
10/14/2010
I remember the first time I poked my nose in the door. I had a very homey impression. Feels like the kind of place where they would remember your name or what you like to eat.
Tonight I returned for an event. They have a small stage in the front and it's a very intimate setting.
The game was on the screens until our show started, at which point the tele was promptly turned off and I don't even know who won.
*checks canucks.nhl.com*
doh !
&*^*&--damit!!
Sighhhh...
The menu is strongly Asian food influenced with dishes like the braised Tofu with vegetables in a red chili sauce.
It was alright, fresh but not terribly exciting.
Prices reflect the casual atmosphere and I like the mature crowd. I'll probably be back for a show again, but maybe not for a meal. -
Review from Isabelle G.
Vancouver, BC
2/10/2011
I am not understanding why this is getting as high ratings as it is unless they changed ownership and I am the first person to review this established since the change over. I was here for a Teen Angst Poetry reading, therefore, I can here 'cause this is where the show was taking place and more likely would just walk by it on Main street thinking nothing much of it from the outside. Although the interior was nice and had some charm, that is where it fell flat.
Service: The service was terrible. It took literally 30 minutes just to be served a drink, let alone 25 minutes for appies each. Every time the waitress came over to us it felt more awkward than helpful. She wasn't doing anything specifically wrong, her presence and the way she conducted herself just made me feel weirded out. She also seemed to have no clue when it came to serving, keeping tabs on the other patrons etc. Granted due to Teen Angst it was a really full house, however, my date and I got there 45 minutes early before show time, therefore, there was no excuse. When we arrived, the owner tried to sit 3 people at a 2 person table and expected my friend Kent to eat and drink on his lap which was rude. He warned us that it would be busy and we informed him politely that we came early to drink & snack and that we would welcome anyone to join us at a full table. We ignored his suggestion and sat at a 4 person table anyway which worked in the end awesome come show time.
Food: The appies tasted and seemed like frozen foods that you would get from Superstore and pan fried. I've had nachos and if you're wondering how someone could fuck up nachos, the Cottage Bistro did for sure. There was less than a tbsp of cheese, the nachos were Tostitos and the salsa watery. You got less than 2 cups worth of nachos for $6. Decent price, however, if you want more sub par quality nachos rather than the poor quality that we experienced, check out the Furniture Warehouse on Granville street where you get a small amount of higher quality for $5. As for toppings, there were very very little onions and nothing else. We paid $6 for chips and salsa. The spicy wedges were Superstore Fries. I know this 'cause I buy them all the time. Their idea of spicy was crushed garlic with garlic mayo. I had a craving for cheesecake knowing that it was Superstore Brand, which seemed decent....after all, it was Superstore brand.
Can someone reading this please tell me why the fuck it has an average rating of over 3 stars? Am I missing something or is my culinary observation too refined for the masses? -
Review from Tara T.
BC
11/23/2008
The Cottage Bistro from the outside looks like nothing more than your average mom and pop shop, but when you step inside you realize you've stumbled across something special. The walls are lined with a local history of musicians who have played here from far and wide and open mic as well as band nights characterize evenings at this cozy little haunt.
I came here by chance one night with my boyfriend and we were lucky enough to have chosen an open-mic night. This was perfect as we both greatly enjoy live music. The guy who started off the night was a great musician and the open mic-ers who followed were also pretty good, making for a very enjoyable evening.
The menu here is standard pub fare and I enjoyed a lovely fish dinner, (unfortunately I can't remember what type of fish it was). For such a small hole-in-the-wall I was super impressed with their culinary talents.
All in all the Cottage Bistro is a fun, casual, and simple night out. It doesn't get much better than that. -
Review from Sara R.
Vancouver, BC
4/27/2011
Great lunch and dinner entrees, SUPERB breakfast, great prices. Oh, and one of the best selections of Scotch that I've seen in the city!
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Review from Michelle J.
North Vancouver, BC
3/19/2011
The Cottage Bistro has a very relaxed atmosphere which I enjoy. It is a place where the owner (Eugene) remembers your name. Sometimes the service is a little slow but you can go to the bar and self order. It's very much a pub atmosphere - but true neighborhood pub rather than restaurants passing themselves off as pubs. That said the decor is restaurant but the atmosphere is pub. I love the Schechuan (spelling?) Tofu. Beautifully presented and delicious. For appies/pub grub I enjoy the fried bean curd and the dry garlic spareribs. I've heard from friends that the ginger beef is excellent. There is a respectable wine list and apparently, Eugene is a Scotch connoisseur and has quite the selection of single malts for those of you who enjoy Scotch. Last night my friend and I shared the fried banana dessert. It was a pleasant surprise - homemade - not the usual battered previously frozen variety. In fact, no batter, pan fried and beautifully presented with a scoop of ice cream.
The Cottage has great live music - some of the blues guys need to tone it down though! They are too loud.
So, set your expectations to relax mode and enjoy!
