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r.tl
Categories: Restaurants Canadian (New) Restaurants Seafood Canadian (New), Seafood
1130 Mainland StVancouver, BC V6B
Neighbourhoods: Downtown, Yaletown
(604) 638-1550
- Hours:
Mon-Sun 5 pm - 11 pm
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Dressy
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Trendy
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
51 reviews for r.tl
Review Highlights
-
"The smoked duck with a candied walnut topping was to die..." In 7 reviews -
"Mushroom & truffle risotto." In 3 reviews -
"For dessert-a chocolate terrine with crème fraiche." In 4 reviews
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51 reviews in English
-
Review from Cory J.
Vancouver, BC
12/13/2011
Went to RTL for a work function and was really impressed! Here's the play by play:
Staff: The staff were super friendly, and the service was pretty quick (even with 40 of us!)
Food: Had a three course meal with tomato and burrata salad (delicious!); salmon (tasty!); and the chocolate terrine. Attention chocolate lovers: go to RTL, order the chocolate terrine, and thank me later. So rich, so chocolately so so good... *drool*
Drinks: Sampled a few different cocktails during the evening and they were all solid. They make a great Manhattan!
Final Verdict: Great place to stop in for a few drinks and a bite to eat. I'll be back! -
Review from Rose N.
Vancouver, BC
4/9/2012
My friend and I went here because she had a gift certificate. Here's the overall review
Food: Same boring west coast stuff, with nothing that really stood out. Overall, ok. But if you are comparing to price, i would say on the high end for portions that you get.
Ambiance-nice decor, almost Asian feel. Romantic
Service-This is why I am mostly giving 2 stars. The waiter didn't talk much and NEVER asks when he takes a dish/drink away. I mean, first time we stopped him and told him we were still working on it. Second time, 3rd time 4th time, he did it for all of our dishes! Any waiter with common sense wouldn't assume, bu ASK if the patron is done with their meal or drinks. I've waitered before and if there's a decent size of food on someone's plate or if 1 drink is 1/3 full, you ask, don't just take it way! We were completely shocked and he was so quick and in a blink of an eye, he whisked our plates away while we were still eating! Never spoke a single word and didn't ask us for refills either after taking our drinks. I mean, I couldn't believe it. This has to be one of the worst service for this type of area. i wouldn't return based on the service and the food wasn't interesting or new that would make me want to return. What I thought was Chic, turned out to be more of a cheap chinese eatery level of service. -
Review from Sarah O.
3/19/2012
Atrocious customer service. I leave feeling absolutely horrible every time I come here. The very last time, it was because a friend bought a group on.. and reluctantly I agreed to go. Terrible mistake. Aside from the fact that the food is subpar and way over-priced, I need to emphasize how nasty the servers are. I don't like snobby hostility when I visit a restaurant. Seriously, what is up with the major attitude all the time? I would like to say I've had at least one good experience here. But nope.
It's no coincidence they have a groupon special every couple months. How this place manages to stay open is beyond me. -
Review from Kristina C.
Vancouver, BC
2/17/2012
I had decided to give up on DOV after disappointing experiences prior to this year's event, but thought I'd give it one more shot with r.tl's enticing menu. Verdict: I'll be steering clear of any restaurant participating in DOV in the future.
Many of the items on the menu had additional charges on top of the fixed price of $28 (why not just raise the price to $38?)
I ordered the tomato and burrata salad, the fessenjoon chicken, and the affogato for dessert. The salad with basalmic vinaigrette was refreshing, and the burrata cheese, which I had never tried before, was quite yummy. However, I'm not a huge fan of mesclun greens so I left most of this dish untouched. The fessenjoon chicken with walnuts was extremely dry, and the "rice pilaf" was just white rice which was not cooked properly: it was hard and dry. This dish was again served with more greens and the same vinaigrette as my first dish. The affogato was the only saving grace of the meal, but a scoop of vanilla ice cream with espresso poured over top is pretty hard to mess up.
The drinks were quite pricey, but I had a sip of my friend's red wine sangria with ginger and it was very good, with enough ginger in it to taste it but it didn't overpower the drink.
I also sampled some steak and crab cake from my friend's dishes and again was not impressed. The steak was probably a cheaper cut than what was claimed on the menu.
It's a cute restaurant, and the servers were very nice and friendly, however I probably will not be coming back to this restaurant. The only thing I wish I could've tried was the mushroom risotto. -
Review from John M.
Greater Vancouver Regional District, BC
5/14/2012 Seated via OpenTable
We had a wonderful time. It probably helped that the owner himself waited on us. We picked our dinner from a price fixed menu which we had upgraded. The tastes were great. I had pomegranate chicken, an Iranian dish and my wife had salmon. We started with a huge bowl of mussels to get the dinner going and finished off with a creme brule for me and an Iranian getato for her. Good value for the money. Very friendly place,service was good with lots of conversation. We are wine drinkers and did not try the exotic drinks that were suggested. Definitely a "go again" place for us.
-
Review from Ellie I.
Vancouver, BC
4/2/2012
A solid 3 stars.
The ambience: Automatic doors are not that great when it is cold
Service: Good to great
Food and Price: I think RTL can do better. Far too many coupon offerings
(why would anyone come here without a coupon?)
The pricing is fair value with the coupon. I don't use coupons very often and would normally refrain from mentioning coupons but IMHO, the frequency of "deals" offered is diluting the overall experience.
Food-good quality, well prepared however there are many great restaurants in Vancouver. There are little points of differentiation between this restaurant and others.
I don't like seeing a business do poorly and I think this restaurant has the potential to be much better. -
Review from Sara D.
Vancouver, BC
1/18/2012
Went last night with a groupon for $80 of food. We had the set menu for 2. The mushroom truffle oil risotto was really really good, best risotto I've ever had. The thai green mussels were also quite good, but not enough broth.
Everything else was disappointing. The AAA steak was chewy... it was cooked well, but just a cheap cut of meat. The green beans as a side were meh, not that much flavour.
For dessert it was this pistachio ice creamy thing. Two big scoops, and actually really good. I'm persian and asked the waiter about it and he said he got it from this persian guy in north van... oh the cliche.
Drinks were so good! I had a gin gin mule, it was gin and mint and ginger ale or something of the like, delicious. The wines were alright too, but could tell they were overpriced more than usual.
The waiter was amazing, really really nice guy, chatted a bit without it feeling forced, knew the menu super well, checked on us frequently.
Service: 5/5
The food itself, given the prices: 2/5
For drinks: 4/5
Atmosphere: 4/5 -
Review from Allison H.
Vancouver, BC
1/16/2012 1 Check-in Here
Like other Yelpers, my employer selected RTL as the venue for our Holiday Bash. I was involved in the planning process, and I can say that the communication between us and RTL was impeccable. We opted for a raw/sushi/oyster bar and appetizers as opposed to a full sit down dinner as we were ensured the volume of food proposed would be plenty. The proposed menu and cocktail list was excellent, and I was quite excited to gorge on the raw bar and chocolate fountain!
Now, let's get down to the nitty-gritty, shall we!
As our party began to trickle in, (there was about 55-60 of us total) our jackets were taken by the front of house staff and to the bar we went! This is where my first critique comes in: even though RTL can seat at least 60 people during a dinner or lunch service, their bar staff WAS NOT prepared for the volume that was our party. Not saying we are alchies or anything... But they were fully aware of the size of our party and obviously not prepared. Another issue I had right off the bat was the food! There weren't any appies ready for the group, but we were advised they would start circulating at 5pm. Hm.
Around 5:30 the appies started coming out of the kitchen, much to my displeasure, they were TINY! You'd think that they would load up the trays given the portion sizes, but nope... Each tray only had about 6-10 pieces on it of each item. The quality was there, but each item was barely a mouthful and definitely not enough to counter act all the booze that was going down. Not only that, the front of house girls who were taking coats as we arrived were now doubling as servers. The combination of the food coming out super slow and the inexperienced serving job meant that the tables closest to the kitchen were devouring whole trays of food before any of it made its way to the rest of the group. Minus stars here.
The raw bar was excellent as well, but my above complaints are echoed here as well. The sushi was constantly running low, while some items seemed to sit as they weren't being eaten and the person shucking oysters was doing it AT the raw bar in the middle of our party... I know table side shucking is normal practice for a raw bar, but it was very awkward due to the size/layout of RTL. As the night went on, we continued to nibble. The chocolate fountain and fruit was brought out as things started to mellow out, and honestly, I had one bite. By this point, my belly was too full of wine to be interested in solids. The lights were slightly lowered, the tunes were cranked and they practically had to kick us out at 1am!
In short, the food was good and the venue was the perfect size/location for our group. I will not deny that. However, the size and volume of the edibles was not enough to sustain a large group of alcohol imbibing adults. Thank god we had taxi vouchers, that's ALL I'm gonna say! -
Review from Jay M.
1/24/2012
3.5 stars. I'd be back if I had another Groupon, but not worth full price.
Ambiance: 3/5 - Great decor, but a small place with no room between the tables. Nothing spectacular or applicable for a romantic dinner.
Service: 4/5 - We decided to eat at the bar (which almost no one does). The bartender was amazing. Extremely helpful in recommending wines and food pairings. She had a full restaurant to make drinks for but still made time to converse with us and make sure we were happy.
Food: 3.5/5 - Mussels were fantastic. The surf and turf was good but the steak was a bit overcooked.
Drinks: 4/5 - Very good and large wine list and reasonable prices. Great $7 red blend from Italy. Cocktail list had some unique options but we did not try them. -
Review from Tara G.
Downtown, Vancouver, BC
3/23/2012
Would give 3.5 stars. Overall pretty good, the tomato and burrata salad was really tasty!
-
Review from Hootie J.
Vancouver, BC
10/22/2011 1 Check-in Here
Wow I would hate to try and open a restaurant in Yaletown these days... so many choices.
Do you remember those old TV commercials "more bugger than bun?"
Well if this place had a commercial it would be "lots~o~plate, little food"( look at the pictures!
I know where this idea comes from .. rizzy Chi-Chi joints that charge us an arm and a leg for 50 grams of pan fried somethingalmostexstinct drizzled in something
That is not this place
We went to R.TL for Taste of Yaletown, so they were offering to "fixed priced" menu's
My wife had the duck Con-fit, and although we were there early (6ish) Her duck was overcooked - "duck-jerky"
I had the lamb shank, usually a safe order but again for 6ish Friday I was expecting fresher and not overcooked/dried out.
In Vancouver, and especially Yaletown you gotta bring your "A Game" every night even or especially charity events.
The host/waiter did not even appear to be shocked or disappointed, that we were disappointed,
and well that is .... disappointing -
Review from Amanda L.
10/3/2011 2 Check-ins Here
The food at R.T.L was pretty good but not outstanding as it should be for the price.They have very little vegetarian options but they substituted their seafood linguine for an off menu pasta with tons of fresh veggies in it which scored big points with me. Dessert was great, we had Tiramisu gelato and a very rich chocolate terrine.
We found out after ordering our coupon wasn't valid on the set price menu and we would be charged more. After my boyfriends meal arrived cold we they decided to give us the set price without the extra cost.
All of the courses came very far apart and there was at least a half wait between when we finished one course and received the other which made it a 2 hr experience. They quickly fixed the issue with the cold meal and fairly compensated unlike most restaurants.
I was alright for the amount we paid but has be paid the $90 value I would not have been so impressed by the long waits, a socially awkward server and the cold meal. -
Review from Lee V.
Bowen Island, BC
9/9/2011
We went with the Goodnews coupon for a meal that was worth $110. While we did get 5 courses of shared plates, we didn't feel that they really showcased anything. There was no leeway in the menu options (thankfully we aren't vegetarians but if we were, the only course to eat would have been dessert.) Also, the first two plates had the same mixed baby green salad on them. It was clearly the same Spring Mix I could buy at any grocery store. The main items in the plate were good but not astounding. Usually when you go to a restaurant with small servings it at least looks pretty. Nothing overly impressive.
The wines were great especially as a wine flight. And the dessert was the highlight. Very good chocolate.
Over all we didn't come away feeling like we had experienced anything. The dumplings were ok; the bread boring (and $6 extra) the pâté was basically a meatloaf; and the duck was overwhelmed by the other things on the plate.
The server was good and definitely did keep our waters full but when we told her we had a coupon and that we also weren't going to have anything else to drink other than the wine flight, the look in her face wasn't hidden very well. Though she was very helpful when we had a question about the scallops we received.
Though we didn't pay full price for the meals, it seems like it would be a better plan to "wow" people with the deal AND food so that they come back again and pay full price. I don't think we will be those people. -
Review from Crista C.
Burnaby, BC
4/7/2012
After reading so many negative reviews I was concerned. However, I already purchased a 6 plate tasting menu deal so I had no choice but to check it out. The service received was EXCELLENT! Our server was very attentive and was very familiar with the menu. She was able to answer questions and make recommendations. Overall the food was good. He had the burrata salad, lamb, salmon, risotto, tuna, and chicken. The salmon was a little dry, but it wasn't too bad. EVerything else was cooked to perfection and tasted great. The servings for the rissoto, chicken and lamb were quite large. Overall we enjoyed our meal and the atmosphere.
-
Review from Richard S.
Vancouver, BC
7/6/2011
Food was great. My wife and I split 6 plates for our anniversary. I'll rank them all to help anyone who's got yelp in one hand, and the menu in the other.
Oak Barrel Smoked Duck
- Great, very smoky and moist, looks like small strips of brown un-cooked bacon (flavour - 8.5)
Parisian Gnocchi
- a nice crispy change to the more meaty, saucy dishes we had. Good for dipping into the other dishes sauces as well. (flavour - 6.5)
Mushroom & truffle risotto
- Super awesome. Truffle oil? How can you go wrong. It's a pretty filling dish too. (flavour - 9.5)
Mococcan Stewed Quail
- imagine 4 little tiny chicken thighs, served in a jus with some diced fig. (flavour - 7)
Prawns piri piri
- Nice and spicy. I'd say 6 of them. I was a fan but it was a little hot for my wife (flavour -8)
Cajun Crab & Prawn Fritters
- Ennh... the 2 crab cakes were decent and crispy, but flavour wise nothing compared to the other dishes we had. (flavour - 6)
We also had a couple of cocktails. Some gin, gingerbeer, lime juice and mint concoction. It was very good. I recommend it too. -
Review from Namit M.
6/2/2011 1 Check-in Here
r.tl is one of those places I really really want to like but cant see myself return to. That's a shame.
We ordered the pre-fix that allowed us to share an appy and a desert, and an entree each.
Got the mussels in a spicy chipotle broth - the mussels were excellent, however the broth was very ordinary. They said it came with cilantro - but all we tasted was basil - and I do not like to be conned of my herbs!
For the entree we got the Osso Buco and the striploin steak. The Osso Buco was excellent and I highly recommend it. It came with some pasta and was really falling off the bone. So Good.
The steak was a little chewy and not something I would order again.
Shared the creme brulee - which was actually very good.
Have to give props to our waitress - she was knowledgeable and very attentive.
Really like the ambiance here - it is quite, romantic and probably a good place to grab a bottle of wine and an appy. But with so many choices not sure I am inclined to return. -
Review from Jacob K.
1/25/2011
A review of r.tl's Dine-out menu:
The quinoa salad was a great combination of the grain and some vegetables that gave the dish a crunch and some colour for the palette. The mix of peppers with the creamy avocado was delightful.
The lambchops at medium rare were cooked to perfection. Ever so soft and delicious, for any meat fans, this dish is a must have. The jerk chicken looked amazing in its description and in its presentation, but as someone who does not like spicy food this one was a no-go.
The dessert was just the right size - a small baked chocolate mousse type. Just small enough to give me a hint of sweetness without too many calories.
I found the staff to be attentive and courteous;sometimes this can be a concern when attending prix fixe dinners because the staff knows the bill is limited and so is the tip. I believe we were waited on by the proprietor at times, making sure our water glasses were filled and answering all our questions about the meal. -
Review from Erica Z.
Vancouver, BC
12/19/2010
This really deserves 3.5 stars.
Ambiance: Really nice, warm vibe. Something you'd expect to be Yaletown. Cool Mirrors on the the walls, and fire lighting in the window display.
Service: Attentive wait staff and sommelier.
Food: Pretty good but then again, we got a voucher from a friend so we only paid tax and tip. The wine was amazing but other than that, the food was tasty but forgettable. For our appetizer, we had the chipotle mussels which were good but the wine reduction was quite strong. My bf had the trout as his main but when it arrived, the fish selection was salmon. We didn't complain since he likes salmon better anyway but it would have been nice to hear that there had been a change in the menu. With potatoes and capers, it was a solid tasting dish but nothing overly creative. I had the veal sambucco and while the meat was excellently cooked, the accompanying pasta was bland and incredibly boring. For dessert we had the baked apple crisp which was also quite delicious but nothing creative or unique.
All in all, not a bad dining experience and the food was alright but -
Review from J H.
3/29/2011
Not impressed for the price we paid. Though the placehad a nice trendy ambience and our server was sweet and nice, these couldn't make up for what the food lacked.
The wine guys knew his stuff, I'll give him that. I asked for certain characteristics and was made a recommendation that was great.
But the food wasn't anything special and really lacked consistency! Let's start off with the following comments from our table:
Mussels - a couple of us ordered this and it looked good the first go around. But the next one came out with 1/4 the broth. When we asked for more broth cuz the mussels were all dry and in fact cold, we got a tiiiiny little bowl and needed to ask that they make more. A couple of excuses we got was they didn't make enough broth, followed by they ran out of mussels. Don't they typically make orders by the order and not in bulk????
Crab cakes - small and bland for $15 and salad wirh browning leaves with barely a hint of dressing...not worth it.
Lobster bisque- needed more pepper. But strangely there was no salt/pepper shakers in sight!. Maybe a touch of basil could have made it something more. The lobster may not have been cut right cuz of fibers that kept getting stuck in the teeth..
Steak - with potatos and brussels sprouts. Decent taste but poor preso! The sauce was sloppy and the veggie looked like it was plopped on like a greasy spoon cafeteria
Dumplings - nothing special for $11. Better to get them at any dim sum place
Creme brûlée - was so watery, drippy and even slight cold. I'm a big dessert person, but I was giving it a no-go!
I don't know if I"d give this place another chance. ONLY maybe if i'm ever in the area again and wanted to test out other wines but I'll still try other places first and dis-recommend this joint. -
Review from Tracy P.
Vancouver, BC
1/25/2011
From the outside facade, coupled with the general feel/reputation of Yaletown, I expected this restaurant to be decorated with very modern, clean lines; A very posh lounge. Past that sliding door, however, you're treated to a very intimate den. About 60% rustic, 40% Yaletown Modern, if that makes sense. A mixture of books, bricks and furniture that looks like it's from Nood. The low ceiling and dim lighting made it feel like an underground/basement lounge.
It was a rather quiet night, as our reservations were fairly early (7:30pm on a Monday night), and the service was amazing. Our server was friendly, attentive, without being overbearing. I asked her what she would suggest as a fresh and sweet cocktail and she brought me their "Coco Caipiroska", which was a deliciously sweet coconut, lime juice & vodka drink.
As for the rest of the meal, collectively, we had the wedge salad, mushroom risotto, pork terrine, surf & turf, chocolate terrine and cheese platter.
To be very blunt, the dishes were decent. They were cooked well, plated nicely and obviously tasted delicious. However, I felt they lacked a lot of originality. I don't feel that any of the dishes we had, we couldn't get elsewhere. In fact, the "turf" portion of my meal, was largely distracting. The green peppercorn sauce tasted a tad bizarre and overpowered everything else on the plate. But perhaps that's more my personal prefences, and not the folly of the chef. I think there was a Hollandaise on my lobster and that, too, was distracting.
The desserts were okay as well. The chocolate terrine was bold and decadent, however my "cheese selection" was not anything special. A wedge of brie, some crostini, and some dried apricots, raisins and walnuts. Something I could have ziplock bagged for a picnic. Disappointing.
It's a lovely venue, with great service and decent food, but I'm not so sure I'd go back. I'm certain that what we experienced last night was not worth the $100+ bill, and this was for Dine-Out! -
Review from Rick O.
Vancouver, BC
12/28/2010
We arrived last night, greeted by this fabulous door that swooshed open... kind of like those doors on a star trek ship. Very cool.
The decor and ambiance was nice, and it wasn't too loud. I liked that.
We were greeted with a smile and directed to our table (A bit small, but adequate).
We were then introduced to our waitress and she started to take our drink order.
I should mention that we came with with a coupon for a "Lobster dinner for 2"... we like to eat, and this being a "tasting lounge", we felt we'd try some items on the menu.
We started with a bottle of white (Hugel) from Alsace and ordered our first appetizer, Truffle risotto. While we waited, I figured out that bread is $6. When the risotto arrived, while I could certainly taste the truffle oil, it was bland. I ate only a couple bites of this.
We then proceeded to order "Prawn & Crab Cakes" and the Smoked Duck. The Crab Cakes were served deep fried, but regrettably cold in the center. They tasted fine, but, it really made me wonder if they had been precooked, chilled (or frozen) then reheated.
The smoked duck came in the form if 3 very thin breast shavings. I was again disappointed by the lack of value here as it certainly wasn't there. Taste: They tasted OK.
We then Pork Belly arrived, I was pleasantly surprised be the amount that was on the plate. It was a very good portion. Unfortunately it was bland. I asked for salt for this dish.
We then ordered Gnocchi & and the Cheese Plate. Now things started to heat up! The Gnocchi arrived and much to my surprise, it was spicy, so BEWARE! While this happened to be my favorite dish, my date just couldn't eat it.
The cheese plate consisted of 4 pieces of cheese. 2 Pieces of local cheddar (bland), 1 piece of Camembert (Very tasty), and a blue cheese that was packed with flavor. A good value here.
By this time, we were getting low on wine, so we ordered another bottle and then asked for our feature dinner, the lobster tails, to arrive.
We each got a lobster tail, and it was served cut down the spine for presentation. I think the kitchen was probably trying to make them look like more than what was being served.
Now, at the beginning of my meal, our neighbors had just started to eat their lobster tails. I sort of giggled (to myself) when I saw them fighting to get the meat out... I just figured they didn't know what they were doing.
When our Lobster tails came out, I quickly realized we were going to have the same problem. You see, they overcooked the tails! Actually, to me, it looks like they were cooked on a different day, then "reheated", but, I'm not sure. Eithter way, they were easily the worst part of the meal, sad since it was supposed to be the feature.
Whats worse is that they were the VERY SMALLEST lobster tails you could possibly buy. Any smaller and the Lobsters have to be thrown back in the water! I mean, you can buy shrimp from the local guys at Granville island larger than these tails. *sigh*.
Disappointed by our last course, we ordered an Ice cream sandwich. It was a good size, and tasted fine, but I couldn't help thinking it came from a package (Like something you'd buy in the frozen desert section at costco or safeway) then served on a plate. While it didn't feel like it was the chef's "creation", it was a good dish to finish with... maybe that was a good thing!
Our bill came to $230 plus ~$40 for the tip - since the waitress was helpful. I should point out that our waitress overheard me saying one of my courses was bland, and she apparently agreed with me.... just not enough to adjust the bill.
In conclusion, if you're looking for a chef-inspired, freshly cooked meal, you can find much better. -
Review from Vanessa D.
Vancouver, BC
9/15/2010 ROTD 10/7/2010
Missed the Elite event here a while back, but heard good things so decided to check it out. So glad I did!
Service was excellent. Knowledgeable about the wine as well as the menu, gracious, friendly, accommodating and not overbearing; more restaurants in Vancouver should take note and follow suit. The servers and staff made a good experience even better.
On to the food.... mmmmmmmm. The chef's share plate is a helluva deal! Salmon ceviche, smoked duck, warm olives, greens, panko breaded prawns and braised pork belly; all excellently executed in generous portions on a plate for two (or more) and at a steal of a price point. I am still full and already craving more of the braeburn apple gastrique served with the pork.
Normal shares/entrees are priced typical for Yaletown. You know what you are getting into the moment you step in the neighbourhood (so no whining!). The chef's share plate and the shellfish bowl *are* good deals though, and you definitely get your money's worth.
Decent wine list (lots of selections available by the glass as well as flights) and a fun cocktail list. Sadly did not get to try the infamous pisco sour, but will CERTAINLY be going back to try it and sample the rotating menu. -
Review from Camille R.
Vancouver, BC
12/7/2010
RTL is cozy and intimate and serves up some good food. Have to agree, avoids the pretentiousness of some other Yaletown spots.
Went here on a Saturday night and had a great 2 hour dinner with my boyfriend. We started out with drinks, and my cocktail was great - some sort of gin/chai concoction. I would probably go back just for the drink. The appetizer of chesse and eggplant was delicious even though I don't usually go for eggplant. For my main I went with the trout, which was melt in mouth. Dessert was baked apple which was good, but nothing to write home about. Service was very nice, and the owner was very nice to give us some of his cooking secrets!
We sat at the window which was right by the outdoor flame decor they have, very entertaining to watch people stiick their hands in the flames.
Overall a delightful evening, and I would go back. -
Review from Christie S.
Vancouver, BC
11/23/2010
An understated, elegant small-plate restaurant in Yaletown, with not a hint of pretentiousness. Happy to have found you, r.tl.
My lover and I started with drinks: his, a manly double Dalwhinnie. Mine, a heavenly coconut-and-lime creation that reminded me of suntan oil from the 1970s. MMMM!
We split the peri-peri prawns and house bread to scoop up the savory sauce. Crab cakes were also delish.
Good service and reasonably priced! -
Review from Yunn A.
1/15/2011
A fun place to be, and agreed with others, that you have to want to splurge a bit. The food is actually quite reasonable and tasty. However, even though we ordered mainly sharing tapas, and quite a few dishes, there were only a couple that we all agreed were very good; I guess a lot of the dishes cater to certain palates rather than most.
Wine was a bit pricey, but not to be unexpected in Yaletown.
Our server, Alain, also the manager, was a wonderful host, and made the night very comfortable and enjoyable.
It's a cool place to hang out, and check out the other people (one of my guests was meeting lots of new people around the restaurant haha), so if you're looking for more quiet and intimate, I'd go elsewhere. But for the ambiance that is suggested in the name, this is a good pick.
I'd come again, when I have the cash to spare, or if someone else is paying. -
Review from Annie M.
Vancouver, BC
It was so quiet in r.tl coz Canucks game 7 tonight. It wasn't my choice coz I read the most reviews were below ok. however, my girl friend picked and wanted to try it out.
I found the menu selection was not much and the food we had not really worth it. The worst thing was we waited for 45 mins to get our appetizers and another 30 mins to get the steak!!
We ordered 2 appetizers to share and had same entree.
Mushroom and truffle risotto - it was good but not impressed at all.
Crab cake - ok too.
5oz Beef striploin - it was quite chewy and tasted like marinated.
We didn't bother to get the dessert coz we might need to wait for awhile. -
Review from Reena M.
Updated - 7/4/2010 2 Check-ins Here
I came here for a friend's birthday who, on my recommendation, chose the restaurant. I like r.tl. The menu is pretty good and their cocktails selection is fantastic. I had the mushroom and gruyere ravioli. It was nice, but a little too salty.
The reason r.tl loses a star from me is because they charge a cake-cutting fee--$2.50 per person! We were only 4, so an extra $10 on the bill. Their reasoning was that it's like we're bringing in food from outside.... but come on, my friend has celiac's disease so it's not like she could eat any of the desserts on the menu other than the gelato. I made her a gluten free birthday cake since you can't even find something like that in a grocery store here. And now you say, because of her limitations, you will charge us extra? Hmmm..... that was a bit of a damper.Listed in: Get y'er drank on!, Yelpage, When Yelp Leads Me Astray, Date Night in Vancouver
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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11/2/2009
Even though I'm giving it 4 stars, I want re-iterate, I'm a huge fan! We came here as a Yelp event… Read more »
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Review from Stephanie M.
Vancouver, BC
7/25/2010
I had high hopes for RTL, and while the food was definitely excellent quality, I wasn't as impressed as I'd hoped. To be fair, I think this was in large part to the dish I ordered. While very tasty, it was a little too rich for me, and I think I just simply made the wrong choice. Luckily RTL changes its menu regularly so I would give it another shot when they are featuring a different type of cuisine. The service was fantastic (we were there before it got really busy), the atmosphere was cool and they have a great drinks menu.
My only real complaint: be aware that if you are celebrating a special occasion and would like to bring dessert, they will charge a "cake cutting" fee. Boo-urns to that!Listed in: Best Happy Hour, Best New American
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Review from Crystal H.
Vancouver, BC
5/3/2009 4 Check-ins Here
A very quiet Saturday night inside r.tl. Could have been the Canucks playoff game, or the fact that the drinks were on the pricy. Luckily, it looked like they were made with love!
Where else would I be so brave as to order a caesar made with beef stock instead of clamato juice? I guess my curiosity made me do it. It was tasty, but a little weird, it felt like I was eating a steak marinade!
Sitting at the bar, we had the almost undivided attention of the bartender, which was great because we learned lots about the drinks.
The lounge smelled amazing! We were told that the kitchen were making poppy seed lemon french toast. It's not on the menu, they were just making it for themselves - but dang -did it make me hungry!
Will definitely be trying to bribe them next time to whip me up some of that french toast - but I think I'll wait for my next visit for a day when there's some more action happening inside! -
Review from Rebecca H.
North Vancouver, BC
7/26/2010
I've been dying to go back here since I attend a Yelp event several months ago. I had been much impressed by the food that first time, and could wait to try out some more of their offerings. I brought my friend here after starting off our night at UVA wine bar. As soon as we entered, we were greatly by the manager and seated at a table.
After perusing the menu for some time, we decided to ask for some recommendations. After hearing us each utter a few descriptors, he was able to recommend two different wines for each of us. Moreover, he offered to bring us out a taster of each prior to serving, so that we could make sure that we were getting exactly what each of us were craving. I was brought a Malbec and a Tempranillo; while the Malbec was good, the Tempranillo was perfect. I don't think I could have chosen myself a more prefect wine for what I desired.
After sipping and conversing for a while, we decided that we could both do with a bite to eat. We ordered the sautéed squid - not a stellar companion for my wine, but the only thing that fit both of our palates. I've never been a huge fan of squid or octopus, but this was lovely. Nicely spiced, a little bit tangy, and not rubbery!
Throughout the evening, the service was stellar. We felt very at home and well served. I would most definitely return. -
Review from Mario B.
8/23/2011 Seated via OpenTable
Very interesting menu! Had an array of tapas and great wine!! Food was excellent. Service was fantastic and the ambiance is very good! Will be back.
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Review from Angie B.
2/26/2009
Yaletown has been on my Vancouver favorite list for a while. We had a great time here last weekend shopping, eating & drinking (even spotted John Cusack!)
We walked by RTL several times, and finally dropped by one early evening for a quick drink & small bite to eat. I wish we had gone earlier in the trip or had time to go back for a bigger meal.
The bartender was super friendly & whipped up a great French 75. Not too sweet, not too tart, perfect level of "sparkliness"...and we also had a very tasty paella cake. The bartender also recommended we go to the Cascade Room later that night, which we did, and had another fabulous experience (but that is another review).
Beside the tasty food & drink, it is a dark, intimate spot - modern feeling but didn't seem too hip for its' own good. You know what I mean? Just a perfect little spot, something a little different than some of the other (larger/less personable) bars & restaurants in that area. -
Review from Katie F.
10/30/2009
3.5 stars
Kudos to Alyna H. for inspiring a dilemma in our yelp group as to whether or not we would look crazy if we all ordered the meatballs appy at Taste of Yaletown this year!!
Thankfully we didn't and there was a nice variety in our group. The owner was very nice and treated our group to an additional salted sliced duck tapas type dish with greens on the side - mmmm. The duck was heavenly! It's one of their regular menu items and huge thumbs up from me!
Having my +1 there came in handy to sample extra dishes :) Hubby had the meatballs which were good, but I must admit that I loved my cod fritters even better! The spicy aioli sauce with it was excellent!
My main was okay. Presentation was very nice and I loved the couscous tabouli... mmmm! The seared tuna itself was so-so. Hubby tells me his steak was quite good.
Desserts were also good. The smores were adorable - little marshmallows coated in graham crumbs on a toothpick with chcolate sauce. My only thought is that I missed the "crunch" of a real smore graham cracker. The apple crumble with ice cream was excellent!
All in all, I was happy and nicely full. Great value for $25 and looking forward to coming back for their regular tapas style menu! The owner tells me that they go through some country themes and rotate the items about every 3 months.
Ditto the bathroom comments - my pet peeve is a nice resto with an icky bathroom (i.e. Boneta for example), but this one is all good! -
Review from Kat S.
Updated - 1/22/2011
Wow, I was so looking forward to a nice dinner out with my man friend last night and now I'm just feeling ripped off. WTF r.tl?
I'm disappointed because it is ruining my memory of my last awesome experience here.
Here's the deal... I bought one of those coupon deals a few months ago in anticipation of a special evening out. I found this one through Hot Deals Live and it was for $59 for a 3 course dinner for two including a bottle of wine. Seemed like a good deal, and they valued the package at $145 for a savings of 59.3%. Awesome, right? Well... not so much.
We arrived at our reservation time, and as I had informed them ahead of time of the coupon deal they had the menu ready for us. I had checked their online menu which had 3-course pix fixe menu for $29 per person (priced at $35 a la carte for what I would have wanted from that menu). I figured this is what we would get. No. Nope. Not so fast. We were told we get ONE appy between us to share, and ONE dessert between us to share, and we each get our own main course. Excuse me? That was not in the fine print on the deal. I shared my displeasure with the waitress who explained that the deal site makes up the deal and they just go with it. I think she made stuff up, but it wasn't her fault, and she was nice. She said we were still getting a good deal because of the bottle of wine. I said the evaluation for most deals from these sites is typically a 40-50% savings, which this was not. The wine selection was very limited, which I figured it would be, and just the cheapest they had. We selected a Volcanic Hills Gamay, which was nice, but is worth $15 in the store. This wine is probably sold for $40 (their lowest price point) if they had it on their regular menu.
Annoyed, but obviously not going to get what we expected, we soldiered on and ordered some food. Mussels were good, in a nice broth, but only came with 3 tough pieces of bread for soaking up. If we are meant to share it, bring at least 4 pieces, please. Normal value of $15.
The mains were not what was on their regular pix fixe menu, so I went with the trout and the man had the flank steak. (Normally $17 and unknown price, we'll say $20, respectively). The food was good, though the rice in my dish was bland, and my trout was not crusted as the menu says. Weird. Anyhow, it tasted all right and was cooked well.
For dessert we decided to have the ice cream sandwich ($9 regular) again because we liked it so much last time. What we got was a piece of shit compared to what we had 2 months previous. Seriously. The cookie part was frozen and so hard it almost shot off the plate when I tried to cut through it. No chewy, wonderful brownie like cookie this time. Nope, we got some frozen crap that tasted stale and awful. We didn't eat the cookies. We scraped off the ice cream which just tasted like store bought, and sat there staring at our shitty shared dessert in utter disappointment. Again, we complained to the poor waitress who said she would inform the chef of our displeasure. We were not offered anything else.
We'd been planning to stay for a cocktail after dinner, but we were given the bill as soon as our plates were cleared. At this point we didn't want anymore, but we had not even been asked if we would like anything else.
To add to our frustrations further, John Furlong and 30 of his friends decided it was a good night to hang out at the bar in r.tl and make the atmosphere nice and noisy. I wasn't aware that the restaurant was allowed to have standing room, but that's what they were doing.
So, for those of you keeping track at home, our "$145" valued meal came out to:
$15 appy
$17 main
$20 main
$9 dessert
$40 wine (cough... seriously?)
Total - $101
Or... if we had had the two $29 prix fixe menus, which would have been nicer, we would have had a $98 valued meal, more food, and we would have been happier. You know, if the ice cream sandwich hadn't tasted like shit.
So thanks, r.tl, for being cheap, and not providing the same quality to the people buying your coupons. Most people who bought those coupons have probably never been to r.tl, and I doubt they will return. I know I won't.
At least Pourhouse saved the evening, where as usual we were treated awesome and had amazing drinks.
Edit: A new Steal The Deal coupon posted today (27 Jan 2011) lists the same deal for $39 with a $78 value. Fuck you.Listed in: Never Again, Best Bathrooms
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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11/29/2010
r.tl is a great place to splurge a little and treat yourself. The food is excellent, and the… Read more »
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Review from Kal B.
7/10/2011
friend had a bought a groupon for this place.. supposed to be 3 courses for 2 and a bottle of wine.. reg 90 something, for $50
had always been curious about this place so was excited about finally trying it out
it was totally dead on a monday nite.. we were the first ones to arrive for dinner.. other than us only 2 other pairs came in after us the entire time we were there.. because we had first dibs we took the table up front by the window
the funny thing was people kept walking by and sticking their hand in the fire thats just outside the window.. so the ppl watching aspect was entertaining
k so back to the meal.. i think they totally effed up.. they served us some other groupon type special.. the Hero deal or something? so basically we got a 3-4 course tasting menu that normally costs $55.. and we shared THAT between 2 people.. i think we also got some bread which we paid extra for and maybe some drinks.. so i paid an extra 30-40 bucks or so for tip and extras. so 80-90 something total all said and done.. but wait i thought we had a groupon?? which is supposed to give us a deal and not just be reg price?? we ended up paying whatever all the stuff was normally worth and they treated it like more of a gift card. we also didn't get our bottle of wine! me and friend didn't figure all this out til afterwards.. total 'blonde' moment.. but figured ah well anyways. i would never come back here to pay regular price again.. nothing there is 'worth it'.
the portions were incredibly tiny as you can guess.. and to split that meal between 2 people we were unshockingly still hungry after and popped into earl's yaletown afterwards.. lol..
overall a dissapointment -
Review from Suzanne H.
Vancouver, BC
10/8/2010
Maybe we hit them on an off-night, but here's my take so far:
Upside: it's a nice small sized room--modern with clean lines but warm and cozy; knowledgeable, unpretentious staff, and overall tasty and nicely presented food - they offer a range of flavourful of tapas/small dishes with some larger entrees. They also have fabulous cocktails - I had Coco Caipiroska, with vodka, lime and coconut. It was a bit sweet for my taste, but really delicious, and my friend's Morrocan Sling was perfect.
Downsides: first, the lighting - too bright!!! It was like the lights had been cranked for cleaning at the end of the shift. And they'd run out of olives. Who runs out of olives?! We tried the chef's share, which is a mix of tapas. They replaced the missing-in-action olives with a truly delicious, nutty quinoa salad. The rabbit was gristly, but the tiny pots of dipping sauces for the skewers were bursting with flavour. The wine list is good - but it really seemed massively overpriced to me; $7 per flight and $14+ per glass (not extra-large) seems steep for the overall scope of the room and menu.
Still, I may give it another shot, if the lights aren't quite so cranked up next time. -
Review from Raymond O.
Vancouver, BC
10/30/2009
Taste of Yaletown gave me a good opportunity to try restaurants along the area which I wouldn't think of going anytime soon.
r.tl was a hit and a miss.
The name of the restaurant brilliantly explains it's structure - regional tasting lounge - which tries to enhance repeat interest in patronizing the place by offering dishes from any 3 regions around the world at a time in minute sampling size.
That night it was Basque, Morocco and Coastal BC cuisine.
HIT:
1. Appie:
- "Pan Seared Chermoula Prawns" which had a good underlying sweet taste coupled with a refreshing cucumber mint salad.
- "Bacalhau Cod Fritters" were perfectly fried with it's crispy outer texture and tender codfish. The dipping sauce could have been more creative than your regular pepper aioli.
- "Spicy Baque Style Beef Meatballs" was covered with a tomato-pepper sauce known as piperade. Again, the beef meatballs were soft and tender. But the sauce didn't really give much more taste than simply throw me back into thinking they were, well, just another meatball dish.
2. Main:
- "6oz Flat Iron Steak". The highlight of this dish were the sides. I liked the smoothly whipped potato bacon mash. The single confit shallot was yummy and was just a fleeting memory.
- "Oat Crusted Arctic Char". Perfectly cooked! Sadly, not much taste to rave about.
3. Dessert:
- They have their aptly titled "House-made Smores 'taste like more'" which were a few small rectangular marshmallows covered with finely crushed Graham crackers then placed on toothpicks served with a side of dark chocolate sauce courtesy of a miniature ramekin.
It was a cute reinvention, but it did nothing to my taste buds. I would rather at this point just be served a pair of whole crackers, marshmallows and chocolate and let me do my own labour in assembling it myself than spend my money to pay them to present it this way.
- The "Braeburn Apple Crumble" was finally presented in a normal sized ramekin, but then it was forgettable. The vanilla ice cream was supposed to be fennel scented. That's what I read. It's not what I tasted.
MISS:
- You know how small the dishes will be the entire night when the wine you order comes in a small amount that I had to check with our server what size what served as they had the regular "glass" portion and a "fleet" offering. But it was quickly affirmed that what I had was their regular glass size order.
- Then came the dishes which all came in tiny sampler size which was way smaller than the tapas size in other places that it looks painfully expensive and more laborious in down-sizing the dish that way.
BOTTOMLINE:
A small "lounge" with equally small sampler portions from start to end. Perfectly cooked. Great ingredients. Good taste. Nicely presented. But once you walk out, the dishes became forgettable and your pocket now lighter.
If you want to take advantage of Yaletown's tasting event I would recommend Provence. If you want to sample tapas-style world cuisine in really decent portions, it be Sanafir.
And for that I left with a 2.5 star rating. I definitely experienced better. I just wish I experienced it here a well. -
Review from Victoria R.
BC
12/23/2008 1 photo
Yaletown's restaurant scene is innovative and funky. So when a new spot opens it better be good, creative and offer something the other hundred restaurants don't.
Remeber the sip resto lounge on Granville? Everythingis made with booze...well this new tapas style tasting lounge is brought to you by the same people. The cuisine focuses on regional and local tastings, and then picks another two locations to highlight. The restaurant colours and decor is really cool. It's West Coast modern, tiles, dark wood, VIP room, white leather couch, and a plasma TV. You going regional? -
Review from Justin S.
Kelowna, BC
12/28/2008
New place in yaletown we visited with another couple. Tapas style dishes that are meant to share. The entrance was cool as it was a sliding glass door that was motion activated. Couldn't even tell it was the door!
The menu consists of 3 regions - Coastal BC and then 2 other regions that are changed occasionally. When we visited the 2 were Spanish and Middle Eastern. We ordered about 6-7 dishes. The smoked duck with a candied walnut topping was to die for. The porkbelly, mussels, and lamb cheek served on cous cous were also top notch.
Drink menu was impressive and looks like some thought was put into that as well as the extensive wine list. Decor was modern with what I would call Japanese accents. Heard there was a VIP room behind a sliding bookcase, but never saw it. Wonder what book you'd have to pull to open it? If you're looking for something new and fresh to try in yaletown, don't pass up r.tl. -
Review from adam b.
12/29/2010
Had the 3 course meal. The avocado corn salad was delicious. The skirt steak was ok to good and the ice cream sandwich for dessert was tasty. Enjoyable experience.
