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"slathered in sunscreen, awkward and amused"
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Location
Victoria, BC
Yelping SinceOctober 2008
Things I Lovebooks, movies, music, food, animals, sleeping, cooking, gardening, Gabriel, friends, family, karaoke, laughing, playing pool, swimming
Find Me InNobody puts Bethy in a corner.
My HometownVictoria, BC
When I'm Not Yelping...I'm watching, reading, listening, tasting.
Why You Should Read My ReviewsDecent spelling, occasional wit, rare insight.
My Second Favorite Website The Last Great Book I ReadCity of Thieves by David Benioff
My First ConcertI'm afraid the answer is 'Snap' at age 12. I'VE GOT THE POWER!
My Favorite MovieTampopo
My Last Meal On EarthPhad Thai Goong, salad rolls with spicy peanut sauce, mango juice.
Don't Tell Anyone Else But...I secretly want to be a PROFESSIONAL REVIEWER
Most Recent DiscoveryThe Pho broth at Pho Vy
Current CrushMy love, Gabriel A. Also, Joseph Gordon Levitt & Salma Hayek.
Date
Ugggghhhhh, what a revoltin' development this turned out to be. I hate upgrad-- DOWNGRADING a review, especially when I used to like the place.
In the beginning, 10 years or so ago, Azuma was small, and all the food and service was excellent.
About 3-4 years ago they upgraded the restaurant's decor. It's larger and prettier, but the sushi went vastly downhill - inexpertly prepared, less fresh than other places, and the rice to fish ratio was a rip-off. HOWEVER! Their hot food was excellent, and the service was still good, and it was still the only place outside of Japanese Village to get the rice with sesame sauce. Mmm.
As of tonight, I can report I am done with Azuma. The menu was impossible to navigate, with items only available before 5pm mixed in with everything else throughout. Under soup it gave a choice of miso or shabu shabu. Upon ordering shabu shabu, the waiter informed us that was only available at lunch. It didn't say that.
Tonight I had beef teriyaki, with a cup of miso soup, a side green salad, and my beloved rice with sesame sauce. The miso soup was fine, and the tea was fine. Neither was noticeably good, or noticeably bad. They were fine.
My side salad was drowning in dressing. I left half of it swimming in wilted misery at the bottom of its little white bowl. My beef teriyaki was overcooked, DROWNING in sauce, and basically a ball of salt. Seriously, it was like someone had coated a car tire in salt lick and called it beef. What I left behind sank slowly into the remaining lake of salt-sauce like a sad saber-toothed tiger giving in to the tar.
And - heartbreak of heartbreak - my side of rice was dry, lukewarm, and covered in the glorious sesame sauce - which has now traded in much of its sesame flavour for oil, and salt. I left much of it behind, too.
I would have mentioned some of this to the waiter, had he come back (even once) or asked (even once) how we were liking our food, or even chirped a cheerful (how WAS everything?) after the fact. Nobody asked, nobody came by, nobody cared. I wanted more tea, and that was never an option either, as the second we were finished they scooped up our salty, saucy plates, took our money, and bid us farewell.
...forever, even if they didn't know that.
It was a really bad experience. Sadly, Azuma has gone so far downhill that you now need rappelling gear and a helmet with a little light on it to get there.
And what do you find at the bottom?
Salt.
In the beginning, 10 years or so ago, Azuma was small, and all the food and service was excellent.
About 3-4 years ago they upgraded the restaurant's decor. It's larger and prettier, but the sushi went vastly downhill - inexpertly prepared, less fresh than other places, and the rice to fish ratio was a rip-off. HOWEVER! Their hot food was excellent, and the service was still good, and it was still the only place outside of Japanese Village to get the rice with sesame sauce. Mmm.
As of tonight, I can report I am done with Azuma. The menu was impossible to navigate, with items only available before 5pm mixed in with everything else throughout. Under soup it gave a choice of miso or shabu shabu. Upon ordering shabu shabu, the waiter informed us that was only available at lunch. It didn't say that.
Tonight I had beef teriyaki, with a cup of miso soup, a side green salad, and my beloved rice with sesame sauce. The miso soup was fine, and the tea was fine. Neither was noticeably good, or noticeably bad. They were fine.
My side salad was drowning in dressing. I left half of it swimming in wilted misery at the bottom of its little white bowl. My beef teriyaki was overcooked, DROWNING in sauce, and basically a ball of salt. Seriously, it was like someone had coated a car tire in salt lick and called it beef. What I left behind sank slowly into the remaining lake of salt-sauce like a sad saber-toothed tiger giving in to the tar.
And - heartbreak of heartbreak - my side of rice was dry, lukewarm, and covered in the glorious sesame sauce - which has now traded in much of its sesame flavour for oil, and salt. I left much of it behind, too.
I would have mentioned some of this to the waiter, had he come back (even once) or asked (even once) how we were liking our food, or even chirped a cheerful (how WAS everything?) after the fact. Nobody asked, nobody came by, nobody cared. I wanted more tea, and that was never an option either, as the second we were finished they scooped up our salty, saucy plates, took our money, and bid us farewell.
...forever, even if they didn't know that.
It was a really bad experience. Sadly, Azuma has gone so far downhill that you now need rappelling gear and a helmet with a little light on it to get there.
And what do you find at the bottom?
Salt.
1 Previous Review:
-
4/5/2009
Graham P's review is...well, kinda wrong.
1) The "random guy with a teapot" isn't odd or creepy, he's providing service quickly while being as polite and unobtrusive as possible. Not sure why that would be surprising in a Japanese restaurant.
2) If you order the shrimp tempura and there's battered onion in it, complain. But every mixed tempura I've ever had is a variety of items - usually a few prawns/shrimp and some mixed vegetables. I've had onion, green pepper, carrot, yam, mushroom, even eggplant. And it's all good!
All that said, Azuma isn't my favourite for sushi. I find they use too much rice in their rolls and not enough filling. But the selection of sushi is good, the ingredients are always fresh, and the service is friendly and quick. And the hot stuff - the tempura, the rice and sauce, the teriyaki - if that's your bag, is excellent. Their Katsu Don was to die for last time I had it.
For hot Japanese food, this ranks second only to Japanese Village in Victoria, in my opinion. For sushi, I'd usually stick to Tamami or Ebizo or Yoshi. But I've never had a bad experience at Azuma. And they have great tea.
And they deliver!
I wanted to like this place better - a diner-style food joint with a specialty in poutine sounded pretty great.
But it was only so-so. Between the three of us we tried the chicken poutine, the classic poutine and a loaded hot dog (with onion, bacon, cheese and coleslaw). The hot dog bun was soggy, the wiener seemed boiled (would be much better if they split and grilled it), the bacon was overcooked, the cheese was processed.
The poutine was a bit better - decent gravy, very good fries. The curds were authentic and squeaky and good, but to maximize the melty deliciousness of poutine, they'd have to be smaller than the very large curds you get here.
The atmosphere is basically like someone's laundry room.
And the part that really sucked, was that it was a warm summer night, so we took one of the outside tables. We were in the middle of eating our food when the two employees came outside, sat at another table 6 feet from us, and both smoked.
....mmm, secondhand smoke with my food.
Don't you people have a back door you can smoke out of, with a milk crate to sit on? That's how every other restaurant I know lets their staff smoke. NOT right next to paying/eating guests. It was kind of gross.
Two stars instead of one, purely because the poutine was pretty decent. But next time, I'd get it to go, and it's the only thing I'd get off the menu.
But it was only so-so. Between the three of us we tried the chicken poutine, the classic poutine and a loaded hot dog (with onion, bacon, cheese and coleslaw). The hot dog bun was soggy, the wiener seemed boiled (would be much better if they split and grilled it), the bacon was overcooked, the cheese was processed.
The poutine was a bit better - decent gravy, very good fries. The curds were authentic and squeaky and good, but to maximize the melty deliciousness of poutine, they'd have to be smaller than the very large curds you get here.
The atmosphere is basically like someone's laundry room.
And the part that really sucked, was that it was a warm summer night, so we took one of the outside tables. We were in the middle of eating our food when the two employees came outside, sat at another table 6 feet from us, and both smoked.
....mmm, secondhand smoke with my food.
Don't you people have a back door you can smoke out of, with a milk crate to sit on? That's how every other restaurant I know lets their staff smoke. NOT right next to paying/eating guests. It was kind of gross.
Two stars instead of one, purely because the poutine was pretty decent. But next time, I'd get it to go, and it's the only thing I'd get off the menu.
1) Make a reservation. You'll be glad you did.
2) The bistro is run by the owner, so you know she cares about her customers!
One of the things that makes Blighty's Bistro unique is that they manage to achieve the perfect balance of casual and special. It's not the kind of place I feel the need to wear pantyhose or heels (thankyouthankyouthankyou), but it is absolutely the kind of place where I anticipate the flavours, creativity, quality and artistry of the food, much more than just a decent meal.
Last time we went, I had two cocktails....one raspberry dream, one mango martini. Both were potent, balanced, flavourful and delicious. I was glad my boyfriend agreed to drive afterward.
The bread is fantastic. Our server, Margaret, told us the secret is that they serve it with good old-fashioned butter - not margarine, not whipped butter. Whatever it is, it's working.
We shared a prawn appetizer, with some of the largest, most succulent and perfectly cooked prawns I've ever experienced. Each flavour in the dish was so complementary and tasty that my date and I surreptitiously dipped fingers and forks in the coulis adoring the plate until there was only a smear left.
I had beef tenderloin, and my boyfriend has the stuffed fish and chips, and both of us were extremely, extremely happy with our food. But really, having read the menu (and eaten here before), I can't imagine being unhappy with anything I ordered. The menu choices are well thought-out, and the chefs and kitchen staff clearly know what they're doing. You really can't go wrong.
It's not inexpensive, so it's a special occasion place for me, but the good news is that it really does make an occasion special, and you can pretty much count on it.
I hope to see their web site finished soon (it's only a landing page at the moment) so I can check back on the menu and everything else often.
Go here - you won't be disappointed!
2) The bistro is run by the owner, so you know she cares about her customers!
One of the things that makes Blighty's Bistro unique is that they manage to achieve the perfect balance of casual and special. It's not the kind of place I feel the need to wear pantyhose or heels (thankyouthankyouthankyou), but it is absolutely the kind of place where I anticipate the flavours, creativity, quality and artistry of the food, much more than just a decent meal.
Last time we went, I had two cocktails....one raspberry dream, one mango martini. Both were potent, balanced, flavourful and delicious. I was glad my boyfriend agreed to drive afterward.
The bread is fantastic. Our server, Margaret, told us the secret is that they serve it with good old-fashioned butter - not margarine, not whipped butter. Whatever it is, it's working.
We shared a prawn appetizer, with some of the largest, most succulent and perfectly cooked prawns I've ever experienced. Each flavour in the dish was so complementary and tasty that my date and I surreptitiously dipped fingers and forks in the coulis adoring the plate until there was only a smear left.
I had beef tenderloin, and my boyfriend has the stuffed fish and chips, and both of us were extremely, extremely happy with our food. But really, having read the menu (and eaten here before), I can't imagine being unhappy with anything I ordered. The menu choices are well thought-out, and the chefs and kitchen staff clearly know what they're doing. You really can't go wrong.
It's not inexpensive, so it's a special occasion place for me, but the good news is that it really does make an occasion special, and you can pretty much count on it.
I hope to see their web site finished soon (it's only a landing page at the moment) so I can check back on the menu and everything else often.
Go here - you won't be disappointed!
What they're getting right: the food, especially the hot food. Their noodles dishes are to die for, especially the Bukkake dishes (yes, really, they're called that). The soups, gyoza, and agedashi tofu are also excellent. The sushi rolls are good, but I will agree with whomever said they put over-large cucumber pieces in the rolls sometimes, making for an oddly crunchy experience. The fish has always been fresh and tasty, and their spicy tuna rolls are garlicky, spicy and delicious.
The decor is lovely.
What they need work on:
-I think they either need better sound-absorbency, or fewer tables. When it's busy, it's so loud that it becomes hard to even hear oneself think.
-The service, when it's busy, can be pretty dismal. My last experience there found myself and my dinner date ordering, being brought tea and water, then waiting 35 minutes for our food with no server checking on us in that time at all. Then our food was brought, and the server never came back to ask how it was (which really bugs me), and we had to flag someone down and ask for our bill 15 minutes after we finished our food. We were there, in total, for 2 hours.
Food-wise, it's among the best Japanese bets in the city, for sure, with an enormously varied menu, and the food is almost always spot on. But it's not great for intimate conversation, and sometimes the service is pretty lacking.
The decor is lovely.
What they need work on:
-I think they either need better sound-absorbency, or fewer tables. When it's busy, it's so loud that it becomes hard to even hear oneself think.
-The service, when it's busy, can be pretty dismal. My last experience there found myself and my dinner date ordering, being brought tea and water, then waiting 35 minutes for our food with no server checking on us in that time at all. Then our food was brought, and the server never came back to ask how it was (which really bugs me), and we had to flag someone down and ask for our bill 15 minutes after we finished our food. We were there, in total, for 2 hours.
Food-wise, it's among the best Japanese bets in the city, for sure, with an enormously varied menu, and the food is almost always spot on. But it's not great for intimate conversation, and sometimes the service is pretty lacking.
Bleargh. I wanted to like it better.
The coffee was all right. My boyfriend has the breakfast burger, which was weird but decent, and my friend had the breakfast burrito which she seemed happyish with.
I had the turkey benny, which, on the plus side, used real turkey, not deli meat. But the English muffin it was on was either WOEFULLY undertoasted, or not toasted at all, so it was soggy, spongey, mealy and yucky. The hollandaise was okay, but on the runny side.
Those weird, bland potatoes are the most flavourless, blah excuses for "pan fries" I've ever experienced. Not a crispy bite in the starchy, entirely unseasoned bunch.
The waiter was nice, the decor was all right (though the bathroom needs help - dirty, run down, and the toilet desperately needs to be rescured to the wall; it rocks when you sit on it), and it's in a lovely part of town, but given the prices (and the brunch competition in Victoria), I wasn't impressed at all.
The coffee was all right. My boyfriend has the breakfast burger, which was weird but decent, and my friend had the breakfast burrito which she seemed happyish with.
I had the turkey benny, which, on the plus side, used real turkey, not deli meat. But the English muffin it was on was either WOEFULLY undertoasted, or not toasted at all, so it was soggy, spongey, mealy and yucky. The hollandaise was okay, but on the runny side.
Those weird, bland potatoes are the most flavourless, blah excuses for "pan fries" I've ever experienced. Not a crispy bite in the starchy, entirely unseasoned bunch.
The waiter was nice, the decor was all right (though the bathroom needs help - dirty, run down, and the toilet desperately needs to be rescured to the wall; it rocks when you sit on it), and it's in a lovely part of town, but given the prices (and the brunch competition in Victoria), I wasn't impressed at all.
Whomever said "nothing special" about this place must occupy a fantastical world I'm not privy to, because I really thought Books By the Way was VERY special.
Here's why:
-couches for people to sit and peruse on. It's not a library, they're trying to SELL the books, and yet - make yourself at home. Be comfortable. Read. Laugh. Relax.
-cool secondhand comics section, including a 1950s Tom & Jerry in Finnish. I was tempted, but my Finnish is rusty.
-a beautiful section for kids in the back, with rugs and chairs. While we were there, two little girls were each curled up in an armchair, lost in whatever they were reading. I may be a bit biased about the importance of kids reading, but that made me feel pretty good.
-well-organized, easily navigated, accessible, good selection of books.
-really helpful, friendly, lovely staff. They let me use the bathroom, which I appreciated so much (sometimes, you just really need to pee.). Also, when my boyfriend and I mused about where we should go on the island, they got involved, asked what we liked, chatted with us about coffee and beaches, pulled out maps, made suggestions, and gave us a map/guide to Vashon to keep.
And all this before they knew we were going to buy anything (I eventually succumbed and bought "The Eternal Smile", a graphic novel I hadn't read before by Gene Luen Yang, who wrote American Born Chinese - one of the best graphic novels ever).
AND, they let us pat and love their greying, lovely, friendly, waggy bookstore-dog named Mildred, who was all too happy to visit. It was a really great way to spend a half hour.
It IS something special. Go there. Support them. Read. Relax.
Here's why:
-couches for people to sit and peruse on. It's not a library, they're trying to SELL the books, and yet - make yourself at home. Be comfortable. Read. Laugh. Relax.
-cool secondhand comics section, including a 1950s Tom & Jerry in Finnish. I was tempted, but my Finnish is rusty.
-a beautiful section for kids in the back, with rugs and chairs. While we were there, two little girls were each curled up in an armchair, lost in whatever they were reading. I may be a bit biased about the importance of kids reading, but that made me feel pretty good.
-well-organized, easily navigated, accessible, good selection of books.
-really helpful, friendly, lovely staff. They let me use the bathroom, which I appreciated so much (sometimes, you just really need to pee.). Also, when my boyfriend and I mused about where we should go on the island, they got involved, asked what we liked, chatted with us about coffee and beaches, pulled out maps, made suggestions, and gave us a map/guide to Vashon to keep.
And all this before they knew we were going to buy anything (I eventually succumbed and bought "The Eternal Smile", a graphic novel I hadn't read before by Gene Luen Yang, who wrote American Born Chinese - one of the best graphic novels ever).
AND, they let us pat and love their greying, lovely, friendly, waggy bookstore-dog named Mildred, who was all too happy to visit. It was a really great way to spend a half hour.
It IS something special. Go there. Support them. Read. Relax.
S.W. Point Robinson Road
Vashon Island, WA 98070
USA
(206) 463-9602
Vashon Island, WA 98070
USA
(206) 463-9602
Point Robinson Park
Category: Parks
This place is absolutely lovely and idyllic, even (especially?) on a grey, overcast day.
My boyfriend and I decided to check on Vashon on a grey, rainy Sunday, and a lovely man at a bookstore recommended we check out the point and lighthouse if we like beaches. We do.
One funny aside/bit of advice, however - when you get there, you'll see a sign that says "trail to the lighthouse" and also a continuing road which sternly admonishes you that the parking at the bottom of said road is for disability users only. So we gamely decided to go down the trail, being able-bodied and good citizens. However, it had been raining a lot (welcome to Washington). We made it about 1/3 of the way down the trail, slipping and sliding and cracking up. But by the time I had fallen three times (and I am usually NIMBLE like a MOUNTAIN GOAT) and snapped my jury-rigged walking staff in two, tucked my dress into my leggings and gamely tried to crab-walk down, we gave up and came back to the top. The trail is not all that well maintained, and is a mudslide after it's rained.
We guiltily took the continuing road down and parked as inconspiculously as possible. Nobody else was there the whole time, so it ended up being okay.
The beach is beautiful, with tons of shells, lovely rocks, and an amazing view with barges and the lighthouse and more. While there we saw a blue heron, hummingbirds, crows, seagulls, swallows, some sort of small, cute, hopping beach-bird, and even heard woodpeckers. It was a good day for birds.
I'd like to come back, and next time beat that trail - if it's dry and I have a sturdier staff and some good cleats.
My boyfriend and I decided to check on Vashon on a grey, rainy Sunday, and a lovely man at a bookstore recommended we check out the point and lighthouse if we like beaches. We do.
One funny aside/bit of advice, however - when you get there, you'll see a sign that says "trail to the lighthouse" and also a continuing road which sternly admonishes you that the parking at the bottom of said road is for disability users only. So we gamely decided to go down the trail, being able-bodied and good citizens. However, it had been raining a lot (welcome to Washington). We made it about 1/3 of the way down the trail, slipping and sliding and cracking up. But by the time I had fallen three times (and I am usually NIMBLE like a MOUNTAIN GOAT) and snapped my jury-rigged walking staff in two, tucked my dress into my leggings and gamely tried to crab-walk down, we gave up and came back to the top. The trail is not all that well maintained, and is a mudslide after it's rained.
We guiltily took the continuing road down and parked as inconspiculously as possible. Nobody else was there the whole time, so it ended up being okay.
The beach is beautiful, with tons of shells, lovely rocks, and an amazing view with barges and the lighthouse and more. While there we saw a blue heron, hummingbirds, crows, seagulls, swallows, some sort of small, cute, hopping beach-bird, and even heard woodpeckers. It was a good day for birds.
I'd like to come back, and next time beat that trail - if it's dry and I have a sturdier staff and some good cleats.
How many times have I driven past here, smiling at the cheerful mural of fat, happy and ever-so-slightly misshapen pandas and thought "damn it, I need to GO there!"?
It's right in my neighbourhood, and I do like noodles, so finally this Saturday we went "hey! Let's try the panda place!" and walked down.
It's always a good sign when you go to a Chinese place and find it full of Chinese people. It was.
Right off the bat I'll say the decor is nothing remotely memorable. The bathroom had a heinous fluorescent light and cans of paint stored in there under a chair. The furniture and flooring and paint job in the place are all kinda dingy and worn down, so if you're going for fancy ambiance, move on.
IF, however, you want tasty, inexpensive food, read on.
I'm a big believer in trying what a place is known for the first time I go - their "specialty", if you will - because I think it's a good indicator. It should be what they do best, so if it's awful, I'm probably not going back. So what did I order at Shanghai Noodle? Why, the Shanghai Noodles, of course!
We split a salad roll (rice vermicelli, shrimp, lettuce etc. in a rice wrapper - boring, honestly, and unmemorable, but not awful) and a Vietnamese roll (a deep-fried spring roll that was REALLY DELICIOUS), and a pot of jasmine tea. The tea was bag, not loose, but still did the trick, and we both also had ice water, which they refilled a lot. Appreciated.
I had the house special shanghai noodle ($9.00), which was red pepper, cabbage, bok choy, onion, and with the house special protein mix - chicken, BBQ pork, beef and prawn - over thick noodles in a slightly sweet, very garlicky and yummy sauce. My date had the same thing, but with just pork instead of the protein mix ($7.50). I found the noodles still a little al dente (as they should be), the veggies fresh and well-cooked, and the protein plentiful and yummy. The sauce was good enough that we both wished we had bread to mop it up after. Which would have been weird, I know.
The bill, with tip, came to $25.00 or so, and we were both stuffed and happy. For the money, it's a good bet. Friendly service, no-frills, good food.
They're even wheelchair accessible!
One warning to the wise, however - they do not accept credit cards!
....which is why my "dinner's on me!" boyfriend ended up sticking me with the bill, the lousy bum!
Go here. Tell the fat panda I say "what up".
It's right in my neighbourhood, and I do like noodles, so finally this Saturday we went "hey! Let's try the panda place!" and walked down.
It's always a good sign when you go to a Chinese place and find it full of Chinese people. It was.
Right off the bat I'll say the decor is nothing remotely memorable. The bathroom had a heinous fluorescent light and cans of paint stored in there under a chair. The furniture and flooring and paint job in the place are all kinda dingy and worn down, so if you're going for fancy ambiance, move on.
IF, however, you want tasty, inexpensive food, read on.
I'm a big believer in trying what a place is known for the first time I go - their "specialty", if you will - because I think it's a good indicator. It should be what they do best, so if it's awful, I'm probably not going back. So what did I order at Shanghai Noodle? Why, the Shanghai Noodles, of course!
We split a salad roll (rice vermicelli, shrimp, lettuce etc. in a rice wrapper - boring, honestly, and unmemorable, but not awful) and a Vietnamese roll (a deep-fried spring roll that was REALLY DELICIOUS), and a pot of jasmine tea. The tea was bag, not loose, but still did the trick, and we both also had ice water, which they refilled a lot. Appreciated.
I had the house special shanghai noodle ($9.00), which was red pepper, cabbage, bok choy, onion, and with the house special protein mix - chicken, BBQ pork, beef and prawn - over thick noodles in a slightly sweet, very garlicky and yummy sauce. My date had the same thing, but with just pork instead of the protein mix ($7.50). I found the noodles still a little al dente (as they should be), the veggies fresh and well-cooked, and the protein plentiful and yummy. The sauce was good enough that we both wished we had bread to mop it up after. Which would have been weird, I know.
The bill, with tip, came to $25.00 or so, and we were both stuffed and happy. For the money, it's a good bet. Friendly service, no-frills, good food.
They're even wheelchair accessible!
One warning to the wise, however - they do not accept credit cards!
....which is why my "dinner's on me!" boyfriend ended up sticking me with the bill, the lousy bum!
Go here. Tell the fat panda I say "what up".
308 Catherine St
Victoria, BC V9A 3S8
(250) 386-2739
Victoria, BC V9A 3S8
(250) 386-2739
Spinnakers Gastro Brewpub & Guesthouses
Categories: Guest Houses, Gastropubs
Okay, Spinnaker's seems to be on the rise again - I took my stepdad for lunch there, and the service was really friendly, really quick and helpful. My stepdad had a beer and I had a mineral water, both of which were good - he had the seafood chowder, and seemed very happy with i. My spinach salad - with blue cheese, hazelnuts and pickled red onion - was really yummy, and the prices were reasonable.
I'm still wary after having so many gongshow experiences, but today was perfectly nice. And let's face it - on a sunny day, there's nowhere better to be than Spinnaker's.
I'm still wary after having so many gongshow experiences, but today was perfectly nice. And let's face it - on a sunny day, there's nowhere better to be than Spinnaker's.
1 Previous Review:
-
4/5/2009
Spinnakers is really hit or miss (there are currently three reviews for Spinnakers - one is 1 star, one is 3 star, one is 5 star. See? really hit or miss). Unfortunately lately it's been more miss.
Considering the upscale prices (these are not pub prices, so it had better be more than standard pub fare), they need to get their act together. The last time I was there, granted, we were a large party (8 people), and three of us had the same thing - a special, that was a chicken sandwich of the monte cristo type, with the egg-washed bread on the outside.
All three of us sent back our sandwiches because they were undercooked. Not once, not twice, but THREE times. The first time the sandwiches had barely touched a grill, were sopping and leaving egg yellow on our plates, and the cheese wasn't even melted at all. The waitress was very apologetic.
By the third time, the waitress was downright rude. I understand she was busy and frustrated, but perhaps she could have realized it wasn't the CUSTOMERS' fault - the bread, when pressed, was still oozing raw yellow egg. It was really disgusting.
When we finally got our sandwiches - and everyone else at our table was virtually finished their meals - they were burnt. We all picked the burnt bits off and ate them anyway.
They were taken off the bill, which was nice, but the brusque, sarcastic attitude of the waitress really, really sucked.
I've had really good meals at Spinnakers, but frankly, not in a long time. If you want a beautiful view and some good locally brewed beer, and aren't looking for cheap, then you might just love Spinnakers. But personally, I wouldn't take a risk on the food these days.
1 List
1. Professionail
Located in Hillside Mall,…
2. 5th Street Bar & Woodfire…
I'm updating my review to…
3. The Roxy Theatre
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I love the Roxy Cinegog,…
The good:
-the soup is crammed full of stuff. Very generous on both the meat and noodle size
-nice flavour (under the salt) of the broth
-the accoutrements plate has both cilantro and basil, whereas most places only do one. I loved having both.
-nice ambiance, clean
-good service
The not so good:
-The prices are higher than average, for pho. Yes, I know that's still not expensive, but nevertheless.
-The broth was much too salty.
-plastic chopsticks: I love that they're reusable, but they're too slippery for noodle-eating! However, they did give me wooden ones when I asked.
I'll go back and try them again for sure.