RESTAURANT IS NOW CLOSED
Four days of consistent bad luck: Day Three.
Every time I am in Kitsilano, I always stress about where to eat. I mean, whether it be called cheap or greedy, I just do not want to set myself up for a good meal and receive everything but. Odd? Yes, I know. That is why most of the time I play it safe and head to a mediocre restaurant which makes my day when the food is better than expected! Of course, unless there is already a restaurant I have in mind. So, scooping out a few places on Urbanspoon, Q4 seemed like an okay Italian restaurant.
Walking up to the front door, I loved it. Mirrored doors? LOVE. I wanted to take a selfie but chose to do so after dinner, which unfortunately did not work out since the doors were left open. Plus, I did not want to get any awkward stares. As for the interior, the seating area is very open and I personally like it. Although on a full house, the restaurant may get loud. The interior looks simple as well as clean and has wooden floors as well as chairs, and tables with white tablecloths. As for the seating arrangements, it is not cramped and outdoor seating is available.
After walking in, our server led us to our requested window seat which was not overlooked on OpenTable (Black + Blue...). Our server was friendly, had a positive vibe and left us to browse the menus. As she later creeped back to see if we were ready to order, she overheard us talking amongst each other that none of the appetizers caught our attention. Fortunately, she came to the rescue and mentioned some daily specials, which we were interested in.
COMPLIMENTARY BREAD, EVOO AND BALSAMIC VINEGAR.
SOUP OF THE DAY, CHORIZO CHICKEN STOCK BROTH ($5.00).
APPETIZER FEATURE, SALT SPRING ISLAND MUSSELS, TOMATO, FENNEL, WHITE WINE ($16.00).
LINGUINE DI MARE. MIXED SEAFOOD, POMODORO ($12.00).
LOBSTER CARBONARA. LOBSTER, BOAR BACON, EGG YOLK, BRANDY ($25.00).
GALLETTO, BRICK FLATTENED CORNISH GAME HEN, HERB INFUSED EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL ($32.00).
The chicken should have only been lightly marinated because when cooked and seasoned, it can easily taste overwhelming or salty. As for the meat, the leg tastes tender as expected but was the only part I ate at the restaurant. I had to pack up the dish and make fried rice at home the next day. As for the polenta, it tastes rich as well as cheesy and only a tad salty. And for the carrots, although a bit undercooked with a hard crunch, I personally prefer that.
GRILLED BEEF TENDERLOIN, PORCINI BREAD PUDDING, ROASTED SQUASH ($35.00).
Moving to the sides, the bread pudding tastes stiff, hard and over baked. As for the beets which are definitely the highlight, taste perfectly cooked and soft.
TOTAL: $137.55 + TIP $20.00 = $157.55.
Overall the food started out not bad and the pastas are average. However, the entrees? Not very good. As for the service, our server was perfect in the beginning but then disappeared. She did not follow up with our entrees and we had to ask someone else for the bill. Furthermore, we even walked up to the bartender to drop off the bill because no one was around, despite the restaurant being at most, half full. I did not even have a chance to tell anyone the chicken tasted salty… LOL. Or that the tenderloin tasted dry. Although I do want to mention as another server was lighting up some candles, it was professional of him to light a candle and then place it on our table, rather than lighting the one which was already on our table in front of us (which would have been fine).
POSITIVES
- Friendly staff
- Perfect service in the beginning
NEGATIVES
- Pastas could be better
- Noticeably heavy on the salt
- Tenderloin tastes dry
- Prices are not cheap
- No opportunity to try dessert
LITTLE THINGS
- $12.00 pastas on Monday and Tuesday
- Chicken was not packed up sloppy
- For the same price, there are a lot better Italian restaurants
Food: 2.5/5 (bread pudding 1/5)
Service: 2.5/5
You seem to be more of a salt connoisseur than one who rates food. Obviously, you are not a cook or a pretty bad one which is maybe why your "review" is poor. A good reviewer would not mention the salt content. Get over it! It's a restaurant. Restaurants use a lot of salt!
ReplyDeleteOne other thing, you're also not a mathematician as your addition is wrong. With the final total of $152.55 you actually tipped $15 not $20 as you mentioned. Eleven percent is Kinda cheap no?
You are absolutely right! I am no master chef or anything, but who really is a master of anything because after all, we will always be a student of the art and acquiring new knowledge as we expand our horizon. Furthermore, you are right that almost every restaurant uses salt. Heck, not just restaurants but a lot of people who cook use salt; however, a good or knowledgeable cook will know how to use just the right amount so the food will not become too unbearable to eat. For get about them chefs or whatever, even my dear ol' mom knows that adding too much salt will just ruin the food.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to your opinion of me blogging about my dine out experiences, it is your opinion and you are entitled to that, just as I am entitled to blogging my experiences which I refer to as posts rather than reviews, honestly and truthfully. Nevertheless, I do not know about you, but paying someone to cook and serve, (eg. restaurants), does not mean bad food is okay.
PS. Sucks that the only restaurants you go to, serve salty food. And thanks for the correction, it was $157.55. By the way, even if we tipped only $15.00, it is not cheap for two people who had troubles finding a server for drink refills and having to walk up to the bartender when paying cash. Thinking back, we should have tipped less because the food was not great and the service disappeared. What am I tipping for?