Nestled away in a quiet corner of Vancouver's downtown west end is one of the most pleasant little bistro patios you're going to find in Vancouver. You'd almost miss it if you were just having a stroll through the neighborhood. It's the only restaurant in the entire west end, which is otherwise all cute houses and high-rise apartments, given away only by an inconspicuous portico.I happen to live just a block away and it's the nearest restaurant to my place, but I don't go there very often. Adesso is a newcomer to the space, which up until a year or so ago was occupied by Parkside, a slightly higher-end bistro with a rotating seasonally-based menu. Adesso is basic generic Italian place serving "Modern Italian Cuisine", its inflated pricing seemingly based purely on rent rather than food quality.
We had a fairly good experience at Parkside before it closed down, so I was disappointed to hear that it had been replaced by an Italian restaurant. One more poor little high-end restaurant fallen victim of the recessionary flu infecting its would be clientele.
Keepo and I ate at Adesso last night for the first time, and found the experience predictably disappointing.
Service was weak. We watched our beer sitting on the bar ten feet away for five minutes before the waitress appeared out of nowhere and brought it over. She proceeded to unceremoniously dump it into the glass rather than pouring it on the side, generating a massive head. Somebody forgot to let her in on the secret that you're supposed to pour beer down the side to minimize foaming. When I told her my order, she asked if I wanted an opener. I said I didn't want an opener. She seemed bewildered. When it came time to dessert, instead of asking "Would you like dessert?" like a normal person, her question was: "What would you like for dessert?" Apparently at Adesso customers who don't order a drink and an appetizer and dessert are cheapskates deserving thinly veiled contempt and ridicule from their server in the form of huckster-like goading that would offend even a child. Very lacking in professionalism.
It's a shame because this place has the most amazing patio ever, and dining on the patio here on a warm summer evening makes for an amazing experience that almost trumps whatever annoyances the service might throw at you. Unfortunately we arrived too late and the patio was full, so we had to eat inside. The interior is "cosy" in a dank basement kind of way, bedecked with zealous abandon with the most Italianate paintings imaginable. If you decide to brave the perils of the west end to penetrate the bowels of Adesso, make sure that there is room on the patio when you do come, or make a reservation ahead of time.
As for the food, I wasn't feeling particularly hungry, or at least not enough inspired by the menu to order a lot, so I decided only to get a main. So only Kweepo ordered a starter - she ordered the following:Arancini with risotto, prosciutto and mozzarella, pepperonata ($8)
I had no idea what it was she had ordered. I expected a plate of risotto. Instead out came two cojones de toro, complete with bloodstain. Packed into the crunchy exterior was risotto cooked with mozzarella cheese. While fairly good, it was lacking in spark and could have been so much more, squarely setting the tone for the remainder of the evening. The MO appears to be to go just far enough to be passable, and not a step further. The little bed of red capsicum sauce you see at the bottom was flavorless and its presence served mainly to anchor the two balls so they wouldn't wobble around the plate.For our mains we got the following:
Braised Berkshire Pork Short ribs alla Genovese, chickpea frittelle ($19)
Roasted half Cornish Hen pan roasted with tomatoes, garlic, lemon and herbs ($18)
As you can see, the presentation of each dish is very basic and straightforward, contrasting starkly the aesthetically pleasing, meticulous and tasteful layout of each dish at Chambar (in which each of the most disparate elements serve a clearly defined purpose).More importantly, the taste of each dish was completely middle-of-the-road. My hen tasted good at first bite, but it quickly became apparent that the meat was completely tasteless, and only the gravy sauce and garlic and herb paste on top were lending it any taste. It was very tender, but what's the point if it doesn't have any taste?
The short ribs were a little more successful, but also spotty. It had a decent flavor and was well seasoned. It was well cooked in parts, but other parts were less well cooked. The two thick pasty looking bars on the left-hand side are the chickpea-based frittelle. They went well with the meat.
We left the restaurant feeling we hadn't gotten our money's worth. The food just wasn't that great. And it was hard choosing a dish, because none of the items on the menu sound that creative or interesting. I had a nagging feeling that the food would probably be not that great when I saw the menu, and that turned out to be the case. Perhaps other items on the menu are better, but I think the low quality of the service reflects the global attitude of the restaurant, and I don't envision myself wanting to give it another shot.
You seem to have gone to Adesso set for disappointment, and certainly enjoy showing it in every way possible. While I would agree with certain impressions you had I think you mostly exaggerate in negativity.So, you're beer was sitting @ the bar for 5 minutes, that's certainly longer than it should, and the pouring was obviously lacking technique.Be advised, on the other hand, that it is standard serving procedure to offer appetizers and dessert.What is that comment about a"normal person" about? THAT is THE way to offer dessert, drinks etc. in every establishment of finer dining I've ever experienced.You just seem to be looking for offense all the while.
ReplyDeleteAllow me further to cite you, "As for the food, I wasn't feeling particularly hungry"-my friend, YOU said it!In my experience you go out for dinner BECAUSE you are hungry. Or perhaps in your case because you want to be angry and upset. I have had dinner @ Adesso twice so far, I brought a larger group of friends the second time and they were all extremely pleased.Of course, we all have our own experiences and opinions, mine might not change yours in any way.I liked this restaurant and will go back. I will take your advice and make a reservation. Perhaps you will take my advice and go out to eat(at Adesso or elsewhere)when your in a good mood, while at least a little hungry. And ask your server questions when you're not sure what the menu offers.Cheers!
Hey there.
ReplyDeleteSorry my review displeased you. I would feel the same way if someone had trashed a restaurant I love. But this was unfortunately my experience. I perhaps should have adopted a more objective tone in my post, but the details are real.
No, I wasn't set for disappointment. And I don't really think the whole not being too hungry thing actually colored my impression of the place.
Basically, I came in expecting to get my money's worth, and felt that they didn't deliver, in a number of ways that I tried to describe as clearly as possible. Hence the litany of disappointments. Perhaps I was a little harsh. I'll grant that. But the comoplaints are real. I wasn't trying to trash the restaurant, just to be as specific as possible about the ways they fell short. I feel that when you pay a certain amount of money at a restaurant, you are entitled to be a little more picky. I think the little things are important. I refer you to Bishops as a counter example of what I'm talking about, as I feel they are a restaurant where every single little detail seems to have been carefully considered.
Normally I would have assumed I was just being too sensitive and chalked it up to a one-time bad experience, but I feel they fell short in too many aspects for me to give them the benefit of the doubt. As a paying customer, it's my right to expect to get my money's worth.
You seem to have missed my point about the appetizers and dessert. I'm aware that offering them is normal. I think I stated it pretty clearly in my post: The waitress was unprofessional and untactful. Partly it's her fault, not the restaurant's. But it clearly also reflects on the restaurant, in that the management had not ensured that their customers are being served by properly trained wait staff.
I don't want to dissuade people from going to Adesso's. I'm sure many people will enjoy their meals there. But it is a fact that I didn't enjoy mine there, for the reasons clearly stated herein.
These are just my opinions. That's what reviews are about, right? Hearing what other people think about a restaurant? I think too often in reviews people skip right to describing the food, eliding over the nuances of the experience from an emotional and psychological perspective. That's why I try to go into as much detail as I do about certain things that might come across as merely being nitpicky.
Perhaps my opinion would change with another dish on another night. It's quite possible.
I could go to Adesso's again and have one of the best meals of my life. That's the problematic nature of restaurant reviews, isn't it? Is it the restaurant that's bad, or was it just a bad experience? Do I go back to give them a second chance some time? Why bother when there are plenty of other great restaurants waiting to be tried out there? For example, there are some restaurants I go to regularly that are usually good, but then occasionally even they'll have an off day, but I still frequent them, and will until the off days become the on days. There are so many factors affecting an experience at a restaurant, that every experience even at the most consistent restaurant will be different. By necessity I've had to limit my impression of Adesso to my unfortunately negative first impression, but there's nothing that would make me happier than for a second visit to overturn that impression, so if the chance comes up some time to go there again, I will do so.