Thursday, October 20, 2005
Um, Si-NO.
Truly awful.
Somehow I felt compelled to try it. I've visited every restaurant in Santana Row at least once, and being known as an eater, people rely on me to know about such things, so I have to try everyplace at least once.
Now, I have suffered for you, so that you don't have to. I have paid money for gross food, dirty dishes, chipped plates, smokers sitting next to me and rude staff. Please honor my sacrifice by heeding this advice: Stay away! I saw so many things wrong with this restaurant, I can't even list them all here.
Let me begin by saying I am also not a fan of Straits, which is also in Santana Row and owned by the same people, or company, or "recruiters-of-the-worst-service-staff-of-all-time" or whatever they are. Straits has a wonderful pan-asian menu and some good drink ideas (the ginger infused vodka is nice.) The food even tastes pretty good. My problem with it is that I once had a bartender there serve my martini in a wine glass, because, and I quote, he was "sick of washing glasses tonight." If that weren't bad enough, (I mean, what do I care? Pour the cold gin right in my cupped hands, whatever) he made the drink in a dirty shaker, so it came out with lime pulp from kamikazis or cosmos or something. Ick. I mean, ick. Surreal.
So after a few months, I go back, don't ask me why I am so forgiving. And when my gentleman companion mentions that we might only have dessert, the hostess, halfway to our table, tells us we can't sit down-we have to sit at the bar if we're not having dinner. Strange policy, rudely delivered. Not that it matters, but the restaurant wasn't even half full. And don't think for a second about cover averages, because we drink and we drink expensive. We have no hobbies except eating and drinking. It pays to seat us. OK, anyway, I'm not a fool and I didn't have high expectations of Sino, either. We ordered some dim sum appetizers, which took about 40 minutes. In the mean time, a few servers (?) walked by with dim sum on trays and offered us other things we didn't order. This is just poor design. The reason dim sum works well at real restaurants is that you get the things off the carts (where they are hot and covered by the way), as they go by. You don't order and then wait while uncovered trays of cold, dry dumplings make the rounds from under the heat lamps through the dining room. Revolting.
When we did get our food I was sure I had gone too far in my pursuit of restaurant truth-I was sure we were going to get food poisoning. Beef balls were pink inside, crab dumplings were cold. The picture shows plate of crab claw dumplings with the charming garnish of Taco Bell shredded lettuce/carrot mixture and a maraschino cherry. Blegh.
Our drinks also took a long time. Maybe 20 minutes. To get a drink menu. A drink menu with stains and the first page torn off. And the drinks? Disgusting cocktails that sound good and yet taste terrible. I probably couldn't have enjoyed the hot pink gin and rose flavored atrocity less if the bartender walked out from behind the bar and threw it in my face.
A woman on the near the window but still in the restaurant smoked most of her cigarette before being informed that smoking wasn't allowed. I had to get up and find the server and ask him to do this. Also, a couple came in and sat at the table next to us, and after about 10 minutes of neglect they got up and walked out. Another couple came in about a half hour later and sat at the same table where none of the plates and napkins were cleared. The staff let the new couple use those settings!! Including the water! Gross!
# posted by Comida Evangelista : 6:38 PM
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