As I mentioned in a previous post, on the second day of my new job, my boss treated me to Trattoria in Kitslano. Trattoria is one of many members of the Glowbal Group, including Coast. As you may remember, I was not at all pleased by the mains that were served to us at Coast. After I write up my blog posts, I usually post "THE STATS" portion of the post as a review on TripAdvisor. However, for Coast I just couldn't restrain myself from copying and pasting the entire post to TripAdvisor. I felt that strongly about the disappointing mains, and it was a completely honest review.
"Tara A," a Guest Relations Manger, left a response to my review asking me to email to discuss my meal with them directly. I wrote them a very polite note about my experience, and received a response from Coast's Executive Chef Pedro Gonzalez. I very much appreciated being contacted by a Chef, instead of a Maitre D' or front manager who really knows very little about the food preparation and execution process. He explained the cooking and quality assurance processes for the two dishes we had that night. I re-iterated that regardless of what controls were in place, I was just not satisfied with the dishes. I offered Chef Gonzalez the opportunity to offer us some sort of compensation for the sub-par mains, and unsurprisingly he did.
Here is why that is unsurprising. Some people think that it is impolite and just plain wrong to send food back to the kitchen, or to ask to be compensated for a poor meal. Consider the following example. I'm an accountant at a Big 4 firm. Say a client asks me to prepare a formal memo on a particular topic, with beautiful, colourful diagrams, and reliable source references. If I come to them a week later with a report written in sloppy point-form slang, a coffee cup stain on the diagrams, and references to Wikipedia, how do you think they'd feel? Do you think they'd pay me for it? Don't you think they'd tell me to re-do it, if not fire me? It wasn't what they ordered, and I didn't do my job. If your food does not look and taste as good as it did on the menu, it wasn't what you ordered and the kitchen staff didn't do their job. It's the exact same thing.
A few days later, we received a pair of Glowbal gift cards in the mail courtesy of Chef Gonzalez and Coast. Chefs and restaurant managers listen up! Glowbal and Chef Gonzalez are doing it right. That is how you properly handle a situation where a customer is not satisfied.
By now you've gathered that we didn't go back to Coast to use them. It was a rainy Sunday evening and we really wanted some (hopefully) delicious comfort food, so I suggested that we use the Glowbal gift cards at Italian Kitchen. I really wanted Stephen to taste the epic Fusili Lunghi I had at Trattoria, and Italian Kitchen has the same owners and menu. We promise we will go to back to Coast eventually, and I have no doubt they will redeem themselves when we do.
Alright, so on to the good stuff: what we ate.
You can't go to Italian Kitchen and not order the Burrata & _________. It doesn't matter which one you pick; I'm sure they are all amazing. We ordered the Burrata & Pancetta, which was on a crostini with corn, leeks, sage, and corn nuts. Though the portion is small (2 crostinis) and could only be shared between the two of us, the savoury accoutrements and creamy fresh burrata is an amuse-bouche to die for! You'll never want to eat plain old mozzarella again!
We also ordered the Bruschetta Sampler. This app can easily be shared between a group of 4. It consists of one piece of flat bread topped with chickpea hummus, tomato basil bruschetta, pesto, and buffalo mozzarella. The flat bread is cut in a way that there are 16 generous pieces, 4 with each of the toppings. First off, anything on that fresh and yeasty flat bread would have been amazing. My favourites were the hummus and the pesto. Since we would later be eating pasta and pizza, we were very grateful for the toppings to contrast all the carbs.
Obviously I ordered the Fusilli Lunghi since I had raved about it, and Stephen ordered the Prosciutto di Parma pizza. The fusilli was good, but it just wasn't the same as at Trattoria! I even ate it again at Trattoria this past week to be sure I wasn't crazy. It is definitely much better at Trattoria. I think it has to do with the ingredients ratio. At Trattoria, the ratio is about 2 parts fresh pasta with cream sauce, 2 parts mushrooms, and 1 part pancetta. At Italian Kitchen, it was more like 3, 1, and barely there pancetta respectively. I was a little disappointed that I had gone on and on about it being the best pasta dish of my life, and the Italian Kitchen version was nothing special. All that to say...the Fusilli Lunghi at Trattoria is EPIC. At Italian Kitchen, not as much.
On to the pizza. The dough was not what we expected. It looked similar to the flat bread dough we had with the bruscetta, but it was a little more dense and chewy. We also expected the crust to be thin and crispy, but it was thicker and soft. Despite all that, it was damn good pizza. Every component had its place. The proscuitto was salty and meaty, the burrata was creamy and smooth, the arugula was fresh and bitter, and tomato sauce just brought it all together and made it comfort food. It was balanced and "light" comfort food at that, since the ingredients aren't piled on for inches high. Lucky for us, it left us with room for dessert!
A few years ago, "salted" in a dessert description grossed me out. These days I've changed my tune to "You had me at 'salted.'" Having said that, I didn't get too far down the dessert menu since "salted" is the first word on it. Salted Caramel Chocolate Tart...chocolate ganache, salted caramel sauce, walnut streusel, and Earl Grey gelato. The pieces of the dessert were pretty much as described on the menu. You know the reaction when you go "Yep, that gelato is definitely Earl Grey flavoured." It was like that. Each component was delicious and near perfection on its own, but all together a crunchy element was missing. There was a spiral of hard candy which may have been intended to be crunch, but though pretty and crafty, it was impractical and didn't quite fit. Besides the lack of crunch, it was a great salty and sweet end to the meal.
Each of Glowbal's restaurants has a list of great promotions. My favourite is Trattoria's $11 Pasta Tuesdays (any of their pastas for $11! In some cases, that's 50% off!). We took advantage of not 1, but 3 promotions going on when we went during the late-afternoon Sunday. Firstly, we got 2 rounds of the $5 cocktail of the day (available daily from 3-6pm). They were very well mixed cocktails and they definitely don't stiff you on the booze. Secondly, each of the appetizers were 50% off (available daily from 3-6pm). Thirdly, we took advantage of the Alberni St. Early Bird special, which gives you a free 2nd entrée when you order 2 apps and an entrée (available daily from 4-6:30pm). The combination of all these specials definitely allowed our post-Coast gift cards to go much further than expected!
My biggest regret about our dining experience was not ordering off the "Art of Sharing" section of the menu. Near the end of our meal, I saw a couple at a neighbouring table order a very generous antipasto platter and pasta platter. It was more like a trough with mountains of 4 different kinds of pasta. A trough! Of pasta! It was one of the most glorious things I had ever seen, but I have no idea how the two of them could possibly consume that much food. Had it been more than the two of us, I think we would have been game.
Here is another reason why Italian Kitchen is awesome. They sent us a Thank You card! I have never gotten anything like that before, and I'd go back just because someone took the time to show their appreciation for our patronage. Nice touch Italian Kitchen!
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THE STATS - Out of 10
Taste: 7.5 - Most of what we had was fantastic. I downgraded them from a 9 because the Fusilli Lunghi was just not as amazing as Trattoria, and the dessert needed a little crunch.
Creativity: 6.5 - It is tough to give them higher in this category because it is close to traditional Italian food. Some little twists are taken, but the food isn't quite innovative or daring.
Service: 7.5 - The service was quite friendly and knowledgeable about the menu, and we were served at a perfect pace. Also, the Thank You card was a really nice touch.
Bang for your buck: 8.5 - Definitely check out what promotions are going when you go. The menu is already reasonably priced for what you're getting, but no one ever complained about getting a discount. Especially since the specials are likely for menu items you would be ordering anyway.
Overall experience: 8 - It was just what we needed that rainy Sunday.
Would I go back? Yes. I feel like you can rely on the food and service to be consistently well prepared and presented, which allows the restaurant to lend itself to any occasion, or no occasion.
Who would I recommend it to? Groups of adults (up to 8 comfortably), couples, and families with teen-aged children (I'm still against bringing young children to restaurants). The food is traditional enough that even picky people (including moody teens) will find something they will enjoy. The food is casual, unpretentious and shareable, which makes it great for family and/or friends gatherings.
For what occasion? I wouldn't take someone on a first date here, but any other occasion is fair game.
It was better than: Bistro 101, The Fish House in Stanley Park, Coast (take 1 of Coast anyways)
It wasn't as good as: l'Abattoir, Via Tevere, Trattoria (for the Fusilli Lunghi)
Top 50 Worthy? I think so. The food has the potential to bring Italian Kitchen into the Top 50 within the next year. I think the menu, ambiance and service can easily create a loyal customer-base that will have patrons coming back again and again.
Alright, so on to the good stuff: what we ate.
You can't go to Italian Kitchen and not order the Burrata & _________. It doesn't matter which one you pick; I'm sure they are all amazing. We ordered the Burrata & Pancetta, which was on a crostini with corn, leeks, sage, and corn nuts. Though the portion is small (2 crostinis) and could only be shared between the two of us, the savoury accoutrements and creamy fresh burrata is an amuse-bouche to die for! You'll never want to eat plain old mozzarella again!
We also ordered the Bruschetta Sampler. This app can easily be shared between a group of 4. It consists of one piece of flat bread topped with chickpea hummus, tomato basil bruschetta, pesto, and buffalo mozzarella. The flat bread is cut in a way that there are 16 generous pieces, 4 with each of the toppings. First off, anything on that fresh and yeasty flat bread would have been amazing. My favourites were the hummus and the pesto. Since we would later be eating pasta and pizza, we were very grateful for the toppings to contrast all the carbs.
Obviously I ordered the Fusilli Lunghi since I had raved about it, and Stephen ordered the Prosciutto di Parma pizza. The fusilli was good, but it just wasn't the same as at Trattoria! I even ate it again at Trattoria this past week to be sure I wasn't crazy. It is definitely much better at Trattoria. I think it has to do with the ingredients ratio. At Trattoria, the ratio is about 2 parts fresh pasta with cream sauce, 2 parts mushrooms, and 1 part pancetta. At Italian Kitchen, it was more like 3, 1, and barely there pancetta respectively. I was a little disappointed that I had gone on and on about it being the best pasta dish of my life, and the Italian Kitchen version was nothing special. All that to say...the Fusilli Lunghi at Trattoria is EPIC. At Italian Kitchen, not as much.
On to the pizza. The dough was not what we expected. It looked similar to the flat bread dough we had with the bruscetta, but it was a little more dense and chewy. We also expected the crust to be thin and crispy, but it was thicker and soft. Despite all that, it was damn good pizza. Every component had its place. The proscuitto was salty and meaty, the burrata was creamy and smooth, the arugula was fresh and bitter, and tomato sauce just brought it all together and made it comfort food. It was balanced and "light" comfort food at that, since the ingredients aren't piled on for inches high. Lucky for us, it left us with room for dessert!
A few years ago, "salted" in a dessert description grossed me out. These days I've changed my tune to "You had me at 'salted.'" Having said that, I didn't get too far down the dessert menu since "salted" is the first word on it. Salted Caramel Chocolate Tart...chocolate ganache, salted caramel sauce, walnut streusel, and Earl Grey gelato. The pieces of the dessert were pretty much as described on the menu. You know the reaction when you go "Yep, that gelato is definitely Earl Grey flavoured." It was like that. Each component was delicious and near perfection on its own, but all together a crunchy element was missing. There was a spiral of hard candy which may have been intended to be crunch, but though pretty and crafty, it was impractical and didn't quite fit. Besides the lack of crunch, it was a great salty and sweet end to the meal.
Each of Glowbal's restaurants has a list of great promotions. My favourite is Trattoria's $11 Pasta Tuesdays (any of their pastas for $11! In some cases, that's 50% off!). We took advantage of not 1, but 3 promotions going on when we went during the late-afternoon Sunday. Firstly, we got 2 rounds of the $5 cocktail of the day (available daily from 3-6pm). They were very well mixed cocktails and they definitely don't stiff you on the booze. Secondly, each of the appetizers were 50% off (available daily from 3-6pm). Thirdly, we took advantage of the Alberni St. Early Bird special, which gives you a free 2nd entrée when you order 2 apps and an entrée (available daily from 4-6:30pm). The combination of all these specials definitely allowed our post-Coast gift cards to go much further than expected!
My biggest regret about our dining experience was not ordering off the "Art of Sharing" section of the menu. Near the end of our meal, I saw a couple at a neighbouring table order a very generous antipasto platter and pasta platter. It was more like a trough with mountains of 4 different kinds of pasta. A trough! Of pasta! It was one of the most glorious things I had ever seen, but I have no idea how the two of them could possibly consume that much food. Had it been more than the two of us, I think we would have been game.
Here is another reason why Italian Kitchen is awesome. They sent us a Thank You card! I have never gotten anything like that before, and I'd go back just because someone took the time to show their appreciation for our patronage. Nice touch Italian Kitchen!
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| The delicious $5 cocktails |
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| The bruschetta sampler |
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| The burrata and prosciutto |
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| The side by side |
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| Our mains! |
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| And the salty-sweet, lacing some crunch, finale |
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| Nice touch from the Italian Kitchen staff! |
Taste: 7.5 - Most of what we had was fantastic. I downgraded them from a 9 because the Fusilli Lunghi was just not as amazing as Trattoria, and the dessert needed a little crunch.
Creativity: 6.5 - It is tough to give them higher in this category because it is close to traditional Italian food. Some little twists are taken, but the food isn't quite innovative or daring.
Service: 7.5 - The service was quite friendly and knowledgeable about the menu, and we were served at a perfect pace. Also, the Thank You card was a really nice touch.
Bang for your buck: 8.5 - Definitely check out what promotions are going when you go. The menu is already reasonably priced for what you're getting, but no one ever complained about getting a discount. Especially since the specials are likely for menu items you would be ordering anyway.
Overall experience: 8 - It was just what we needed that rainy Sunday.
Would I go back? Yes. I feel like you can rely on the food and service to be consistently well prepared and presented, which allows the restaurant to lend itself to any occasion, or no occasion.
Who would I recommend it to? Groups of adults (up to 8 comfortably), couples, and families with teen-aged children (I'm still against bringing young children to restaurants). The food is traditional enough that even picky people (including moody teens) will find something they will enjoy. The food is casual, unpretentious and shareable, which makes it great for family and/or friends gatherings.
For what occasion? I wouldn't take someone on a first date here, but any other occasion is fair game.
It was better than: Bistro 101, The Fish House in Stanley Park, Coast (take 1 of Coast anyways)
It wasn't as good as: l'Abattoir, Via Tevere, Trattoria (for the Fusilli Lunghi)
Top 50 Worthy? I think so. The food has the potential to bring Italian Kitchen into the Top 50 within the next year. I think the menu, ambiance and service can easily create a loyal customer-base that will have patrons coming back again and again.
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