Senova
I was looking forward to Sunday brunch at Senova, an Italian restaurant in a quiet neighbourhood in Kerrisdale. The place looked promising with its bright yellow wall and burgundy awnings that exuded an old country charm.
When I walked in though, I was a bit alarmed as the place was completely empty. There was no one there, and it was right around lunch time on Sunday! So it was a pleasant surprise when I indulged in the incredibly delicious bread that was served fresh from the oven with an amazingly soft and fluffy texture. It was a bit oily, which is typical of Italian breads, but it went so well with the roasted red pepper and garlic whipped butter. I don't normally eat bread with butter, but I loved this! Unfortunately this was also the only good thing about the meal.
I was a bit shocked when I saw the salmon and eggs ($15). Seriously they did not clean the pan before cooking the eggs! There were lots of black specks that were probably left over from whatever was cooked in the pan before. The salmon was probably frozen for ages and didn't taste very fresh. Luckily the potatoes were well seasoned and tasty, so at least there was something positive about the dish.
The French toast ($9) was much bigger portion than I had expected, but I could make better French toast at home. The bread was soggy and mushy, and the bland-tasting egg didn't help.
The smoked salmon benny ($12) was likewise very disappointing. The salmon was tough and extremely salty, and the English muffin was definitely overcooked. In fact, the bread was so tough that I could not cut it up with my knife. I had to forcefully pry it apart with the help of my fork.
Overall the food was very disappointing and although the bread was delicious, I would not come back just to eat bread. Service was decent, but there was nothing special about it. And they tacked on a 15% mandatory gratuity to the bill, which I found rather unreasonable.
When I walked in though, I was a bit alarmed as the place was completely empty. There was no one there, and it was right around lunch time on Sunday! So it was a pleasant surprise when I indulged in the incredibly delicious bread that was served fresh from the oven with an amazingly soft and fluffy texture. It was a bit oily, which is typical of Italian breads, but it went so well with the roasted red pepper and garlic whipped butter. I don't normally eat bread with butter, but I loved this! Unfortunately this was also the only good thing about the meal.
I was a bit shocked when I saw the salmon and eggs ($15). Seriously they did not clean the pan before cooking the eggs! There were lots of black specks that were probably left over from whatever was cooked in the pan before. The salmon was probably frozen for ages and didn't taste very fresh. Luckily the potatoes were well seasoned and tasty, so at least there was something positive about the dish.
The French toast ($9) was much bigger portion than I had expected, but I could make better French toast at home. The bread was soggy and mushy, and the bland-tasting egg didn't help.
The smoked salmon benny ($12) was likewise very disappointing. The salmon was tough and extremely salty, and the English muffin was definitely overcooked. In fact, the bread was so tough that I could not cut it up with my knife. I had to forcefully pry it apart with the help of my fork.
Overall the food was very disappointing and although the bread was delicious, I would not come back just to eat bread. Service was decent, but there was nothing special about it. And they tacked on a 15% mandatory gratuity to the bill, which I found rather unreasonable.
I thought 15% mandatory gratuity was only legal for large parties?
ReplyDeleteIs it illegal to charge gratuity for small parties? Is there actually a law that dictates that sort of thing?
ReplyDeleteThat was my impression, because gratuity/tips is not mandatory here, but it's legal to tack it onto the bill for large parties. I've only ever seen it tacked onto a bill for parties of 8 or more.
ReplyDelete