01/03/09

OverPriced & Boring

by foody555

ew.. A group of 5 of us went for a birthday lunch... The food is gross... and portions are sooo skimpy. The sauces are nice.. flavorful.. but just rich & takes away from the actual fish or pasta... The gnocci was undercooked & 2 plates of it had to be replaced. Desserts were phenomenal.. but so expensive. Service was professional, but needed personality. Decent menu selections, but tiny portions & just heavy weird food. We left hungry.. and don't plan on going back. It was worth checking out.

• Pros: dessert
• Cons: too expensive, small portions, and not really edible.

12/27/08

OVER RATED MEDIOCRE RESTAURANT

by girlfromsf

I've lived in San Francisco and New York and am a fan of great food. Charlie Palmer's had a reputation of great food and amazing wine list. The wine list was amazing. I was surprised they carried Plumpjack Reserve Cab, one of my favorites. The food was mediocre and quite disappointing. I ordered the filet mignon with the blue cheese - the meat was tough - a bit overdone - the blue cheese was quite overpowering. I also ordered the passion fruit dessert and again subpar. The service took too long; the server wasn't really prepared or knew too much about the food. I complained to the manager and all they could do was apologize. I will happily take my money elsewhere - I hear Bouchon, Bistro Jeanty, Slanted Door, A16 calling. Maybe a mall situation in the middle of suburbia is not the best place to be. WHAT A LET DOWN!!!!

• Pros: wine list
• Cons: FOOD, SERVICE, ATMOSPHERE,

11/12/08

More like Charlie Brown's than Charlie Palmer

by dined2death

Charlie Palmer needs to take a few moments and possibly review what got him here, because it does not show in the food nor the service of this location.

The room is beautiful. The wine selection and store fantastic! Yet the food and service are a failure.

My entree was served cold. My server was not knowledgeable about the menu and abrasive when asked. He did not appear 1 time during our meal to check how our food was. The saving grace was the Som he was great and very helpful. When I called the next day and explained the poor service and food to the General Manager, all he could muster was "sorry we will do better next time".

I think next time I'll drop my $$$ elsewhere.

I would also be nice if they had a dress code (yes, I said it), as the OC style of T-shirts and denim really dresses the place down. It pains me to say this but, maybe LA would have been a better location. Yes it is Ok to be sophisticated here! Try it OC, you'll like it. If Charlie Palmer does not live up to nor even present themselves up to the standard they helped create then they are doomed, and rightfully so.

Bring me Le Bernardin!

• Pros: Lovely room, Great wine list
• Cons: Poor service, food not up to standard