Fourth. — Restaurant in Adelaide

Walked in for brunch and had booked. Door service was brilliant from the start, unfortunately from there it was just disappointing. We were a group of five and were seated in a booth, which was nice. However, we had noticed some of the glasses were filthy to drink from.

All of us made our minds up for what we wanted to order rather quickly, however that was not the same for table service. We had waited well over 20 minutes to be served, and had to ask to get our orders to be taken. This is frustrating as there were numerous times servers had walked past and noticed the menus still on our table, which is obvious we were ready; menus cleared means a table orders have been taken.

I understand they were busy however a table across from us were served quickly and with attention, yet still beside them, we were avoided. Further more, another table who had came after us got served before ours.

Thankfully one of the servers took our orders, but again, it's still disappointing. We had ordered 5 drinks, only 4 came out. Food followed shortly after and still were waiting for the last drink. Again, followed it up a second time and by then we finished our meals. Said drink still hadn't come out.

After finally getting the last drink, the server was the same one who had walked past our table earlier and had a bit of an attitude. I understand being under the pump can be stressful but the way our table was ignored said everything we needed to know about going here: don't come back.

Now onto the meals. I had got the mushroom stack, which was well made: fresh bread, perfectly poached egg and mushrooms were flavoursome. Hotcakes were the same, nicely cooked, fresh and warm. Sadly I can't say the same for the rest; the other three hadn't finished their meals. Eggs on toast: stale bread, overcooked and overpriced. Egg and Bacon roll: luke warm, soggy and again - overpriced. French toast: cold, soggy and well, overpriced.

There was no apology given for regards our wait time. There was no apology for a missing drink. I've been working in food and hospitality for a long while and understand that business gets busy but to be highly attentive to other tables and serve them with grace yet for our table to be avoided most of the time is just purely disrespectful.

The consistency of customer service for the two boys was amazing but I can't say the same for the rest.

For what we paid for, was ridiculously priced and especially for the portion sizes of the roll and eggs on toast.

I understand that lack of concern for the reviews as there's many that have not heard back, but if people can see this and help them find out if this place is any good (which it's not) then that's what...

The two stars are for the cocktails and the fact that on short notice, they were able to seat six of us (thanks to Terra and Sol who we made a reservation with but were closed?). Fifty minutes in, however, I see now why they were able to seat us so swiftly.

This is my second time having food at The Fourth. My previous experience over a year ago was about the same- flavourless food and mediocre service. This time, the menu had changed so I was feeling hopeful.

Hopeful was very quickly replaced with disappointment.

We waited fifty minutes, maybe even an hour for our food. We weren’t too fussed, hoping a longer wait meant they were putting the same amount of effort and eagerness into our meals as they would when business was slow. Wrong. Try again.

Every person got something different- a squid salad, katsu sando, a quinoa breakfast bowl and the risotto. The squid salad was… okay. Boring. The quinoa salad, about the same, although definitely the most flavoursome of the quad. My friend asked for no kewpie in the sando and was reassured that rather than just a piece of bread, crumbed chicken and some cabbage, there would be a soy-like sauce to produce some sort of moisture as the menu cited. Surprise, it came sauceless. Drier than dermatitis.

My risotto was the worst of it. $26 for mushroom risotto- which in hindsight isn’t too expensive but add the $6 fillet of chicken, you’re looking at a meal that has no choice but to be good. It wasn’t. I had five shards of chicken. The hand-sized mushroom in the centre of my dish, taking up half of the meal, was full of water that a mere prod of my fork would send out a flood of water so vast I’d need a boat to conquer it. I quickly removed it, worried it would tarnish the taste and consistency of my dish. Unfortunately, mushroom water was the least of problems. I was quick to go on the hunt for salt and pepper, despairing the blandness of the food. I had to wring the salt and pepper shaker so hard my arms ached by the end of it. And it was still tasteless.

The staff weren’t especially helpful. Aside from gifting us a table, which I’m sure they’ll regret after reading this review, they were pretty blunt and nonchalant about the quality of service. I told her my risotto was bland and needed the old SnP, but there was no offer of rectifying the issue or even much help finding the condiments.

The first time I could forgive. It wasn’t busy, but mistakes are easily made and staff can be lax. The second time, I wonder if the Chefs are as passionate about cooking as I am about eating. Great ideas, poor execution.

I’ll go back for a cocktail on a summers evening. Forget the food, I’d rather...

Ah, Valentine’s Day. The night of romance, love... and, apparently, a dining experience that could have been lifted from a fast-food kebab shop. It’s like they had one goal: flip those tables, churn out more seats, and completely sacrifice any notion of ambiance or care. A delightful way to ruin the most romantic evening of the year, wouldn’t you agree?

We were plopped down next to some stranger—shoulder to shoulder, mind you. Romantic, right? Naturally, we politely asked to be moved to a more appropriate spot, one with a little space, perhaps even a semblance of privacy. Denied. No explanation. Just a firm, cold no. What are we, cattle?

And then... the food. A tale of two experiences. Let’s start with yesterday’s sourdough crisps, which were apparently left in the oven a little too long. Harder than a brick, a true crime against the very art of sourdough. But moving on! The entrée arrived before we even knew what hit us, almost as though it was thrown across the table. And just when we thought we could catch our breath, the mains were delivered—at our request—right on top of us, in perfect timing with our raised eyebrows.

Now, I’m no expert, but dining isn’t just about food, you know. Service, my friend, is what really sets the stage. And this service? Non-existent. The staff were busy sprinting to deliver double parked drinks and courses, clearly forgetting the actual human element of the equation.

And then, just when I thought I had seen it all... a fork for our dark chocolate delichè dessert. A fork! Do you use a fork for dessert? Apparently, we do now. We requested a simple spoon, a dessert spoon, perhaps to elevate the experience? One spoon. Not two. One. Thank you for that, it was so much fun.

But the food—aside from the brick that should have never been called sourdough—saved the day. Here’s hoping they rethink the service next time. Because, right now, this experience is one I won’t...