Tali — Restaurant in Northern Territory

Let's just preface this review with this - we have heard from numerous people that Tali is a good restaurant. By numerous we mean... one. By good we mean... OK. However - in Alice Springs you take what you can get when it comes to culinary experiences so we were keen to investigate further.

Where to start? The night was ripe, the occasion romantic and the ambience adequate. It was just your usual Valentine's Day. We booked in advance not realising we would be blessed with a set-menu on the night. By not realising we mean... no one told us (even after the second course). Upon arrival we were ushered to a pre-determined table outside in the temperate Alice Springs unrelenting heat despite the seemingly numerous empty tables indoors.There was however a slight draft hitting our feet from the air conditioning from within. What a treat!

Lucky us too when after a short 30 minute wait with zilch communication of any kind our first course, to our surprise, arrived. It's lucky also no one offered us a drinks menu as our one complimentary champagne hit the spot. We did however ask for a drinks menu but without any further staff interaction for most of the night (outside of unannounced and unexplained dishes being plonked in front of us at random time intervals) we sipped sparingly on our singular glasses of water.

Whilst gaining our bearings we lovingly noticed the cutlery arrangement which was comprised of three forks - all of equal size. However, that was only on one of our settings. What a nice touch of asymmetry to the table if done correctly. It was OK, they all did an adequate job. We wish however we could say the same for the butter knife which arrived with the cold leathery sirloin steak which became a sport in it's own. It was good however to have cold steak, icy and oh-so chewy clams and lukewarm fish given the temperature outside was so balmy. If only they'd left the meals sitting out for longer before serving them.

Don't get us wrong - the staff appeared very endearing but we couldn't say for sure as we never got the chance to speak with them properly. Actually - we tell a lie. We did ask them for a dessert spoon when no cutlery arrived with our desserts and they were quick to return with a creative solution to our problem - a soup spoon. Genius! If only it fit inside our ramekins we might have enjoyed the one course not void of flavour, presentation or warmth. Still void however of introduction.

Perhaps we should have known when a young couple to our left exited without explanation after their first course that something was amiss. Alas we were not so clued in. At least the night ended with a lovely surprise when we settled the meagre $160 bill for our unforgettable, once in a life time, Tali Valentine's Day experience. It was almost as memorable as the stomach cramps that gripped us during the following hours. Was it the excitement of the night? Was it the cold cold clams? We will leave this to you, our readers, to decide.

Why didn't we tell the staff on the night you ask? The better question - What staff? But no, we actually felt the staff "seemed" sweet, and in honesty we have no spines and would rather hide behind the veil of the internet. We did however feel this should be shared.

Yours...

WARNING WARNING DO NOT EAT HERE WARNING WARNING

Well what can I say.

I don't think we have ever had a worse dining experience ever.

We came for my father's 50th birthday. Meant to be an exciting night out and meal.

Well did it take a turn. Arrived 7pm for our booking didn't get our meals till 9pm after numerous issues.

It took 15minutes to get someone's attention for water. Then an extra 10-15 for menus.

After one round of water we tried getting attention to get more water and order entrees... Well that didn't work so we went up and grabbed water ourself. 10-15 later we had someone come.with water and when I asked for some she then goes oh you guys haven't been served let me go get someone then didn't pour me water and went off for another 10 or so minutes.

We'll skip the time frame to main meals... 1hour and a half later every dish comes out cold. And I mean every meal but one Because they forgot about that one...So we sent the meals.back and spoke to the manager on which he assured us 13minutes. Well they did that. Except the chips were undercooked. Steak wasn't cooked properly (medium/raw instead of medium well...) I don't eat cows

After two more attempts at my steak I gave it back. 2 hours in hungry and no longer interested.

I would strongly recommend you go to Macca's or hungry jacks. KFC. You'll get better service and food.

The costs were phenomenal for the most lackluster experience

Do not come here I repeat do...

Buffet breakfast was very good However if you are a guest and want to order room service be mindful If you have no allergies you will be fine If you are ceoliac disease then do not eat from anything on the menu For a Crowne Casino restaurant not to help anyone for this disease was very disappointing My partner always stresses as there is so little options eating out and for a big establishment not to help is disappointing The hots fries are all cooked in the same deep fryer so you won’t be able to have chips with your meal It felt like an effort to try and teach them why we need the food gluten free as this isn’t a lifestyle but a health condition The had no idea on if any of the sauces would be safe and could not substitute the fries for something else. They didn’t have gluten free buns to make a burger only sandwich bread. If you know how big a gluten free bread is then you would know it’s cheaper to run to the shops and make your own ham and cheese sandwich instead In the end we couldn’t risk ordering and went elsewhere I hope in future that if anyone works in the restaurant then they should be taught why it is important to know about allergies requirements for anyone eating You get the 2 star because the breakfast and coffee was great but the rest of...