Le Balmoral — Restaurant in Ixelles - Elsene

I'm giving it 3 stars because of prior experiences. But time was pretty awful. The food is great, always has been, and this time was no exception. But the service is terrible. We arrived at the place at 2 in the afternoon (a bit late by Belgian standards, but this place had people coming in even after we left. We tried to order the fajitas, but they had no more. And you might think, well it happens, but it was on their suggestions menu and it's on of their star dishes and as stated earlier it wasn't that late yet. The fajitas were the only reason I wanted to go there so I was really disappointed.

We ordered burgers instead and a nachos starter After a good 20 minutes of waiting we ask if the nachos aren't ready yet. They tell us that they forgot and that the main dishes are ready. So we pass on the nachos and get get the main (minor annoyance: he served the burgers wrongly and someone had a bite at some else's burger). Mid eating we order some more drinks and after a while we have to order them again because the waiter had forgotten them. To end we have dessert, but they forget one of the desserts.

**So all in all, good food but terrible service.

Also note that this time the place was pretty clean but other times we have found food and garbage on the floor under the table.

I gave it 3 stars to represent overall experience. If I were to judge only last time it would have been 1 star. On the other hand I would give it 4 stars without including this last experience, service was never great...

I wanted to surprise my kid and went here, lured in by its kitschy 50s charm—pink bubblegum decor and retro vibes. This was probably my fourth visit over many years, and once again, I was reminded why I don’t come back more often. The food consistently disappoints. The kids' burger was completely unseasoned (even for kids), the fries were undercooked and pale, and my club sandwich was paired with an overly sweet coleslaw—no traditional skinny fries in sight. While the place is undeniably cute, the service was friendly enough, the food has always been subpar. Every few years I forget, go back, and remember why it's not great.

Response to owner:

I understand where you're coming from, and I can see how my quick "fine" at the end of the meal might have given you the impression that I was satisfied. However, as you noted, many people, myself included, prefer to avoid confrontation or awkwardness when asked a polite question, especially at the moment of paying.

It’s not in my nature to criticize someone’s work directly to their face, and I’m not in the habit of giving bad reviews. That said, I felt disappointed with the experience and wanted to express that here. I don’t doubt you’re doing your best to accommodate everyone’s preferences, but unfortunately, it didn’t meet...

Absolutely horrible place as regards service and customer care. We waited 20 min to get menus. I couldn't stand it any more looking at the staff smoking outside and completely ignoring us so I went inside and fetched a menu. Then, after another 5-10 min a waitress came to get our order. I asked about some item on the menu and, very POLITELY, I said that we waited quite some time to get the attention to the personnel and then went about ordering. After this remark the waitress snatched the menus and said that she is not going to serve us because at this restaurant they are very nice people (staff) and they do not deal with impolite clients! I asked for a manager and she said that she is the boss here and we should leave because we are not going to get served anyway. In the meantime there was a table next to us with customers waiting for their check since we actually sat there (i.e. minimum 25 min)! No wonder why the staff can afford to treat people like that - if there are customers who can put up with such an attitude!!!! And the restaurant claims that it is an authentic American Milk Bar....