Golden Sparrow Cocktail and Tapas Bar — Restaurant in Edmonton

I hate leaving reviews, let alone bad reviews, but this place truly left me no choice. From start to finish, everything was just horrible.

I booked a dinner for a party of seven for my birthday on Sunday, March 23rd. However, I later realized that I had mistakenly booked it for the 25th instead of the 23rd. So, I called the restaurant to cancel the reservation for the 25th and reschedule it for the 23rd. I genuinely thought the person I spoke to had handled it — but he didn’t. Based on the conversation, I would have assumed it was an honest mistake, but now I truly believe he left the second reservation in their system on purpose because they already had my credit card information.

Once we arrived at the restaurant, I realized that the person I had spoken to over the phone was actually the manager — even though he denied being the manager when I asked directly. Since we were a party of more than six, they had already taken my credit card information in advance. Now tell me why, two days later, I was charged $140 for a no-show fee — even though we were clearly there on Sunday. I had specifically told the manager the correct date.

Speaking of that day — the only good part of the experience was the drinks, and credit for that goes to the bartender. The rest — the service, the food — was truly horrible. All six of us returned our food because everything was cold. Not just lukewarm — cold. My friend’s steak was so cold that the butter on top wouldn’t even melt. That’s how bad it was. The manager showed zero remorse about the terrible service and the cold food.

To make matters worse, they even tried to sneak in an 18% gratuity — for a table of six! When we questioned it, they acted like it was standard, but it’s clearly not for a party of that size.

We ended up leaving and going somewhere else because it was just that bad. What’s worse is that I chose this place because of its positive reviews — and it was a complete letdown. Now, to have that as my 25th birthday experience and to be charged $140 for a reservation I’m 100% sure I told the manager to cancel? That’s unacceptable. Why would I book a dinner party on a Tuesday when I’m a stay-at-home mom? It doesn’t make sense.

I called them to dispute the charge, but they refused to find a solution. They also wouldn’t give me the manager’s schedule so I could speak to him directly. They had no desire to take accountability for the poor service. I was left with no choice but to file a dispute with my credit card company.

I have all the emails and phone records showing that I originally booked for Tuesday and then called to correct the date. But they even tried to gaslight me, claiming I had booked the Sunday reservation before the Tuesday one — which makes no sense. Why would I double-book myself like that?

I really hope no one else has this experience with them. We had a horrible time from start to finish. Thankfully, I was with good company, which saved my birthday from being completely ruined — but it...

I really enjoyed the chairs. They were soft, with good back support. Might seem like common sense, to have comfortable chairs at a restaurant. Sadly in a lot of cases the chairs at restaurants should come with a referral to a chiropractor.

The first cocktail I had was a negroni sour which I found to be quite nice. After that i had an off menu cocktail. i enjoyed the presentation. The last cocktail I had was an Old Fashioned which came in a smoke box, a nice touch. The feedback I would give is with an Old Fashioned, you can tailor it to your guests tastes by asking if they like their Old Fashioned a little sweet or do they prefer more of the whisky flavour. If i had been allowed, I would have enjoyed trying other cocktails but my wife cuts me off after 3.

In terms of food, we started with peking duck spring rolls. These were quite nice. The soya, vinegar, ginger dipping sauce was very tasty. My wife had linguini, and her brother the burger and fries. Both enjoyed their meals. I had the braised short ribs on gnocchi. Short ribs were wonderfully tender and i thought the use of gnocchi was a breath of fresh air. A way to use potatoes a little differently which was very enjoyable. If i had feedback it would be warming the bread would elevate it.

For dessert we had the layered chocolate cake with 3 spoons which was a wonderful way to end the evening.

From what i understand, the Sparrow is fairly new still, less than a year old. Staff seemed very personable and open to feed back. Our waitress Lauren was very friendly, and attentive.

We would go here again. I really enjoyed the short ribs.

And there were no left overs. We ate everything. That is likely the best compliment that...

We had a fabulous dinner out at The Golden Sparrow. It was fantastic. Their location is quaint and cosy with beautiful decor. Their menu has fancy cocktails, share plates and mains. The servers are kind, helpful and very personable. My husband tried a new cocktail they are working on for the summer. It was light and fresh tasting like summer. I had a guava fizz and they added rum to it. It was delicious and easy to sip. My husband and I tried some share plates, everything was delicious. We had the meat and cheese plate, a lovely unique selection meats, cheeses and accompaniments. All of the choices hit the mark. It was a great combination of flavours. The servers kept bringing out dishes as they were ready, that was a lovely touch, it kept our dinner going with new things to try. We tried the Gochujang fried chicken. They were juicy pieces of crispy chicken tossed in a not too spicy sauce. The truffle fries were fresh with a nice chipotle dip. The arancini was cooked to perfection, crispy on the outside, gooey delicious cheese on the inside. The chicken momos were little juicy dumplings in a spicy tomato sauce. Just the right amount of heat for our liking. The Brussels sprouts tasted like Thanksgiving, with nuts and honey, they were perfectly caramelized. The chocolate cake was next level celebration, with 13 layers of cake, icing and a chocolate coating it was a show stopper! Everything was delicious, it’s hard to pick a favourite when everything hit the mark. I would recommend the Golden Sparrow for drinks, an evening with friends, and definitely anything you’re celebrating. You will not be disappointed. It’s a must try in Edmonton. New on the scene and...