The Glass Monkey — Restaurant in Edmonton

A Disappointing Decline - honestly I don’t review like this ever but I’m so frustrated with how the new owners are cutting corners and substituting cheap ingredients into high priced items. They’ve butchered our go to restaurant. Warning - the review below is long but honest, even with my emotion mixed in.

My wife and I have been coming to this restaurant for the last six years, making a special trip from out of town just for the occasion the other night. Unfortunately, after the recent change in ownership, what used to be a highlight experience has turned into a mess. The other reviews seems to show the same sentiment.

We started with the charcuterie board, which was beyond disappointing. It came with dry, sandwich-style roast beef that felt like a cheap afterthought. While the smoked salmon was decent, the cheese selection was sparse and unimpressive. We received two small pieces of brie (two pieces the size of a toonie) and an overwhelming amount of tasteless, hard cheese “sticks” that even the staff couldn’t identify. To top it off, they served saltine crackers instead of crostinis—something we had to request ourselves. It felt like a lazy, careless attempt at what used to be a thoughtfully curated experience.

The smoked salmon on corn blini appetizer was equally uninspired. The corn blini were fried in what seemed like ancient used oil, coming out in an unappetizing burnt brown color and tasting the same.

The entrees were no better. My wife’s pappardelle, once made with tender, fall-apart meat, now featured cheap square chunks of meat with fat caps still attached and random spaghetti noodles from other meals mixed in by accident. It was clear that cost/corners were being cut. The “house salad” that came out? An afterthought. It consisted of random greens, carrot chunks, and some sad apple slices tossed with what tasted like Kraft red wine vinaigrette. It was, quite literally, the most uninspired salad I’ve ever seen and I think was leftovers from other prep.

The final blow was dessert. We’ve always adored their bread pudding, but this time, it came out with bread that was tough rather than soft and melt in your mouth. Despite the sauce having soaked the bread, it made the dessert far from the decadent finale we used to look forward to.

To top off the entire fiasco, a gift card we received from family months ago was no longer valid because the new owners are “arguing” with the previous owners over who pays for it. I assume when you buy a restaurant and just change ownership, not operations you’d honour previous customers investments too.

The “new” menu direction is another red flag—tacos (no description, just… “3 Tacos”) and nachos now make an appearance. Tostitos and old el-paso salsa dip! This isn’t what The Glass Monkey was ever about, and it’s clear that the new ownership is steering it away from the elevated and unique dining experience we once loved. Service seemed frustrated with tied hands, and the once-visible presence of owners who cared about their establishment, and who would visit your table to chat, has been replaced with now completely absent ownership.

The Glass Monkey was our special treat, a place we trusted for extraordinary food and service. It’s now a shadow of its former self, and I’m heartbroken by the changes. We won’t be back, and I hope others can find the place they once loved before it completely sinks...

Today was sadly one of the worst experiences my family has ever had in a restaurant, and it happened on Mother’s Day due to the extreme selfishness of the manager or owner- we never got clear clarification. When we arrived early for our 10:45 reservation, we were told that the restaurant had overbooked and they gave away our table. The dining area was crowded and loud, so when the hostess began pulling tables together on the patio, it was a welcomed shift in the reservation. However, the patio hadn’t been cleaned since it was closed, most likely in the fall, as there was beer kegs all over, it was very dusty and clearly had not been tended to for months. Our table was not cleaned by the hostess or our server. It took 30 minutes to get our teas and coffees and another hour to get our bottle of Prosecco. There was no cutlery on the table so we asked for some spoons to stir our cream and sugar into our hot beverages. Spoons never came… only forks and knives. Our server rarely checked on us- didn’t offer to refill our waters and lots of people sitting at tables beside us had to actually go inside and serve themselves coffee. We asked about the ETA of our food after an hour and were told that it would be coming soon and our patience was appreciated. After waiting 2 hours, we again asked for the ETA of our food and were told it would be another 20 mins before it would get started. We asked to speak to the manager/ owner 3 times. Never once did they come out to speak with us. The server finally came out and said that she put a rush order on our food, and it would be out in 15-20 mins, rather than just getting started in 20 mins. We asked what the issue was and were told that the reservations were full by Wednesday morning and had been closed, but the manager opened the reservations on Wednesday evening and overbooked the restaurant by 140 guests! She said they were understaffed, which was the first time in 2 hours this was mentioned to us. This complete lack of transparency at the onset of our time at this restaurant was disrespectful and unacceptable, to say the least. The massive mistake with overbooking reservations, extreme selfishness and cowardly nature of the manager needs to be addressed by the owners as this is the worst way to run a business. We never got our food and asked to leave. None of our drinks were compted and the server still expected to receive a 20% tip, even though she did not communicate any of the necessary information to us and her service was subpar at best. We will never go to this restaurant again and will tell others to stay away from this...

I went on December 5, 2019 with 3 other people. We had a reservation at 7pm for a group of 4. When we arrived, we stood at the door for 15 minutes because staff were setting up half the restaurant for a Christmas party. After waiting 15 minutes, we were told we could go to the bar while we waited for a table. This has happened at other restaurants before, and usually drinks are on the house as an apology. Nope, not here. After sitting at the bar for another 15 minutes, we were told we could sit at one of the high bar tables where the Christmas party would be held. We should have left at this point, but my friend said she didn't mind.

After more waiting, someone came around to ask if we were told the specials. We said no, and she acted as if us being there was an inconvenience for her. She left WITHOUT telling us the specials! Someone else came around and finally told us the specials and took our orders. We got our food and drinks while sitting in the midst of a company function. This company party was also a stand and mingle type function, as ALL the chairs on one side of the restaurant were removed (except for ours) so it was pretty awkward. The party got really loud so a staff member said we could have a table on the other side of the restaurant soon, as another group was leaving. A few minutes later, we looked over at the table she had said was to be ours, only to see another group being seated there because the staff member forgot! We watched for another table to be free, and asked to move there when one opened up.

By the time we were finally seated at a proper table away from the party, it was 8:30pm (our reservation was for 7pm!). Not a single staff member actually ever apologized to us that entire evening. We were given a free cookie, but that was only because they were being served to the company party on the other side. There was nothing taken off our bill either.

I understand that December is a busy month for parties, so they should have told us we could not get a reservation and that would have been fine. But they gave us a reservation and then moved us twice, and it took 1.5 hours to be seated properly! We got fish tacos, steak, pasta, and sausage. The food was mediocre and not worth the price, or the wait. Highly disappointed and will not...