Bar Kismet — Restaurant in Halifax

I am editing my review since it was not specific enough, and it seemed like 'uninformed ignorance and broad statements" to the owner who replied to my review. It should be clear to you that you, as the diner, will get no respect at this establishment based on this behavior. No matter how terrible or limited my review is, most good establishments are not quick to jump to insulting their patrons.

So before I get to 'pointing fingers,' I will establish that I have been to this restaurant around 40-50 times since 2018. There were periods of time where I was at this restaurant Thurs-Sat evenings, up to 3 times a week, every week. I would take friends that visited to this restaurant, go out just with the wife, and go in large parties. We would regularly order the entire menu.

This restaurant was initially the only place I would go to, because it was one of the few restaurants in town that really did it for me. It was my favorite restaurant for years. The biggest draws of this place were that they had new menu items every month, they had great cocktails, and overall, the food was great.

As I've said before - the quality of the food and drinks has gone down since mid-2020. I went back after the restaurant reopened after the pandemic. The food was extremely salty, and the drinks tasted terrible. We had almost had the entire menu of cocktails at this place, trying their new weekly/daily specials for years. It was noticeable that there was something wrong with the ingredients, as it had a very bitter taste that was NOT associated with alcohol or the mixed ratio; it was a taste of poorly kept ingredients.

We initially attributed this to the restaurant being rusty after having closed its doors due to the pandemic. We went back 3 times after this at different time points. Each time, the same thing. Food was still super salty, drinks still tasting terrible (although after that initial time, it was more so the cocktail mixture rather than the poor quality of ingredients). I couldn't finish most of the foods that were served because of how salty it was, and I let my server know, who basically just said 'tough luck.'

We had gone back a number of times, and the menu items were basically the same each time. Tuna tartare with frites, carrots with crab, tonnato melt, etc. Not much in the way of new menus. I mean.. I guess it's fine if you like eating the same thing every time, which may be okay if you eat out very seldomly. Again, used to be a frequent visitor at this establishment so I like to mix things up.

Did my tastes change? Maybe. I am older. I didn't have COVID so my sense of taste definitely didn't change.

I have given this restaurant lots and lots of chances in the past. Perhaps my 'uninformed ignorance and broad statements' are not suited for this restaurant's owners, who seem to hold themselves in very high regard. Or perhaps I've been here enough to know that things are definitely different.

If you look through the bad reviews here - the owners get so defensive and upset, calling all criticisms invalid. They start insulting people who leave poor reviews as ignoramuses with no sense of taste. I think this should be a warning sign that you, as a paying customer, will not get the respect you deserve. And you deserve better, even if you know nothing about food at all.

I see a lot of reviews mentioning price as a big problem at this place. I think that this is not a valid measure of a restaurant's worth, because people will have subjective feelings about price to value ratio. I do think that this restaurant has decreasing value for me, because of how the food tastes and the way the owners respond...

I was visiting Halifax for a brief time for work and was recommended by local to check out Bar Kismet. I was very excited about my experience here, but was disappointed by how I was treated by some of the staff.

First off, I made a point to arrange my day so that I could be there by 5pm, to avoid crowd. When I got there at 5pm, I was told that they were having plumbing issues and was told to come back at 5:30pm. There was another group who asked the staff if they could at least be seated in the restaurant while waiting, but they were told that it would be illegal for them to be seated in a place with no running water. There was no apology from the staff, but she gave me a list of other places in the neighbourhood I could grab drink and appetizers while waiting. Since it was my last night in Halifax, I made a point to wait elsewhere then came back to Bar Kismet around 5:30pm. There was still no apology or acknowledgement of how the situation impacted my dining experience. Instead, when I told the other server - who ended up taking the order - that I need a table for one, I felt judged. I also felt that I did not belong in the restaurant for whatever reason.

The actual food was great. I already had some other appetizers while waiting, so ended up not having to order a lot of food.

What happened afterward is what really bothers me and has compelled me to leave this review. I was checking emails on my phone while finishing my meal, and soon found out that my phone and/or my email account may have been hacked. I was trying to sort this out, when the server brought me the bill. There were lots of empty tables at the moment and no one was in line to be seated. I figured I would take some time to sort out my email situation, since I was not holding up anyone else. But, the server soon after placed the card machine on the table. I told him that my email may have been hacked, and that's why I was taking some time. There was no response from him, and he appeared to expect me to pay and leave. I was rushed to pay and leave the restaurant, and had to sort out my email situations outside in a cold winter evening.

I still don't know what really happened. While the food itself was excellent, I am disappointed that my anticipated dining experience in Halifax turned into feeling mistreated and rushed. I really hope it wasn't because I am a woman of colour who was dining alone and did not order enough...

I'd give here a 4.5. The only things that I disliked was that the sunset coming in the window was too bright to see for a few minutes, without there being blinds or curtains on the window to adjust. And when the place is full, you are sitting very closely to people next to you, so not able to have much for private conversation. With the place being quiet small inside, I guess there is no other choice for this though. Six or seven tables for two, I think two tables for four, and a few stools at the bar. Service is very good. I've been here for birthday dinners two years in a row because of the cocktails alone. They are all delicious, pretty presentation, priced between $12 and 17, and I had a nice buzz after drinking just two each visit, when ordering four. My friend and I each get different ones and then taste each others. Food: the bread is several slices of a white bread, sort of charred on the edges, with nothing on it, but offer of olive oil for dipping, and very good. ($5). The marinated olives have three or four varieties and were delicious, even for my friend who normally dislikes olives. ($7). The celeriac with pear, hazelnut & beemster is summery and light. I dragged the slices of celeriac through the hazelnut oil on the plate to capture all the nuttiness. ($16). The tomato melt on sourdough with chili oil was not what either of us expected - the tomato itself was barely noticeable, but it was covered in gooey nice cheese, a bit greasy & messy to eat, but served in two halves, so perfect for sharing. ($12). The cod, pommes paillasson & jalapeno salsa verde ($30) was excellent with the fish being so tender and flaky, the 'salsa' with a lot of whole parsley leaves, the bottom 'homemade hashbrown patty' full of flavor and just the right amount of greasiness. My friend's paccheri, 'nduja & black kale ($30) was a large portion, with the pasta being a bit thin and cooked to perfection, right blend of sauce & cheese to taste good without anything too dominant. For desserts we tried the two available on the menu and shared. The orange & poppyseed semolina cake ($11) was a good size, very light and fresh tasting, almost summer on a plate. The chocolate & sesame tart ($11) was good, with a soft fudgey texture, not too bitter, not sweet at all, could've had a bit more sesame throughout maybe. We...