The Lookout Restaurant at Gray Monk — Restaurant in Lake Country

Mothers Day Brunch: It is not our nature to complain or post a bad review but yesterday Mother’s Day Brunch was unfortunately worth stepping out of our comfort zone for.

We booked Mother’s Day again this year at The Lookout Restaurant based on our experience last year, where we had a lovely lunch on the deck. We enjoyed it so much that we even talked 4 of our friends into joining us this year, based on last year’s experience.

Unfortunately this year’s experience was totally different and I believe although our friends tried to make the best of it, they were pretty embarrassed for us, as we were for them and ourselves. The brunch got off to a very slow start with the drinks talking quite a while to be ordered and ultimately delivered. It became apparent that there was some kind of issue as the server kept apologizing, she was very nice but very busy and noticeably stressed. As we did not want to add to her stress level or put a damper on the day, we did not complain.

When we finally ordered our food it again took quite a while to arrive, the heirloom tomato salad was delightful but not so much for the seared scallops dish which were under done and cold. Again after another long wait and prior to our mains coming out, the manager mentioned that the system had failed causing some of the orders not to reach the kitchen properly.

When the main course did come out it was sporadic with some getting their food and others having to wait that uncomfortable amount of time, (where you tell those that received their food to please go ahead and start, so the food does not get cold). I was one of the ones who had to wait longer and when my main course finally arrived, I found the short ribs to be very dry and overdone and the mashed potatoes clumpy over all.

Our guests also has the same experience, again we did not complain as we did not want to ruin the day for the Mothers at the table, or cause anymore stress to our server who was really trying her hardest and had no control over the situation.

When the dessert finally came out, for the first time that day everyone was in agreement that it was delicious. The whole long pretty unenjoyable and might I add expensive experience took 3 long hours, and only served to confirm that we will not be coming back next...

The view it would be hard to beat. It’s stunning. The patio is large. Lots of tables not too close together and everybody gets to see the lake. The decor inside the restaurant is very lovely, modern and clean lined and sophisticated. Our server was friendly, and not stiff, but not overly attentive just like we like it. We had an amazing lunch today, consisting of the pomme frit, the Barada and the risotto. A glass of rosé and beer for my husband and we were in heaven. The portions for lunch were generous and there wasn’t a thing on any of the plates left. The flavours were delicious. The presentation was lovely. Definitely recommend those three dishes. And actually we did on our way out to some other people entering. We are sorry to hear that the restaurant, are however, changing to a new format of a two course lunch with wine pairings at $72 a person. It’s not the cost that is a problem for us but the amount of food for lunch and two glasses of wine when we are driving on that twisty Turny road. One glass of wine and a couple of dishes is all we need. I feel that the appetizers that we had today were plentiful and had I been required to order a full meal. I wouldn’t have been able to eat everything. It just seems like a lot for lunch. Especially when you’re dining out. Casually on a Saturday afternoon. This might work for dinner for us? I’m not really sure. I’ve been to other restaurants that have this format but they always have an option for those that don’t want to eat as much or drink as much. I would recommend that rather than mandatory two dishes for lunch and two glasses of wine. We bought a couple of bottles of the rosé on the way out the door. something to enjoy on our patio. If only they could...

Must visit!!!! Came here mid week with family visiting from Ontario and it did not disappoint! We were able to do a quick tasting in the winery thanks to Kat and Kiara. As we headed down the stairs, we were in awe of the flowers and the secret view hiding behind the door. We were greeted by Julie and Alexa, both were extremely friendly and inviting. They brought us to our table which had an amazing view overlooking the lake, absolutely spectacular. The patio is covered; after the sunset we watched the distant lightning across the lake. We were also treated to one of the best sunsets I have seen in the Okanagan. Our server Elizabeth was very kind and took such great care of us the entire meal. We had a great time chatting with her and she made great suggestions about food and wine pairings. The menu wasn’t big, but amongst the table we were all able to find something to enjoy. We shared the bison carpaccio, the scallop risotto, and the burrata, all were delicious. For mains all but one had the wagyu steak and the the other has the fish, all the mains were cooked to perfection and flavours were all so fresh and went together perfectly. We chose the Syrah from their sister property, Tinhorn Creek. For dessert the entire table picked “not a coffee” do not overlook this one, omg it was so good! As Elizabeth brought it over to the table, we were all confused. Order it and you will see! We complimented the dessert with a cappuccino, a great way to finish our meal. We were all stuffed at the end, but extremely happy we came here for dinner. The service and food were top notch, I highly recommend...