Vault Restaurant — Restaurant in Surrey

Earlier tonight, I went to The Vault for date night with my girlfriend. We were pretty excited to try the place as we'd heard good things - but we were unpleasantly surprised.

Upon walking in, the first thing we noticed was live music - cool! Or so we thought. We could barely hear each other talk about the menu or what drinks and appetizer to order. The server (taller blonde) came over with waters and had enough trouble hearing us to have to clarify what it was we were ordering. Too. Loud.

I ordered an iced tea, my girlfriend a Caesar, and decided to share the seared scallops and prawns to start. Bread arrives, not bad (hard to screw up bread, I suppose). So far, this place seems promising. We finish our waters.

When the appetizer showed up, I just about burst out laughing. There were exactly three little scallops and three little prawns - each about the diameter of a toonie, with a pile of spinach the size of a golf ball. For $14. What a joke. Whatever, it tasted okay I guess. Mains should be coming soon.

I had settled on the 7oz flatiron steak and my girlfriend settled on the lobster ravioli. Both looked promising, however, the steak even more so as it seems to be a Vault staple (I mean - they've literally chalked up as much on the side of an exterior wall).

We wait. At this point I can't help but notice our waters still haven't been refilled. Iced tea is just fine, getting low, but the ceasar has no spice. It tasted like plain 'ol clamato. Lame.

The mains arrive. The ravioli (and the few sides that come with) were drenched in a dill sauce that made it difficult to discern what was what. Apparently it tasted "okay". Expected more for the price, no doubt. That said, the first two bites of my steak were good, so I thought I was happy. The server comes by to ask us how things were, despite not having yet had the opportunity to really taste our mains. We thought things were good, so the server took that as permission to disappear for the rest of our meals.

The live music stopped temporarily, and we could talk! Water refills finally arrive via another staff member, and boy did I need it. I want to point out, I ordered my steak rare because I like to be able to eat it and not have to gnaw on a well done piece of bootleather. Poor cut, I suppose, as I couldn't chew it anyways and needed to drink to wash it down. Both drinks are now empty for both of us, and there are no refills to be had. Eating the rest of that steak sucked. The mashed potatoes weren't completely mashed and were chunky, and frankly, kind of gross.

We finish as much of our meals as we were willing to, and wait 15 minutes post meal for our plates to be cleared. Refills finally arrive. Then, as the live music unfortunately started back up, we waited an additional 10 to be acknowledged for bill payment.

I have to say, based on the overwhelmingly positive feedback the Vault has, I assume our poor experience is likely to have been a one off. That said, every aspect of our visit was so disappointing that I can guarantee we will...

We have been a loyal customer since 2007 referred by family. Our go to for special occasions and have been a vocal supporter to anyone who asks where to go for a good night out. We had a company function there last year with my boosting (over 60 people). Valentine's evening may have been the wierdest experience yet of my life, our server (Megan by what is on the reciept) kept asking us if we were ready to order constantly, and finally I said that we'd place our order but were in no hurry to eat. I'm talking about she hounded us at least every five minutes after bringing our initial drinks. We wanted to enjoy our Valentines evening and I get that she was trying to turn the table as fast as possible but wow it was unreal!! When we ordered our meal I also ordered a second beer and it took a few minutes to get that. I drink a beer in about 15 minutes our dinner was in front of us with out any heads up and I was not nearly finished my beer. We never had any nice relaxing conversation before dinner, called our server over and she denied that we had said put a hold on the order! After some discussion she did offer to take the meals back but like I said..... "after" some discussion!!!! she never once accepted the fact that I had not been in a hurry to eat!! We did not send the meals back and ate a great meal prepared by your staff in the kitchen - she the mixed seafood grill. and I the braised beef ribs - Fabulous !!! Our server came to us and said that dessert was on the house - we thought ok so we ordered dessert and coffee drinks to go with it. The coffee drinks came and were drank and still waiting for the dessert to arrive. The table beside us had their dinner plates cleared and desert placed in front of them all while we sat there with our coffee - they being served by the same server!! By this time I'd had enough and refused the dessert and got up to leave. When at the front waiting to pay I said that I as disappointed in the service and really didn't get eye contact from the person I was talking too. I went out the door and left before I lost it!! My wife was left to pay the bill and she was told that we were rude to our server and called our server disengenuous!! This is not a word I have ever used nor my wife!! I am at home flabbergasted and in awe at what went on. The so called manager on duty didn't want to hear about our experiance, and Identified herself as a manager after I had gone out the door!! She did not want to hear anyhing from us and did not carry herself in a professional managers way. She obviosly knew that there was a problem but did nothing to defuse the situation but chose to escalate it!!!! There are a lot of places to eat and you have lost a long time supporter over a managers...

This was one of the best dining experiences I've had in a while. The "Three Amigos" (me, Ozzy and Jason) attended this restaurant looking to make good use of a gift card we were given as a Thank You. As you step into the establishment the ambiance is warm and welcoming in feel and the fabulous design of the place.

I loved the diversity and positive vibes exuding from the patrons around us -- including the family across from us from toddler to grandparents, the big table of friends next to us and the romantic pair behind us who looked like they were on a first date. No matter where you looked everyone was smiling, laughing and having a good time, including the staff.

The place was further livened up by an entertainer singing and playing the guitar. I wish I'd gotten his name -- he was really pretty good. And even with my challenged hearing, I was still able to hear the conversation at the table as well as our friendly and knowledgeable server.

We had apparently missed a special on the surf and turf by about a day, but our server looked into it and we only paid a little extra on our steak dinner to have 4 large succulent prawns added to it. I scored big Perfect Wife Points by giving Ozzy one of mine. I lost them, however, when I nearly bit his hand off when he touched my wine glass. We had ordered a bottle of Italian red and I was thoroughly enjoying it. The photo attached was my dinner, which scored a 9/10.

The overall rating (4/5) would have been higher if Jason had received some sort of bread with his pasta meal.

If you want to treat someone you care about to a great dining experience, or as in our case a gift of appreciation, consider getting a gift card from this establishment. Our card was also apparently good for the Washington Avenue Grill in White Rock. I hear the menu is similar. We're looking forward to paying a visit to WAG in the not-too-distant future.

Either way, whether we have a gift card (that's a hint by the way) or not, we WILL be returning to The...