Trio — Restaurant in Sydney

Went here for valentine day because I’ve always loved the food here. We ordered the marry me chicken (it was the Valentine’s Day menu). The description said it was chicken breast but we ended up getting chicken thighs - and no we were not notified of this. So cutting into it, I’m thinking I’m getting a chicken breast. Was very hard to eat, there was way too many bones. The flavour was very BLAND. Be sure to use the salt and pepper if you want any bit of flavour. There was little to no meat on the thighs. It also said on the menu that our main came with baguette - we did not receive this and were also not notified if they were out. The mashed potatoes were cold and were starting to dry up on the outside - also very bland for a “garlic mash”. The green beans were cold and tasted like they were frozen. My boyfriend got fries as his side and they tasted like they were deep fried over and over again - they were overcooked, soaked in oil and had zero seasoning. We didn’t even bother with dessert as we were super disappointed in the quality of the food we had already received. I have never left a restaurant feeling as unsatisfied as I was Saturday night. We always had good experiences here but it seems the food quality has gone way down and the prices have gone way up!

Also disappointed in where we were seated. The table we were sat at was the about the size for children. I felt so uncomfortable. There was barely enough room to put our food down without having to move things around. We were also sat sooo close to other people that we felt like we were right on top of them. We could hear their conversations and they could hear ours. Not very “romantic” for Valentines Day. There were plenty of tables empty all over the restaurant as we were one of the last couples to be seated for the evening - I get it, people have sections, but I would have liked a bit more space.

Not sure if the food quality was so poor because we were one of the last couples of the night and the staff just wanted to go home after a long day, but that should not ever affect your food quality. Also, if they were out of items, they should have notified us.

On a positive note, our server was the highlight of our evening, she was very polite and provided quick and efficient service. I can’t remember her name but she was in her 20s & had...

Food was fantastic! I had the daily special which was the beef tenderloin with a red wine demi glaze and brown butter mashed potatoes and would definitely come back for this meal! However, we came for a birthday which we called ahead and made a reservation and we asked if we were able to take our cake with us. The person we spoke to on the phone said you can bring a cake no problem as long as it’s not ice cream cake as they cannot store outside food in their fridge. (Completely understandable!! Plus it wasn’t an ice cream cake so worked perfectly anyway.) We arrived at the restaurant with our cake as we were told was okay to bring, a staff member approached our table, Troy, (not our server) in not the most friendly manner, and asked if the cake was home made. We told him yes just assuming he was curious and he goes along to tell us that we are not allowed to have our cake in the restaurant even though it was just on our table we never asked them to store it or anything at all we were leaving it on the table till we were ready for dessert. As we own a restaurant ourselves, we question his reason for not allowing us to have our cake, on our table, when the person who took our reservation told us it was okay. He didn’t have an answer and just told us they only allow store bought cakes in the restaurant. This was EXTREMELY dissatisfying to myself and my family along with us to celebrate my dads birthday. We have now finished our dining experience, without an apology or any type of explanation as to why we had to take our cake out to our truck rather than be able to enjoy our homemade cake with...

We dined in as a large group and enjoyed our meal other than a few minor issues (some dishes served cold, bland sauce) nothing that would usually warrant a complaint or a negative review. We paid in groups and tipped as a table, our waiter (Troy) was tipped well over $150 with everyone tipping 20 - 25%, however when leaving I was stopped by the waiter who was clearly angry and asked why I didn't tip for myself. I was taken aback and explained to him that our group had tipped for the table rather than as individuals, still clearly upset he said nothing and went about his work.

I've never experienced such petty service at a restaurant before in my life. Confronting customers and asking for more tips after receiving well above the industry standard is appalling. Does Trio pay their employees so little that they need to beg guests for more on the way out? Would my 15% tip (~ $7) on a cold, tasteless plate of vegetable curry after receiving such a large gratuity have been worth the groveling of this employee? (Keeping in mind that I had already tipped as part of our group).

Surely it isn't worth losing the business of five local families, as none of us will be back after this, nor can we recommend Trio to others.

Takeaway - Food isn't as good as it used to be (keep the salt and pepper nearby) and you're playing roulette with whether you get a server that's kind and professional or someone who is obviously bitter in the industry and shamelessly petty. Be wary of embarassing...