Casa Molina — Restaurant in Vancouver

I was so happy to be part of the soft opening of this much anticipated, and long awaited restaurant. This is a spin off of the Paella Guys that makes world class (no exaggeration here, he came in 2nd in a world competition) paella. Previously you could only pick up from their commissary, or have to wait for a special occasion like Dine Out, or hire them for an event to have their tasty Paella. Now you can enjoy it at Casa Molina!

The restaurant is in a deceivingly simple looking house on Manitoba St in Vancouver. On the inside, their fresh renovations creates a bright, spacious, welcoming atmosphere with decor and furniture from Spain. I could tell that a lot of thought went into the little details.

Natalie & Diego helped serve us, and they had lots of good recommendations - which helped as they had quite the drink menu. I started with the White Sangria (3oz; Torres 10 year, SOV Quadruple Sec, Lemon, Lime, Orange with white wine). My husband chose the Estrella Damm - a Spanish Lager.

We were waiting for our kids who were on their way, so they recommended the "Ensaladilla Rusa Con Boqueron Y Anchoa" as a starter. That's Spanish for "Tuna, olive & pickle potato salad, 2 types of anchovy served with rosemary crackers". It was a nice light dish, where the saltiness of the anchovies balanced well with the potatoes. I appreciated that there were lots of crackers, because one of my pet peeves is when I run out of crackers before the dish is done.

The menu explains that the paellas are made fresh, and took 20-30mins to prep, so we got our order for the Valenciana (chicken & rabbit) and the Arroz Nego (Squid Ink) in. I had heard many good things about the Squid Ink Paella and was glad to finally have a chance to try it, and it didn't disappoint. Both were flavourful, with lots of chicken/rabbit and shrimp.

We had a few of their recommended sides as well. The croquetas (ham, shrimp, and spinach). The owner, Javier, came over to chat and mentioned that they're made from a scratch with a butter & flour roux, and then the ingredients are mixed in, and it's refrigerated to stiffen overnight, so that they can be shaped into balls, coated and fried. The result was a crispy breaded ball with a delightfully gooey cheesy inside. When I dine out, I like to choose things that are hard to execute that I wouldn't be able to make at home, and this hit the mark.

We also tried the Patatas Bravas, which were dbl fried potato wedges with garlic aioli. I only got to try one wedge cuz the kids inhaled them, and to no surprise because they were tasty.

I thought my son was a big fan of prawns, so I ordered the Gambas Al Ajillo, which are garlic prawns in olive oil. These were executed well, with a sprinkling of paprika.

The 4 of us were pretty stuffed after all that food, but we had heard really good things about the desserts, so we made a little more room. We shared the Torrijias, a brioche French toast (I think soaked in Bailey's) with their house-made vanilla bean ice cream. The toast was brulee'd, with a sweet flame hardened finish, which complimented the ice cream nicely. The vanilla ice cream was better than anything I had before - they didn't skimp on the vanilla, and it tasted like whole cream (no shortcuts with palm oil or corn syrup that often disappoints me). We also tried the Dark Chocolate ice cream, which we were told was a little bitter however the sprinkling of crushed salt on top gave it a really nice balance. It wasn't too sweet, which was good, because I could enjoy the chocolate flavour without being overwhelmed.

There were lots of other dishes that I wanted to try, but will need to leave until another visit. My...

Terribly disappointing experience.

Visited with two out of town friends on a Thursday evening expecting a lovely experience which ended on a sour note after our visit to Casa Molina.

We were eager to try the seafood paella and noticed the 20-30 minute preparation time on the menu. To ensure we would receive the order as soon as possible, we proactively placed the paella order with our server and noted that we would need a few additional minutes to review the menu for remaining items. He shared that he would return for the rest of our order. Given that we had asked several questions about the paella, referenced the 20-30 minute cook time, and placed the order shortly after being seated, we had assumed that the order was sent to the kitchen.

We received our appetizers within 30 minutes and continued waiting for an additional 35 minutes for our paella. We finished our appetizers and the dishes were cleared however, there was no sign of the paella. Another server noticed us waiting with an empty table and did not stop to ask if we needed anything. Our original server was elsewhere and did not check in. We were eventually able to flag a server who checked on the paella. Shortly after, our original server returned and shared that he never received a paella order and that he didn’t believe the situation was his fault.

Despite our inquiries and observance of the advertised preparation time, our order was overlooked, leading to a prolonged wait without explanation or apology. The subsequent lack of acknowledgment from the staff, coupled with a defensive response when brought to their attention, left us disheartened by the complete lack of hospitality in what we had hoped would be a great dining experience. The dishes we did receive (croquetas, spanish octopus, tomato salad) unfortunately did...

Food was tasty enough, with careful execution and balanced flavors. No stand-outs per se, but felt morish and scrumptious enough to always want another bite.

The disappointment lies in the service. My husband put both a reservation note as well as emailed them to state it was our anniversary, so we were surprised to see we were given the worst table in the restaurant. One right by the entrance, which looked and felt like a last-minute addition that was an afterthought that you'd maybe give to walk-ins only if completely necessary.

Besides one hostess/bartender who gave us some warmth and a couple smiles, the rest of the service team was always indifferent, cold, and lacked any sense of hospitality. We felt as if we were intruding in their space and their day and that everyone hated their jobs and being there. There was zero conversation beyond the requirements of service, no smiles, no effort, and only one very uncaring quality check with the paella (which was the tail-end of the dinner) that felt insincere and superfluous. I'd like to add that while I was still looking at the menu to see if there's anything I'd like to add, the server just snatched the menu out of my hands and walked off.

Upon receiving the bill, it came attached with a "happy anniversary" card written by the Casa Molina team, which to be very honest, after having experienced the very cold and aloof service all evening, did not feel celebratory or...