Handson Steak and Frites Restaurant — Restaurant in Vancouver

One of the most disappointing experiences i’ve had at a restaurant in Vancouver. We came to celebrate my friend’s birthday, and probably will never be back again unless changes are made.

I have worked in the restaurant industry for years amongst different serving styles, atmospheres and expectations. As an industry worker I deeply sympathize for other service workers. That being said, if it’s mediocre experience i still consider that maybe it is an off day. This experience was way lower than mediocre.

This restaurant has finally given me the opportunity to give my first bad review.

Little mistakes like spilling water and wine on the table are understandable, or waiting longer times for our order to be taken. BUT no apologies were made about these tiny mistakes, which i found strange but we let it go. Food was decent but nothing really special. As a new restaurant that’s suppose to have an “elevated menu” and a more “fine dining” environment i would expect better. They also poured water into a wine glass by accident (honest mistake) but then for them to take 20 min to replace the wine shows a lack of care and professionalism. As a server if i made THAT type of mistake im fixing it immediately. Keep in mind this restaurant seats around 25 people, therefore SMALL RESTAURANT. (a lot of staff working)

The biggest problem was the charge of $15 PER PERSON to cut and eat your own cake in the restaurant. I understand they have policies BUT on the reservation it was specified a birthday was being celebrated AND a member of our table had brought in a cake and NO STAFF gave any heads up about this policy. (still a ridiculous policy but if it was communicated to us, alternate plans could have been made and i would’ve understood) We had to ask for our cake 5+ times because we wanted to leave and their response was “We’re getting it ready” (for 15 min?!???!)

The staff clearly knew we were disappointed and had no urgency or consideration to apologize or create a solution to elevate the experience.

Overall this restaurant has so much potential for greatness. However there needs to be immense improvement within service, communication and problem solving for customer satisfaction. Otherwise don’t come here to celebrate a birthday, or just simply don’t come here. You will get better food and service at a Cactus Club or Earls don’t...

For the 2nd day soft-opening, a lot will need to improve to survive the brutal Vancouver food scene.

Server was particularly inexperienced. Unnecessarily pretentious while having no ability to problem solve issues. There were many small issues that would just make this review too long. Simpler just in a word... inexperience.

For a place that serves only steaks, mussels, and fries, their handle on steaks is quite poor. Steaks come out inconsistent, both ordered rare but one came out blue, other came out medium rare. Chef slices the steaks as part of presentation so there is no excuse for the high variability between the steaks. Portion size was also strange. We ordered a 6oz steak and a 10oz steak, both came out visibly the same size. When we asked the server about this just to check our order was correct, he responded in a dismissive and defensive manner "We weigh all our steaks and there is shrinkage during cooking. I wouldn't lie to you". I never accused him of lying.. it was a simple question since there are two sizes on the menu.

Tartare was good and the fries that came with it were fantastic. Unfortunately the timing of the steaks & fries is not coordinated yet. The fries that came with the steak were cold.

Again, with a limited menu (which is good) euro-bistro style where fries is in the name of the restaurant, its petty to charge $2 for onion mayo. Also an odd move to warn me about the $2 onion mayo upcharge but not say anything about the $8 sparkling water charge when the server asked me during seating "Sparkling or still".

If you are just trying their steak & frites with no appetizers, dessert, drinks, etc... May be worth a try to see if they have improved on any of the above. If you plan to get sides, desserts, drinks, there are much better places for $100 for...

We finally got to check out the brand-new restaurant in the neighborhood, and I brought a couple of friends along for the long-awaited visit.

The space felt intimate and cozy, a big step up from the old Korean restaurant that used to be there—now it’s sleek and elegant. Even the menu had a thoughtful touch: built-in lights that made it super easy to read in the dim atmosphere.

Things got a little shaky once service started. A veteran-looking server launched straight into a rapid-fire rundown of the menu the second we sat down. It felt less like guidance and more like someone cutting in before we’d even had a chance to settle in, which threw us off a bit.

We ordered a bottle of red, but the newer server who opened it surprised us by lifting our glasses and pouring right away—definitely not the standard you’d expect, even at a casual spot.

As for the food: Beef tartare had a nice seared touch, but it felt like something was missing. Mussels were the highlight of the night—perfectly seasoned and easily the most satisfying dish. Striploin was just fine. The salsa verde helped bring some flavor, but without it, it might’ve been just a greasy, unremarkable steak.

It came with fries, which wouldn’t have been an issue, except the mussels also came with fries—no creativity or alternative suggested by the server, which was a missed opportunity.

What really stuck out was seeing the senior server teaching the rookie how to open a bottle of wine—using an actual guest’s bottle, right in the middle of service. That should’ve happened behind the scenes, not at a customer’s table.

Overall, the place still feels like it’s ironing out the basics of smooth service. With a bit more polish, it could grow into something special, but for now, I’m not in a...