FIVE Kitchen & Oyster Bar — Restaurant in White Rock

I've had the pleasure of traveling around the world, trying different foods and meeting some unforgettable people. Sadly, Five Restaurant will not be a place where I would ever eat at or go to ever again as it was by far the worst customer service I have ever received.

I generally am not one to complain when it comes to food as I love trying new things and appreciate the art that food is although today was different.

My Mother in Law is in town from Texas and since it is her first time to Canada we really wanted to impress her during her stay therefore we thought this restaurant would be the perfect place to enjoy some fine dining.

To start, there was a minor miscommunication between my Mother in Law and the Waitress when it came to ordering our drinks, being someone who has traveled I've learned the hard way that some things are sometimes not what you think they are going to be especially when you don't know any different. She ordered an Iced Tea, thinking it would be just cold Tea (unsweetened) and they brought her an Iced Tea (loaded with sugar). The waitress took it away and was apologetic but after that my Mother in Law just stuck to water.

When it came time to order dinner, I ordered the Creole Chicken which described it as: "Cooked in creole butte, topped with scallops, lobsters, prawns and julienne peppers, served with new potatoes".

Nowhere did it say that it would be (spicy) hot, therefore once I took a bite I knew I was going to pay for it later as my body does not process spicy food well so I tend to stay away from it therefore if I knew before I ordered I would have had something else. The vegetables were hard yet bland and the potatoes were dry, the chicken itself wasn't bad although the 2-3 scallops they placed on the side were delicious.

Ultimately, I just wasn't enjoying it therefore once the waitress asked how we were enjoying our meals I decided to tell her the truth in the nicest way possible.

She said she would do something about it, so she left to go talk to cook to either prepare another dish for me or something else for me as she didn't want me to leave dissatisfied or hungry. I told her that there was no need because I truly did not want to inconvenience or offend anyone; but she was very adamant.

Once she came back, she explained that the guy she spoke with said that "it wasn't the food but it was my taste-buds" therefore she couldn't do anything for me. I could not believe I was made to feel like it was me for not liking something, that is not good customer service at least in my eyes.

So she handed over the bill and said that she included two appetizer coupons, one for calamari or their cheese bread for when we come back. I guess they were supposed to compensate for the Iced Tea and Creole Chicken.

I was absolutely shocked as I have dined at many upscale restaurants, from here to New York to Los Angeles and never have I ever had anyone blame my pallet for their food not being up to par or giving me a coupon for appetizers that they chose for us.

I was and still am insulted, therefore I let them keep their coupons for someone else who would come back because...

I've got to say how surprised I am that there are so many good reviews for this establishment. Every aspect of our experience was poor, apart from the amazing location, which has really nothing to do with the restaurant: White Rock beach is gorgeous.

We were greeted quite indifferently. Drink popped on the table literally in passing, without a glance at the table, sitting waiting to order. Had to ask to order food after the server and owner or manager passed us by repeatedly. And this was pre-dinner rush. The restaurant was not at all busy. I felt almost as though I'd done something to offend someone.

The food... unbelievable at these prices to drop at our table a plate of hummus with some cherry tomatoes, kalamata olives and sliced cucumbers and little else. Lacklustre presentation and hummus that by all appearances came from a can. Thin, cardboardy pita. Zero creativity. Bland flavours. Ever so slightly above work camp quality.

I can forgive frozen fries and chicken fingers on a kids plate, but the $41 paella... I had to stop after a few mussels. The chicken and sliced sausage was passable. Clams difficult to distinguish. And the bowl was filled with mussels that I'm guessing were at or past their best before date. No sweet umami ocean flavours here. This was all fishy, and not the good kind. I could in fact taste the saffron in the dish, which is always a welcome smoky flavour, but it was overpowered by whatever was going on with the mussels.

As usual, the server made a last minute dash to be thoughtful and make small talk as the bill was delivered.

The location is stunning, even the interior of the restaurant is quite lovely, but we'll give this place a...

We made a reservation for my bday/our anniversary this July as both my husband and I had been there years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. I was craving mussels and always enjoyed having them at Five. When we arrived we saw political flags outside on the patio and almost walked away but decided to go anyways because we really wanted their seafood. The windows were open but the air was a bit stale and the music was a little old fashioned for our taste (we’re in our mid-30s). The server was friendly but not overly welcoming.

We ordered three happy hour items including the mussels and fries. 1/3 of each mussel had sand in it which was very disappointing. I decided not to order more mussels with my entree because of this. I ordered the Creole chicken. The chicken and lobster were slightly over done, but the scallops were perfect and the sauce was delicious. For $46 I was dissatisfied with the value despite the portion being quite generous due to the quality of the execution. My husband ordered the special, Halibut, which was a small portion and over cooked as well. For $48 he was quite disappointed that it was over cooked and so small.

They did give us a complimentary dessert which was very tasty but it didn’t make up for the lack luster mains. I don’t think we’ll be going back due to the decline in quality of the food and the advertising of their political stance which is not something we wish to be bombarded with while enjoying a beautiful evening...