Rae's Bistro + Lounge — Restaurant in Winnipeg

Loved the naming scheme. They had cute names to go with their interesting food combinations. I definitely got a gastro pub feel to it as opposed to a bistro feel. I was told it was one of the few places in that end of the city that serves up a number of craft beers. It is not a place for a quiet meal as its usually busy, and the bar seems to take up a large part of the real estate with its flat screen TV being prominent in view. The food came out piping hot. Service was a mix. We had a number of issues. It seemed to be just our server at the time. When the other servers were servicing we noticed no problems. We did end up talking to someone who explained it was not the norm and that she was not a full time server (Most there are). The moules et frites... I did not like this particular flavor. Cranberry Ginger almond. If you like the flavors, it is definitely different... My friend also was not a fan. The mussels were small, very notably (some the size of an almond) but sometimes you can't control it as it depends on the season. They were not over cooked so it was not due to a shrinkage issue. Wings were good (Soy Miso flavor). Priced accordingly. I like a good deal, so I would come back for their appetizer happy hour which I think was from 2-5pm. $9 instead of $13. (I forgot to take a picture of the board to confirm the time/dates). They have large board that explains the specials throughout the week. Prime Rib Pizza was probably the best deal. This was definitely worth the $17 as it would make 3-4 meals for me if I were eating it alone. (I'm not a huge eater but everyone at the table agreed it was worth it). My friend enjoyed the crust, I did not prefer it, but it was not bad. Crust is a personal thing though and I like mine to have a bit more chew. I was told it was a sourdough. Regardless, it was done well with toppings HEAPED on. Temperature remained hot for much longer than expected which made me happy. This was agreeably the highlight. It was very filling. It was a bit odd with the bowl of sauce in the middle. No explanation as to how we were supposed to use it. We did ask afterwards. The Charcuterie board cheeses aren't as fancy as some (its block cheese with the sage one being quite interesting), but if you want a well priced one, this is a great place. Usually for this price you get either meat or cheese, but here you get both for $15. My only issue was I could taste the refrigeration on one of the meats. We tried 2 of their desserts. The Smoked Apple Cranberry Crisp and the Creme Caramel. Both at $7. Skip the Creme Caramel. There are other places that do it way better. The smoked apple cranberry crisp was very interesting with a very smokey flavor. So much so that the server seemed like she was warning people off of it. I personally enjoy smoky goodness, considering my signature roll at Blufish was the Sumoko roll (the one featured in Ciao last time). Did I like it? I liked a few bites. I don't know if I loved it so much that I would want to order it by itself. It was worth the price of admission to try, and the serving size was generous. This isn't a 5 for me yet, but it has potential. (Its currently at a 4, but on the good end as opposed to barely there) They have a lot of things to love, but due to the hiccups for our actual experience, I couldn't do a 5. With an ever changing off the wall board, there is experimentation that means you can always come in and have something 1) more unique 2) you won't have to eat the same thing all the time. I do think they are constantly trying to improve, so I think over time it should become a 5. Its definitely a place I would go back to again to try...

On Friday, July 10, we ordered multiple items from your menu at 6:05pm. A burger, a salad, and the charcuterie board. We confirm a pickup time for 7:00pm, which is a little long for the type of items being made, but we were looking forward to eating from a local restaurant, in the same neighbourhood. We only order out 2-3 times a month.

We arrived at 7:00pm and called to receive our food, “no-contact delivery” as we were told by one of your workers. We were told it would come out shortly.

By 7:15pm, no one had approached the vehicle or contacted us. We called the restaurant again, and was told “hey we’re a little backed up right now it will be out right away” by another worker.

Sure enough, no food was delivered to the vehicle.

By 7:30pm, and after waiting in my car for 30 minutes in 30 degree heat, I went inside. I asked where the food was, and was met with more excuses. I waited another 10-15 minutes for my order.

The woman I spoke to at the front of the house informed me that she could not provide me with a discount or anything to rectify this situation other than provide me with a dessert. By 7:45pm, one hour and 45 minutes later, I finally got my food. I was told that the manager would be calling me the next day to rectify my dissatisfaction.

Fortunately, the food was quite good, albeit the fries that came with the burger were cold. This is the ONLY reason for the one star of this review. We are more than happy to support a local establishment such as yours, but not when we feel that the service and timeliness of preparation is unacceptable. We understand that during this pandemic, restaurants have been under a lot of duress and strain, hence why we ordered locally to support local businesses. However, when you plan to let a customer know to show up for a certain time for pickup, your staff should know to estimate an appropriate time or be realistic with the timeline. Although it should not take 105 minutes to put together a burger, salad and a charcuterie board, if we were told the more realistic pick up time (7:45pm vs 7:00pm), we would have walked away a lot more satisfied. The food was good, but the experience left a sour taste in our mouths.

We are even further disappointed in not being contacted by a manager, as was promised by the woman in the front of the house. We even sent an email with all the information above and we were never replied. We will not be...

Disappointed. We’ve been here probably half dozen times and the foods always been good. Tonight tho, different story. We arrived for a late dinner at 830 after a long day at work. We were planning East Indian food down the road but when we passed the bistro, wife made a comment we could go there, up to me. I turned around because Indian food tonight I was just not quite in the mood for. The first thing I noticed on my way in was a sticker on the door, BLACK LIVES MATTER. We stepped in and I made a comment to my wife, maybe we should just leave. I don’t think that’s appropriate. I bit my tongue shook it off and we were seated. We ordered, for dinner a tuna poke bowl and coconut shrimp. When the meals arrived my wife commented that the shrimp were quite dark. The waitress asked if she’d like them remade, the answer was yes. It didn’t take 5 minutes for the new? ones to come out. As they were put down I commented to my wife they almost look darker than the first ones.They were dry and salty, coconut shrimp. Why salt? The tuna poke was ok. Too much sauce for me. But ok. I usually get a wedge salad and soup but decided something different. My bad. Our server left for the evening right after dinner came out and the new server was just as attentive. Only left 10% behind for a tip. Not the wait staffs fault the shrimp was sub par. By the way other than salad where are the vegetarian and plant based options? Funny bonus, university of North Dakota hockey was on the tv and our daughter was actually at the game. Kinda cool. That’ll be my last visit to Rae’s. If you want to share your political views by displaying a Black Lives Matter sticker, you don’t need our business. That is a horrible organization, and in the name of BLM, people go out looting and rioting. Think Minneapolis. Defund police. What good has come out of the millions of dollars they’ve raked in? A hair over 30% to charities. That’s a disgustingly low amount. How any owner of a business could stand by an organization like that is mind boggling. Every life matters. To single out one out just...