Paul — Restaurant in Almaty

I honestly don't understand what all the fuss is about. Yes, the view is absolutely stunning, definitely one of the best in Almaty. But the food is very mediocre, putting it lightly. Our ordeal started with a bent teaspoon and a teacup with a yellow substance crusted handle. I guess it was egg yolk. So much for 130 years of immaculate attention to detail, they brag about left and right. Salad Nice is described as one where tuna creates a Mediterranean atmosphere. Sounds great? But it's canned tuna. Which makes it taste like a poor attempt at Salas Niçoise I make for lunch at home. I probably should've known better ordering pasta in a French restaurant, but it is on the menu, so I don't see why not. Shrimp Fettuccine mentioned sun-dried tomatoes, but they looked and tasted nothing like sun-dried or air-cured tomatoes changing the whole vibe of the dish negatively. I find French onion soup with rich caramelized onion flavours and cheesy goodness on top to be one of the best comfort foods out there, and where to try it if not in a French restaurant? Well, not that time. The decadent, sweet, and irresistible caramelized onions rich flavour is not something I found here. All cheese went to the bottom of the bread bowl and stuck to the bread. It tasted like an express French onion soup where they didn't have enough time to slow cook it. Very disappointing. And what's wrong with seasoning food? For the first time ever, we had to add salt to every single dish. I'm not sure, but maybe the perception of saltiness is different at higher altitudes, but if that's true, shouldn't the chef consider that? Perhaps because it was past lunchtime, but the croissant was okay, nothing special. Despite being the size of a sandwich, Macaron was pretty good. Generally, the food here left an impression of a slightly above-average priced business lunch. I noticed that most people visiting this location come there either to grab a sandwich or a coffee and take selfies with a coffee cup. Maybe that's all this restaurant good for? I can understand many mishaps, but when you claim a certain status and create hype around it, you should live up to it, and Paul Shymbulak failed to do so...

We ordered a mozzarella sandwich and a cappuccino and asked for other vegetarian options. The waitress suggested the polo pasta, assuring us that all meat would be removed and it would be made with vegetables only. When the pasta arrived, we began eating, only to horrifyingly discover shrimp in it. As strict vegetarians, this was absolutely unacceptable and deeply upsetting. We immediately called the waitress, who took the dish away. What shocked us even more was the response — both the waitress and the manager were smiling and casually said "sorry", as if this was a minor issue. This wasn’t just a mistake. It was a serious breach of trust and a complete disregard for a customer’s dietary requirements. My wife and our 2-year-old daughter were with me, and this experience has destroyed our faith in Paul, especially because we’ve had breakfast countless times at Paul Doha and Abu Dhabi without ever facing something like this. For the record, I did not pay for the mozzarella sandwich and cappuccino — not because I didn’t want to pay, but because a mere “sorry” with a smile after such a grave mistake was beyond disappointing. Walking away felt like the only option. This incident shows a disturbing lack of seriousness toward food safety and customer trust. Paul Shymbulak needs to take accountability and ensure this never happens again. Anyway we won't be visiting Paul anywhere in...

When I came at the cashier to order they just told me to go and sit and a waiter would come to take my order. After 25 mins, still no one came and there were just 3 customers. Well I went again to the cashier to say that no one came and finally they just took my order on ther phone. I ordered a chocolate puff and a 1Lt Rose Grapefruit lemonade and guess what? I waited again another 30 mins to have just the chocolate puff which came cold. 10 mins later then the lemonade came. Taste were ok. However, I did not even finished the drink that the bill came already. Another table ordered same chocolate puff and they got cutlery set but I did not received any. It looks likes they serve better and first local people rather than tourists. For a Paul franchise to serve customers, I am sorry to say but Paul should take back the licence. This service does not represent the...