Luster — Restaurant in Maastricht

A very bad first experience at this restaurant. The day before our reservation, we received an email informing us that if we were more than 10 minutes late, we would lose our booking. So we left early enough to arrive on time. When we got there we found the restaurant overbooked. I went to speak to the host (as it seemed he was the one deciding where to seat people), and he gave us a table by a wide-open window, right in the middle of a draft. I explained to him the situation and asked if it was possible to change table. At first, he said it was impossible because they were fully booked. I insisted and he eventually told me he would come and find us when another table became available. Minutes passed, several tables became available, we saw other people changing tables but he never came back to offer us a different seat. Instead, he seated walk-in customers who had no reservation. We then asked if it was possible to put together two tables of two to make one for four (since there were several those tables in the restaurant). Once again, he said it was impossible because those tables were reserved, and he was too busy seating people who had not booked in advance.

After waiting a few more minutes, we realized that this man had no intention of helping us. So we left and found another restaurant a bit further away, where the service and welcome...

Absolutely do not recommend. We gave this place a few chances, but unfortunately it kept getting worse each time. When sitting outside, the staff often pretended not to see us — you literally have to ask to place an order. The waiters don’t seem to care about helping or advising. I asked which sauce would go well with a certain dish, and the answer I got was that they “don’t have much to choose from.” It was clear the waiter was in a rush and didn’t want to spend any time with us.

They even forgot to bring us cutlery, and we had to ask for it ourselves — unbelievable.

The drinks were good — but then again, how can you mess up an Aperol? The food, however, was a disaster. The wagyu dumplings had old, foul-smelling meat — guaranteed to give you a long evening in the bathroom after eating that. The tempura shrimp were rubbery and far from fresh… That was our...

Food was hit or miss, some grilled items were too charred, while others tasted so good that we wanted more. Which leads to the second point, the amounts; We left a few hundred euros there for dinner, but for some reason the amount/size of the food was severely lacking. The €45 per person "shared experience" even left the girls kinda hungry by the end of it, not to mention the guys.

Honestly, if the menu was for €30 per person I might consider returning. But it is not worth the price we ended up paying. The only reason we left somewhat "satiated" was because we got maybe 2 heads of grilled cauliflower. It was nice for the first 10 bites, but gave the feeling of them trying to cut the wrong corners trying to save money on ingredients.

The guys in the kitchen can cook well, so if you have the money to spare, try it. But to me it's a one and done...