Bistoria — Restaurant in Zeist

Absolutely gorgeous castle and a place to stay for the night but the restaurant disappointed us greatly… the interior is beautiful, the customer service was somewhat forcefully polite and if you get a smile you’re asking for too much… however the most disappointing was the food and it’s unnecessary high prices. We have eaten in a few Michelin star restaurants and many fine dining restaurants so we know how to recognise a culinary talent. We had 3 course menu each so in total tasted 6 dishes +2 desserts. I’m so sad to say none of the dishes apart from the prawn paella was a culinary art. Presentation and plating was acceptable, however the combination of flavours didn’t make any sense. We literally had a different sorbet and different pickles on every single plate, why? After eating the first course we were already overwhelmed by the acidity from the food and provided this feedback to the waiter who promised to share with the chef. Their breads and cheese were nice but what can go wrong with that isn’t it.. we had a terrible stomachache and bloating after all the pickles so we had to go for a night walk after spending so much for a “culinary experience “. I don’t recommend dining in this restaurant, it’s sadly...

Beautiful historic building and location, worth two stars. That was the best part. The service was horrible. The waitress didn't know the menu, nor the food preparations, and didn't notice for about 40 minutes she had given us the wrong menus. It took 4 hours to serve 3 courses, even though there were only about 7 tables, and they were asked to speed things up because people were falling asleep. The food was VERY mediocre or outright nasty. Never had such tasteless ribs or cannelloni anywhere. Grandmas stew was a yummy amazing exception. Sometimes the smothering sauces and accessories made it impossible to tell whether I was eating wagyu or cheap salami. Sometimes the flavors just didn't work, like the chef had never actually eaten the food. Overpowering onion ice cream on a bed of chopped figs served on a tasteless puffed pastry crust is not a dessert, its trash, and went uneaten after everybody tasted a third of a spoonful and had a good laugh. We live in Utrecht but won't be returning...

a) Oysters with rendang sauce - the lime seeds were left in the oysters! b) steak (kids menu) - my son was served medium rare/ almost raw steak! By the way, we were not asked how we would like it done. We just ordered 'steak with fries' from the kids' menu. Why would the chef think kids like rare steaks?! c) We ordered Limoux sparkling wine but we were served Limoux chardonnay house wine. d) When we asked for our bill, we noticed we were charged for soft drinks which we did not order!

Thankfully, the waitress who served us was very kind and apologetic. Its a pity as the location and restaurant decor are amazing. The chefs & kitchen department need alot of...