Restauracja ELIXIR by Dom Wódki | polish restaurant Warsaw — Restaurant in Warsaw

Just dropped by for lunch as we were walking towards Stare Miasto. Maybe we caught the waiters off guard as it was Saturday and they’ve just opened. (12:30ish~ But still, it’s opened, so must be ready to serve customers.)

The butler (mid-aged, supposed to be the most Senior at scene) took our jackets to cloak room and guided us to the far end corner of the restaurant. Which the heating was apparently NOT ON upon arrival (which I immediately regretted to let him take my jacket).

When arrived at the table, judging from other table settings around the room, he kinda on purposely left us on THE TABLE that wasn’t ready!!! Seating feeling cornered, no water being served with drafts constantly flowing from the big window, no heating on and away from any heat. (Imagine going into a restaurant in winter which is -1°C today, seating right near a massive glass window with only a t-shirt on without heating. )

I did realised the other two younger waiters saw me shivering a bit so tried to attend to my needs. With the first one pushing a mobile radiator towards my direction yet got stopped by the Senior one. Finally the waiting served our plates throughout came over with a baby hot fan. 😑(First time in Poland, so I almost mistook it as Polish Tradition lol ???)

Anyways, long story short, it was only like before getting our mains that someone (looked like the owner) came around checking the room, then FINALLY the lamps and heater were turned on. 🥲🥲🥲

So…I’ve been eating a meal in a supposed Michelin recommended restaurant atmosphere feeling colder than outdoors.

After all, the other two waiters are nice and really attentive enough, foods are nicely served and tasted good.

Regardless of what, I did still left a good tip (25%) to honour their services and hardworking. But seriously, if the owner/managing team ever saw this, I would like to address I would prefer that tips not go to the more senior one. (He really made me feel as if he doesn’t respect young independent lady though we had Zero Communication.)

Honestly, I’ve never had a meal like this that feeling freezing and uncomfortable all way through and can’t wait...

Walked by the day before and it was fairly empty for a Michelin recommended restaurant so many years in a row. When we went the next day, it was fairly empty inside too. We were greeted promptly and politely. Opted for the set lunch menu. It was priced fairly for a 3 course lunch. The caesar salad and tomato soup were both pretty tasty and probably the best out of the three courses. For the mains, we chose the cod and stewed beef which had beautiful plating. The cod was perfectly fried and was not greasy at all but the dish was lacking a sauce component. The lentils and broad beans itself has a powdery texture naturally and the fish also has a dry texture due to the breadcrumbs. When you eat the components together, you’ll just feel the combination of dry and powdery texture in your mouth and on your tongue. I needed a gulp of water with each bite to wash it down. The stewed beef was not exactly stewed beef. It was visuallu dry and did not have any stewing sauce if it was really stewed. Upon eating, it did have good flavour but it was dry and fibrous. The dessert wasn’t exciting. It was simply a deconstructed yogurt parfait.

Classy interior but there are a few details that could make it a better dining experience for the customers. We observed that the servers were pretty rugged and stern with their mannerisms whether it’s clearing dishes or serving dishes. Although they weren’t trying to be rude, they didn’t smile much either. Maybe it’s a cultural thing compared to fine dining in North America, but in North America, the servers are more gentle and fluid with their actions and mannerisms. There was also constant clanging noise of plates and cutlery in the background which was distracting at times especially if you’re trying to eat or have a conversation. For the restrooms, you had to walk past the host booth and go downstairs. The corridor was already narrow enough but the host sat on a stool at an angle and had his legs so spread open so it was awkward trying to scoot past him.

Upon leaving, our server did not thank us but the host and another server...

It started with being seated in the tourist area. Been in over 120 restaurants this year on trips and know when this happens. It does not happen often but some restaurants seem to get a kick out of it. The food was pretty good so that’s not the problem, chef is on par. The waiter though. Unfriendly, neutral from start to finish. It started with “Ready to order?”. When it starts like that you know it’s gonna be a struggle. No “mise en bouche”. I had to ask for bread (which was 8 huge slices). Explaining the vodka matching seemed to say “Why are you asking me how to do this, don’t you know? No I don’t know, not every restaurant serves vodka shots with meals”. Which by the way seems pointless to me, a good glass of wine is much better, but that’s a personal choice I guess. Since I had ordered vodka shots with both my meals and after the first I thought it was ridiculous, so I asked to change the shots for a glass of wine instead for my next course, the main course. The waiter didn’t really listen and I got the shots and the glass of wine (which was a polish wine that tasted like paint remover, Ok, not his fault). But the vodka shots came when I wasn’t finished my appetizer, which he tried to remove too early, which I had to tell him I wasn’t finished. What a hawk. Did I mention that he explained the dishes to the table in back. I got, “This is the beef tartare, and for my main, “This is Duck”. Thanks buddy, I think I already knew that since I ordered it, but what’s that purée? Guess I will have to taste it to figure it out. By this point you would have guessed right that I skipped desert, and I won’t be going back. Please management do not bother writing an excuse or whatever cut and paste statement you make to negative reviews. Train this waiter and stop playing games with segregating tourists from the locals. PS the piano player is much too loud and keeps playing American tunes over and over. Let him rest like...