Café Zola — Restaurant in Ann Arbor

Good distancing measures in place, but that’s sadly the only good thing I have to say about my most recent visit to the Zola cafe downtown. Though my family has loved eating here for the last 5+ years, this experience was completely shocking but also very upsetting to us. We were sat quickly at an outdoor table that was cleaned and sanitized. We came here specifically for their salads, as they’ve been a family favorite since our first visit. After a small wait, the waiter (Jack) took our drink orders along with our meal (2 salmon salads) to be more considerate regarding the distancing measures. He was somewhat unknowledgeable and seemed confused at times, as he didn’t understand the basic menu items like the dressings or lettuce options they had. We shrugged it off and began waiting for our food. Time continued to pass and our waiter was slowly serving his few outside tables. Meanwhile, people were being sat by some of the younger waitresses who were working very efficiently and serving their later tables faster than our waiter could even give us a heads up. After an hour and ten minutes, he finally came outside with our salads. The portions were MUCH smaller than what they had been in the past. For a $26-$29 salad, we expected to get something that wasn’t smaller than a side salad at your average food chain. When we asked him if it was the entree portion, he shrugged and said a faint “yes” before scurrying back inside. We tried to laugh it off, but once we began eating it was hard to do so. The salads tasted very bitter and poorly put together. The salmon fillets were larger than the amount of greens on the plate. On top of that, we didn’t get a single refill of pop during our 2 hour visit. We were super disappointed and ready to leave at that point, but our waiter was nowhere to be found. We flagged down a female worker who was beyond caring when we told her about our experience. She offered to let us speak to a manager, but we decided to let her be the messenger to not cause a scene. She got our bill for us, which was when the shock settled in. We’re locals who are used to high prices downtown and we completely understand how crazy the world is right now and love supporting local businesses, but the total of $62 was mind blowing for us. This included the charge of $2.50 for simply asking for a trial portion of a dressing. Considering the portion size, service, and all-around experience, we seriously would’ve been better off eating at Mcdonald’s. We hate to say it, but this will be our last time at Zola until these issues are resolved. We wish you the best during...

I was out here for dinner with 3 colleagues of mine from the university for dinner. I did not have a good experience at all at the restaurant though I will acknowledge that my fellow diners may have had a somewhat better experience than I had.

What did not go well: A: Service: Not much to complain about, other than the fact that they took away our bread plates even when we were not done with having bread. All of my 3 colleagues ended up taking the bread and having it without a plate in front. That could have been better. And the other thing in terms of service which was a bummer was that we were on official business and our admin person had made reservations with the restaurant and had arranged to have it paid by P-card (the University of Michigan's payment system for vendors). And yet when one of us was about to sign the bill, the waitress came up and said that the P-card number wasn't correct. Knowing our admin person, it is unlikely that she had made a mistake and it is much more likely that the restaurant had not gotten it right.

But finally the food itself. The portions were OK but it was my main entree which killed the whole thing for me. I had ordered scallops with spinach and there is just no other way to say it - the scallops were charred pretty bad. When I bit into the first one, I was quite surprised to see that it was charred but then as I took a second one, I realized that the same was true of it as well. And then for all of my remaining scallops, I tried to remove the portions which were charred and have the rest. Doesn't work so well, in case you didn't know. And so, I ended up having 6-8 scallops which were largely burnt. And what is worse is that not once, I kid you not, not once did the waitress come and ask us about the food. Places which charge half the price as Cafe Zola's will have people stop by at least once during your meal to ask you about your experience and sadly, they did not come by even once. If they had, I would have been tempted to return my plate - it was really that bad.

Oh and the last thing - since I knew that I was going to this place for dinner and had planned on having the Lobster Ravioli that was listed on their online menu. Guess what, they don't serve the ravioli at all. Would have been good to know because in that event, I would have chosen a different restaurant such as Real Seafood Company.

Very very disappointed overall with how things turned out...

The food was delicious. We ordered the smoked salmon bruschetta 'shareable' to start and because of the price, I was concerned about it being too much food for an appetizer. I was wrong. It was three tiny pieces of salmon on rather large pieces of toast with a thin layer of horseradish spread on it. It was very good, but pricey considering the quantity. Our main courses for lunch we're both delicious; my boyfriend got the fish tacos and I got the arugula salad.

The atmosphere was certainly questionable. Much of the ductwork and art on the walls had a thick layer of dust on them. The restaurant was not busy yet the hostess attempted to seat us at a tiny table crammed with an 8 inches of occupied table tables on either side of it- there were at least a dozen empty tables available elsewhere… It was uncomfortable enough I had to ask her if we could please sit somewhere else and then waved my hand across the empty room.

Our server was very pretty, but either new to serving or indifferent about her job. She said all the right things but did not smile and you could tell eye contact made her uncomfortable. It was 100° out and the water she served us was "just tapwater "as she put it, after we declined the sparkling water, and it was served lukewarm in tiny whiskey glasses with no ice. When it came time to pay, she did the most unusual thing- something I've never experienced, certainly not in my years of work in the service industry, or anytime since; she brought a handheld computer to the table with everything we ordered on it, turned it around and said "this is what you ordered", then proceeded to review it line item, like the service board at a fast food restaurant… For the prices of this place, I certainly didn't expect that. She then had me pay right then and there by inserting my card into the portable computer. I was with my boyfriend, which made this tolerable, but have I been there with a client, I would have been irritated about my client seeing what I'm spending on our meal, and seeing what I'm tipping. I'm an excellent tipper but that is not the point here; there are certain things that should be kept private, and money is one of them.

Overall, I feel there are are a lot of opportunities for improvement at this restaurant. One does not simply get to upcharge smoked salmon without having the attitude and presentation to back...