Union An American Bistro — Restaurant in Castle Rock

We are relatively new to Castle Rock, and somehow have missed this place. So I decided to take my adult son out to dinner Saturday night, and made reservations here for 5:15, thinking that we'd have our choice of tables. We were both surprised at the patio being close to full, and the indoors upon entry was really buzzing with activity. I began to worry that despite our reservation, we might have to wait. That's when we found there is a third room, and were seated there. It's a rarity getting to be with our son without our grandchildren in tow, so was really excited to be doing this. In sum, we were not disappointed. Son loved the beer he ordered, and my Margarita was wonderful. One of the best ever. I rarely order an appetizer, but the deviled eggs appealed to me, and son too. WOW. They were amazing, and had a nice "kick" to them. Son had a blackened Mahi sandwich, but noted that it didnt seem to be "blackened", but ate it all anyway. He did really appreciate the fries that came with it. I ordered the marinated steak on mashed potatoes and asparagus. The steak and asparagus might be the best I've ever had. The "world famous" mashed potatoes, were good, but not quite to the world famous level. I ordered the coconut creme pie, and ended up taking most of it home. Good but not great. It got pretty noisy in the room where we were seated, so it was a bit difficult to hold a conversation, however, we decided that our best choice on a warm day would be the patio, that seemed a bit more subdued. This is an honest review, with a few criticisms, but as I end, I want to be clear. We had good service, and anyone who came to our table was personable and friendly. Honestly, I cant wait to return, and next time, I hope that my husband is able to come along, no doubt he will also be wondering why it took us so long to give Union An American...

First impressions may not be everything, but they go a long way. I was meeting a friend for dinner. We had reservations - she arrived shortly before I did and was already seated when I showed up. The two employees at the hostess stand did not even look up when I entered. The hostess was busy rifling through receipts and another employee was busy navigating a touchscreen. I must have stood there for 3 minutes before I was even acknowledged - and 3 minutes is a long time to feel invisible. Finally the hostess glanced at me and said 'we'll be with you in a minute.' I informed her that I was meeting a friend who was already seated. Her attitude changed dramatically and she quickly showed me to the table. By this point, I was annoyed and pretty determined not to have a good evening.

But then, our wonderful waiter arrived! I wish I had thought to get his name, he was pleasant, attentive and engaging. Likewise, the young man that served us our meals was helpful, making sure we had everything we needed. The two of them totally made up for the lack of hospitality I experienced earlier, and for that I'm giving 4 stars rather than 3.

As for the food, I had the grilled sirloin. It was cooked a perfect medium rare. The roasted cauliflower was well-seasoned and very tasty. The only puzzling thing to me was the mac and cheese topped with fried shoestring potatoes. Every time I dipped into the mac and cheese, one or more potatoes went flying. Really, they didn't add much to the dish. I have to admit though, their martini menu was...

BIG THING: Starting out, have come here for years and years since it opened. Tonight, noticed as I was signing on the bill- a secret “sneaky” 4% tip charge on the bill. Was never communicated and I bet, most of the patrons just sign their bill and now have tipped their server 20% plus this hidden 4%- so really now it’s 24% and we don’t even know if that makes it to the staff. It irked us as it was never communicated and disclosed and a last line item below our food ordered. We realized, we are tipping on top of a tip. This is frustrating and fair and had us leave on a frustrating note. This should be communicated by the wait staff “ when you see the bill, there is a 4% fee added for our kitchen”- I love tipping and supporting service and work in the service industry too. The owner of Union needs to see this is WRONG and sneaky - I bet 90% of your customers have paid both and just not right. I hope this policy is fixed immediately and just either increase each food item by a small % - but don’t sneak in this charge. We have always loved coming here- great drinks, food , service but left tonight on a frustrating note. The manager said he has dealt with this often- well Union owner- needs to be fixed right away! I know I’m sharing a lot on my feelings- but back and white transparency goes a LONG way! Hope next time I’m back in a few weeks- won’t see this again on the bill. 3 stars from 5 due to the lack of...