The Strand Cafe — Restaurant in City of Ithaca

Our evening at Strand Cafe was a series of disappointments that I just have to share. We ordered a soup, a side as an app (roasted cauliflower), a pizza, and a burger. One of the mains (pizza) arrived first before soup and app. This was puzzling and just the start of a downhill experience.

We waited patiently for the soup, which, when it did arrive after a 15-minute delay, was shockingly cold, not lukewarm, but actually cold. The wait for the soup to be reheated was just as frustrating, especially since our side dish was still MIA.

When the roasted cauliflower finally made it to the table, it was RAW – barely touched by any form of cooking and lacking in flavour. We had to send it back, which is something I rarely do.

The burger saga was no less exasperating. By the time it arrived, my husband had finished his pizza (which, remember, was served first). My request for sautéed mushrooms, an extra I paid for, was ignored. The burger missed not just the mushrooms but also the arugula, pickles (mentioned in the menu)and any kind of condiments. The server's solution was to bring these missing items on a side plate, leaving me to assemble my burger. This isn't what I expect when dining out.

Mistakes can happen, but this was too much! We weren’t charged for the soup and cauliflower, which was a small consolation, but the overall experience was absolutely terrible. Would...

I most invoke Théoden "what would you have me do [not review a restaurant that wasn't good]." No I will remain with the cause.

All I would say is that perhaps just don't go here? Food was blah. Not sure they understand what vegan means (while not a vegan, even I understand that cooking fries in the same oil as meats -say calamari- would make those fries not vegan fyi).

The drinks were ok, but took around 45 minutes to get ready. I'm pretty sure the agave plant and its distillation was done before hand by the tequila supplier so I'm still trying to figure that one out.

Lastly the food came out in 15 minute increments which is insane given the price. If I was buying say a big Mac from McDonald's and my wife a quarter pounder - even that would come out together, so not sure where the staff missed that lesson.

Sorry for the rant- I just started typing and went into a vogue state and then came too and the above was written.

Oh, they laddled in French onion soup into a bowl. Im not asking for Michelin star food- but even I can add cheese on top of soup...

Incredibly poor service, we waited 10 minutes before our waiter Charles came and gave us water, 25 minutes for an appetizer and, subsequently 50+ minutes for our entrées. Other tables nearby, who had ordered after us, got their food before hand, and one was even comped for the wait. I feel this is due to the fact that myself and my date were on the younger side, I do not plan on returning, the service was less than adequate, but the food was delicious. Even after the wait we endured we received no discount or apology for the wait. We also ordered gluten free pizzas because my date has an allergy and we are not sure it was gluten free at all, the pizzas both looked very different, but tasted well. Also never brought plates for our appetizers which he told us he would bring us. He also never checked in on us to check that our food was okay. It was a real great way to ruin a belated...