Tides — Restaurant in Danville

A Disappointing Odyssey at Tides: A Culinary Comedy of Errors

On what was meant to be a joyous occasion, a familial celebration steeped in anticipation, our sojourn to Tides in Danville proved a lamentable misadventure, a veritable tragicomedy of gastronomic proportions. One might expect a restaurant named Tides to sweep patrons away on a current of culinary delight, but alas, we were left stranded on the rocky shores of disappointment.

The evening began with a peculiar flourish: the presentation of an iPad for drink selection, not uncommon and a nod to modernity that promptly unraveled. As a self-professed Luddite in matters of IT, I was nonetheless startled to find the device wholly unlocked, its home button an open invitation to digital mischief. One errant swipe could have plunged a curious (or, shall we say, "inquisitive"-or nosy) patron into the restaurant’s private messages or settings. While the interface was admittedly user-friendly, the oversight was egregious—an IT blunder worthy of a sitcom.

With the zeal of a concerned citizen, I alerted the hostess, who received my warning with the polite indifference of one accustomed to such lapses. A word to the wise, Tides: your IT crew must tighten the digital rigging before handing such devices to customers.

The meal itself was no less confounding. After savoring a few sips of an exorbitantly priced Sauvignon Blanc—whose cost seemed to reflect ambition rather than quality—my 88-year-old father, a man of modest appetite, was presented with a portion of King Salmon so diminutive it could have been mistaken for an amuse-bouche. We were in Danville, not Bouchon in Vegas. At least there they have 8 course meals.

This was particularly galling given our early 4:45 p.m. arrival, when the restaurant stood as empty as a scholar’s wallet after a conference. Hunger, it seems, was no match for Tides’ parsimonious plating. To their credit, the service was congenial, and a manager, with the breezy assurance of a politician, promised a larger portion to rectify the matter. Yet, the replacement arrived only after a 26-minute interlude, a delay that tested even my father’s saintly patience.

When it finally graced the table, the new portion was deemed satisfactory, though one wonders if hunger had simply dulled his standards.

Then came the denouement: the bill, a document as confounding as a poorly cited dissertation. The total exceeded $216, a figure that raised eyebrows among my sister and father, who shared the burden of payment. Notably absent was an itemized receipt, a curious omission that prompted suspicion. Upon my request for clarity, the hostess produced the elusive document, revealing a grievous error: we had been charged for both portions of the King Salmon. One might forgive a single oversight, but this double charge smacked of carelessness—or worse, opportunism. For a restaurant nestled in the affluent enclave of Danville, the proper course would have been to waive the charge for the salmon entirely, a gesture of goodwill to atone for the evening’s missteps. Instead, we were left to haggle over an error that should never have occurred.

In the grand tapestry of dining experiences, Tides weaves a threadbare tale. The ambiance may whisper sophistication, but the execution—be it in digital security, portion sizing, or billing accuracy—screams amateur hour. This was my second visit, and it shall be my last. To the residents of Danville, I offer this scholarly admonition: seek your tides of culinary joy elsewhere, lest you be left, as we were, adrift in a sea...

This place needs some work to live up to its potential.

We had heard it was opened by the same management as Forbes Mill, which we love, and it's in a fantastic location in the old Albatross space. Touting itself as Tides: modern oceanic cuisine, this newcomer created an expectation of innovative, high-end seafood presented in a chic environment. Sadly, it was not that.

First impressions. There is no sign outside the restaurant aside from the street number. When you figure out where the main entrance is and that you might be in the right place, you enter into a dark space full of large green leafy plants, green and black decor, bad acoustics, weird music and a sports bar side area - none of which convey an oceanic or seafood or modern ambience.

The staff seem a bit confused. The host at the front wandered around the tables a bit before figuring out where to seat us, then passed us along to a different person who wandered around some more while we followed, eventually to a table where it seemed like he decided at the last minute to place us. Before we ordered, a server came to deliver food that was meant for another table. A few minutes later, we saw a different server try to deliver food to another wrong table. Our actual server was really quite pleasant and friendly and helpful.

The menu itself was limited and eclectic, and not in a good way. There were some classics like shrimp cocktail, crabcake, clam chowder, but then there was crispy pork belly (with way more fat than meat), "airline chicken", severely overpriced pasta, sides of green beans, mushrooms, creamed corn or potatoes. Why no seafood tower? Calamari? Scampi? Surf and turf? Our server told us the clam chowder is served tableside. We didn't order it but saw the neighboring table did. It was poured from a small ceramic pitcher into their huge bowls and the diners seemed to struggle with extracting clams out of shells in their soup. Other high-end restaurants we've been to only serve soup tableside when it's a broth poured over a beautifully plated center, not a thick chowder.

While we're eating, we were very aware of the cave-like echoes in the dining area, how strangely spaced the tables were, and a bizarre choice of light fixtures that looked like perforated, upside-down umbrellas, mini globes and a strange cluster light feature that I could only describe as a clump of egg larvae. They brightened the lights as the evening progressed, and the music became louder and more club-like which really didn't fit the clientele.

Overall, Tides's menu prices are extremely high for the food and the overall experience. We ordered the seared scallop appetizer which was tasty, but was basically two very average-sized scallops on top of a massive bed of corn for $27. For an appetizer. The mussels in the pasta dish tasted off. Sure enough, gave us some mild food poisoning.

The dessert menu was also weird, with only one sounding appealing. The wine and cocktail selection was good.

Hopefully management takes some of this feedback to heart and thinks about reworking the menu and the decor and the staff training so they have an opportunity to course correct if they want to become a destination in...

Our 3rd time at Tides in about a year was a quiet Sunday evening. I just love the decor in this restaurant. The deep green velvet upholstered banquettes, the high ceilings and the use of plants create a warm yet sophisticated atmosphere. As usual, we had very good service, and our meals were excellent. As an Andrea Aker, I appreciate that they had several nonalcoholic cocktails to choose from. I decided to try one called “the love of L“. It was a lavender flavored lemonade with lychee syrup. It was delicious. A little too sweet for my taste. To make it a 10, it would be great if there could be an option to have this without as much sugar (or even with stevia sweetener). It’s a small group of mine about most mocktails: they are all made very sweet. Still, it was beautifully presented and tasty. My husband enjoyed some of it too. He got an old-fashioned that was smoked. It was kind of elaborate —they smoked at the table. He loved it! We tried the new Teriyaki steak skewers as an appetizer. I really like this! I almost never order beef at a restaurant, but this preparation appealed to me. There was a lovely little salad with a sesame based dressing that accompanied them. Both of us got fish entrées. I had the Seabass and he had the blackened halibut. We both liked his better. It came with a mango salsa and a scrumptious Passionfruit beurre Blanc sauce. We couldn’t resist ordering dessert. Carrot cake is one of my husband’s favorites and this one was prepared without raisins, which is perfect because he doesn’t like raisins. It was delicious. I got the flourless chocolate torte. That was also a winner. It has a texture like ganache or fudge icing on a cake. It came with a raspberry coulis and some whipped cream. We also got ice cream to go with. Usually Tides is busier, but this was the first Sunday night of the back to school week so the whole town was pretty quiet. And with only a few other tables, the noise level was nice in the restaurant and we could easily hear each other talk. I’m pretty sure even when the restaurant is more full that it’s still one of the quieter...