Bas Rouge — Restaurant in Easton

My husband and I went to Bas Rouge earlier this summer and had a nice experience.

Unfortunately, last Saturday, neither the food nor the service (especially) was enjoyable.

I checked the reviews and found that others had similar disappointing experiences - bland food, small portions, high prices, and rushed service.

We coincidentally arrived early for our reservation and were rushed from the moment we walked in the door.

They took the drink menus from us before I had a chance to even look at it. They had to return at least one menu so we could make a wine selection.

The waitress was quite rude, pointing her finger at my menu insisting that I order both my appetizer and my meal immediately, tapping her finger on the menu items. This all before I had a chance to even begin to enjoy my cocktail.

During the meal, they removed my butter dish almost as soon as they put it down.

Later, I noticed the six people at the table next to us were drinking leisurely all through our dinner. They didn't seem to receive their menus until we were on our dessert course.

There was little to no courtesy regarding dietary restrictions that were provided both in advance and again at the table upon our arrival. The waitess seemed to be annoyed and didn't want to bother reviewing the food sensitivity card provided to her.

The dance of adding and removing plates and silverware that was not needed or used bordered on ridiculous, especially because they were rushing things along. This may have been more meaningful at a slower pace. The final straw was when the "head" waiter rolled his eyes at one of the guests over a simple request

At our last visit, Bas Rouge had a special appetizer prepared in advance that addressed the food sensitivities. They went to great lengths to make sure we had a nice experience and asked us numerous times if we would be back.

We were hoping to share that type of experience with our guests to celebrate their retirement. Sadly, Bas Rouge underperformed at so many levels that it was embarrassing.

Well, we kept our promise to Bas Rouge. We did return. However, rather than leaving happy and relaxed, we left hungary and annoyed. We will never return to this restaurant. It was an unpleasant experience at any price point, inexcusable at their prices.

The restaurant was told well in advance that we were celebrating a retirement, yet there was no acknowledgment of the occasion.

The restaurant was also advised of dietary restrictions of one of the guests well in advance.

Both were seemingly ignored.

We were all dressed appropriately in business casual - men in jackets, women in a dress or nice slacks. Others in the restaurant were dressed casually, one man in what looked like a Ban-Lon shirt and shorts.

And, on this Saturday evening, the restaurant was not full. It wasn't even crowded.

We are not strangers to fine dining. And, I can tell you this is not it.

We were all very disappointed and upset by this experience.

All of us dine out regularly, but never again at Bas Rouge. There are much...

Well, sometimes things do live up to all the hype. Sure, it’s an extreme splurge and we may never be able to do it again, but this place was superb, across the board.

Laura got the wine pairing and intensely enjoyed every selection they gave her. I ‘traded in’ my wine pairing money for an extra course, and the veal cappelletti I chose may have been the star of the entire (star-studded) evening. They were three jet-black (something to do with charcoal dust!) pasta crown-like deals that absolutely blew us both away.

The amuse-bouche was a butternut squash soup that definitely amused both of our bouches. Laura’s pork chop was perfect and yet a supporting actor on the plate named Polenta Dauphine still kinda stole that show. My rack of lamb was the stuff of idealized Easter nostalgia but was something that Grandma never could have made, bless her heart.

Even the bread service was fantastic. They had five very different options, all in enticing ‘try me’ bite-sized portions and, unlike in some super high-end places, the out-of-sight but somehow still constantly attentive servers kept coming back to offer more without a trace of haute cuisine judgement.

We selected the two “plated” desserts and positively gloated at our wisdom. I chose a chocolate cherry mousse thing that comes in the form of a make-believe giant chocolate cherry and looked magazine-cover good, and improbably tasted even better than it looked, and it looked like its appearance was the only goal!

Laura got a panna cotta thing with a local fresh peaches-three-ways twist. She made sounds while enjoying it that I hadn’t heard since before the kids were born.

It’s hard to believe since the prices really were high (for us) but we think it was worth every hard-earned penny. It was a truly great experience and a great memory.

Thank you, fancy French...

Everything was amazing! We enjoyed a 3 course meal complimented with champagne & riesling.

The first course unfolded with the appetizers— I enjoyed the Lobster Ravioli appetizer & my husband had Warm Vichyssoise Soup (potatoes soup) - both were excellent.

Our entrees were perfect. I had Branzino/cauliflower coconut crème (European Sea Bass) - it was moist & flavorful & the coconut cream sauce was an excellent pairing. My husband thoroughly enjoyed the Sirloin Steak w/ béarnaise sauce, very tender and juicy. And his asparagus were cooked just right; a slight crispness with a sweet nutty taste.

There was a lovely choice of a warm array of fresh baked artisanal breads and rolls; a treat by themselves.

And lastly, the dessert - another 5 star! The decadent cashew cream cake was AAAmazing. It was moist, velvety, filled with gentle layers of cream with tones of vanilla and caramel. This is definitely my favorite. My husband had sorbet & he thought the 2 cookies that were served with the sorbet were the best cookies he ever has ever eaten. They were similar to a butter cookie but not as heavy.

A nice surprise gift was given to us as we were leaving....a seving of a baked loaf of bread from The WardRoom. How nice!

I would be remiss if I did not mention the first class staff. Shawna, our server was classy, efficient & very personable. Ben, the manager, couldn't have been more welcoming & nice. Anthony, the sommelier, was very helpful & knowledgeable assisting my husband in choosing a bottle of wine. The riesling was just as he described. It was elegantly aromatic with a fruity note of peach. Aaahhh, perfect!! A heartfelt thank you to the entire team for creating such a delightful...