Cracked Pepper Bistro — Restaurant in Fresno

1st off, let me start by saying that our server was good. Now onto the worst dining experience we've ever had. We were sat at 6:05 p.m., and left at almost 8:30. It was just me and my husband, just a party of TWO. I ordered the braised short ribs. I tried to cut into it with their STEAK knife and couldn't. I pulled a piece off and put it in my mouth. BIG mistake. I nearly threw up. I had a huge chunk of what seemed like shoe laces in my mouth. I couldn't break it up in my mouth for the life of me. After several minutes, I managed to chew it and swallow big chunks of it. I wanted to spit it out but had no where to do so. The waiter came to ask how our meal was in the middle of my disastrous bite and I told him how tough the meat was. He was surprised as he said that was supposed to be very tender. He took my plate and said he'd bring me another one. After a few of minutes he came back and told me they had run out. This would explain why I received such an awful piece of meat. Clearly that was the last one that was just sitting at the bottom of their pot and they probably new better than to serve it but decided to anyways. When our waiter said they had run out of the short ribs, he said the chef told him that I could order anything else off the menu. Well, DUH. Isn't that a given? So I ordered the filet special and ordered it medium well. SEVERAL minutes later the busgirl came to take my place settings thinking I was done eating, and I told her I was still waiting for my meal. She asked what happened and I briefly explained it to her. She said she'd go check on my steak. She came back and said it would be a few more minutes. The waiter then came back and said it would be a few more minutes as they were very busy. I guess me waiting now over 30 minutes for my SECOND order wasn't a priority. Over 40 minutes later, 20 minutes after my husband had finished his meal, I asked the busboy to tell our waiter to just make it to go. The waiter came over and said he heard I wanted my meal to go. I said yes I wanted it to go plus we ordered their bread pudding to go as well. About 10 minutes later, another person brings my meal ON A PLATE. I told her I had asked two people to make it to go. The waiter comes back and we ask him to get our tab while we're waiting for the items to be packaged. He said, "I'm just waiting to find a manager so I can take one of the entrees off the bill." OK, so this made me feel a little better thinking they were taking care of a customer who was given an AWFUL dining experience. We get the tab, and the only item taken off was the short ribs. After several minutes I was able to get the attention of the waiter and told him maybe I misunderstood but I thought he was taking an entree off the bill. He said that I misunderstood as he meant the short rib and nothing else. I was VERY surprised. No manager EVER came to our table to apologize or offer any type of menu item at their expense. The waiter went ahead and took the bread pudding off the bill probably only because he realized he had screwed up by making it sound as though he was comping my steak. So we FINALLY get to leave there, go home and decide to take a couple bites of my steak. Well, I could only manage one bite. The steak was so dry it wasn't edible. I ended up throwing it out. All I could eat were the mashed potatoes which were EH! Will NEVER go there again. Clearly their only concern is settling the tab, no matter if their food is edible or not. I think the worst part of this experience was that NO manager cared enough to come over and at least apologize. I saw what looked like either the owner or manager standing at another table of guests most of the evening chatting it up with what I assume were...

We made a reservation and drove up from Porterville. Our table was ready when we arrived. It was easy to find via Google Maps and parking was available. It is a rather dark atmosphere inside with dark wood and dark banquettes on the walls. The menu is not huge, but it is adequate to choose a number of items from and several specials were made known to us by our AMAZING server. Her name was Lauren. She took very excellent care of us. After perusing the menu, we decided that the Brussels sprouts sounded good and the bone marrow which was one of the specials Lauren had described to us, just on the merit that it was bone marrow, was also ordered. I ordered a stilton salad and my companion had the soup of the day which was a seafood chowder. While there was an amazing opportunity to try a delicious sounding pork tenderloin, we both opted for the Shawarma spiced lamb chops. The bone marrow came out hot and sizzling, and you can tell it was intended for one diner as there were only 3 pieces of small grilled crostini with it. It was super delicious. Fatty, flavorful, collagen loaded and gelatinous, just as it should be with a hint of lemon, garlic and parsley. I could have just sat and had them bring me marrow bones on repeat. They were just delicious. The Brussels sprouts were very good as well, with lots of bacon and the whipped goat cheese was so good, whipped so well, it was almost like soft butter! The stilton salad was not lacking in stilton, or in bacon. Unfortunately, I forgot to snap the photo. It was 3 wedges of romaine, lots of bacon, drizzled in a honey / syrup, with some pieces of pear and a couple of candied walnuts. To me, the walnuts and the pear, served to corners of the plate, were not a feature of the salad, and while they tasted very good, I'm not sure they were necessary. The main course which was the lamb chops, were absolutely beautiful and delicious. This plate has been very well thought out and presented. The seasoning was delicious and the cooking of those chops was perfection. Served on the Zaatar flatbread was so clever, and delicious. The roasted fingerling potatoes tasted like they literally just came out of the oven and the grilled vegetables had gotten just close enough to the roasted jalapeños to pick up some heat. They were just delicious and the plate came together so well with the drizzle of the tahini sauce. I think if I had gotten a glass of shiraz to pair with the meal, it would have just set it off perfectly! Unfortunately, we did not have room for dessert, but all we heard about was the bread pudding and how delicious it is. Next time, we will get dessert first and try it. Yes, next time, because we will definitely be back! Thank you Lauren for the amazing experience...

WOW....Just WOW.... OK so off the top I just want to give a shout out to our server Amy, she owned the entire experience. Her service was impeccable! So we went for a birthday dinner, didn't know much about the place. Upon arriving staff very friendly and courteous. They sat our party and I have to say, the one thing I liked was they kept the menu simple. They keep their focus on a few select dishes and it works. So lets keep it quick and to the point. So for appetizers we got the tacos and they were amazing! The mixed green salad was actually really good, not overkill, they keep it simple and delicious. I ordered the ribeye steak and it really was great. Got the mashed potato's with green beans. Lemme just say, the mashed potato's were delicious!! So there is my simple review. Given the opportunity I will go back, but you can bet I'll be asking to get seated in Amy's section for that wonderful service. All in all though, everybody working there is amazing. So 5 stars all around from service to food. Thank you to all the staff! EDIT: 3/9/2025 So went to a birthday party here and the experience was abysmal. So if you have a larger party say 12 people, you get placed in the "Tent" outside of the restaurant. Apparently there are no rules when dining in the tent. There was another group there that was drinking and being unruly, yelling, cussing and just being vulgar. I felt bad for some of the other customers who's only option was do dine in the tent vs. wait for a long time for a table. One elderly couple was very taken aback by the behavior witnessed of said party. However it seems that it was of no concern to staff or management. As for my experience, I cannot give a great review due to how awful the seating accommodations were. The chairs they use outside are small and extremely uncomfortable. No padding, nothing, just a little metal chair. The entire service took about 2 1/2 hours as things were very slow. So my first experience here was great, however my last experience was anything but great. I think that they need to improve the chairs as I wasn't the only one having issues with them. Spending $100 dollars on dinner with those accommodations less than desirable. Our server, Jodi (I think was her name) was great and my steak was good so I had that going for me. I don't like leaving bad reviews, but after thinking about it I decided it was warranted. So if you don't mind sub par accommodations and unruly behavior, this is your environment. As for me, I will not attend any larger functions at this establishment going forward. ...