Ember & Greens — Restaurant in Hedwig Village

Update: I originally wrote this review out of frustration/anger after a negative experience here. While I don’t want to rehash everything I said before, the issue was that I felt disrespected by an employee, and it left me with a really bad taste in my mouth despite having had great visits in the past. I truly appreciate the thoughtful response from the owner, Iman. Reading it made me realize I let my emotions get the best of me in my original posting and included assumptions I shouldn’t have made. I apologize for that. I should have just stuck with the facts of what happened rather than venting beyond the situation.

I know small, family owned businesses face a lot of challenges, and I respect how seriously Ember & Greens takes guest experiences because we were just as surprised this was being allowed. It means a lot that the issue was addressed so quickly and directly. I also appreciate the accountability and the steps being put in place to prevent anything like this in the future. At the end of the day, mistakes happen, and what matters is how they’re handled and Iman and his team showed true professionalism in the way they responded. Thank you for your time and understanding. Original posting: My wife and I came to this restaurant after a run at Memorial Park around 8:07 PM yesterday, Wednesday 9/4, looking forward to a nice meal. We’ve visited here multiple times before and have always had great experiences, but this time was not that. We walked in, sweaty from our run and not smelling the best (which we were fully aware of), and since it was cold inside, we wanted to sit outside. There was only one other table occupied in the entire restaurant. My wife politely asked if we could sit outside, and the server made an immediate visible grimace. My wife reassured her by saying, "If not, we’re fine sitting inside." The server then said it wasn’t an issue and walked us to the patio. As soon as we sat down, the server left us with our menus and went back inside. I followed her to use the restroom, and as I approached the bar area, the sever let out a loud, audible groan, saying, "Ughhh, I do not want to be out there." At this point, I had no choice but to speak up. The experience at Ember & Greens has really soured our view of what was once a favorite restaurant. We've spoken with the owner and his mother before and always praised the vision and effort they put into the place, but this one poor interaction has shown how bad customer service can completely destroy...

It was a nice, clean place with plenty of items, including vegan which we were looking for.

I was in the mood for pasta, and having made different mushroom stroganoff recipes I went that route. I have never been more disappointed in a dish.

What I thought was a garnish (potato straws) I found was actually a substitute for pasta. Yes potato straws, the same thing served to preschoolers from a can at day cares.

I tried, I took a bite, I hoped for the best but the flavorless sauce did nothing to distract me from what I was just served for $20, 2 cups of mushrooms, a watery tan sauce that had no taste a few handfuls of potato straws.

I was disappointed to say the least and made it clear to the server who said 'well that's how it comes...hopefully next time you'll order something you love.'

She offered to bring over the menu and I could order an additional entree. I didn't want to imagine what my next surprise would be if I did so I declined. Especially when I don't want to be charged for two terrible entrees, the first was clearly going to be kept on the n bill and I was not in the mood to argue. Additionally, after our server kept saying that's how it comes, beef or mushroom stroganoff, I googled stroganoff with potatoes and found nothing remotely close to this concoction.

I did decide to get a box, I love mushrooms and can use them in something else since there's nothing flavorwise. I also have a 3 year old who might like the potato straws (I separated them to keep them from getting mushy).

Maybe it would help to name it appropriately 'Mushrooms in Sauce with Potato Straws' instead of insinuating it is a totally different dish made with pasta. Or mentioning it when someone orders it. Or have a staff who cares, no manager checked in, and as far as I can tell no one other than our server even knew of our disappointment.

The cauliflower was worth...

Came in with in laws and a hungry 3 year old and 9 year old. Asked that they immediately Start on chicken tenders. Request was ignored. It was busy but not that busy. Maybe it was backed up in the kitchen.

There's no regular or kids hamburger. So a 9 year old wanting a cheeseburger has to order the fancy 20+ dollar giant patty wagyu burger and leave off the fancy toppings. She ate about 3 bites or maybe 15 percent of it. Leftovers... oh well.

Aggressively hip music was a bit too loud. Place was generally a bit too loud for family conversation.. very little on the walls and ceiling to attenuate sound. Servers were nice. Chips and queso.. not nearly enough chips. I had veggie samosas that I likes a lot. Kids chicken tenders weren't that tender. Overly large chunks. Came out way too hot I had to keep the plate away from my kid for several minutes and cut the chicken in small pieces.

Menu very comprehensively lists normally gluten free options and those that can be ordered gluten free on request. The symbol for gluten free was a bit small and not intuitive. Seem to show a wheat plant but it could have been a pine tree or a flag for all I could tell. The symbol for gluten free on request was even more cryptic. At least they tried. It became clear once I found the explanatory notes.

There was a slightly odd odor I noted upon entry and my 3 year old mentioned it too. Like burnt grease or bacon. I mean not out of the ordinary in a restaurant but still I think something wasn't designed quite right with kitchen...