Bistro 45 — Restaurant in McCall

Honestly, the best thing about this place is the view outside. The issues started with the hostess. At first, she seemed short and somewhat annoyed, but we brushed it off. We informed her that we had a reservation for outdoor seating, and she told us there would be a wait. No problem. While we were waiting, another couple arrived and told her the same thing, but they chose to sit inside. She seated them indoors, and about 5 minutes later, she moved them outside. That was a bit surprising, but we didn't make a fuss. Finally, she returned after 10 minutes and seated us outside in a sunny area, despite several open tables in the shade. My son has autism, so the sun made him uncomfortable. After a few minutes, we asked the hostess if we could move to one of the shaded tables. She appeared very annoyed. When my wife asked if we were bothering her or making unreasonable requests, the hostess responded with an attitude, "Just move, do whatever you want." My wife was shocked and asked to speak with the manager, but the hostess walked away. My wife followed her, and when the manager emerged from the kitchen, the hostess pointed at my wife and said, "She is mad at me." My wife looked at the manager and asked, "Is that professional?" The manager apologized, and the situation was resolved.

Now, onto the food. We ordered the Tuna Poke Tacos, which were okay but nothing special. The avocado was not ripe yet and was hard. I would give them a 2; I've definitely had better (sorry, it's the only picture I took). The main course took about 40 minutes to come out, if not longer; we lost count. Fortunately, our son's food came out quickly; he had chicken fingers and fries, which to me, they were the best part of the meal. While waiting, we noticed a waitress who seemed lost, bringing the wrong food to tables and appearing annoyed and disinterested. My wife ordered the Shrimp Pesto Pasta, which she enjoyed, but I wasn't a fan. I had the "Shoemaker Ranch" Bison Ribeye cooked medium rare. It was okay, but it was overcooked and under-seasoned. The mashed potatoes were bland and lacked flavor.

In the end, they offered us a free dessert to make up for the hostess's behavior, but we declined. The manager ended up removing the cost of the two lemonades, which was a 'nice' gesture, but it left us questioning their approach. On our way out, the hostess apologized. As I mentioned, the view was the best part overall. However, in my experience, the food and service weren't worth the money. There are many better...

Like another reviewer here, our awful experience started with the hostess. We had reservations and asked to sit outside as it was not busy and it was a beautiful evening. The hostess responded and said there’s a storm on the way and she couldn’t sit us outside for dinner although there were other people and eating dinner out there. We let her know if it started raining or storming we would move our party indoors. She took us grudgingly to a table and we were promptly seated. We did not get any food menus only drink menus. Our server attended us promptly. For drink orders. What the website/menu fails to tell you is that their cocktails are not made in house and come out of a can. So if you were not a beer or wine drinker and are looking for a mixed cocktail, don’t go here. They are full of sugar, highly diluted and just blah. We ended up ordering food, there was an order change while we were going around the table. When the food came out one of the items that was changed was brought to us in error. When food was brought, we still didn’t have napkins or silverware. One person in our party ordered a second drink it took approximately 20minutes to get a glass of Prosecco and we had to ask for a second time. Mind you, it was NOT busy at all there were about 6 tables of people. Food was bland, basic, and majority of us didn’t finish our meals, nor did we get it to go as it just wasn’t good. Best thing about this place, the view. It just seems like they are super unorganized, flighty (server, although she was nice) and have a bit of attitude (hostess). Save your money and go someplace else for food. If you just want a glass of wine and a...

What a wonderful experience! We sat outside with our pup. Obviously, beautiful surroundings. The perk of having an onsite retail wine purchase with the $6 corkage fee was amazing. The gentleman behind the bar gave a great recommendation on an Italian wine. It was perfect for the weather and our food selection. Collette is a personable, informative server. Such a pleasure. Someone you want to pull up a chair and talk with. The young lady who was the “runner” was so pleasant and adept and had a wonderful smile. And the food: the bruschetta was a beautiful elevation of norm. This was accomplished partly by the bread base. The only way to describe it … a delicate and tender bread base..no idea if the preparation unfortunately. The toppings with the balsamic reduction was delicious. However, It was the bread base that made it stand above others. Collette recommended the salmon with such enthusiasm, that I had to order it….a complete winner. The sear on the salmon…the pesto…the spinach risotto… the perfectly cooked veggie medley…wow. My husband loved his pork chop and garlic mashed potatoes. I cannot elaborate since I did not eat it. We topped off the dinner with the lava cake and gelato. It was also very tasty. Dense dark chocolate with the right amount of softness in the middle. Gelato was a delicious accent. I cannot attest to the other offerings on the menu, but, if they are anything like the quality of ours…who could go wrong? Kudos to the owners, the chef and the rest...