Left Bank — Restaurant in Menlo Park

Having returned to Northern California, one of the places I was looking forward to visiting was a place I had frequented when I lived in Burlingame -- Left Bank, in both Menlo Park and on Santana Row. So, having a special event coming up, I made a reservation for Saturday the 1st of February. What a disappointment. Let's begin with the fact that this was a special occasion, which we indicated when making the reservation. This was never acknowledged, not when we checked in nor at anytime over the course of the 2+ hours and who knows how much money we spent. Let's begin with cocktails or, in my case, let's not begin with a cocktail. While waiting for other guest to arrive, I went to the bar to inquire about non-alcoholic spirits and was pleased to learn that they carry the label Ritual. So I ordered a Ritual Gin -- a martini is made with gin, move over vodka -- martini. And then I ordered that mocktail a second time once cocktails has arrived for everyone else at the table. Sensing that appetizers were on their way -- we were hungry and had ordered a few along with our cocktail orders -- I went to the bar. The bartender, staring at his cell phone while I had a view of the top of his head, said 'yeah'? Seeing our appetizers headed to our table, I ordered -- for the third time -- a mocktail, which arrived long after we were well into our appetizers. Let's pause...what is a cocktail? Something you enjoy before lunch or dinner, or at 4pm after a long day of shopping or work or just being with friends. Alas, not so for me. Okay, trying to be patient. But then the Nicoise I ordered arrived: the ahi was a tough as a tire, inedible; the greens were drenched in an oily something; pushing around the greens, I found two olives, three capers, and one small potato cut in two. I took a couple of bites and resigned to the fact that I was go leave hungry. I'm with friends, having a wonderful time with them. I'm with dear friends and I am not going to make a scene. Oh, and before I forget, let me say that our appetizers' plates and bowls were never removed from the table -- still there as the bill was being paid. Nor did fresh flatware arrive with main courses. Unacceptable. Why would I want my main course to taste like my appetizer? Let me further say that this was a special occasion. My partner and I had just gotten married in a simple civil ceremony. The two of us, our two witnesses, and our officiant chose Left Bank to celebrate. Happily, the convivial conversation we all enjoyed went a great distance to redeeming the lunch. That being said, Left Bank's 'delivery' was lame and limp, greatly diminishing what should have been otherwise.

So I made a call to Left Bank and spoke with the general manager, who patiently listened to the details of a disappointing experience. He offered to send a gift card, which arrived and which is quite...

I have to say, a big disappointment from their Santana Row counterpart. The atmosphere seemed lively but that was about all the had going for them. Everyone looked flustered from the front door to the kitchen door. The servers were fresh off the bus and I felt like I should be ordering tacos instead of the fine cuisine we went for. They were out off the beef bourguignon, which is why I wanted to return the (chain?) In the first place. I ordered the pork tenderloin with summer green beans. The beans were flavorful but slightly undercooked. The tenderloin had a delicious glaze but was a little overcooked. Almost like it was pulled at the right temp but was allowed to rest too long and it dried out. Our server hung us out to dry pretty much the whole 2 hours we were there, only checking our table a couple times. It wasnt very busy and there were only 2 of us. My final complaint may not seem like much to most in the area, but I only pay with cash and that seemed to be a bother to him as he insisted I pay with a card. I dont know how they do things other places, but a functioning restaurant should be able to provide 25 dollars in change. Overall I was dissatisfied to the point I dont think I will return. Too many cons to outweigh the pros, even if they do have their signature dish to offer that drew me in in the...

Do not, under any circumstances, go to this restaurant.

I like Left Bank, I've been to several. This particular Left Bank suffers from several things which would plague any restaurant:

1. possibly the worst service I've ever encountered at any restaurant. Our waiter was never there. It took about 40 minutes to get bread. I had to remind him about the drinks we ordered. When we had finally gotten our food, there was not a single check on us, my entire group had empty glasses the whole night.
2. they were out of the first two things I ordered on the menu. What I finally found I could order (a steak), I was disappointed in. Maybe it was the long anticipation for the food, but I expected something better than a barely seasoned, tough flank steak. The mushroom side was good, had I known, I might've just had that
3. more waiting as busmen cleared our table clean. Would we get a dessert menu? A check? It took another 30 minutes to find out. The restaurant was empty at this point: just my friends, me, and an empty table. We declined the dessert menu and paid cash so as to limit any further time spent there... 2 hours gone - for a sub-par steak and a single...