Black Cow Fat Pig Pub & Steak — Restaurant in Norfolk

How this "restaurant" has more than 1 star is baffling.

I knew when we got our drinks and they were awful, that the food would be just as bad. You can tell a great restaurant by the drinks they serve and my mom's margarita was watered down and my mule was so harsh that I asked for the server to bring me ginger beer to help smooth it out. Maybe they are using cheap booze and that is why it was so harsh? Our server never came back to see if we wanted a 2nd drink and I had to flag him down so my mom could get a 2nd margarita; the 2nd one was better than the first.

I ordered a beet salad which is my favorite salad and it read really well - creamy goat cheese, roasted beets, candied walnuts, sounds great! NOT. The beets were sliced (probably out of a can) and the "creamy" goat cheese was smeared between 2 slices - why??? This was so odd. There was absolutely no dressing on the salad and the "creamy" goat cheese was anything but creamy. I requested more dressing and never did receive any extra.

My mom ordered a filet mignon, cooked medium with an additional mushrooms and onions to top the steak along with a garlic mashed potatoes and a medley of vegetables. All sounds great, doesn't it? The steak arrives and it is dry, flavorless and cooked extra well done. The mashed potatoes and vegetables are cold. When she cut into her steak and showed the server it was overcooked, he said "I will get you a new steak right away".

We sat and waited and waited and waited - me for extra dressing and mom for her replacement steak. Not a single person came by to check on us. Finally the owner or perhaps the manager brings out the steak and a side of mushrooms/onions. We were so irritated by this point, we told her we didn't want the food and just wanted our check. I told her that this experience was awful and she said to me "I hope you don't own your own business". What does that even mean???? But I told her "Why yes I do own my own business and the customer service here is awful" She basically told us she would take care of everything and told...

The food here was great. Unfortunately, that only describes a portion of the experience. The staff Was less so.We had to ask someone to kindly send our server over no less than four times, . either because of errors or because it had been sometime since you returned (it was not busy on his Tuesday night). I feel that we remained polite and understanding through the meal.

I understand that mistakes happen. I have put my own time in as a server and I try to set my expectations according to the venue but this is a reasonably "high end" for the area and our we partook in drinks, a bottle of wine, appetizers and dessert. Around the holidays I enjoy the opportunity to "pay it forward" in tipping. But, there was very little effort to apologize. It wouldn't have taken much. Offer to comp one of our $3 ice creams at the end. Send the manager over to say a few words. Instead, we received our bill and were overcharged... So we waited again to have it corrected. I politely mentioned the overall experience to the hostess as we walked out the door. She shrugged her shoulders.

This was 3 friends meeting up over the holiday to catch up ...but conversation was often on hold while flagged our server down. Based on the reviews, my experience does not appear to be entirely unique. You'll probably get good food no matter what, even if you have to send your server back to correct it a couple times. I debated on...

The Good - (most of this review) I want to start by saying we had a wonderful visit. We had friends coming in from the East Coast and all had a terrific dinning experience. They had live music, which was a bit loud, so we asked if we could be re-seated and the manager (owner?) was very accommodating which we greatly appreciated. Our waitress - and the general service from all restaurant staff - was superb.

We ordered the pulled pork nachos as an appetizer and as usual they were wonderful. The cheesecake is fantastic. Moist without being 'gewy' and the crust is exquisite.

Room for Improvement - (Only 2 things)

1. One member of our group ordered a bourbon neat. It arrived on the rocks, with an exorbitant amount of ice. (The ice was piled higher than the rim of the glass).
2. Several in our group ordered burgers. All ordered their burgers 'medium' and all burgers arrived very 'well done.' This was a little surprising as I have never had trouble with 'doneness' when ordering a steak from here.

Conclusion - Black Cow is a wonderful restaurant. The service is great. The atmosphere wonderful. The food delicious. However, as with any establishment their are a few...