Pine and Black Bistro — Restaurant in Papillion

The atmosphere was pretty quaint and what you would expect of a bistro - cozy, relaxed, and inviting. The servers teemed with friendliness, and I thought this might be a cool new spot for dinner and drinks... but then the food came out. (*cracking knuckles).

The presentation was great and the smells were great... but the taste was bland and nearly insulting to my palate. Plain grilled meat - no salt, no pepper, no seasoning of any kind. To the "chef"... salt is a magnifier of flavor - that's why they put it in dessert items too - learn to use it. Why? Because, once meat is cooked, it can't take anymore flavor... so if I was supposed to add salt and pepper onto it myself... I'm not a fan of having to put raw salt and pepper onto under-seasoned meat because it screws up the taste profile.

But, okay, let's just assume the chef was going for "al na-tur-al" naked (in terms of flavor)... just tell me up front and I can almost forgive that... HOWEVER, I think serving me a well-done steak, when I asked for it to be prepared medium, is against the law in Nebraska?!? I'll have to ask on that one.

Guys, I really wanted to like you... but it was just underwhelming flavor. The fingerling potatoes had a weird oily taste and the asparagus was still pretty rigid (though I don't mind a little bite in my veggies).

Overall... I may go back one day, who knows, but this definitely wouldn't be a choice on my list of local dining...

Came in on a busy Friday a few months ago. The person seating told us it was full and wanted to turn us away. We noticed no one was at the bar because the bar seats were filled with stacks of dirty dishes. We said we would wait to sit at the bar. They semi cleared the area and we ate amongst dirty glasses and dishes. Got the fried chicken it was so super burnt and crispy, almost black. I was so hungry and there was no check back so I just ate what I could from the dish. The bartender seemed frazzled and could not keep up with bar glasses. Servers were standing around laughing and not helping with bussing. Servers would bring dirty glasses and stand behind the bar and not help the bartender wash glassware. The same dirty glass sat in front of me from start to finish. However the bartender was also standing around and had ample time to clear and bus but didn’t.

Maybe came in on an off night but for price I won’t be back.

Not sure what happened but there was also a party there that had a reservation mishap there was a gentleman standing with a newborn baby eating the whole time while standing. he didn’t even have a chair !! I could hear the staff snickering about...

Went here for date night with the wife and so glad we did. I remember when the place was a sushi restaurant, and upon walking in, the transformation of the space was pretty amazing. To me it has a trendy but rustic look. It was pretty busy when we went, which was a Saturday night, but luckily we made reservations. I think that's probably the way to go since this seems like a popular spot. The staff was welcoming, and our server was attentive and informative, given this was our first time visiting. I ended up ordering the fried chicken, the wife got the bibimbap. We also ordered the Brussels sprouts/cauliflower in Thai chili sauce appetizer which was super yum! The wife really liked her dish. Tasting it myself, I thought it was very good as well. My fried chicken was good, but it was borderline overdone. The crust was a dark brown vs golden brown, and retained a bit more grease than I would have liked. And, the meat was right on the line of being overcooked. BUT... luckily it wasn't, though it was close. Overall, my dish was tasty and the accompanying risotto and carrot puree were delicious. I would definitely recommend stopping in if you...