The Vig — Restaurant in Peoria

Horrible, horrible, horrible experience for brunch yesterday. After church, I took my wife and a child were were watching to brunch there.

My wife spilled a glass of water and backed up to avoid the water coming across the table. The cheap chair that I was in collapsed and threw me on the floor. When I grabbed the dining table, to pull myself up, that collapsed too because the top was just "placed" on the base and NOT affixed in any way. Other diners had to get up from their meals to help me up.

I was shook up, embarrassed, and had a sore shoulder from where I hit the floor. Then, the Manager came over and said how "sorry" that he was. He also mentioned "not worrying" about our meal. But, he spoke so low and indistinguishable that we just heard "not worrying about". So... We figured that he was comping our meal which is what he should have done. We didn't take advantage in any way. We all did get desserts 🍨 but we probably would have done that anyway.

When it came time to pay, I told the Waiter to charge me a dollar or something and then to let me know what the meal would have cost and I would tip on the value of the meal. I did this because it's the right thing to do.

Then, there was this rather long wait and the Manager came back saying that he was "sorry for the miscommunication" but that he WASN'T comping our meal but only the queso and chips that I bought. Yeah, I get thrown on the floor, from their cheap, tubular metal, chairs and almost dumped again from their cheap tables with the tops just placed on the base, and they are only comfortable with comping us an order of QUESO?

My wife, who is more militant than me, actually argued with the Manager and he said "Okaaaay" and comped our deserts. Instead of leaving happy, we left angry.

If you want a dining experience on cheap, tubular & plastic, furniture, that they probably got on sale at Kmart or Woolworth's, eating at a table that isn't even attached to its base, and then to have to deal with a bunch of incompetent losers trying their best to gyp you and "stay ahead", why then this might be the place for you.

Nursing my sore back and shoulder and thinking on hiring an attorney. Somebody gets thrown on your establishment's floor, from your furniture that collapsed, you COMP THEIR ENTIRE MEAL! You also apologize profusely. But hey, WHAT DO I KNOW ABOUT ANYTHING? I am just old school with an MBA.

At least, they ought to fire that Manager; the incompetent tool that he is. Also, our dining party was "mixed". My wife, and the child are African American, while I am Caucasian. Don't know if that had anything to do with their ridiculous, disrespectful, lowball, offer but I wouldn't be surprised.

I put a few pictures up with this review. One can see their cheap table, the top covered in paper thin vinyl that's wood grain. They were so lazy that they didn't even finish assembling the table but just placed the top on the base. Or the table was broken and they are using it anyway. Discerning diners? Stay...

I went to the Park West location for dinner with some family members.

We arrived just after 6:30 - with almost an hour and a half of daylight. We were seated outside. The flies were numerous enough to request the little spinning fly-detractors they provide on request. But, until dark, the flies were an issue.

Service is casual and s-l-o-w. This was fine because we weren’t in any hurry. If you expect to be in and out within an 80 mins for dinner you’ll be frustrated. Otherwise-have a drink (or two) while waiting for your main course. The lounge-style atmosphere is clearly designed to get you to relax/chill. In order for this to work , they definitely need to work on getting that first beverage-alcoholic based or not - on your table much sooner.

As for food - flavor and presentation were on-point. The menu is simple yet interesting enough to be amusing-offering a nice variety of tastes as well as range from healthy lighter fare to indulgent meals for those out to feast.

Now here’s a real peeve of mine - REMOVING EMPTY PLATES AND GLASSES! By the time we were eating main course the table was littered and cluttered with empty appetizer plates, finished beverage glasses and our friends-the flies, crawling and flying around us. Not classy or pleasant. After dinner and paying the check, our table was OVERFLOWING with the dirty dishes, empty chip baskets and almost everything else that came out with our food and drinks. Exiting, I scanned the dining patio and several other empty tables were likewise covered with the same post-meal debris.

Note to management: teach your servers to remove plates, drinkware and litter every time they depart their service area. Hiring service assistants to work with the waitstaff to clear items and keep the dining area free of clutter would address this nicely.

I’m willing to try this place again, but they definitely need to work out the kinks.

They’ve created a beautiful atmosphere, and an entertaining drink and food menu. They need to step up the service and upkeep of the...

My spouse and I made our way to The Vig at this location for the first time this evening and were excited to try a new location in Park West.

To summarize our visit: I believe this place is more style than substance, at least at the moment.

The design of the place is very modern and offers a taste of something different. All of the staff we interacted with were friendly. My only complaint on that front would be that after our food was served, our waitress essentially disappeared until the check was brought over.

The primary point of disappointment was unfortunately the food. Our calamari appetizer was quite soggy and most of the batter fell off. The sauce was great, but that couldn't make up for it being underdone.

Our mains were the mac and cheese and the honey hot chicken sandwich. The mac and cheese was about average if not somewhat below par, but definitely not worth the $17 being charged for it. The chicken on the sandwich was completely overcooked to the point of needing to cut pieces of black char off it. The honey part of the sauce was definitely evident but there was absolutely no note of the heat.

On the other hand, the drinks were fantastic and had a rather unique list to choose from. The flavors worked well together and we could tell the drinks had an experienced hand making them.

This location features a very fun and unique layout in a great location, but I cannot help but feel that the mixed drinks are the focal point of this location, not the food.

We both agreed that this seemed to be a place to bring friends for drinks after grabbing a bite at another location in Park West. I hope this does change as they find their footing...