The Urban Stillhouse — Restaurant in Saint Petersburg

UPDATE as of 10/18/24: What I appreciate most from any establishment is the eagerness to make things right. We were invited back for a second meal and this go around, the food was 10000% better. We were seated upstairs - which I’ll be requesting anytime we eat there in the future - and our server Angel truly made our night. Aside from the food being so much better, Angel really was most attentive and ensured we were well taken care of. I want to give major props to US for having us back bc that just reminded me of something I recalled from our first visit there and that is the importance of the experience. It’s not just about the food, the drinks, the aesthetics, but the overall experience when it comes to fine dining.

I would say for anyone, that returning to US is def worth it in the long run bc we are all entitled to an opps moment…but it’s how we redeem ourselves that matters.

We were so amped to eat at Urban Stillhouse for our 10th wedding anniversary (a milestone number) and a place we had a lovely experience before.

Unfortunately aside from aesthetics, and drinks (and I can’t believe I’m saying this) I would NOT recommend the food/current menu at Urban Stillhouse and this is coming from someone who has eaten there before, loves supporting veteran ran businesses and loves their bourbon.

We arrived early - too early - for our 8p reservation but were lucky enough to be seated early. Recommendation and I know it’s in the works, but padding for your chairs. They are cool but horrible to sit in. I was given a pillow but eventually I removed it and dealt. Now we know this place is reservation based but if there’s a way to request seating type like cushioned vs a plank of wood, I would recommend calling. Sadly they weren’t able to move us and personally, I would’ve waited the extra 1hr for my reservation time if it guaranteed me a cushioned seat.

We ordered the ribeye and the wagyu osso bucco for our entrees. The cuts of meat were extremely salty and unfortunately the ribeye was not cooked to the requested temperature. Could’ve sent it back but by this point we were hungry. It looked beautiful but shockingly lacked flavor/seasoning of what one would expect from a 40 day dry aged cut of meat. I did enjoy the osso bucco wagyu. That was pull apart goodness and full of flavor. With that said, it was still overly salted. Who’s back there with the salt?!?!

The oysters were so clean, that they had no salinity. This works for someone who wants to be seen eating oysters and not tasting them, which our waitress agreed with me. The accoutrements just didn’t hit the mark in pairing with the oysters either. Again lacked salinity, thus lacking flavor and that merely could be the type of oyster or how the kitchen cleans them.

The charcuterie was a lovely selection, and the deviled eggs were okay. We did end up getting the Key West crispy shrimp and that was decent….but the batter used is heavily salted, however the seaweed salad does help to cut the salt with its sweetness.

That all said, the staff was kind, and attentive.

For this being our 2nd time eating here, I don’t think we will be back anytime soon…which is disappointing. The meal just didn’t hit the mark and it’s bad when driving home you both agree that we should’ve booked elsewhere.

Update: Due to the amount of salt in our meals, it left both my husband and I dehydrated. We woke up with upset stomachs in the middle of the night, feeling crampy and sick.

We really do like Urban Stillhouse but it did not hit the mark and wasn’t worth the $300+ we spent. Just overall a disappointing experience we had for a milestone event and one we can’t rewind...

Recently went to The Urban Stillhouse with my spouse and a friend for a celebratory dinner and overall this was a great night out.

The first thing to make note of is the restaurant itself… absolutely magnificent space! I felt like I was at an apres ski party! All of the Christmas decorations were up and the place was buzzin’! It is a stunning space…impressive while still feeling cozy.

We arrived about 30 minutes early for a Saturday night 7:15 p.m. reservation, so we ordered a drink at the bar. The bar seats are reserved, so we sat on some benches by the hostess stand while we waited. The bar design is actually really great… Typically, everyone is crammed up at a bar, squeezing in between patrons who are eating/drinking while trying to get the bartender’s attention, but this bar had a small “pull up” space intended for people to order their drinks and then find a spot to sit while they wait for their tables. It’s a small design detail, but definitely makes a difference! I ordered the Lavender Bee’s Knees cocktail…it was one of the best cocktails I have ever had – so refreshing and tasty! I was also super impressed with the speed that the bartenders made these drinks – they’re efficient and the drinks are good!

Once we were seated, we ordered the following: • Bourbon Tasting • Spinach & Smoked Gouda Dip • Smoked Venison Tartare • Bone-In Bison Filet • Colorado Lamb Chops • Barolo Braised Wagyu Beef • Bombolini

In terms of the appetizers, the Smoked Venison Tartare was good, but nothing special in terms of taste. The real star of the night was the Spinach & Smoked Gouda Dip – wow, wow, wow! If you go to Urban Stillhouse, there are two dishes that are a must-order and this is one of them. One of the most delicious things I’ve ever eaten!

For our mains, I ordered the Bone-In Bison Filet, my spouse ordered the Barolo Braised Wagyu Beef, and our friend ordered the Colorado Lamb Chops and we all had a bite of each one. The Bison Filet and the Wagyu Beef were tasty, but again, I would not say there was anything unique about either of them. The bison filet tasted like any other steak and the Wagyu Beef had great saucing but was a little dry. With that said, the Colorado Lamb Chops were out of this world…this is the 2nd MUST ORDER dish at Urban Stillhouse. The lamb chops were delicate and flavorful. The exact quote from my friend was “I want to stop eating, but I can’t.” Cannot speak more highly of this wonderful dish!

We ordered the bombolini for dessert – the flavors were yummy, but the doughnuts themselves were a little dense.

In terms of parking, the restaurant offers complimentary valet – parking is a challenge in this part of town, so it’s a nice touch.

My only compliant was the pace of the meal… In the reservation, they make very clear that for a party of (3), it is a two-hour seating. With that said, I felt very rushed throughout the meal. I will not blame the server for this, but the kitchen was bringing out dishes at a pace that definitely did not loan us the time to enjoy our appetizers and drinks. We had about half of our appetizers left on the table when our entrees came out, which was about 25 minutes into the meal overall, so we were tracking well on time and not dragging our feet to eat. We had to ask for the (2) appetizers that we ordered to be left on the table so that we could finish them, which led to us rushing all of the food because we didn’t want any of the meat to get cold. I ordered a bourbon flight and hadn’t had more than (3) sips before the entrees were out – there was barely any room...

EDIT: The server I mentioned actually saw this and messaged me via Facebook personally to apologize. Super impressed with that response, we all put our foot in our mouth from time to time but it took a lot to privately message me and own up to it. That was literally the only issue with our service the entire time, so I'd definitely recommend Urban Stillhouse for the service and retain my hesitations based on the other items I mentioned below in my original review. (His direct message to me was 1000% better than the official response Urban Stillhouse left here) I had dinner here for a friend’s birthday, as she is a huge bourbon/whiskey fan and is from Kentucky, this felt like a good option. We left underwhelmed after hearing about the fantastic food and upscale service for the past half year.

The positives: the cocktails were delicious, and the birthday girl enjoyed her bourbon flight. We all enjoyed our main dishes for the most part (bison ribeye, porchetta, branzino, lamb) and appetizers (spinach Gouda dip and olive bowl). The ambiance and decor inside are fantastic, it’s beautifully done and feels cozy. We sat outside and enjoyed that as well, though there could be a little more effort put into the ambiance and decor on that outside deck to help tie it into the inside. The free dessert for the birthday girl was a nice touch as well!

The negatives: The biggest issue was the service. I also work in the industry so I really don’t say this lightly - I cannot imagine an instance where I would ever tell a customer “well but you’re wrong”. For any reason. My friend was discussing her bourbon flight with our waiter and that was his response when she mentioned the feeling called the “Kentucky hug” which is the term used in Kentucky to describe the post-sip feeling in your throat and chest. It was most likely a total misunderstanding with him trying to explain the “Kentucky chew” method of trying the bourbons but...it was a quick way to make us all uncomfortable and we didn’t raise any other issues throughout the meal because of the brusque nature of that interaction. I really wish he would have realized and simply apologized, or traded off with the other server we had for the remainder of our meal (I wish I could remember her name). Additional negatives were the complete lack of covid safety protocols (zero masks on staff, masks not required or requested of customers, no distancing of tables, not even any token signage asking for people to distance or mask up) and the seemingly unnecessarily high price points for certain items (the bison ribeye, while quite large, was extremely fatty to justify a $60 price tag; I spotted a bottle of wine on the menu priced at $45 higher than I have bought it at other local restaurants). The vegetables on the side of the main dishes were also undercooked and unseasoned, which was confusing next to the delicious meats and sauces on the same plate.

I spent 9 years in Washington DC and have no problem spending more for a great experience and quality food, but Urban Stillhouse didn’t quite meet that mark for me to return and spend that kind of...