Hamdi — Restaurant in Seattle

Had a lovely experience 2 months ago when I came here for a date night, but a totally different story on my 2nd visit. Made a reservation a week in advance for Thanksgiving at 8:15 for my family of 7. The day before, I received a call asking if I’d be ok with moving my reservation back to 7pm, which I was happy about. They also told me for larger parties, instead of us getting to order by the item, they serve everything on the menu family style for a flat charge of $80 per person. I wasn’t sure if that would be the best option for my family of picky eaters, but I was told that we get to try everything on the menu, and we can always ask for another round of the dishes we like. I was also told that the flat rate includes tax and service charge, which was surprising. Normally, other restaurants add those on top of the bill, so I asked again just to confirm I heard it right, and they told me that it’s just the flat rate per person and that’s it. On the day of, we arrived 15 minutes early for our reservation. The table was not ready yet, so we waited outside and we were served a complimentary glass of bubbly for thanksgiving. We got seated closer to 7:20, which wasn’t an issue (yet). 10 minutes into getting sat, they started bringing a selection of the small sides, dips, a salad, and 3 plates of çig kofte which was a good amount for 7 people to start with. After that, they brought 2 rounds of appetizers. First, the pide, then the kaburga (3 of each). At that point, we were looking forward to the main course, especially the branzino. It was my favorite dish from my last visit. From the way the small plates and appetizers were getting served, we expected to see a main dish per person, but they only brought out 4 kebabs for 7 people. I only had a bite because I stuffed myself with dips and bread, and left most of if for my picky family members. They didn’t eat much of the dips, and only had some of the appetizers so they were still hungry. I asked our server if we still get to try any of the other dishes, but they said the other 3 main course items aren’t available to us, which contradicted what I was told on the phone the day before. I asked if we can get 3 more of the kebab, but they came back and said the kitchen can’t make it anymore because the chef already put out the grill. They couldn’t serve any more of the warm appetizers either. I was very shocked to hear that, because it was only 8:30, and they were supposed to be open until 9. They offered to bring more çig kofte, but the 3 that were still hungry didn’t like that dish that much. We pretty much got only served food for a little over an hour after getting sat on thanksgiving. The only time we asked for extras of a dish, they couldn’t serve it and it was extremely disappointing. I was actually embarrassed in front of my family since I was the one who put in a good word for the restaurant and planned our thanksgiving. They never checked back with us to see if we wanted anything else, or at least give us a last call warning. Instead , they just told us we can’t have anything else from the grill. Every comparable restaurant or dining experience I have been to, doesn’t close the kitchen this early after seating a party. At the end, when I got the bill, there was a 20% service charge and tax added on top of the $80, which made me question the entire conversation that I had with the person the day before. Even if I misheard them saying “entire menu” instead of “almost the entire menu”, I was sure they told me services and taxes are included in the $80. Kinda scam like. The flat rate seemed okay compared to how much I spent per person when I came in last time, but considering the fact that we mostly got served sides, small plates and apps, and didn’t get to eat what we actually wanted from the menu, and the only time we asked for seconds, they couldn’t serve it, it wasn’t worth it at all. I still would recommend this restaurant after all that, just because of how good the food is, but I’d make sure to reserve at least 2 hours before closing and no parties...

My recent visit to Hamdi was a severe disappointment, especially considering that I had a fantastic experience during my first visit a couple of years back. I was super excited to learn that I could score same-day reservations to treat an out-of-town friend last Sunday night. To my dismay, it turned out to be one of the most embarrassing and disappointing dining experiences I've had in Seattle, and that's quite a statement given my frequent dining outings. Now I know why reservations were so easy...

The primary issue we encountered was the excessive use of salt in every dish we ordered. In some cases, the saltiness was so overwhelming that the food became inedible. I generally use lots of salt so this is saying a lot. I also found the presentation of many of the dishes totally off putting. With each dish that came we hoped it would finally take a turn, but it seemed to just get worse. Even the dessert, which should be a sweet ending, was not good.

To make matters worse, when the co-owner inquired about our experience, my friend and I provided honest and direct feedback. She initially seemed open to our comments, asking probing questions to understand our concerns. However, her attitude took a turn when she began making excuses, primarily blaming staff turnover and suggesting that we hadn't ordered the right combination of dishes and it was the waiters fault for not making better recommendations. For example, I mentioned that the salad was way to acidic. I understand the use of acid with charred foods and how it naturalizes and balances it, but it was NOT edible as is. Her response was that it should ONLY be eaten with the meat. While I acknowledged that this might have played a role, I firmly believe that each dish should be able to stand on its own merit otherwise don't serve it as a dish, but as part of a complete dish. After the comment on "a lot of staff turnover", I also inquired if the chef remained the same, to which she confirmed that the chef hadn't changed. The worst and most baffling part of the conversation was hearing that three out of the five dishes we ordered were known to be "problematic" and were being removed from the menu. It's simply unacceptable for an upscale restaurant to serve food they know is subpar and then expect customers to pay for it. Giving a negative review like this, is not something I take lightly since I rarely complain about food, but the lack of care of the dishes left me with no other choice.

To add insult to injury, there was no offer to comp any of the dishes, even though it was evident that we couldn't eat them. I didn't expect a complete meal comp, but it would have been a nice gesture to at least comp one out of the five dishes. Our bill, which included a 20% service fee, amounted to $173, and the experience left me feeling that I would have been better off dining almost anywhere else in the city! This came up every time with my guest when we ate elsewhere over the next two days.

I would mention that the cocktails were great, but it just doesn't make up for the food. While Hamdi does excel in terms of atmosphere and ambiance, the subpar food experience was a significant letdown. I genuinely wanted to love this restaurant, but unless there are significant improvements, I won't be surprised if it faces closure soon. In a city like Seattle, where the culinary scene is thriving, there's no room for establishments that serve subpar food at such a high price point and fail to take ownership and pride in the dishes they serve. Regrettably, I won't be returning to Hamdi...

This was my second visit to Hamdi, and it will also be my last. This time, I was celebrating a birthday with my family. Since my mother was visiting from abroad, when they asked if it was our first time here, we said no, we had a good experience before, so we chose this place to celebrate my mom’s 60th birthday. The server replied, “Okay, what would you like to order?” without even saying a simple “Happy Birthday.” Well, maybe I shouldn’t have expected too much—after all, it's just a restaurant.

Now, regarding the food: First of all, we didn’t order a $6 appetizer, the Mangal Ekmek bread. When it was brought to our table, it came alongside another appetizer we had ordered, so we assumed it was part of that dish. I didn’t realize the server had made a mistake until it showed up on the bill at the end. Since we ate it, I didn’t argue and just paid for it.

Secondly, and most importantly, we ordered a 20 oz ribeye. The server mentioned that they offer two types of steak: the New York steak for those who prefer lean meat, and the ribeye for those who like a bit of fat. I usually prefer ribeye with some marbling, and I had enjoyed the ribeye at Hamdi on my previous visit, so I ordered it again. However, when the $100+ ribeye was served, it was a huge disappointment. As you can see from the 1st picture, almost half of the steak was pure fat, with only six small pieces in the middle that had the expected marbling. The picture doesn’t even fully capture how bad it was—the reality was much worse. I don’t want to be rude, but it is kind of gross. We ended up cutting off all the fat and leaving it uneaten.

When they asked us how the food was, we were honest and said that the other dishes were fine, but we were very dissatisfied with the steak because it was too fatty. The server also mentioned that we should have asked them to bring the meat out for us to inspect before making our choice, to avoid choosing something we wouldn’t like. However, they didn’t offer us this option at the time. I don’t think it’s our fault that they served us a ribeye with such an excessive amount of fat. Both the server and the manager insisted that ribeye is supposed to be that way and said it was our fault for not choosing the right type of steak. I even showed them a photo of the ribeye I had on my last visit to Hamdi (2nd picture). They glanced at it, said "Okay," and walked away, not speaking to us again except to present the bill. This restaurant imposes a mandatory 20% service charge, so I expected at least an average level of steak, but they refused to acknowledge their mistake in selecting the meat and didn’t apologize, instead blaming our taste preferences. We felt extremely offended.

If this were the Cheesecake Factory, I might have given it another try. But unfortunately, this is a restaurant that claims to be fine dining, run by a previous Michelin-starred chef, and I won’t be wasting my time or money here...