Arad Evans Inn — Restaurant in Town of Manlius

I have had good meals at Arad Evans in the past, but in writing my first review of the restaurant, I'm basing my comments on my most recent experience (late summer, 2023). My wife and I took a friend here for her birthday. Happily, our guest said she enjoyed her garden salad, salmon dish, and mini ice cream sandwiches. My wife and I were not so fortunate. Over the years I've enjoyed Peking Duck at a number of Chinese restaurants. So, I was happy to see it on the menu. Since Arad Evans is known for serving gourmet food, I thought their version would equal or, perhaps, best the dishes I'd eaten previously. Instead it proved the worst I've ever had. The most important step in preparing Peking Duck is to cook the duck low and slow to render the fat and crisp the skin. The chef failed in both these regards. There was a layer of fat on all the slices as can be clearly seen in the picture below. Some of the slices also included browned, but totally soggy and limp, skin. First thing I did was to remove all the skin and fat and place it on a spare plate to discard. I then filled the pancakes with duck, scallions, diakon, and hoisin sauce and rolled them up without including the traditional crispy skin. The pancakes were so thin, they leaked and fell apart as I attempted to eat them. In addition, the hoisin sauce was different from the slightly sweet, umami-rich sauce I was used to. To me it tasted like barbecue sauce. Finally, everything on my plate was at room temperature. Hard to believe, but my wife had a worse experience. She ordered a pasta dish with scallops. The pasta formed a single firm lump held together buy a tasteless coagulated sauce. The scallops numbered only two and they were oily, over salted, and undercooked. She found the dish inedible and left it on her plate. Although we did not request it, the restaurant kindly partially compensated for the pasta dish by not charging for one of our desserts. The desserts were excellent, but quite small as can be seen from the photos. The final disappointments of the evening came upon paying the bill. They wanted to add a charge of 3.5% of the total bill for using a charge card, so we paid in cash. They did add a 20% hospitality charge. We strongly object to this practice. For one thing, the wait staff does not get their normal tip. To correct for this, we added an additional tip. Positives included good service and very good atmosphere, but we're unlikely to return unless it's for a burger and dessert in their bar/bistro. UPDATE-1: Returned a year later when the restaurant published a new menu. Tried the shrimp and grits. With ample Cajun seasoning, the dish was very tasty and enjoyable. My wife did did not fair as well with the scallops pasta dish. The three scallops were very good, but the pasta which made up the balk of the dish was tasteless. Also my creme brulee dessert was disappointing, and could have benefited from additional vanilla flavoring. As a final comment, the restaurant was extremely noisy. We had to shout at each other to be heard. This is not a place to come for a relaxing evening of stimulating conversation with your dinner mates. Still, I moved my rating up from one star...

I've eaten at Arad Evans for many years - millennial here. Ever since the fire & losing Brian as the chef this place is disappointing. Raw fish tonight 9/20/24, sterile decor etc. The decor after the fire is cheap & unappealing, the food portions are tiny and expensive, the menu is extremely limited since Brian left , and the service is slow. I'm permanently finished eating there after 15 years of happily doing so. Update: To the owner, who said that they are happy to no longer have my business, it was my favorite restaurant for many, many years. Great wait staff, classy decor - beautiful burgundy paisley wallpaper & beautiful sitting area by the fireplace. And excellent food of course. However the decor has changed & is less unique & eclectic, and the food the last three times I've been there this summer has not been up to the old Arad Evans standards, hence my finally writing a bad review of my once favorite place. Something has changed in the kitchen, and perhaps the owner should reflect on the critique of the food & food portions and other concerns rather than telling a very long standing customer that they are glad to lose her business. The customer is definitely NOT always right. On the other hand insulting customers online is emotional and unprofessional. Also, I should clarify my comment on the decor. The formal dining areas are as beautiful as always - it's just the former sitting area by the fireplace that is unappealing with the high tables replacing the formal chairs & rendering the ambiance in that area sterile. The servers were also excellent - very professional and attentive. Re the owner's take on what I consider expensive, that would be a very small portion with relatively no sides, meaning a few tomatoes and some nearly raw green beans. I've dined worldwide in cities renowned for cuisine, so I don't appreciate the slight. Food issues + telling a lifetime repeat customer that you are happy to be rid of them = a terrible business model. The owner should read the TripAdvisor and Yelp reviews if they want to know what people other...

Good food but good luck with not putting your customers first.

I’ve been going to this restaurant for many many years on special occasions. Friday we made a reservation to celebrate an important occasion and I do not think I’ll be back soon.

The crux of the issue is the 20% tip charge and 3.5% non cash payment charges which are both added to your bill before tax. They add another line to add another tip as well.

Apparently this is the work of the owners daughter who works in the industry in Colorado and that’s how they do things there. Personally i believe this is a sneaky way of doing business and see no way how this restaurant does not lose long time customers as a result. Personally I have had a large party dinners and talked up Arad Evans from many years- but this is what I’ll talk about now.

The food was good, croutons were burnt and waitress didn’t know how to take the cork out so broke it in the bottle. Service was very slow even though there were empty tables. We were initially brought to the bar to sit down- even though we asked for the dining room. Didn’t have anyone other than a guy serving water show up for the first 10 minutes after seating. A server put one appetizer in front of me and the other on the other end of the table from my wife- don’t think he’s served much before.

So when the bill came and those charges were added I was less than thrilled as I had no choice in tipping for food and service. I’m generous but this business model is pretty ridiculous for Syracuse and I don’t think I’ll be back...