Bernard's Mediterranean Restaurant — Restaurant in Tyler

When we were looking for a place to celebrate our anniversary, Bernards came highly recommended. Unfortunately, I think they have passed their prime. Instead of the fine dining establishment they were advertised to be, it looks more like a place that time has forgotten. Service is completely inconsistent, with our server being extremely hesitant, and not quite as helpful as I would have hoped, while other servers around us going above and beyond with their tables. When our waitress approached us when we were seated, she asked if we were celebrating anything and we let her know it was our 25th anniversary. Literally nothing else happened about that. Nothing was said, nothing was done, nothing else was brought up about it. I have no problem with that, but why ask if you’re not going to do something about it? It just seemed quite odd. The theme of the food can best be described as “Rushed”. We were there with reservations at 7 o’clock on a Tuesday night and the restaurant was not even half full. We ordered three appetizers because why not. The calamari and the stuffed mushrooms came out within five minutes of ordering, even beating the bread service. The calamari had most definitely been previously cooked as it was soggy and flavorless. The stuffed mushrooms were some of the most odd I have ever had. The stuffing and sauce were fine, but they were put in uncooked mushroom caps, which made for a huge textural issue for us. When I brought this to the waitresses attention asking if that’s the way it was meant to be served, she did not know and just walked away. The baked brie came out after the salad course and had not been properly prepared before wrapping in crust and had a very offputting flavor. This is another one that had been cooked ahead of time because the crust was so soggy. It was past falling apart. The salad course itself was nothing but a small iceberg salad that had been premade a considerable amount of time before. It was watery and chewy.

We both went with veal dishes, both of which was undercooked. I had the veal marsala which looked beautiful, but they did not cook the dish long enough to allow the sauce to turn into what makes a marsala sauce magical. It was just uncooked wine. My wife ordered the stuffed veal which was so tough that it shook the table when trying to be cut. They did not braise it enough to allow it to soften. The mashed potatoes were so watery that they had the consistency of library paste. The vegetables that came with the dish were completely undercooked and almost raw as well.

To be fair, the bread service with the olive tapenade was really good.

I hate to be so negative, but when a restaurant portrays itself as a fine dining establishment, there is some level of expectation from the customer. In my opinion, we were overcharged for a very subpar product. Had the food been decent quality, I think the price would’ve been very fair and would not have complained about the pricing at all. My best advice, avoid Bernard‘s Mediterranean Restaurant in...

Did not live up to our expectations. Bernard's Mediterranean is a favorite Tyler watering hole, and it has been for years. He offers many varieties of seafood, savory soups, and some more earth bound fare for the meat eaters in your family. I had not eaten there in several years, and was pleased at my last outing: last night's adventure left some things to be addressed. First off, the staff is nothing short of excellent. They are courteous and helpful. Drinks are attended too, and the meal isn't rushed. I ordered a bottle of a delightful California cabernet off the wine list. Several minutes later, our server came back with two bottles of very different wine, telling me the list "wasn't up to date". Not acceptable. Usually, they should bring the wine list back, and let the patron look for something agreeable. The offerings of the evening were very interesting, and my wife ordered large broiled scallops, with asparagus, as the main course, onion soup, and they kindly prepared her an iceberg lettuce free salad. I ordered the beef of the day, an Angus ribeye with the house salad. The table ordered a crab cake, and a baked Brie. The house salads were pedestrian, but nicely presented. My wife's onion soup had a good base, but the onions were undercooked: perhaps a little more attention to preparation is in order. The appetizers were all Bernard's and there were no complaints to be had. Very tasty! My main course was a massive, bone in rib eye, with one stalk of coolish asparagus and some wilted spinach, also cool. The meat was underwhelming. Properly cooked, but with no flavor, and very tough. I finished less than half of it, and took the rest home to make hash. Honestly, there are steak chains in town that make a better rib eye daily, for half the price. My wife's scallops, again with a sad cool stalk of asparagus, were undercooked, sandy and a bit fishy tasting. She couldn't even chew on one of them because of the black sand in the muscle. She did tell the server to tell the chef. Nothing came of that. I have had something that wasn't acceptable at far more pedestrian restaurants, and they take it back, or offer me something else. Not here. Nada. The other diners were clearly pleased with their fish, so it wasn't a bad evening, just less than what I expect from this institution. There are many pluses to Bernard's: pleasant environment, attentive servers, and some unique dishes. That said, last night didn't convince me that it is the first place to go, when looking for a great meal with wife and friends. Our community has a great deal of higher priced watering holes, so I will probably look elsewhere for that...

Wow just wow. I wish I could give this place 10 Stars. I'm from out of town and I ate here for the first time with my family on a Saturday night. I accidentally left my wallet at the restaurant overnight and didn't realize it until the next morning (Sunday). Being worried, I frantically looked up the restaurant and see that they're closed on Sundays and Mondays. Here I am now out of town and my wallet is at a restaurant that doesn't open for 2 days! I called their number and their voicemail was customized just for me. The voicemail said that if someone left their wallet to please text a different number and that somebody would get back to me. We texted the number and the owner of the Restaurant contacted me back and said they had my wallet. Not only did they have it and kept it safe, they said they were going to meet me at the restaurant on a Sunday when the restaurant is closed to give me my wallet back. They even tried to search for me on social media. They knew I was from out of town and considered how important it was for me to have my wallet. I'm in complete shock... I'm so so amazed at such an incredible customer service. I've never seen this from a restaurant ever in my life. I could tell the Voicemail was left by out waitress Krista/Christa... Such amazing service. Thank you so so much to the Owner Bernard, and our waitress Krista. Unbelievable. I'm a customer for life. I will eat here every time now when I'm in...