SER Restaurant — Restaurant in Virginia

Disappointing and Concerning: SER Restaurant Review

Having been a loyal patron of Joselito for over two years—a tapas restaurant I consider a gold standard for exceptional food, service, and ambiance—I was thrilled to learn that SER was part of the same restaurant group. Naturally, my partner and I had high expectations for our first visit to SER in Arlington, VA. Unfortunately, what we encountered was a stark contrast, and I left with serious concerns about the restaurant’s food safety standards.

Service: A Cold Reception From the outset, the service was disappointing. Our server (whose name we sadly didn’t catch) was terse, unwelcoming, and came across as though serving us was an inconvenience. Simple requests for dish recommendations or clean plates during our meal were met with short, condescending responses. This lack of warmth set a poor tone for the evening and was far removed from the attentive, professional service I’ve come to expect at Joselito.

Food Handling Concerns One of the first dishes we ordered was Jamon Pata Negra, sliced tableside by what appeared to be the manager. While the meat was handled with tongs, he inexplicably placed crackers onto our plate with his bare hands. This immediately made both my partner and me uneasy. Despite our discomfort, we brushed it off, removed the crackers, and continued eating. In hindsight, this should have been a warning sign of larger food safety lapses to come.

The Food We sampled a variety of dishes, including: • Buñuelos • Cazón Sardinas • Montenebro • Fiesta de Temporada • Crudo de Atún • Vieiras a la Plancha • Magret de Pato (duck breast with creamy risotto)

Most of the dishes were cooked exceptionally well and mirrored the high quality I’ve come to expect from this restaurant group. However, the experience was overshadowed by a disturbing incident with the Magret de Pato. While eating, we discovered a large piece of plastic embedded in the risotto. Horrified, we immediately informed our server, who brought over the same manager from earlier. While he apologized and offered to replace the dish or remove it from our bill, the damage had already been done.

Serious Food Safety Violations Between the mishandling of food by staff and finding foreign material in a dish, it’s clear there are significant food safety issues at SER. If such glaring problems are evident in the dining area, one can only imagine the standards in the kitchen. This is not just disappointing but genuinely concerning for anyone who values safe dining practices.

Final Thoughts While the food quality at SER has glimpses of the brilliance found at Joselito, the service and blatant food safety violations make it impossible for me to recommend this restaurant. If you’re looking for authentic Spanish cuisine, I urge you to visit Joselito, where the standards have (hopefully) remained intact. Until SER addresses these serious issues, it’s a place I’d advise avoiding—especially if you’re concerned about...

My sons came down from NYC to celebrate my wife’s Birthday this weekend and we sought a restaurant keto friendly and were recommended to SER as a really good Spanish Restaurant to try . We had an excellent experience thanks to Owner Javier, manager Sergio and a special thanks to our young hostess Ana who took excellent care of the entire table last night with patience and great service (helped by her teammates)

As Ashburn residents, we have lots of choices but out visit was well worth it. First of all Owner Javier and personally responded to our request and ensured we had a lovely round table so we could all sit and see each other while eating. And although he was celebrating his own wife’s Birthday later that evening, made it a point to come across several times to check on us. They also were very accommodating allowing us to bring a birthday cake in and after singing Happy Birthday cut it up into small plates for us. As I mentioned OUTSTANDING service and the ownership and management really went out of their way to make this a wonderful experience. My wife was very happy as well as the rest of our family.

The ambiance of the restaurant is super bright and trendy with a large area inside for dining and one outside I assume when the pandemic as rife.

We were all hungry and quickly put in an order for appetizers and main courses:

6 cheese selection (great selection cheeses and accompanying sauces). The bread served with oil and black pepper (u have to ask) great. 4 Cold cut selection. Super again and even the 2 smaller children enjoyed Shrimp Cocktail. Good except shrimp wasn’t peeled so some work to be done. Gambas al ajillo (shrimp garlic and spices) Great 2 chilled lobsters. Amazing value and so tasty The octopus was a surprise hit and so was the shark and the baby squid The spicy potatoes went well with the other dishes I would avoid the fried eggplant if you like traditional soft eggplant. The 2 children took care of the BOQUERONES (mackerels) as well as the kids pasts (children’s menu) On the paella, we are normally told to order first as it takes a while but here told to hold. I would suggest ordering as it did take some time and when served we were already full. Excellent and more than just for 2 especially if a few of you want a small plate.

I am sure we have left some dishes out but as you can see from the above, pretty much every dish was excellent .

Again I can’t thank Ana enough for her service and I made a point to mention her to the Owner and Manager.

Located in Arlington, follow direction laid out and especially where it says garage as the turn comes up fast. Remember to take your validation ticket to get stamped and there is a $2 charge when leaving (wish there was a way to pay ahead so you aren’t waiting on a small hill to exit).

A definite strong recommendation for outstanding food...

I visited SER for the first time, attending a five course tasting menu and wine pairing.

Using Google maps I found it a little difficult to find parking, because I was directed to the alley and courtyard behind and to the side of the restaurant. Luckily there was a kind gentleman outside one of the buildings, who directed me where to go. While there may have been street parking available, I chose to use the extensive parking garage, and easily found a space close to the elevator for the building SER occupies.

A couple arrived at the same time as I, and they had been to SER previously. I followed them through a maze of halls and doors. While the path is well labeled, it felt as though we were going to end up in the wrong place, like the kitchen or a dead end. In fact we emerged to the bar area, a few steps from the outside entrance and the reception area, passing the toilets on the way.

The night was co hosted by Arrowine, and they offered the served wines at a discount, with an even deeper discount for ordering a case or more of the wines allowing for the purchaser to mix the variety or not.

Aurelio Cabestrero, of SER, carefully chose each wine that paired with the five courses, and stood before us prior to each course, describing the wine, it's history and often sharing a nice anecdote. He then wandered the room and spoke with all the attendees, answering questions and chatting with frequent patrons, and new ones. Mr. Cabestrero has a lovely personality that, in my opinion pairs well with his chosen profession. It's often easy to see when a person enjoys what they do, and Mr. Cabestrero lights up the room with his joy.

The food was delicious; however, I feel I must be critical of something, so I'll pick on the hollandaise sauce. I found it to taste more like mayonnaise and had little to no lemon flavour.

The wait staff was very attentive and seemingly tireless. They all wore masks, and we're not hesitant to pour more of any of the wines being served. At the last course I ran into a small hiccup, in that the pear was prepared with cinnamon, one of my food allergies. I flagged a waitress and asked if I could instead have a small bowl of the vanilla ice cream they served with the course. She returned with it very quickly, and I was grateful. The staff also was attentive in removing plates and glasses as soon as they become unnecessary, asking first if we wanted more wine.

The restaurant itself is lovely, with big windows providing lots of natural light and then a view of the area after dark. Although there were a lot of people attending this event, I never felt it was crowded, and the bright interior with high ceilings kept my claustrophobia at bay.

This was a delightful event. I would not hesitate to attend another here, and will certainly be back for...