J 3
I went with a group of nine for a booking on a Friday evening. My partner and I were the first of our group to arrive (15 mins after scheduled booking time), and found nobody in the restaurant. By nobody I mean no staff...or customers!
A minute later a waitress walked by, and when we asked about our reservation, she said we must be seated at the bar (different section of the hotel, but next door). So we walk over to the bar, where there are a few customers having drinks, and a partitioned block saying it's reserved for the Executive Lounge. I'm not sure what that was about, I've stayed at this hotel before and had access the the lounge...which was upstairs in a dedicated area. Anyway, finally got the attention of another waitress, who indicated we should head back to the restaurant.
Back at the deserted restaurant, and the same waitress from the bar came over and sat us at our table. The rest of the group arrived, and we started with the menu. It's relatively basic, albeit a little expensive. We ordered anyway, I got a scallop/chorizo starter, and rare seared tuna as a main.
Service was decent, the waitress was lovely. For the two hours we were there, we were the only customers. As for staff, given that we were the only customers, there were staff present maybe 1/3 of the time. Generally we only saw staff when they were walking from the bar to the kitchen, going through the restaurant.
Waitress arrived with complimentary garlic bread, which was fresh, hot, garlicky, quite enjoyable. Out food arrived, I didn't mind my starter. Wasn't the greatest, but acceptable. The tuna was average, maybe slightly below, but given the deserted restaurant I wasn't completely surprised.
The only beer on tap they served was in a tiny glass. It said schooner, felt like a midi. The beer was also disapppointingly flat, so I switched to vodka martinis after that. Had two martinis, these were acceptable.
Overall, the experience was average, which was disappointing as the hotel is actually quite pleasant, and I've had great food from other Hilton's around the world.
