Orange Hill Restaurant

Reviews 3

CA

Cary Hill

I booked in advance an anniversary dinner for my wife and myself on Fathers Day. After reviewing your online site it seemed the perfect spot for us to celebrate our one year together as husband and wife. We were very excited about this evening as we had booked a 7pm time and would have a great view of the city and sunset to make this evening even more memorable. We arrived slightly early and enjoyed a well made drink in your bar. Once we were seated and spoke to our wait person we were made aware that only buffet service was available on this day. Imagine my disappointment as I had read through your online page for Fathers Day and it stated that your brunch ran until only 7pm and further down on the same page stated your hours as running until 10pm. I spoke to your manager Chris who offered to book us at another restaurant, but at 7:30pm we would have eaten by 10:30, so this was not an option for my pregnant wife. I explained to Chris that your online page was misleading. It clearly showed that your buffet was to end at 7pm and the restaurant would remain open until 10pm. This is an indisputable fact if you take the time to look at your online presence. There was a suggestion by your manager that I misunderstood what I was reading, and also that it would have been to hard to change the times. Just note in the current days in which we live that you should assume that you are speaking with at least moderately tech savvy people. Most adults up into their mid forties and younger grew up completely surrounded by the stuff. Web pages are entry level creations for most. It was finally relented that Chris would speak to your page creators in regards to addressing altered operating hours in the future. I was clearly not the only person who fell victim to this misrepresentation. A young couple at the table just behind us asked the very same question about the buffet only service. This poor young man must have been equally dismayed as he was there to make a marriage proposal, which he still did and received an answer of "yes" despite the buffet. As for my wife and I, we will have to go forward with the memory of our first wedding anniversary being a meal of essentially pub food ( mini corn dogs, sliders, meatballs, mac-n-cheese, and a bit of salmon). I could have gotten this meal at a Hometown Buffet or any number of less prestigious dinning establishments for a fraction of the cost. I had half a mind to repost this message to as many social, and restaurant review sites as I could, but I considered that unfair as I dont actually know anything about your service or food from this visit. I do know that I am disappointed and a bit upset that what should have been the crowning star of what was already a terrific day was a sad let down for my wife and myself. You lost a couple of possible return customers today. My wife would have had us return just to see the Koi pond and the view if the meal would have been at least decent. I didnt want to post this to social media, but the messaging portion of your website does not work....go figure.

RA

Rachel Wille

My fiance brought me here for my birthday dinner. When we arrived we were told it would be about 10 minutes before we were seated. We were directed to either go to the lounge or the patio area. Being that it was nearly 48 degrees outside we stayed away from the patio. After standing around for 5 minutes we were able to snag a nice seat by a window. We sat for about 10 more minutes until someone came by to take our drink order. It was probably another 10 minutes before our drinks came. Then of course they came to tell us our table was ready after nearly a 30 minute wait (and of course we had a reservation, which we only got there 5 minutes before our reservation time). We then were told we needed to close out our tab before we could be seated at our table. This took about 10 minutes because we couldnt find our waitress. We were not seated at a window seat unfortunately, which is fine. However, where our table was, whenever the patio door opened we would feel a blast of cold air. It was also very loud in our dining area as well but I think that was due to a larger party behind us. The service was slow and we didnt see much of our server but he was very nice. And I dont necessarily mind slow service in a nice restaurant. Our drinks were ok, not the greatest. I ordered the half chicken and my fiance ordered the filet. My chicken was very band, dry, an done portion was cooked to a crisp. I wanted to put BBQ sauce or something on it because whatever they marinaded it in had no flavor, not even a peper flavor or anything! My fiance enjoyed his filet. Like others have said the food is not really that great. Next time Flemings or Ruth Chris will do for me. We did enjoy ourselves though and the views were gorgeous. I dont think I would ever go back for dinner, but I would want to try their brunch perhaps. Oh, and one last thing, this is something that annoys me. We were planning on ordering dessert. My fiance, I guess had mentioned it was my birthday when he made the reservation. So they automatically brought out a crem brule for us. It was a vey nice gesture and it was complementary. However, I had wanted to pick out the dessert that I wanted, not one they chose. I hate it when places do that because then I am not going to order dessert because I just had one. I will say the crem brule was excellent, and typically I dont like that type of dessert.

FR

Frank Fazio

In my mind, Orange Hill is one of those special venues, where you not only can get a nice dinner, but there is also that beautiful, romantic 180 degree view of Orange County and beyond. Its been a number of years since Ive been back to this restaurant in which Ive dined at for many special occasions. Something has changed; The beautiful entrance with its valet service, water feature and outdoor fireplace still makes the restaurant feel classy and refined. The check in and waiting area have beautiful grains of wood and a comfortable couch, all inviting. However, once inside the restaurant, some of the luster has been lost over the years. My memories may have fooled me into something more grand, but instead of a large room with wide tables with white linen, water goblets and plenty of room to relax, dine and take in the view, the patrons were jammed together around smallish tables. Table which reminded me of an average tired restaurant chain; ala Norms, Dennys, or Spires. Chairs were thrown into the table ends, to make parties fit into small spaces. Close quarters meant, fellow diners cheers and laughter where shared right into your ear canal with your dining experience. Prices remain high, but the dining experience has suffered. The employees and the service at Orange Hill is still excellent! They were very professional and friendly, even during very busy times. The most positive part of the dining experience was the friendliness of the staff and the manner in which they tried to make the customers feel important and provide a good dining experience. Would I return? Perhaps, but there are many nice restaurants out there, but under the right circumstance and I definitely try to call way in advance and reserve a nicer table near the window with a view.