Bites Restaurant

Reviews 3

AU

Aubrey Sidwell

Incredible food. This restaurant has been in town for a while but for some reason my wife and I had never gone. We chose to go tonight and we will definitely be back. For drinks my wife chose the Lemon Drop which was good and a fairly standard drink. I chose the Tokyo 75 which is a Sake (rice wine) based drink. It was very unique and quite flavorful. The appetizers we split were the Kalbi Tacos (absolutely amazing flavor). The taco meat was tender and the jalapenos gave it a nice spicy kick at the end and was our favorite out of the foods we ate. Our other appetizer was the Kimchi Fries and was our second pick as far as favorites go. These are fried sweet potatoes with melted mozzarella cheese, parsely, and an excellent aioli sauce for dipping. The fries were soft on the inside and crisp on the outside and not greasy. Entree selection wasnt easy but we looked for something out of the ordinary so we went for the 4 piece fish and chips. The fish is salmon in lieu of cod or halibut. Again the flavor was excellent and your fingers arent glistening with grease after eating. The second entree was the Bulgogi burger which actually has spicy pork instead of a beef patty for meat. I had a few small issues with this "burger" starting with the fact its called a burger. I would have called it a spicy pork sandwich because its not a burger. Second, I didnt notice any "heat" from the spicy pork. Third, it was still good but was at the bottom of our list as far as flavor. Maybe our palates were already spoiled by all the other foods and drinks. Our server had only worked there for 3 weeks, as much as told us so, and the lack of experience contributed to a little bit slower service than I believe one should expect at a restaurant of their caliber but it wasnt that we were completely disregarded. The inside of the dining room is simple, clean, and inviting. The lighting is done with individual hanging Edison bulbs lit at varied degrees of brightness some dim some bright but easy on the eyes. The south wall is mostly large mirrors which makes the space feel larger than it is. The seating is open, no booths, and youll dine very close to others not in your party especially if they are busy. Since this was our first visit I am unsure how frequently patrons may wait for an available table as there is limited seating due to the size of the seating area. Pricing we felt was on par with the dining experience, the quality of food, and the portion sizes. We were full and chose to skip dessert this trip. Our bill was just under $50 which included to alcoholic beverages, two appetizers, and two entrees. We left a 20% tip and left very satisfied for just under $60. They have an online menu which unfortunately omits the prices and they also dont have their alcoholic drinks or dessert menu available for viewing online. They use locally sourced items for their menu from the local Carlton Meats, SakeOne, David Hill and Oak Knoll Wineries, Waltz Brewing, and Dogwood Distilling. We consider ourselves finicky and picky when it comes to spending money dining out but we just couldnt say anything truly negative about the food. I have read some reviews that are negative and all I can say is not everyone likes the same kind of food so thats going to happen. We had a family seated next to us with a very young child and they have high chairs. The night scene seemed to be geared more towards the adult crowd but during lunch especially I could see us taking our 7 and 9 year old boys with us. They offer takeout as an option and they also have catering services. Finally the one thing we both found we agreed was worth mentioning was the ambient temperature wasnt very warm. We both dined while wearing our coats inside to stay comfortable. I would have liked to have been able to remove my coat for more freedom of movement and I can only openly suggest that they turn up the heat.

KI

Kieran Henthorn

High hopes for the new place in town, fantastically underwhelmed. Lets begin light and easy - cool environment, great location, friendly servers. We were seated quickly, and started the meal off with the Seoul Dumplings and a couple "signature cocktails." The Dumplings were flat in flavor and a bit mealy, so, not a great start. She got the Lemongrass Press, which she enjoyed just fine but it didnt really shine as a "signature." I ordered a Manhattan, which I ended up sending back - if you are going to tout something as a "signature," invest in it. I understand the profit margin is important, but this was bad - low quality ingredients lead to low quality finished product, always. The food - she ordered the Spicy Pork, which came out with remarkably little spice, and I will be the first to admit I dont have the highest spice tolerance. The kim chi in the dish was the best (and spiciest) thing about it. The pork was bland and chewy. The rice overcooked and mushy. The dish as a whole was a flop. I got the Kalbi Burger, and shelled out the extra $1 to sub steamed veggies in for the fries. The burger actually had decent flavor, with a pleasantly spicy kick coming from the sauce on the bun, and they cooked it to the medium rare I asked for. The good ends there. The fried onion topping was cold and stale, which presented a texture challenge, especially considering the $11 price tag. Call me optimistic, but I expected the steamed veggies I was being charged extra for in an Asian-Fusion restaurant to be...something. What I got was a bowl of overly-steamed broccoli and carrots with a vague remnant of flavor and no seasoning. Seriously, probably would have been better off with a steamer bag from grocery store freezer aisle. Overall, really unimpressed by the food and the drinks which leaves little else to draw someone to a restaurant. May consider returning next year, after they have had a chance to establish themselves and work out the kinks.

JA

Jay Deuitch

We stopped in for lunch today; my first time, my wifes second. Really love the atmosphere and the food. The staff was very attentive, the food was quick to our table, and the presentation was nice. Now for the bad... the kitchen is open to the restaurant and we could see the back door was open. I realize that has more to do with air circulation and comfort of the cooks in a hot kitchen. The problem is the lack of a screen door, the proximity of the dumpster out back, the flies that dine therein and thus found their way through the door, through the kitchen, and to the customers. I started being bit by horse flies almost immediately after sitting. (Perhaps the reason this establishment is named "Bites"?!) It got so bad that by the time our drinks arrived after placing our order I was ready to walk out the door. We didnthe, tho. There was one other table of three dining and I could not only see them swatting from time to time, but I could also count 5-7 flies on the mirror behind them. Short story, I am glad we stuck it our as the food was really great. Truly. Long story, I dont think that I will come back until the winter when flies arent known to be around. I noticed that the owner responds to all comments here, so I hope action gets taken. I halfway wanted to call the health inspector but want to give the owner a chance to address the issue. As I said, we truly enjoyed our meals. We want to support your business. On a side note, our menu stated we could substitute fries for steamed veggies or sweet potatoes. I asked for the steamed veggies, but the wait staff said that they have been pulled from the menu however she could get me steamed cabbage. *gag* I do hope you correct whatever issue compelled you to remove steamed veggies as a substitution. Thanks in advance on behalf of 2 hopefully future return patrons.