Second Bar + Kitchen
| Address: | 200 Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78701, USA |
| Phone: | +1 512-827-2750 |
| Site: | secondbarkitchen.com |
| Rating: | 4.3 |
| Working: | 11AM–11PM 11AM–11PM 11AM–11PM 11AM–11PM 11AM–1AM 11AM–1AM 11AM–11PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 6
EV
Evan Trimble
For my excitement and anticipation in finally making it here, the evening was a mild disappointment. The cause: almost entirely the food. This isnt too say it wasnt good, or that there werent a few excellent dishes, but there were too many misses, in part due to an over-abundance of rock-salt. We had the prix fixe (the 3 course), plus a couple "enhancements", and a couple desserts. Highlights included the House Burrata, White Gulf Shrimp, and Paddelfish caviar. The latter was truly excellent, nearly sublime, and was probably my highlight of the night. However the carpaccio and tagliatelle carbonara were both ruined by over-salting (and Im generally a salt fiend)--its pretty much for this alone that I went with 3 instead of 4 stars. Also really enjoyed the Thai Tea Ice Cream dessert. Wine list: For a wine nerd, this is a so-so list. Its a hotel-style, please everyone kind of approach. Youll find everything from Cloud Bay & Dead Arm to Roagnas Solea & Vouette & Sorbee. Most wines are current releases. Theres little depth anywhere, be it in region, grape, producer, or style. But, and this is a big one: the recommendations were excellent. And if I was going to be charitable, Id say the sommelier has done a great job giving herself a broad palette to work with when it comes to recommending wines that suit an individual diner and their meal. Serivce: Excellent service, easily worth 4, if not 5 stars. Of the 3 components, food, wine & service, this stood-out the most. There were a few minor miss-steps, but overall really excellent. Most of all, it hit the balance of welcoming (friendly), relaxed (genuine), yet appropriately reserved (formal). Thats hard to do, and I really enjoyed it. Given the great service, and some excellent dishes, its unfortunate the food was uneven overall. Ill probably come back to try the tasting menu with pairings, and to give them another chance, but overall I cant recommend it based on the first visit.
EL
Elmer Boutin
I dined at Congress with a group from work for our end-of-year holiday party because it was recommended by one of our group. It turned out to be quite a great idea. The service was excellent. Our reservation was for 6pm and we were seated immediately. Drinks were ordered and served right away. The wait staff was amazing. They did a great job of explaining the composition of all the dishes we asked about, and had recommendations at the ready. The pace of the courses was great and allowed enough time for conversation but didnt make the experience drag out too long. The food was amazing. I had the ribeye with the mushroom salad and the shrimp. It all had amazing flavor. The coffee crust on the steak was superb. All of the party had nothing but great things to say about the food as they sampled their selections. The music played was very eclectic, too. I heard everything from The Beatles to old Led Zeppelin blues tunes. In the restrooms, though, there was a recorded conversation in French. It had something to do with flowers and reminded me of dialog tapes one might listen to while learning a foreign language. Very different, but not off-putting. Overall I recommend Congress for dinner. Its somewhat on the high end price-wise, but I found the food and the experience was worth it for a special occasion.
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Christina Ly
Ive been to Second Bar + Kitchen a handful of times, and besides the first time trying out the place, the only reason why Ive gone since is for obligatory birthdays or some other required occasion. The food is just okay, but the service is what makes the entire dining experience worse. Just for example, the last time we dined there, we had a very pretentious waitress who practically ignored us. It took her forever to tend to us, to get our drink orders, to bring us our drinks, to come back to get our food orders, to give us our check, to return to us our check, etc. etc. I seriously dont think she even came by to check on us after we were served our food. Their policy of not allowing people to bring a birthday cake and having a $3 cake cutting fee PER PERSON is also ridiculous. I had brought cupcakes and said it was fine to charge the cake cutting fee. It was only after the fact that I realized it was per person! It would have been nice if they had told me that explicitly. We didnt even use their plates and forks for cake! We literally just opened the box of cupcakes and enjoyed them at the table. The food isnt worth it; the staff makes it even less worth it; and some of their stupid policies makes me want to warn everyone I know to not celebrate a special occasion there.
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Robin Dymond
Pros: Great service Cons: Really Really Tiny Servings. Rock salt over used on dishes I stopped in here after a week of work in Austin. I saw the zagat rating and thought Id check it out. I ordered a couple courses, a tomato mozzarella fruit salad and a halibut entre. For a restaurant with these ratings I expect great taste and presentation. The presentation was ok, however it is hard to make something that consists of 1/2 a tomato, a blob of blended mozza and a bit of fruit look like anything. The dressing was overly subtle, and the rock salt that covered most of it was biting and over done. The Halibut, at $35, was the size of your first 2 fingers, and came with one (1) small asparagus and some other veggie bits. The fish was prepared well and tasted fine, however the rest of this small plate did not impress. Bench seats on the booth were not comfortable, I should have sat in a chair. The wait staff were very good, and I enjoyed some good reds that I had not tried before on recommendation of the waiter. I would not recommend this restaurant. There are many other great places to eat in Austin.
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M Sinclair Stevens
What a disappointment. Weve been here once before for cocktails and snacks. I fell in love with the Gin and Jam cocktail ($8). Three of us managed to drink and nibble our way through more than $100 of delectables. Our memories set lofty expectations and, as such, our lunch experience last Friday (2013-08-09) was a real letdown. We were shoe-horned into a tiny table next to the bar where I could feel the body heat of the person sitting at the bar radiating down on me. As the place filled up with the lunch crowd, it felt even more claustrophobic and cramped despite the architecture which has pleasing natural light, large windows, and high ceilings. The food was the biggest disappointment. Nothing distinguished it and as I looked around at my fellow diners, I didnt see another dish I wish I had ordered instead. If you want a better burger than I had, go to Zax Restaurant and Bar across Congress Avenue bridge. If you want a better upscale Banh Mi go to Elizabeth Street Cafe. $12 for my burger and $11 for my dates banh mi.
LA
Lauren Wendorf
I originally made a reservation for my celebratory graduation lunch for about 10 people which at first was a little confusing because the hostess only offered the bar until I asked if there was outside seating available. Some of my party was a little late because they were from out of town which seemed to annoy the waitress, even though we ordered without them. The music on the patio was super loud so it was hard to hear anything/anyone and especailly when trying to order. The chicken salad sandwich was really good but I didnt realize the side was large potato chips since it wasnt clearly stated on the menu and the waitress didnt bother asking if we would like anything as a side so I ended up having to order a couple extra sides of fries since several people at the table experienced the same issue. All in all, it wasnt the worst dining experience but had the server been a little more accomodating it definitely would have made the occasion more special and enjoyable. Everyone did like the food immensely though.
