Restaurant Gwendolyn

Reviews 6

JA

James Beswick

Well San Antonio has a new world-class restaurant and its name is Restaurant Gwendolyn. This small, intimate dining space offers cleverly thought-out, 3 and 5-course tasting menus that represent the finest of local produce prepared with innovative and inspiring flair. The menus are $55 and $75 per person respectively and $25 for an accompanying wine-pairing. This is a restaurant that takes its production very seriously, cooking without fryers, mixers or any modern devices, and rather than being a gimmick translates into a type of cuisine I simply havent tried before. They make their own breads, cheeses and pates and as a result every bite is competing for your attention and becomes a conversation piece at the table. We visited for our wedding anniversary and its one of the most memorable meals weve ever had - right up there with Thomas Kellers Per Se and Gary Dankos in San Francisco. The cheese and charcuterie plate is simply phenomenal, offering a diverse range of flavors, and youd be hard pressed to find anything this good in the entire state. Id return regularly for this plate alone. Every single dish is conceived and plated flawlessly to the point where even our final cup of coffee was prepared meticulously in a tabletop vac pot to offer a completely different flavor on a traditional cup of coffee. Service was exemplary throughout, and its one of those very, very rare dining experiences where every single part added up to an unforgettable evening. If youre looking for a truly unique dining experience in our city, Id strongly recommend Gwendolyn - I cant wait to go back.

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ST

Steven Schauer

So this place is unique in the way they use nothing electric to cook food, store it, etc. It was an interested experience from that standpoint. We arrived at 8:10pm and stood there for almost 10 minutes before being seated despite 4 open tables (it was only two of us). It wasnt until 8:45 that server finally came by to explain to us how the menu works. We sat there having to stuff our faces with bread and butter until 9:15 when the soup finally arrived. The soup was literally the size of a shot glass and it was so small that they gave us baby spoons to eat it - a normal spoon would have been too big for the container it was in. The appetizer was enough to satisfy a 5 year old it was so small. The dinner plate was good, but again ridiculously small. I didnt want dessert so I asked for a substitution and got some cheese dish. Apparently I dont have gourmet cheese taste because that was the most disgusting cheese I have ever had. It tasted like it went stale 2 years ago and left an after taste that I could not get out of my mouth. Finally the check came... it was >$120 for TWO of us to get a 3-course meal. If you went the 5-course route it would have been $75 EACH. Ridiculous expensive for not even feeling full and horrible service. We didnt finally get the bill and leave until 10:30pm... over 2 hours after we first arrived. I will never go there again or recommend it to anyone.

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CH

chingy98

If youre looking for a unique dining indulgence, look no further. There is no point in detailing what dishes to try, as the menu changes on a daily basis. Just be assured that the food is fantastic. Its a farm to table concept, with all local ingredients. Okay, thats not a new concept. What is different, is that all of the cooking is done circa 1850. There are no blenders, shakers, mixers, or heavens forbid a liquid nitrogen tank! The coffee is made at the tableside under an open flame. There are two bowls, the bottom bowl with water, and it steams up the coffee grinds in the upper bowl - then the water is removed and the coffee drips down. I wish I could explain it better, but trust me, its good coffee. Its a small place, with seating for no more than 45 people. There is valet, but the valet person may also be your waiter. Service is definitely a team environment, with all the staff helping out on all tables. They were are all excellent - minus the one hiccup one our entrees were plopped in front of us without nary an explanation. I would drop the few extra dollars for the full 5 course menu. Next time you have a special occasion, or if youre just dripping dollars, definitely make this place your spot.

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BR

Brianna Jones-Mattes

I really wanted to like this restaurant because we really appreciated the concept and philosophy of the meal preparation and the chefs view on food and ingredients, but I have to say that the restaurant is so very stuffy that it made us laid back, fun loving folk, pretty anxious and uncomfortable. Everyone talks in a whisper and it all feels so pretentious. Yet I know that is absolutely not what they are going for. I think they are going for relaxed and romantic but it just came off as stiff and too formal. So Im disappointed. I feel like if they lightened up a bit and made both the food and atmosphere just a tiny bit less uptight, that they could have a bigger impact on a greater number of eaters, in all walks of life. As it was, we felt like Hillbillies and very out of water eating there, when we actually are very seasoned foodies who have eaten all over the world. We love new eating experiences but this was just extremely expensive and stuffy, and I cant say I was blown away by the food. But I so wanted to be, because I really respect what they are doing here! So sadly I just cant give our experience more than a few stars.

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AU

Austin Oliver

Amazing! The best meal I have ever eaten! I celebrated my birthday here three years ago and the food absolutely blew me away, and all my friends felt the same. The chef, Michael Sohocki, is obviously devoted to his art and his culinary ideals. The kitchen uses no tools that would not have existed before 1850 (except for a refrigerator); all perishable items are locally sourced; for meat, the whole animal is utilized; and the restaurant itself is very small, I assume so that the chef can concentrate on quality over quantity. I ordered the five course tasting menu with the wine pairing. The dishes were exquisite. One course, a beef stew, I believe - Im writing this three years after the fact - was the most savory thing I have ever tasted. The wines were all wonderful and beautifully complemented the food. Restaurant Gwendolyn is what happens when someone is committed to achieving the highest degree of excellence in their profession. If everyone had the same passion and commitment that this chef has, the world would be a paradise. Luckily, Gwendolyn exists as one place where we can glimpse what that reality might be like.

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RA

Raven R.

We were introduced to this restaurant via the "Fork in the River" food tour - which was fantastic I might add! Thereby, we got to meet the Chef, understand the philosophy regarding his cuisine, experience the restaurant ambiance and taste the food FIRST. Well, everything we were exposed to on the tour impressed us so we went back. We were now also aware that the menu changes every night. We didnt care. We knew it would no doubt be good. Sure enough, it was outstanding. We went for the 3 and the 5 course meal. Everything seemed to breathe the passion we first experienced on the tour and was not only tasty but very fresh and organic. The place was small and unassuming but we were certain we had experienced a truly original dining event which well always remember. So, I guess I am recommending the food tour and Gwendolyn. Both are original and must dos if you come to San Antonio.

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