05/18/09

hideaway

by CSMobileUser

Great hideaway especially for a late lunch. Staff friendly and tasty food! Reminds me of a NYC spot that I can always feel comfortable at.

04/28/09

I Didn’t Order Health damage!

by tetoc

Bess Bistro Austin, TX

I Didn’t Order Health Damage!

Bess Bistro gave us f00d p-0-i-s-0-n-i-n-g. My wife had a seafood dish that was recommended by the waitress and was up all night throwing up.

We call the restaurant the next day and Donnie insulted us by tell us (one PhD and two degrees in Chemistry / Biology) that it is impossible to have this in less than 24 hrs after you have eat. Sorry Donnie, I do not believe you came up with this on your own but your source is wrong. If we insisted we call speak to Mizael Saucedo, chef and general manager of Bess Bistro but that took three days of phone tag. When we spoke the Mizael and explained everything he thought is would be difficult to be sick from the seafood since it is delivered fresh every Saturday. This explains everything, we ate there on Friday night! He was apologetic and offer to mail us something for compensation but never did. We called back two weeks later and told him that we never received anything and he claimed he sent a $50 gift certificate. I explain nothing was received so he swore that he would send another one himself the next morning for $50 and if the other $50 showed up we could keep both of them for all of the pain, suffering and frustration that Bess Bistro has caused. Over a week later still no sign of anything. These people have a nice spot in a nice building but do not have the ability to operate a business or be permitted to p-0-i-s-0-n the public.

Thomas | Apr 28, 2009

• Pros: Location
• Cons: Throwing up all night

02/15/09

Incredible food and atmosphere!

by alanah

Wow. This place was incredible! West 6th street, super swanky. The place has a great upscale but down to earth vibe. My friends and I went there Valentine's night and all the tables were booked but we walked in hoping for luck and, what do you know, we sat immediately at the bar and got served! Even better than sitting at a table! Our bartender/waitress Summer was awesome. Knowledgeable, super sweet. I began by sharing the cheese plate which came with wine soaked goat cheese, two types of blue cheese, manchego, and brie, crackers, grapes and prosciutto wrapped almond stuffed dates (oh my god!). It was an incredible beginning to the evening. Superseded only by our main entree: Steak Frites. The tenderloin was cooked medium, it was absolute perfection. The fries were thin cut, not greasy at all. It all came with a demi-glace which we poured over the fries... we were basically licking the plate. I cannot even put into words here how incredible everything was. The service, the ambiance, the food, the quality. The food was absolutely incredible. Flavorful... just perfection. I would without a doubt recommend this place and go back here in a heartbeat to try their other dishes.

Cocktails: Made with real fruit? What an idea! (I didn't drink all these myself!)

# Vespa - Kind of sweet and mellow, really nice. Made with pear vodka, gin, peach juice...

# Lagniappe - Needed to add a bit more raspberry puree to it because it was too strong for my tastes, but then it was delicious. At the bottom of my glass were all my crushed raspberries! Yum yum! Made with raspberries, lime, basil... vodka? or gin I think?

# Rockstar Martini

# Redlight Martini - Think this was the one which was just pomegranate juice and vodka, it was surprisingly delicious, the best cocktail of the night!

# Something with mango? Literally had mango puree coming up the straw, which was awesome, but it was made with bourbon, which I don't like.

• Pros: ambience, food, location