Mars Restaurant & Bar

02/14/08

Perhaps the most overpriced and frustrating brunch ever!

by annefrances at Citysearch

My husband and I went to Mars upon reading a great review for their Sunday dim sum brunch. When we arrived we were the only people at the place, so you would expect very prompt and attentive service. That was not the case! We chose to sit outside, and I felt like during the entire meal we were looking around to see where our waitress was. There was an incredibly long wait for our food to arrive at the table, and when it did it was sub par at best! The noodle and tempura dishes were greasy, and the samosas were bland. The only shining light in the meal were the cocktails. Upon completing our meal, we had to wait for at least 15 minutes for anyone to notice and get us our check. At the point the outside patio had began to fill. I felt like the wait staff was all over the place, and not focused on great service. Once the bill did come, my husband and I both agreed that the meal was much overpriced based upon quality of food and lack of customer service. Even if the meal had been cheap, we still wouldn't return.

• Pros: beautiful decor and great drinks
• Cons: everything else you want in a restraurant

01/02/08

FOR BLAND FOOD LOVERS EVERYWHERE, MARS IS THE PLACE!

by spreadeagle17 at Citysearch

We decided to try Mars, which opened recently in our 'hood, after being downtown for many years. We ate there years ago and never went back, for no particular reason except that it wasn't memorable & we just forgot about it. But now that it's in our 'hood, we thought we'd give it another try.

First of all, definitely go for the happy hour. It's great. I had a wonderful raspberry bellini and my husband had a kind of vanilla manhattan he said was good. Good appetizers, especially the baby back ribs ($3.50) . They came with mashed potatoes & would make a fine dinner-with-salad for a low price. The baba ganoush/hummus with pita was a good deal, also, although the baba needed salt (we rarely salt our food in restaurants) & there wasn't any on the table.

Pause here to praise the waitress, one of the best we've ever had in any restaurant. She provided salt & something to fix our wobbly table in no time flat.

Dinner was something else. The website for Mars advertises lamb, but there was none to be had on the menu. So my hubby settled for Bouillabiasse. His dish had an odd flavor we couldn't pinpoint (we're both cooks) and one large scallop, a little salmon and some kind of fish and NO shrimp at all. Needless to say, he was disappointed. Is new chef Tommy lazy or what?

Since I make a killer red curry Hor Mok Talay, I ordered the red curry dish with "vietnamese prawns," which was basically 4 large-ish shrimp. The dish was so bland I had to - yes - salt it! So I saved half for home, to be doctored accordingly.

There were no dessert prices on the menu & the only one that looked even vaguely original was the "chocolate pate." It was also quite bland, with only a slight chocolate flavor, at a whopping 8 bucks (explaining the price omission)! And my husband's coffee was so lukewarm it didn't even warm his hand holding the cup, so had to be sent back.

So go for happy hour appetizers & drinks and skip the entrees we ordered!

• Pros: good waitress; good happy hour
• Cons: bland food, skimpy on the seafood entrees

10/26/07

Not worth Price

by xtaraestrial at Citysearch

We celebrated a birthday there recently and the entire group was disappointed. Our group included a chef, service industry folks, and others and we were all very patient and open to try everything. We started with drinks, a bottle of champagne, and 2 bottles of wine. The presentation was good, but the cocktails were overdone with lots of "mix". The appetizers were decent, but it is really hard to screw up hummus and spring rolls. I had the pork tenderloin which was flavorful but dry in the middle, while my green beans looked withered and were bland. One of our friends had to send her seared tuna back because she could not cut it after repeated attempts. Others remarked that the curries were cold and bland. The ambiance is very nice, the colors beautiful, but it is hard to have a conversation as it is extremely loud. Our waiter was extremely attentive and was very obliging to what we needed. It is not the service which made for the poor dining experience, it was the food quality. We had 600 hundred dollar tab, and none of us was content were content with our meal.

• Pros: Nice interior, interesting menu
• Cons: Not worth the price you pay

05/19/07

Terrible Lunch Service

by davidrow9 at Citysearch

Went to Mars for lunch on Saturday. The server seemed rushed, tho only one fifth of the tables inside were full. That should have been the first warning sign since it was graduation weekend and every other restaurant in town was packed. The food quality was inconsistent (AVOID the pasta and the shrimp salad!) but even the good dishes weren't that great since it took FOREVER for us to get our food... and again the restaurant was not busy! Other nights on South Congress, I've seen the restaurant quite busy, but after the poor service and hit-or-miss entrees, I wouldn't risk a return visit.

• Pros: attractive food presentation
• Cons: terrible service, bland unappetizing pasta

03/17/05

good ambience, so-so food

by kittykat05 at Citysearch

I found this restaurant disappointing. We waited more than half an hour to receive our appetizers - a table who sat down after us was already finishing their entrees! Our server did not apologize for the wait, nor was he particularly friendly or attentive. The appetizers were pretty good, but the entrees were a real disappointment. I paid $14 for three vegetarian kibbeh which was inventive, but overpriced. Also, the date chutney on top was very good, but would have better complemented a meat dish. My date liked his lamb kofta, but the couscous that accopmanied it wasn't seasoned at all. Well, I can also make a box of instant couscous, but that's not why I go to a restaurant! The ambience was a lot of fun and I would recommend it for that, but I will not be having dinner here again.

• Pros: ambience, drinks, romantic
• Cons: prices, slow service

02/23/05

Stay Away from this Place

by brianmcclure at Citysearch

Mars might have been a great place to go a couple of years ago, but as of Feb 2005, this place is horrible! This place probably got such good reviews because the majority of ratings and reviews were from a long time ago. Management and cooks probably changed recently. Service was horrible. Appetizers took forever because they were delivered to the wrong table and had to be ordered again. Once they did come, they were delivered with our main course. If this is the case, why even get the appetizers? We also had to flag down our server to get any service. The dessert cake looked and tasted like something that came out of a play pillsbury bake oven. The main course was good, but that's the only positive comment I can give. Management and the main cook should have a better handle on what is going on here. Beware!

02/13/05

Food mediocre; service indifferent

by austinite88 at Citysearch

What a let down! We have been to Mars on many occasions prior to this Saturday evening, but I will not be back. We waited 1 & 1/2 hours (exactly as quoted), had drinks, spoke to the wonderful bartender, and finally was offered a table outside. We declined and were promptly seated at an inside table. Drinks and appetizers arrived quickly; however, the evening declined from there. Food did not arrive until 50 minutes after the appetizers. The ribs were so so, and the vegetarian plate was horrific and lukewarm. The server chose to ignore us after the appetizers were taken away. No apology or reason for the entree wait was offered. You would think that when Valentine's Day falls on a work day that Mars would expect a crowd such as this on the previous weekend and be prepared. Consequently, not so.

• Pros: great bartender
• Cons: poor service, inedible food