Senhor Rooster's experience

[Quarki]

Well, we went today for my second visit, and my wifes first. The first time I went I went with a friend.  And it was awesome, absolutely great.  Today, it sucked a$$.  I mean quite bad.  The first time I've haven't given a tip.  Is it the same chef?

A) The waitress was wearing a too short leopard print mini skirt and wearing WAY TOO MUCH cheap perfume.  She smelled more like mineral spirits.  There was only one other table but the service was still pretty slow.

B) The sauces were very unlike what I remember.  Boring hot sauces.  I remember 4 or five little jars of heaven.  These were like Franks Red Hot.  Except one was green.  Quite different from what I remember.  Plus, previously, the bread was also served with a little sardine spread ... not so any longer, but I can forgive that.

C) Well, the appetizer wasn't too bad.  We had sardines, for $10, 5 grilled sardines is a pretty good value.  And they didn't taste bad.  I'm quite interested in that they came whole, not cleaned, seems strange to me, since I'm just unsure how often one can get fresh sardines.

D) Despite repeated apologizies for the delay (did I mention there was only one other table), when the food was served it was barely warm.  My wife had pork and clams.  The pork tasted like clams, and the clams tasted like rubber.  Not good.  It is reputed to come with cilantro, but this stuff was so overcooked it didn't have any flavour anymore.  Looked more like the spinach my Mom used to boil in the 70's.  I had the quail - a special.  The flavour was good, but like I said, cold.  It came with a saffron rice which was good, and a salad of iceberg lettuce and kraft ranch (I'm not an expert on kraft dressings, but this stuff likely came from a jar).

There is no way that this could have been the same cook, Daniel, as last time.  Has something changed?  I spoke with him on my first visit, super nice guy.  But tonight was bad.

It's a shame, because I really wanted to try the salt-crusted chicken, but I don't think I'll be able to drag myself there again.  At least it wasn't overpriced.

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is this the one at the new location?

[mtigges]

Well, we went today for my second visit, and my wifes first. The first time I went I went with a friend.  And it was awesome, absolutely great.  Today, it sucked a$$.  I mean quite bad.  The first time I've haven't given a tip.  Is it the same chef?

A) The waitress was wearing a too short leopard print mini skirt and wearing WAY TOO MUCH cheap perfume.  She smelled more like mineral spirits.  There was only one other table but the service was still pretty slow.

B) The sauces were very unlike what I remember.  Boring hot sauces.  I remember 4 or five little jars of heaven.  These were like Franks Red Hot.  Except one was green.  Quite different from what I remember.  Plus, previously, the bread was also served with a little sardine spread ... not so any longer, but I can forgive that.

C) Well, the appetizer wasn't too bad.  We had sardines, for $10, 5 grilled sardines is a pretty good value.  And they didn't taste bad.  I'm quite interested in that they came whole, not cleaned, seems strange to me, since I'm just unsure how often one can get fresh sardines.

D) Despite repeated apologizies for the delay (did I mention there was only one other table), when the food was served it was barely warm.  My wife had pork and clams.  The pork tasted like clams, and the clams tasted like rubber.  Not good.  It is reputed to come with cilantro, but this stuff was so overcooked it didn't have any flavour anymore.  Looked more like the spinach my Mom used to boil in the 70's.  I had the quail - a special.  The flavour was good, but like I said, cold.  It came with a saffron rice which was good, and a salad of iceberg lettuce and kraft ranch (I'm not an expert on kraft dressings, but this stuff likely came from a jar).

There is no way that this could have been the same cook, Daniel, as last time.  Has something changed?  I spoke with him on my first visit, super nice guy.  But tonight was bad.

It's a shame, because I really wanted to try the salt-crusted chicken, but I don't think I'll be able to drag myself there again.  At least it wasn't overpriced.

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is this the one at the new location?

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Yes, is the old location still operating? I thought it was moved?

[Mooshmouse]

No, the old location has changed hands.

mtigges, bear in mind that Chef Daniel was solo in the Rupert Street kitchen. Senhor Rooster's new larger location on Renfrew necessitates line cooks; perhaps that accounts for the discrepancy in your experiences.

[fud]

Wow the Senhor Rooster web site has a direct link to this thread from their main page

I'm going tomorrow (for the first time). I kind of regret not experiencing the original location but I'm very much looking forward to the visit.

[sanrensho]

I need to check this place out, too.

Any other reviews for the new location, aside from mtigge's review?

[BCinBC]

I was there just before Xmas, but the night was ruined by two adjacent and loud tables of ne'er-do-wells. Seriously what is up with these people, I think they each ordered their own bottle of wine, they were laughing hysterically and rather loudly, and a bunch of them kept getting up to have a smoke (and opened the door numerous times to let in a chill).

I'm kidding. Slightly.

The food of the night was, as I recall, the BBQ chorizo, the piri piri prawns (as always), the salt encrusted hen, and the BBQ ribs. Good stuff.

Be forewarned, Daniel has brought in a dude to play his keyboard and sing - and there is a big dance floor. This may only be for weekend nights, but it makes for quite an enjoyable show if your thing is observing the surreal. The night I was there, some fox got up and led a conga line, so that was good.

[Daddy-A]

some fox got up

Thank you Richard Prior.

A.

[inanimate]

Just visited last night for the first time since the move and even after having read the comments here, I left a bit surprised.

They've definitely changed the feel of the place, from a comfortable local hangout with great food to a large, dark, somewhat weird dancehall of a place.

The white napkins tucked into the glasses and oil lamps at each table didn't create that same relaxed neighborhood joint that made me love the old location. The place was rather cold and I kept my jacket on during my meal to keep my nipples from stiffening too much.

Service was slow with only one waitress covering about 7 tables. We ordered the bbq mushrooms and patatas bravas to start. The mushrooms were really disappointing. I've had them before, but they were undercooked this time and still had their slightly crunch rawness instead. They arrived only slightly warm and would have sent them back if I weren't so reluctant to make a fuss.

The patatas bravas were much better. I would have preferred the potato wedges were fried to give them crispy edges, but the tangy onion sauce on top was great.

While we were having our appetizers, a gentlemen whipped his huge korg keyboard out and all hell broke loose. The house lights dimmed, the red rope lights went up, two spinning multicolored light balls started spinning and the most ridiculous tunes I've heard in months started filling the restaurant. People got up and hit the dance floor and I was suddenly starring in my own movie, best classified as an offbeat comedy. My mouth hung open as I was enveloped in a scene best described as surreal. One older gentlemen's silver belt often caught the light and woke me from the dream state this scene seemed to be putting me into.

Our entrees arrived after a fairly lenghty wait; beef ribs, bacalau and a steak for the three of us. While quite tasty, my bacalau arrived barely warm. It tasted like I would have expected though I hadn't had this particular dish before, but found it a bit overbearing and reminiscient of a huge brunch plate of salt cod hash. A salad on the side though nontraditional might have lightened and brightened the plate nicely.

The beef rib was good but wasn't the low and slow braised rib we might have imagined, the steak was described as "a bit funky" by my friend but the few bites of it I had seemed fine. The sides on those plates were left alone for the most part.

The music and dancing continued and I felt like I was a child again at a wedding against my will, waiting for my parents to tell us that we could finally go home.

I turned to my friend who had suggesting coming and said to him "you remember how we talk about our favourite little restaurants disappearing? I think senhor rooster has disappeared"

The senhor rooster I knew and loved dearly is very very different now. The menu while similar is different. It's more expensive and some of the simple favourites are gone. It's no longer just a comfortable neighborhood joint where I could stop in for half a cornish hen and fries to dip all those lovely sauces in for $10 (and also have the option for horse when I felt like it).

Talking became near impossible with the music playing and I found myself not wanting to come back anytime soon. I'm 28 and not into hearing moon river and don't be cruel being covered by a solo keyboard act while I have dinner with friends. Senhor Rooster has not turned bad, it's just turned different so much so that I don't feel that love I used to for it and sadly, it feels like a little piece of me died last night.

[fud]

We were there on the same night. I'm quite sure which table you were at inanimate

Service was really slow, food was mediocre, although the flaming portugese sausage was enjoyable. We did have the salt encrusted hen which was very nicely done with fall-off-the bone meat. Not sure it was worth the price tag but definitely worth trying once. My dinner companions started off coats off and ready to eat. By the middle of the evening the coats were on, the scarves were on. It was COLD.

The random keyboardist with synthesizer and dueling dollar store rotating lights was a little alarming. I quickly realized why some of the diners were so fancily dressed. Does this happen every night? I'd love to try the place when it's a little less loud. I could barely hear my friends. Certainly I got looks from them - "why did you ask to come here again?"

Hope things sort themselves out. Sometimes in a new locale the place just needs to re-orient itself.

[Quarki]

the menu on the website is cheaper than the menu at the restaurant (like 3-4 dollars)....

and the two menus also have different food.

[prasantrin]

Has anyone been here lately?

My mother has a very long stop-over at YVR, and her friend is taking her out. This is the type of place they'd both love, but I'm wary of sending there after the most recent not-so-favourable reviews. Those reviews are almost a year old, though, so maybe things are better now?

[Daddy-A]

Rona,

There are many better options in and around that price range than SR. Don't know what happened, but it ain't the same.

A.

[prasantrin]

Rona,

There are many better options in and around that price range than SR.  Don't know what happened, but it ain't the same.

A.

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Crap. Thanks, though. I was wondering why this topic has been dead for so long!

I'll start browsing through for other options.

[snowflake]

The restaurant was quite remarkable at one point when its location was at Rupert; I have encounted myself not so good experiences myself. Chef Daniel is still the chef there as he makes and prepares everything but definetly not like it was at Rupert (which was once his old location). The place is definetly not the same; just seems the place has completly turned around; prices are not at it once was before and at a costly note. I had the fish dish oh Bacaulla dish and seemed to me that there was no variety of taste, dry and also the food was warm not hot and in minutes turned cold as I also left my jacket on during dinner. I often wonder why nobody has seemed to post here but now I know why and those Dollar Store Dazzling lights were very bright and bothersome. The menu and the website seem like two different restaurants; prices are yet so different and the food is so different from the original restaurant on Rupert. Seems that Chef Danielle does not seem interested in his clients but focuses on other issues; well there are other places out there, better, realistic, just seems to me that this place has turned into a bar or a meat market; such a shame I must say.....

[snowflake]

Rona

Just visited the restaurant and I must say things have not been better at all; service was slow and although there were 6 other tables we my guests indeed had waited over 1 hour for our meals. Service was not at its best and seems like the person that was serving did not have much experience and seemed we were rushed as the server had almost taken my partners meal away; when we eat we take our time and just seems we were rushed. When the food arrived it was a bit on the warm side again which is too bad; doors were always opening which did not help but food should be served hot; not warm. Food was satisfying but the meat not as braised as what I would thought it would be; it was noisy as I could not and repeatedly asked my partner what they were saying. We had ordered a red wine originally but we asked the server and they did not offer that so we stuck with a different type of wine but it was good also. It is sad to see restaurants that were once successful drop to a unsuccessful rate such as this one......will be dining at other venues and seeing good results.

Edited December 8, 2007 by snowflake (log)

[brokentelephone]

I went to the old location probably 2 years ago, and I must say at the time I was thoroughly disappointed.

My friend had the cornish hen (which was very dry), and I had the beef ribs which were tough, and odd tasting. I've eaten a lot of BBQ in my day, and perhaps my expectations were high, but I wasn't in the least bit impressed.... even without comparing to 'real' BBQ.

Coupled with the extremely slow service, and complete arrogance of the chef, I was completely in awe of the stellar reputation the place had amassed here on eGullet. The chef came over to my table to chat (I was 25 at the time, perhaps my youth gave him free reign to gloat?) , and proceeded to tell me of his experiences at Il Giardino, and how his cooking was so vastly superior to theirs. I grew up eating at Umberto's restaurants, my mother still frequents Il Giardino weekly, and considering I've never had a bad meal there (granted I've had far better meals, but its consistent and the pasta is fab) I was slightly irritated that he hadn't even asked me how my food was; he just assumed that I must've enjoyed my meal. When I finally interjected and made my opinions known, he was totally aghast, and walked away.

That being said, does anyone remember that mexican chicken place on commerical drive with the rotisserie and the sombrero that came down from the ceiling when the door was opened ?

[snowflake]

Brokentelephone;

Yes I do recall ordering the cornish hen and too had it and very very dry, beef ribs also dry and really not braised at all very tough as you said, there are some food items that are good and worth the price but this is no longer offered at its new location on Renfrew. The menu is far distant from the menu served at Rupert and no where near its price; (prices have gone up, music/live entertainment costs which is billed in the prices on the menu). The service at one point was horrible and having said that with no other tables there at the time you often needed to get the attention of the server to attend to us as she was found often chatting with the chef and not quite understanding the menu as well as having a hard time speaking english. As the restaurant went on the service, cleanliness did by far get much better, there was some remodelling which came with much nicer service and explaination of the menu, which was a great notice as it was often filled with more people. The chef often spoke of his talents in cooking and often spoke about Il Giardino, he came across to us as he was far superior than others. I found this character, chef rather arrogant and seem to agree - far from professional chefs in the world as this chef is no where near the expectations of a real chef. other chefs. As a matter of fact I do remember that mexican restaurant what happened to that little restaurant? does anybody know?.

Edited December 13, 2007 by snowflake (log)

[snowflake]

The arrogance of a Chef is by far not good; this one had to top it all as this chef had no idea of good service or good quality food.

The waitress has no idea of the basics of serving and no understanding of the menu which is a ideal asset to have while serving. As far as plates being taken away and customers not finished their dinners all you need to do is JUST ASK the

customer if they are done not take the dish away. Most of the comments on here actual good comments come from the other location but there are more and more coming in from the most recent location.....too bad things haveto go this way. Gee what will happen in the slow months to come......any other places to dine please let me know.

cheers for a wonderful New Year

[Knightafter]

Things have gone down obviously , I was there a couple of months ago and the crab cakes were wonderful to look at but cold and tasteless . The seafood and beans dish was mostly only beans and rice . Service was OK , not professional by any means but friendly . (the only server kept going for ciggie breaks right outside the front door )

[snowflake]

Yup; I must say the crab cakes did look nice presentation but tasted terrible, no taste, tasteless crab and probably two weeks old. The service is not what it should be and very slow and NOT PROFESSIONAL at all; often the server would be in the kitchen or often outside the door chatting with others and forgetting about the customers that are dining.....not worth going there at all and if this keeps up that would not be good. Obviously things just have not gotten better but they have gotten worse, save your money and dine where it is worth it.

happy new year everyone

[barolo]

save your money and dine where it is worth it.

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OK, well then, instead of posting only about a restaurant you don't like, how about telling us about one that you do.

[snowflake]

sorry folks it aint just me posting negative replies, there are several others.

The importance of good food, good service is ideal for a fabulous restaurant; dont you think?

[bill_n_opus]

Reviving a thread from the dead ... is this place still around? The website seems current ... but as i'm getting back into checking egullet more often I remember awhile ago when this place was very favorably reviewed at the rupert location.

Then it went downhill as per reports ... anybody been there lately?

I feel like a salt-encrusted hen all of a sudden.

[beansnrice]

Reviving a thread from the dead ... is this place still around? The website seems current ... but as i'm getting back into checking egullet more often I remember awhile ago when this place was very favorably reviewed at the rupert location.

Then it went downhill as per reports ... anybody been there lately?

I feel like a salt-encrusted hen all of a sudden.

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I have seen this restaurant on Renfrew and Venables. I'm not sure if it's good or bad, I never tried it at the rupert location, but I wish I did based on what I've read.

[Knightafter]

It is open but the las time I was there was a bit of a disaster , the food was tepid at best , our server spent most of her time smoking outside , the crab ckes looked good but were 95% filler , I don't think I'll ever go back