(Disclaimer: before posting this review I emailed both Cassis and the restaurant group that Cassis operates under, RestStar Hospitality, about my experience and haven't heard back from either in a week. I've also called Cassis twice to speak with the manager and he/she is never available when I call, and have also called RestStar Hospitality; when calling them I was greeted with a voice menu listing several businesses, which leads me to suspect RestStar Hospitality may be owned by a private equity firm, which would explain the downward trajectory of quality I recently experiences at Cassis. Frankly, what bothers me the most is that neither the restaurant or ownership seem to have any interest in addressing my experience. Below is the email I sent them).
My wife and I have children and occasionally get some time to ourselves for a nice dinner. Bistro Cassis has been one of the destinations we've visited repeatedly over the years when we're feeling like having a special dinner and spending a bit more money than we typically would as a treat to ourselves.
This past Friday night we dined at Bistro Cassis; I've ordered just about every entree on the menu over the years so I decided to go with one I hadn't ordered yet, the steak frites. At $57 I thought the price was a bit steep for such a simple staple of a bistro menu, but decided to order it anyway. The cut of beef was not near the quality to be charging $57 for, the steak had barely any flavor (and surprisingly the maître d'hotel butter was lacking flavor as well), and the frites were pedestrian at best. I've had plenty of disappointing meals over the years, I think we all have, but given the price for this meal compared with the low quality of the dish I actually felt ripped off. This wasn't the case of the steak simply being overcooked; it was a combination of poor preparation/planning of the dish, low-quality ingredients, and underwhelming execution. I didn't complain at the restaurant because I didn't want to ruin dinner with my wife as it's not an occasion we get to enjoy often.
It's a shame to say I won't be dining at Bistro Cassis again. My wife and I always enjoyed our prior meals there, we love the food offered at a French style bistro and felt up until Friday night Cassis was a great option, but we can't afford to take the risk of paying (what is for us) a good amount of money for a bad meal.
I felt you should hear about our experience; given the fickle nature of the restaurant business this is not the kind of food you want your restaurant to be putting out of the kitchen, at least not at the prices you're charging. If I had this experience I don't think it's a stretch to assume other diners are having similar experiences, as well. read more