I feel like this review could be titled after the classic Clint Eastwood Spaghetti Western, The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. The experience at The Boheme had some bright spots but was mostly a miss.
Our company reserved the Wine Room for our corporate Christmas party tonight. To set the ground work for understanding the experience, the Wine Room has to be reserved in advance and the minimum expenditure is $1,000.00. We had 12 people fit comfortably around the table. You could potentially have 13 if someone sat at the head. The room is narrow with mirrors on both ends. I assume the name is derived from the one wall of wine bottles behind glass that you walk past to get into the room.
Our server came and offered to take our drink orders while we waited for the entirety of our group to arrive. We all ordered either wine, beer or cocktails. I ordered the Bohemian Cider. The drinks came back. Well, everyone's but mine. The waitress took the second round of drink orders for the other half of our group that arrived and brought their drinks. I then requested mine again. I never received an acknowledgment that my drink was forgotten. It was as if I never ordered one in the first place.
Next, we ordered a variety of appetizers for the table. Of those ordered, I tried the smoked salmon crostini, roasted bone marrow, wagyu beef carpaccio, and the bohemian hunter's board. The wagyu beef carpaccio was hands down the best appetizer. The beef was melt in your mouth tender. Definitely the star of the entire meal. I had never tried bone marrow before and all I can compare it to is fat, beef fat in particular. Not sure I could eat a whole appetizer of it. Fact: I know I could not eat an entire appetizer of it. The salmon crostini was also tasty, buttery and fresh if those two terms can be used together.
We ordered our main courses. My co-worker next to me was going to order a chophouse steak that comes by itself, no sides are included. Our waitress promptly tells my co-worker, "I'm going to get you the cambozola filet mignon since it has sides." Sides are available to order a la carte which my co-worker could have ordered but never got the chance to because the waiter interjected and changed the request. I then ordered. I got the Alsatian Choucroute Garnie which is the German sausage platter. I asked our server what side she would recommended. Her response: "You don't need a side." And she took my menu. She said the same thing to my co-worker across the table from me. We ended up ordering a side anyway because we wanted one and asked for the sweet potato fries.
The main dishes came out and I had to remind our waiter again for our side of fries. My platter was much too greasy and I could hardly eat it. My boss got the same thing and he said he could not eat it either. I decided I would take it home anyways just in case and asked if I could have extra mustard for my to-go container. The waitress just stared at me and did not respond. My boss, however, kindly offered me his left over mustard which I accepted because it was an awkward situation. The waItress never offered to get me a small side of mustard for my leftovers.
Other instances we had were, we never received refills of our water pitchers (there are twelve of us!) and one person wanted to order coffee and the waiter was quite upset with this request as well. I do not like writing these kinds of reviews. I enjoy trying new restaurants and spots around Orlando and seeing what the town has to offer. Any one who has spent any time in Orlando knows that The Grand Bohemian is the premier hotel downtown where the elite and the stars come to stay. The service should be flawless and the food impeccable.
Unfortunately, they were not. I felt like a nuisance and that we were always asking too much. Did I mention that the minimum for the room was $1,000.00? The guaranteed tip alone was going to be well worth the server's three hours of time. I have worked in the restaurant business and in catering, serving at high end events and private parties. You have to bend over backwards for your guests and put your best face forward no matter how you personally feel about the situation.
There was some good tonight (shout out to the wagyu beef carpaccio!); however, the bad (greasy food that was uneatable) and the ugly (service/waiter - don't tell the customer that they don't need a side or that you are going to give them something different off the menu when they want something else) completely outweigh any positive that was experienced tonight. I would not recommend this to other companies for their corporate parties and I would not recommend it overall to friends who what a fancy or romantic night out. There are other places around town that have delivered better service and food for less cost and hassle. read more