Really Good Food, Just Bring a Little Patience…read more
It was 68° and one of those genuinely nice summer days, so we decided to eat outside at The Village Tavern. The patio was clean, quiet, and not overly crowded. No tables packed together, no one yelling over the next table, and no need to spend the meal trying to dodge somebody else's conversation. Just a nice, comfortable spot to eat.
Our server was friendly, helpful, and attentive for most of the meal. The only issue was the timing. The food took a while to come out, which was a little surprising because it really wasn't that busy. Then, after we finished, I sat with empty plates in front of me for quite a while before finally getting her attention to ask for the check. I'm not asking for instant service, but once the food is gone, I'm usually ready to begin the portion of the meal where I leave. The two waits together were enough to cost a star.
Fortunately, the food was very good.
We started with the cheesy pretzel bites and avocado fries. Both were delicious and both disappeared pretty quickly. The pretzel bites came with herb butter, garlic, Parmesan, mozzarella, parsley and pomodoro sauce. Lots of cheese, plenty of flavor, and exactly the kind of appetizer that's going to be gone before anyone has had a chance to decide whether they want another one. The avocado fries were crispy on the outside, creamy inside, and just as good.
My wife got the French dip and really liked it. The bread was toasted perfectly, the cheese was melted just right, and the au jus was hot and flavorful. Nothing fancy about it, just a really well-done French dip.
The kids both got burgers. My son ordered his with ketchup only, but it came with mayo. He was not happy about that, and I can't really argue with him. If I order ketchup only, I'm also going to be wondering how mayo managed to make the cut. My daughter got the Rodeo Smash Burger with BBQ sauce and onion rings and loved it.
Everybody got fries, and they were probably the most consistently good thing on the table. Cooked perfectly and seasoned well without being ridiculously salty. You could actually taste the potato, which feels like a reasonable expectation that restaurants occasionally treat as an ambitious request.
I got the Cantina Short Rib Tacos, and these were easily my favorite. Shredded short rib, lettuce, salsa verde, pico de gallo, cilantro and sour cream. The short rib was tender, rich, and full of flavor, and the toppings worked really well together. The salsa verde and pico brought some acidity and freshness, the cilantro added another layer, and the sour cream balanced out the richness of the beef. Nothing overpowered anything else. Just really good tacos with a lot of flavor in every bite.
The menu also had quite a few other things that caught my attention. The Reuben in particular. I noticed it after I'd already ordered, which is always unfortunate because now I have to come back and see if it was worth ignoring everything else for. There were several other things I'd happily try too.
So, four stars. The food was very good, the patio was comfortable, and the service was friendly. The food took longer than it should have on a relatively quiet day, and waiting for the check after we were already finished didn't help. Neither ruined the meal, but both were noticeable. Clean up the timing a little and this would be an easy five.