Review
As you can see, I have rated Chillingsworth with 3 stars. If I were to write a review based on the food, it would be a 5+. The food was fantastic, but was not prepared by a kitchen staff that should consider themselves "five star". The woman, who I assume was the sommelier/manager, and the chef were likely the two rudest people I have ever encountered in any restaurant experience.
First and foremost, the location and decor of the restaurant is fantastic. It is the perfect place to celebrate a special occasion. This was not the first time we have dined there. Over the last 20 years, we have dined at Chillingsworth about 10 times. Every other experience has been a positive one, but this experience will likely lead to us never returning again.
Our evening began when we were seated a full 15 minutes after our scheduled reservation. When arriving, we checked in and were told to wait in the bar. Arriving at the restaurant early to check-in and have a pre-dinner cocktail did not mean that you were called to the dining room in any order. If you were close to the door where the maitre' d came to escort you, then you were called first. We were seated at a corner table overlooking a beautiful garden area. Our waiter, who could not have been any kinder to us, came over and told us the specials of the evening. We then ordered our first course. One of the specials that was mentioned was a fried sweetbreads dish. It sounded so appetizing that I ordered it. After a 20 minute delay, the waiter came back to the table to announce that the sweetbreads were all sold out. If we had been seated when we were supposed to, perhaps I would have gotten the appetizer I wanted. While disappointed, I ordered another appetizer.
The appetizers came and were very good. We then waited an unusually long time for our next course, the soup. The soup finally arrived and again was very good. Within 5 minutes of clearing the soup plates the salads were served. We did notice that there was no real timing between the courses, a Chillingsworth first. After the salads came the sorbet. Again, it was very good.
A full 30-40 minutes passed before our main courses arrived. While we sat and waited, a woman, who appeared to be a manager and the sommelier came by the table to ask how our meal was. We told her the food was good, but the time between courses was a bit ridiculous. She acted as though we had a lot of nerve complaining and practically ran away from us after uttering a highly insincere apology. She disappeared from sight for the rest of the evening.
The main courses arrived and as expected, were extraordinary. I ordered the tenderloin and it was cooked to perfection. Our dinner plates were cleared and a dessert order was taken. Two in the party had pre-ordered the raspberry souffle, a Chillingsworth favorite, that needed extra time to be prepared. One in the party ordered a chocolate cake. The cake was brought to the table and we were told the souffles would be less than 5 minutes. 30 minutes later, the chocolate cake was still sitting on the table and there were no souffles.
At this time, the chef for the evening entered the dining room like a proud peacock fluttering his feathers and expecting praise from his patrons. He found little praise at my table. We told him how atrocious the service had been and that there apparently was a substantial issue with his kitchen. He immediately took the heat and acted like we were wrong. He was flip and rude to us in a manner I have never seen before. He apologized very sarcastically, told us he would look into the situation, and promptly disappeared from sight, never to be seen again.
The waiter came and apologized and offered a complimentary bottle of champagne to the table. After sitting there for about 3 and 1/2 hours, we were more than ready to leave and declined. No one came back to check on things and acted as though our concerns were infantile and unworthy of their time. We left the restaurant satisfied with the food, but incredibly disappointed in the treatment we received from the staff.
All in all, I feel Chillingsworth is a wonderful restaurant, but the new management and chef that have taken over the restaurant in the last 5 years need to re-examine their approach to the needs of their clientele or they risk continuing to lose decades-long customers, such as my family.
Posted by David: Jul. July 8th, 2010 at 10:46 PM
