A790
06-24-2008, 10:10 AM
Alloy - 220 42 Ave S.E. - (403) 287-9255
Ambiance: 3/5
Service: 3.5/5 *
Food: 3.5/5
Value: 2/5
Overall: 3/5
Summary: Has potential, but some areas are a serious letdown. Skip down to the conclusion if you want coles notes.
Introduction:
After consulting with a few friends about a nice and unconventional restaurant to dine in it was clear that “Alloy”, a fusion restaurant with a penchant for unconventional foods, was the last word in semi-casual, trendy fair. A quick phone call and reservations were made, and admittedly I was excited.
After all, quite a few people had painted a very pretty portrait of the restaurant.
Service:
I arrived with my date exactly 5 minutes prior to my next-day reservation and we were promptly sat at a nice deuce. The table was somewhat out of the way, and I was happy not to be seated in the middle of the room. Though it was a Thursday, and the restaurant has only been open since November of last year, it was quite busy. I was surprised.
Our table was right beside the wine cellar, and being somewhat of a wine aficionado I thought it quite neat- they have some good wines on the menu.
Of course, I would be a lot more impressed if my date and I didn’t have to wait fifteen minutes to get a menu. Normally I would have alerted someone and requested one, but no one who worked for Alloy seemed to be anywhere near us at the time. I was quite annoyed, simply because the section that we were sitting in was far from full.
However, once our server did introduce himself and give us our menu’s the service was top-notch: attentive, but not overbearing. So, with that in mind, I’m willing to forget that we sat, without water, menu’s, or drinks, for nearly 15 minutes.
Atmosphere:
Alloy is definitely reaching for a trendy, contemporary feel, and I believe that it achieves it quite well. The room is well lit in natural light, with white bamboo lining the walls. The tables are quite large, and there are many modern design elements that come into place that had me wondering if I was dining in a restaurant or a nightclub. Have a look at the bar- you’ll see what I mean.
While not really my style, the restaurant does have an attraction and is a comfortable place to dine. I would have preferred more intimate lighting, but I suppose that’s because I prefer to “dine” when I go on dates as opposed to “eat”.
Food:
This is where I have the most conflict with Alloy. The food, for the most part, was prepared and presented well. Instead of bread, you are served hummus with tortilla bread and olives- a very nice departure from the ordinary, and something that I thought was pretty neat.
We started with the Scallop Ceviche ($16) and the Soft Shell Crab ($16). My date had the Roasted Chicken ($25), and I had the nighty special- a moonfish, served in a pineapple demi-glase and accompanied by risotto ($35).
It took around 15 minutes for our appetizers to arrive and we wasted no time in digging in. We had decided to stray away from wine for the evening- she drank Cosmopolitans, I drank Mojito’s. Let it be known that Alloy makes a fantastic Mojito.
The scallops were very underwhelming. Served chilled in a yuzu, grapefruit, and raspberry sauce, the flavour would have been much more if they had been served warmed. That being said, the scallops were cooked perfectly and sliced thinly, making them easy to eat. Perhaps it is personal preference, but I won’t be ordering them again.
The crab, however, was magnificent. Deep fried, of course, but still fantastic. The tomato-chili sauce it is served in really brings out a great flavour, and when my date couldn’t finish it I found myself gleefully enjoying the remainder. The portion was also rather generous, so those with smaller appetites may very well be sufficed by this appetizer as their main!
Once the appetizers were cleared the entrees arrived a few minutes later. I am typically a person who enjoys a few minutes in between courses, so I felt a bit rushed, but that probably isn’t a problem for most people. Besides, the entrees were great, though not quite the quality that I was expecting given the hype and cost of admission.
My date’s chicken was prepared well, and though I didn’t care for what accompanied it, my date seemed to enjoy it. Truthfully, she ordered the chicken because it was the “safest” dish on the entrée menu- the vast majority of selections are true to the restaurants “fusion” theme, and while I enjoy it, those with particularly selective tastes may not.
My dish, the nightly moonfish feature, was delectable. The fish had great texture and the flavour to match, and the risotto was fantastic. The flavours were subtle, but combined well together, and I had no qualms about packing up the remainder and enjoying it later on in the evening.
Both of us enjoyed our meal, and after an enthusiastic description of some kind of cheese-cake creation that is served in a martini glass, my date ordered dessert for herself, and I ordered an Americano. The Americano was fantastic, the dessert, unfortunately, was not. I had one bite was turned off by the texture- it clashed with the fruit and downplayed the flavour. Blech!
Conclusion:
Alloy is a restaurant that has a lot of potential, and being part owner of my family’s restaurant in Inglewood I find that I am always a bit more understanding and generous when I go out. I tend to me a bit more lenient and forgiving, so it disappoints me greatly to have to rate Alloy so mediocre. However, despite the potential this restaurant has, it simply has not aged enough to really come into its own.
The food is good, albeit a tad expensive for what you get, and the service is good. However, those looking for an intimate dining experience are going to have to continue looking. Alloy is a great spot to visit once if you don’t mind experimenting with different flavours, but you’ll have to keep that in mind if you are served something that is less than what you were anticipating.
Overall, three out of five, though I still recommend that you check it out. However, you can expect to pay somewhere around $120 or more for two people with a few drinks, appetizers, entrees, and desserts.
Ambiance: 3/5
Service: 3.5/5 *
Food: 3.5/5
Value: 2/5
Overall: 3/5
Summary: Has potential, but some areas are a serious letdown. Skip down to the conclusion if you want coles notes.
Introduction:
After consulting with a few friends about a nice and unconventional restaurant to dine in it was clear that “Alloy”, a fusion restaurant with a penchant for unconventional foods, was the last word in semi-casual, trendy fair. A quick phone call and reservations were made, and admittedly I was excited.
After all, quite a few people had painted a very pretty portrait of the restaurant.
Service:
I arrived with my date exactly 5 minutes prior to my next-day reservation and we were promptly sat at a nice deuce. The table was somewhat out of the way, and I was happy not to be seated in the middle of the room. Though it was a Thursday, and the restaurant has only been open since November of last year, it was quite busy. I was surprised.
Our table was right beside the wine cellar, and being somewhat of a wine aficionado I thought it quite neat- they have some good wines on the menu.
Of course, I would be a lot more impressed if my date and I didn’t have to wait fifteen minutes to get a menu. Normally I would have alerted someone and requested one, but no one who worked for Alloy seemed to be anywhere near us at the time. I was quite annoyed, simply because the section that we were sitting in was far from full.
However, once our server did introduce himself and give us our menu’s the service was top-notch: attentive, but not overbearing. So, with that in mind, I’m willing to forget that we sat, without water, menu’s, or drinks, for nearly 15 minutes.
Atmosphere:
Alloy is definitely reaching for a trendy, contemporary feel, and I believe that it achieves it quite well. The room is well lit in natural light, with white bamboo lining the walls. The tables are quite large, and there are many modern design elements that come into place that had me wondering if I was dining in a restaurant or a nightclub. Have a look at the bar- you’ll see what I mean.
While not really my style, the restaurant does have an attraction and is a comfortable place to dine. I would have preferred more intimate lighting, but I suppose that’s because I prefer to “dine” when I go on dates as opposed to “eat”.
Food:
This is where I have the most conflict with Alloy. The food, for the most part, was prepared and presented well. Instead of bread, you are served hummus with tortilla bread and olives- a very nice departure from the ordinary, and something that I thought was pretty neat.
We started with the Scallop Ceviche ($16) and the Soft Shell Crab ($16). My date had the Roasted Chicken ($25), and I had the nighty special- a moonfish, served in a pineapple demi-glase and accompanied by risotto ($35).
It took around 15 minutes for our appetizers to arrive and we wasted no time in digging in. We had decided to stray away from wine for the evening- she drank Cosmopolitans, I drank Mojito’s. Let it be known that Alloy makes a fantastic Mojito.
The scallops were very underwhelming. Served chilled in a yuzu, grapefruit, and raspberry sauce, the flavour would have been much more if they had been served warmed. That being said, the scallops were cooked perfectly and sliced thinly, making them easy to eat. Perhaps it is personal preference, but I won’t be ordering them again.
The crab, however, was magnificent. Deep fried, of course, but still fantastic. The tomato-chili sauce it is served in really brings out a great flavour, and when my date couldn’t finish it I found myself gleefully enjoying the remainder. The portion was also rather generous, so those with smaller appetites may very well be sufficed by this appetizer as their main!
Once the appetizers were cleared the entrees arrived a few minutes later. I am typically a person who enjoys a few minutes in between courses, so I felt a bit rushed, but that probably isn’t a problem for most people. Besides, the entrees were great, though not quite the quality that I was expecting given the hype and cost of admission.
My date’s chicken was prepared well, and though I didn’t care for what accompanied it, my date seemed to enjoy it. Truthfully, she ordered the chicken because it was the “safest” dish on the entrée menu- the vast majority of selections are true to the restaurants “fusion” theme, and while I enjoy it, those with particularly selective tastes may not.
My dish, the nightly moonfish feature, was delectable. The fish had great texture and the flavour to match, and the risotto was fantastic. The flavours were subtle, but combined well together, and I had no qualms about packing up the remainder and enjoying it later on in the evening.
Both of us enjoyed our meal, and after an enthusiastic description of some kind of cheese-cake creation that is served in a martini glass, my date ordered dessert for herself, and I ordered an Americano. The Americano was fantastic, the dessert, unfortunately, was not. I had one bite was turned off by the texture- it clashed with the fruit and downplayed the flavour. Blech!
Conclusion:
Alloy is a restaurant that has a lot of potential, and being part owner of my family’s restaurant in Inglewood I find that I am always a bit more understanding and generous when I go out. I tend to me a bit more lenient and forgiving, so it disappoints me greatly to have to rate Alloy so mediocre. However, despite the potential this restaurant has, it simply has not aged enough to really come into its own.
The food is good, albeit a tad expensive for what you get, and the service is good. However, those looking for an intimate dining experience are going to have to continue looking. Alloy is a great spot to visit once if you don’t mind experimenting with different flavours, but you’ll have to keep that in mind if you are served something that is less than what you were anticipating.
Overall, three out of five, though I still recommend that you check it out. However, you can expect to pay somewhere around $120 or more for two people with a few drinks, appetizers, entrees, and desserts.