Review: Tudor Rose
Been watching the plaza develop and this new English pub is located in the center. This place is a week old, so hopefully things get better. If not, it'll end up like Flight Deck.
Location:
Tudor Rose
1110 Panatella Blvd NW
Right off of Stoney Trail onto 14 St. NW, next to a Rexall. Panorama has been needing a new restaurant for quite some time, and in a budding new part of the community, it's not poorly situated.
Food rating: 1.5/5
They serve pub style food here, and the initial reviews I've heard were positive so perhaps I set the bar a little high. There were no drink specials or even a drink menu available. Ordered were the Fish and Chips and a Shepperd's Pie.
The fish itself was pretty good, the fries were sub-par (unseasoned and not very crispy), and the tartar sauce was surprisingly watery. I don't know how you mess up fries and tartar sauce, but they did. It came with one decent sized portion of fish, and about half a plate of fries. Not quite the portions I'm accustomed to for pubs.
The Shepperd's Pie was dry. It was ground beef with the occasion piece of carrot or onion topped with a thin layer of mash. Really disappointing. It came with a salad, which was as average of a house salad as you can get. The dressing was a balsamic vinaigrette that could have used less vinegar.
Had a friend order their Poutine ($8.95). You could grab a handful of fries that was larger than what they served, the gravy was watery and not particularly appetizing, the shredded cheese added on was sparing. Worst of all, the dish appeared to be microwaved to melt the cheese. How do you possibly produce bad poutine at $9 a pop?
Another companion had the Cobb Salad. The chicken that came with the salad seemed to have sat around all day (or worse) as it was pretty close to being as dry as a cracker. The avocado that was on the side was as hard as a watermelon rind. Simply put, the quality of the ingredients was insulting.
Ambiance: 4/5
As with any new restaurant, you'd expect something well furnished and functional. That's Tudor Rose. TVs line the walls and are available whether you're sitting. It's a lot of light woods with cloth seats, adequate lighting, and the patio should be good. Definitely better than most of the area's pubs.
Service: 1/5
If I had to describe the service in one word: slow. Our server was inattentive, though did come by once to ask if she could refill some waters. Wasn't particular friendly. The place busy at the time, so the inattentiveness and slowness is pretty inexcusable.
- Value: 2/5
Pub food should be plentiful, tasty, and satisfying. Tudor Rose was, from what I saw and heard, not quite any of these. The prices are a tad higher than what you'll find at most other places. For example, the nachos with no meat are $18.00. Without better specials, pricing, portions, I can't rate the value much higher.
I'll head back here for Wing night or something, and hopefully someday they start getting more right. I want this place to succeed since I'm in the area, but if it doesn't, then I'm going to have to find another place to become a regular.
Final Verdict: Don't bother with this place if you're hungry or planning to order food. Plenty of other places that will be more satisfying. I hate to say it, but even BP's is better than this joint.
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