Ad Hoc major disappointment/meh!

[roxie]

So after having eaten at the FL years ago and being familiar with Napa Valley, we dined at Ad Hoc this past Saturday evening. We both considered Ad Hoc a major bust and really built on hype.While we succumbed to this hype, we also would never return and wish to post some impressions:

The service is quite rushed. One barely has time to sit down and have a glass of wine before the courses begin arriving. We attempted to slow down the barrage of courses but could not.
While the salad was tasty enough, the lamb sirloin was dry and nearly flavorless. The ribs were fatty and not in keeping with the sirloin. The food is served family style..two of use were served four roasted asparagus! Dessert was a bananna split..nothing fancy and not particularly good at that. We tried to find wines by the glass to accompany our meal and that was not particularly successful. Service seemed "canned" ..the waitstaff parroting this and that.

We love great food, we love joints for dining and we love fine neighborhood places. We do not wish to be fawned over but we appreciate good service. This place did not offer anything in the way of service other than what I described. We felt the waiter had a MAJOR attitude about pairings with little help regarding individual glasses to pair.

I'll save my money for the multitude of other venues in the valley, big and small. If you don't wish to spend $$$ at the FL but want to sample Keller, try Bouchon.

[marilees]

It's very hit or miss, depending on your preferences. It's definitely not comparable to French Laundry. It's very different from Bouchon, as well. Ad Hoc is, however, accommodating for vegetarians, and if you have a vegetarian or pescetarian at your table, you'll have two different entrees to try.

[vday]

I posted about my disappointing meal here a while back as well. I hate being underwhelmed when I spend $100 for dinner, and the meal and service both underwhelmed me. I agree . . . Bouchon would be a better choice!

[amypang]

That's a shame. I'll stick to perusing my Ad Hoc cookbook, then. And you can get the fried chicken kit from Williams-Sonoma, so no need to head north anyway!

http://tinyurl.com/ygvdsp3

[Windy]

I've posted about our disappointing meal at Ad Hoc. We didn't have any complaints about service, but the food was nothing special.

I'm not sure it's hype exactly. Lots of people do seem to like their meals there. Since the same meal isn't always offered, it may have been a good night versus a bad one. But I don't have any desire to go back.

[Bon Vivant]

I've had very good meals there but most of them lean towards the meh. My problem with AdHoc is that I eat vegetables all the time at home and when I go there I'm served mostly vegetables for which I have to end up paying nearly $100 out the door. How about a potato or some mac n cheese? My last meal there was quite good ($96) but the sauteed mustard greens were nothing compared to mine - if I'm paying that price I want the food to be better than mine.

http://myculinaryadventures.blogspot....

[cinnamonhazelnut]

I'm sorry to hear you were disappointed. I've only eaten at Ad Hoc once, and the only dish that truly stood out for me that night was dessert.

I am willing to give it another chance, but only to try the fried chicken everyone raves about.