Bistro Central Parc

My bf and I came here for dinner two nights ago. The inside of the restaurant is dimly lit, creating an intimate and cozy ambiance. This is a good date spot or even just a nice place to have dinner with family and friends.

My bf went with the $45 3-course ribeye steak special, which included choice of salad, a 12oz ribeye, and gelato. This was a really great deal considering the three dishes would've been over $60 if we had ordered them individually. I ordered the Penne with Chicken, and we ordered the French Onion soup to share.

The Caesar Salad was good. The salad was fresh and crunchy, and the dressing was creamy and just right. The French Onion soup wasn't what I expected. I thought it'd be very onion-y. Instead, the soup had a nice depth of flavor from the beef stock, and the bread and cheese added some texture and chew. The onions were soft and almost melted in my mouth. We both loved it.

My bf really, really liked his Steak and Frites. The steak was cooked perfectly, and the fries were seasoned well. My Penne with Chicken was also good. The sauce was nice, and I loved the addition of green peas and sweet corn (I love some veggies). There was a good amount of chicken, but the one thing that I did not like was that some of the chicken was dry and very chewy.

For the gelato, we went with the Sea Salt Caramel. This was so creamy and delicious. The flavor reminded me of butterscotch.

Overall, this is a very nice restaurant with good food. We would definitely go back.

Made a reservation for 4:30pm to catch their early bird special for $25, which includes an entree (starred only), salad and gelato of your choice. This special is valid as long as you order by 5:30pm.

Service: 5/5 welcoming and attentive
Food: 3-3.5/5
Atmosphere: 3/5 dark with glare from sun

Mista Salad: I usually like balsamic vinaigrette but it might have been a bit heavy for this light summery salad. Maybe a fruity vinaigrette would've been better. I also would have liked the candied nuts to be more coarsely chopped and be bigger in size.

Truffle Ravioli: I missed the part in the description where it says there are olives in here because I was in for a surprise when I bit into a dark piece that I thought was mushroom. The ricotta/mushroom filling has a slight sweetness to it that I liked but the ravioli was undercooked (soft and you can still see white) and the cream sauce was too salty. Very heavy dish.

Sea Salted Caramel Gelato: This was comforting but tasted more like a Worther's butterscotch candy than salted caramel.

My friend ordered the black pepper fettuccine and liked hers - al dente and salmon was cooked just right.

I had an ok Mother's Day brunch here. The food was mediocre, but they had reservations available a week or two in advance, so it's an option when your partner does everything at the last minute. Our table was outdoors, not in the parklet, but in the sidewalk patio that had a canvas wall on two sides. Not ideal, but at least we were mostly shielded from the cold.

The interior looked very nice, not that we got to sit there, and the bathroom was also gorgeous (see my photo).

PARKING
We found a free street spot fairly easily within 2 blocks around noon on Mother's Day.

THE COST
$100.35 total for 3 entrees and 2 coffees.

FAMILY FRIENDLY
There was no kid's menu, no waffles/pancakes on the Mother's Day menu (although my partner had scoped out their normal brunch menu does have waffles/pancakes). However, our server offered us chicken nuggets and fries for the kids, which came out very quickly - convenient, but between the speed and the quality of the food, these were likely just popped in the oven from the freezer.

THE FOOD
* Short Ribs Benedict ($27.95) - 3 stars
The egg was watery and rib meat was soft but a little low on flavor. Could have used something other than meat and egg.

* Crab Omelette ($25.95) - 2.5 stars
Definitely not worth the price. The potatoes were decent with a light crisped layer, the salad simple. The omelette consisted of mostly a thick layer of solidified cheese and some crab. The egg was nothing special, if not slightly overcooked. The jalapeno felt out of place, and the omelette overall was lacking in interesting flavors.

My family and I had a wonderful experience at Bistro Central Parc!

We arrived early for their specials and each ordered something different, so we could try the ribeye steak and frites, black pepper Alfredo, grilled salmon and chicken Marsala. Everything tasted really good, especially the shrimp in the pasta, but the salmon was mid in terms of freshness and doneness.

Very professional service in a dimly lit corner restaurant.

I believe this is an old neighborhood fave, but I would return and sit outside on a clear day, because the cleaning agent smell really gets to me (as I have a very sensitive nose).

Ambiance: casual but romantic
Service: very nice

They do offer $25 for a 3 course meal that includes salad, entree, and dessert 7 days a week but from 4:30pm-5:30pm

But we didn't get that and did a la cart instead

Food:

Their escargot, fries, and beef carpaccio are great for starters. Escargot comes in a pesto butter that you can dip bread in!

Black Pepper Fettucine ($27)- 4/5 I loved how creamy the sauce was and the pasta was cooked so perfect. But I did find the salmon to be a bit dry

Pappardelle Short Rib Pasta ($28) - 5/5 shredded short ribs with diced tomatos and mushrooms. Super flavorful and yummy. Portion size is a bit small though

Bouillabaisse ($32)- 3.8/5 seafood stew with tomato sauce

Brussel Sprouts ($9)- 3/5 a bit too heavy for my liking, it is fried instead of sautéed

Drinks:

Espresso Martini ($13)- made with soju instead of vodka. A bit lighter and taste more like chocolate!

Very cute spot in the middle of the neighborhood. The beef carpaccio was delicious. The braised short ribs were kinda dry but the flavor was good. The seafood stew was by far the best thing I ate. The seafood was very fresh and cooked well. The crème brûlée was just okay. The sugar on top was too thick and hard to eat. The service was excellent. I'd come back.

Just moved to the neighborhood, and this place is a gem!

My parents are in town and I booked a table only 15 minutes in advance on OpenTable.

Exceptional service, food, and atmosphere.

Appetizers perfect to split: Burrata with fig jam and the Calamari (sooo tender!)

Mains: Bouillabaisse and Short Ribs (see photos). Tender. Flavorful without being salty. Both also large portions perfect for sharing.

Dessert: Flourless chocolate cake is rich, creamy, and beautifully plated.

*It did get busy and loud at one point, so it can be a bit difficult for those with hearing impairments.

Looking forward to returning!

Came here for a friend's birthday dinner. Our group of 7 just barely fit across their booths at the entrance of the restaurant. I loved the interior and regret not getting a picture of that..I got the bathroom though apparently.

We ordered 4 appetizers (bruschetta, crab cakes, calamari, mussels) and an entree each. It was a lot of food. I don't really know how I feel about the mushroom bruschetta. It's different. Great crab cakes, calamari, and mussels though. I got the pappardelle short ribs. Usually when I get Italian, although I do enjoy the first few bites, it's just too heavy and I can't finish the whole dish. I think the flavors were well balanced here and I actually wished I could but didn't because we had a lot of appetizers.

I personally thought the service was great personally but the table next to us was quite upset over something. I don't know if our group upset them or what but he was really going off on the waiter and called over who seemed to be their manager...yikes. Tough crowd

Came back here for a lovely anniversary dinner!
Great service, food and atmosphere!

Waiters are very attentive and treated us like we were rockstars!

Highly Reccomemd!

Had a fantastic brunch at Bistro Central Parc with some friends.

Snagged an outside table for four and had a lovely time. Our waiter recommended the short rib benedict and the chicken fiesta omelette. Dude and I shared both, and they were perfect. And we ordered a carafe of mimosas.

Service was stellar, attentive but not intrusive. And everything was reasonably priced. Such a great meal, can't wait to return to try dinner.

And save room for the amazing sticky toffee pudding! Soooo good!