(Note: Please also read my first review of this restaurant. I did this follow-up review because my initial visit was on the very first day Four Leaves Asian Restaurant was open.)
I went back to Four Leaves Asian Restaurant today for my aforementioned “validation visit.” I thought it would be fun for the family to go after church today, so that’s what we did. I wanted to try some other parts of the menu this time.
The boys and I split the 2-in-1, one of Four Leaves’ signature sushi rolls with spicy tuna, salmon, and avocado, for an appetizer. I gave Aaron a piece before I remembered I wanted a photo.
This was tasty, but very high at $16. It’d be defensible at $11 and a good deal at $9. I’ll drop in sometime for a dedicated sushi meal and see what I can build working from the regular menu before pronouncing Four Leaves too expensive in general on sushi.
Lea and Aaron went with Mongolian beef and sweet and sour chicken for their entrees, remaining firmly in the realm of mainstream American Chinese food. Both were well-presented and reported to taste good. I went with udon with a combination of beef, chicken, and shrimp (five good-sized ones—nice number in a combo!). I enjoyed my noodles, but was a little surprised at how lightly they were seasoned. I put both salt and pepper on them.
Nathan went with a chef’s specialty of crispy red snapper, which was beautifully presented:
These two fillets were fresh and delicious. Lea pronounced it a credible rival for the similar dish at Surin—high praise indeed.
As with our earlier visit, service was very good, and though the manager didn’t speak to us this time, I did notice how carefully he was monitoring the goings-on. Our sushi appetizer, four entrees, an extra cup of hot and sour soup, two sodas, two iced teas, and 20% for our server came to $96. (Omitting the sushi and getting Nathan a $10 entree instead of a $19 one would have put our bill at $64.)
It was another positive visit, and I consider my earlier review validated. Four Leaves is a fine addition to the area’s offerings of Asian cuisine.
7/10
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I have found that these asian-fusion table service eateries are fairly high-priced, especially at dinner time and weekends. I was not impressed with the Four Leaves sushi rolls we tried. Fulin’s is also too high-priced at dinner time for casual dining, but they have some good weekday lunches. Of course, the cheaper alternative, is mass-produced, assembly line buffet food, which is just gross.
I think you’re just digging at me with your “table service” language. Heh.
No, I mean in comparison to the places like mei wei that are quick service asian blends, but not the lowly, mass-consumption buffet. I enjoy table service and I’d hate to imagine what sort of sushi I’d find at any other type of place. Am I the only one who cringes at pre-prepared sushi from the supermarket?
Ah, gotcha. I don’t wind up in places like that very often because, well, they’re Panera and Jason’s with potstickers. 🙂
I’ve eaten Target and Publix sushi before. It’s not as good as a restaurant, but it’s serviceable if you get it the day it was prepared and stick with something very safe.
I refuse to eat at Mei Wei anymore. I used to love it, but both my wife and I got some of the most vicious food poisoning we’ve ever experienced from there last time we went.
We went to Four Leaves sometime in November (I think). It was maybe a few weeks after Bo’s initial post. I was honestly looking forward to it. But my mood changed almost immediately upon walking in the door.
There was one couple waiting to be seated ahead of us. Not “we just walked in the door” waiting. They were sitting and waiting. We asked what the wait was going to be, and were told 10 – 15 minutes. I was a bit baffled at this because the parking lot was not crowded (I literally parked in front of the door), and upon leaning over a bit, I could see half of the restaurant was empty. The couple that had been sitting heard the 10 – 15 minute quote and left immediately. We were actually then seated within a few seconds because they realized they magically had a table. I was worried at this point, as I sensed disorganization and a “struggling to keep heads over water” feeling about the staff.
We sat down, and I immediately go to look at drinks. I just about got up and walked away right away when I saw “Water 2.50” (that might not be the exact price, but it was in that ballpark). My face was literally flushed. Looking through the menu and seeing all of the decent meals were going to be at least $15 a head wasn’t making it much better. When the waiter finally came by to ask (took a tad longer than I would have liked) what we wanted to drink (after commenting that he was so crazy busy with all 4 tables he was covering), I asked what was up with $2.50 water. He responded “No that’s for bottled water, we have fiji and “, in a some what “duh” tone. I get annoyed at little ambiguities like that, but that cooled me off a bit, none-the-less.
We ordered our food, which once again took a bit longer than I would have liked, but I get the feeling they’re shooting for a bit more than the chained sit down experience (Olive Garden, etc) and putting a little more personal prep to their work, so I can understand. My brother in law is a professional chef and has worked in fine dining restaurants that take quite a while to bring your food out, but that’s b/c it’s 100% freshly made, and thus amazing in taste and quality. I figure they’re shooting for something in the middle.
But then I find I can’t quit paying attention to all of the staff and their on goings. It’s been a while so I can’t remember all of the little things that annoyed me, but I do remember two things:
1) One of the waitresses was trying to keep her white shirt tucked in to her black pants. In the process of doing so while bending over constantly to take orders and server, etc, her shirt had managed to get tucked in under her bright pink thong. I know this because as her shirt once again started to get untucked, it brought said thong with it. It stood out quite a bit against the monochromatic outfits. She eventually fixed it, and it’s not exactly my business, but I would say she didn’t exactly dress appropriately (there’s other things that will work better with a tucked in shirt).
2) The bus boys wouldn’t shut up. There was a large table that was quite messy across from my table (a good 30 feet away though). It took them a solid 10 minutes to clear off the table tops. They just stood there at one point, I think tinkering around on their phone or something. Then another 5 or 10 to split the individual tables back up and sweep up the floor below. No wonder they thought it would take 10-15 minutes for my table initially. But it doesn’t end there. The next table they bussed was right behind me, only 5 feet away, so now I can hear everything they’re saying. It was mindless teenager fodder, which didn’t surprise me, but what got me is they didn’t hold back on language one bit. If there had been anyone younger than high school at the table, I probably would’ve said something, because it was quite inappropriate (I’m talking f’bomb bad).
Overall, the food was so-so for the price. The service and staff was some of the worst I’ve had in a while, especially when paying that much for it.
Perhaps things are rather more erratic than I think. My sample size remains small.
Mine is admittedly smaller than yours… We’re talking about number of visits to Four Leaves still right?