Restaurant Review: The Elephant Walk

The Elephant Walk.

I have high expectations. This French/Cambodian fusion restaurant is supposed to be fabulous, from food to service. It is a nice restaurant, not something I'd wear my j.crew slouchy clothes to. The first time I ate there, with my fellow restaurant co-workers, we had awful service. The waitress was completely absent. We waited forever to order a bottle of wine (which was delicious), then waited longer for her to take our order. The four of us were not in a hurry, but the time in-between seeing our waitress was ridiculous. At one point, when we had finished our meals and were eager for the check (it was a monday, we hadn't been looking for a two-hour meal), we looked over to see her seated at a table, eating and drinking a glass of wine.
Now. You have to understand. The four of us work at a nice, but VERY casual restaurant. We frequently engage the corner six-top into a magazine/tea-drinking station.
HOWEVER. We don't ignore our customers.

The second time I went to The Elephant Walk, the service wasn't that much better. I was with a good friend, we ordered wine, appetizers, entrees. We never got a basket of the delicious bread. I finally asked for some, and our waiter grabbed a cold basket from an already set table. Gee, thanks.

Both times, I really liked my meal. The first time, I had the Curry de Legumes. Filling and delicious, it incorporated peppers, snow peas, eggplant and a wonderful curry sauce. With a bit of white rice, it was a satisfying meal.

We had the vegetarian rouleaux as an appetizer--most amazing spring rolls ever. Crispy rolls surrounding sprouts, mushrooms, onions, and carrots. A ginger dipping sauce accompanies the dish, imparting a clean, bright flavor.

On my first visit, we shared the salade de chevre aux poires caramelises. Which translates to salad with Vermont goat cheese, carmelized onion, walnut and roasted pear over fig coulis, dressed with lemon vinaigrette. Which translates to DELICIOUSNESS. Loved this. Can I eat this forever?

Now, onto my second visit.
I had the rouleaux again. Loved.
My friend had oysters. Eew. He loved. I loved the sauces they came with. The lemony-spicy one was probably fab for seafood and tasty on my bread.
We both ordered similar dishes--I ordered the somiah kako (a hearty vegetable stew with mushrooms, squash, etc, with lemongrass) and he ordered the same, but with wild boar.
We both deemed ours delicious, although I found mine a bit salty.

Rating.

Ratings (which reflect my personal experience, how I saw the meal as an industry professional, and enjoyed myself as a single woman on a budget--basically, what it comes down to is not "would [insert celebrity name] love this place" but "can my friends eat here, leave happy, and not feel like their wallets were pillaged and they were taken advantage of." And yes, "location" is centered around my residence. What can I say, I like to walk to my destination.)

Menu: 10/10--provide a separate vegetarian menu
Food: 8/10--loved everything, but found stew a bit salty
Portions: 8/10--generous, had a snack out of my leftovers
Service:7/10--given old bread, waiter disappeared at end of meal
Value:8/10--We had very good food, wine, and okay service
Atmosphere: 7/10--It was okay. I didn't feel like they were trying that hard to create a certain ambiance.
Cleanliness: 9/10--Bathrooms were clean, dishes were cleared semi-promptly
Location: 9/10--Near Kenmore, central location, easily accessible
From Industry Perspective: 12/20-- Who takes bread off of an already set table? Our waiter disappeared for many minutes. Especially at the end.

78/100--very good food, okay service. I wasn't blown away by this "mind-blowing" restaurant.