Rodney's Oyster House- The Story of Nonexistent Service

Not too long ago, Janice, Steph, and I went to Rodney’s Oyster House in Yaletown for their “Low Tide” menu (Mon-Sat, 3-6pm). Rodney’s is known for their freshly shucked raw oysters and cool energetic atmosphere.

I honestly love the vibe and food here but the service always deters me from coming back. I don’t know if it’s just me but I receive pretty bad service every time I come. This time around, our server rarely checked up on us, forgot to give us bread when every other table had theirs, took a considerable amount of time to get the bill, and did not give off a very warm/friendly attitude.

We were seated on the second level and we took great enjoyment watching the guys downstairs shuck endless amounts of oysters.

We thought the Raw Oysters were a dollar each but they were actually $1.50/piece during “Low Tide”. Oh well! We ended up ordering a dozen of them and a plate of steamed mussels.

There is a tray of condiments at every table and the jars of sauce all contain a different level of spiciness. :D

Our dozen raw oysters came on a bed of ice with two wedges of lemon and some freshly grated horseradish. If you have never tried putting horseradish on your oysters, give it a try because it gives you a nice little kick!

The oysters varied in size but overall they were fresh, clear of sand, and delicious!

After waving down our server to get our forgotten bread, we were a bit disappointed to find that it was crusty and hard.

As mentioned, we ordered a plate of Mussels ($10.95) which were steamed in dill butter, garlic, and wine.

I enjoyed the plumpness of the mussels even though they were a tad smaller than the ones I had at R.TL (post here). The dill butter, garlic, and wine concoction was so unbelievably addicting that all of us wanted to (and almost) drank it!

I was greatly annoyed and let down by the inattentive service at Rodney's but it is undeniable that the oysters and seafood are great. However, with that said, I still may not return in the near future because service to me is sometimes more important than the actual food itself. In this case, the bad service overrode the great oysters.

Based on these reasons:

• "Low Tide" menu is much more affordable than the normal menu
• bad and inattentive service (in my experience anyways)
• fresh raw oysters and great steamed seafood

Service Rating: 1/5

Food Rating: 3/5

Price: $$-$$$

Overall Rating: 2/5

Happy Eating!

courtesy of http://www.e-forwards.com/2011/12/oyster-jokes-and-one-liners/