Oak City Bar & Grill, Menlo Park

On a scale of 1-10, I would give Oak City a 4 overall. The food and service just don't justify the expense.

• The Food
  Jon ordered a glass of shiraz, spinach salad with pears, fish'n'chips and a side of mac'n'cheese. I ordered a pot of tea, ahi tuna tartare and lamb chops. There was nothing special about any of our dishes, except the mac'n'cheese gratin. Bubbling underneath the crunchy garlic herb croutons was a satisfying mixture of radiatori, white cheddar, Swiss and Parmesan.
  
• The Prices
  Our total bill was about $100, and -- considering that the food was just okay -- it definitely was not worth it. To put this in perspective: When we dined at Range in San Francisco a few weeks ago, we enjoyed excellent food, more food even, and for about the same cost.
  
• The Service
  I realize that servers can have a bad day, but I noticed that the table next to us (a middle-aged couple) received better service. Our waitress didn't share any of the specials with us; our side of mac'n'cheese came as we were FINISHING our entrees (my guess is she overlooked that order); and she didn't offer to box up any of the food left on our plates (despite the fact that most of my entree remained). Maybe I'm just being nit-picky here, but I expected more from the service. I expected to feel welcome in the restaurant.
  
• The Ambiance
  I actually really liked the overall design of Oak City. Only the tree mural on the far left wall seemed out of place in the otherwise elegant space.

While my favorite part of a dinner out is usually the dessert course, we skipped it last night because we just wanted to get out. And THAT is saying a lot about our experience here.

Oak City Bar & Grill
1029 El Camino Real
Menlo Park, CA
(650) 321-6882