Bashan - Glendale

They showcased a creative dish featuring a small portion of soba and a little broth to pour over it. As for my orders: 1. **Braised Pork Belly with Cranberry Beans, Mussels, and Tomatoes**: This dish was over-salted; if the salt were reduced, it could have been truly delicious. 2. **Seared Barramundi with Jerusalem Artichoke, Cipollini Onions, Chorizo, and Shrimp**: The barramundi was cooked to perfection—moist and flavorful. However, once again, the excessive salt marred the rest of the dish. It felt like even the chorizo had been overly salted. 3. **Chocolate Bread Pudding with Chocolate Sauce and Vanilla Ice Cream**: This dessert was a highlight. It was rich but very enjoyable, and thankfully, it didn’t have the same salty issue. Overall, the food could have easily rated an A if it weren’t for the heavy hand with the salt. Now, regarding the service: the waitress was somewhat cold and did not engage with us much. We paid in cash, but she didn’t return with our change; we had to ask for it. To my surprise, she assumed that we had left the entire change as her tip! This was quite unprofessional, as she never inquired or even mentioned it. It’s standard practice for servers to confirm or return change. Her assumption was bold, considering her service wasn’t up to par.

When we were ready to order, three of us wanted the New Bedford Scallops with rice, Piquillo pepper, bacon, squid, and aged Pedro Ximenez Sherry vinegar as our main dish. Unfortunately, the waitress informed us that they only had enough for one more order because they couldn’t get enough fresh scallops that day. While I appreciate their commitment to freshness, it was frustrating. The waitress then offered us the Alaskan Halibut and Short Ribs as alternatives. One friend decided to go with the Short Ribs, and I chose the Alaskan Halibut, which the waitress said was her favorite. The other two friends ended up ordering the New Bedford Scallops and the Hangar Steak. Now, let’s get to the verdict: **AMUSE BOUCHE:** A creamy cauliflower soup with a sprinkle of chili flakes. I love soups, especially cauliflower and, yes, cream, so I was pleased. **APPETIZERS:** I had the Braised Pork Belly with daikon and shishito pepper. This dish is quite popular, and while it was tasty, I have had better. The bottom was wonderfully tender, but the top crust seemed to be cooked for a few seconds too long. One of my friends ordered the Pure Pumpkin Soup, which was delicious—a lovely blend of sweet and hearty flavors. I enjoyed the touch of fried capers in it. **ENTREES:** For the main course, I had the Alaskan Halibut with roasted eggplant, hummus, baby artichokes, olives, and Pappadew pepper. I’m a big fan of seafood and Mediterranean cuisine, so I thought I would really enjoy this dish, especially since our waitress highly recommended it. Unfortunately, it didn’t live up to expectations. The fish was cooked adequately but could have been a bit more tender. The biggest issue was that it was very underseasoned. The accompaniments were decent but didn't add much flavor. Given that the chef has experience working in Providence, I was quite surprised. I sampled my friend’s New Bedford Scallops, which were good, but I found the rice a bit heavy. As for the Short Ribs, I can’t recall the details, but my friend didn’t seem to enjoy hers much—I found the texture to be a bit stringy and lacking in distinctive flavor. The Hangar Steak, which came with house-made mole, cippolini onions, and figs, was likely the standout dish at our table. The steak was tender, and the mole provided a nice warmth without overpowering the meat's flavor. **DESSERTS:** For dessert, we tried the Chocolate Bread Pudding. When most people think of bread pudding, they imagine a rustic dessert, but this version was more artisanal, and it was delicious—rich in chocolate flavor and very moist. My friends ordered the Peanut Butter Banana Sticky Toffee Cake, which they seemed to enjoy, although I didn’t get to taste it. Overall, the experience was quite mixed. There are other dishes on the menu that sound amazing, but given my hit-or-miss experience and considering the average cost of a meal here, I’m not sure how likely I am to return.