For those reading this who know me well, I do not like change. I am very much a creature of habit and am a huge advocate of routines. However, one area of my life where I like getting out of a routine is eating at new restaurants. On New Year’s Eve, Jenna and I decided to try a new place, so we made the trip to One Pacific Place and tried out Pig & Finch.
BEFORE
The first thing I would say is that it seemed important to make a reservation in advance (probably depending on the day of the week and time of day). Since I figured it would be busier with the holiday, I made a reservation on OpenTable, which is a great idea for any dining establishment if you are willing/able to commit to eating at a specific time. When we arrived, I was glad that I did, because the dining area is relatively small, and it was hustling and bustling with NYE traffic. With that said, we got right in and seated at our table.
APPETIZER
Since this was a little bit of a special occasion (with Baby W on the way, every dinner out just us is a special occasion), we ordered a Shrimp Cocktail as an appetizer. I’m not a big fan of cocktail sauce, but this I think had more of a tomato flavor to it than what you typically think of with shrimp cocktails. In addition, they gave you a bunch of little slices of buttered/toasted bread that you could dip in the sauce. While I probably would not be inclined to order again (the price and serving size did not seem to match-up, in my opinion), Jenna and I did enjoy both the presentation and taste of our appetizer. They even brought us extra bread!
MAIN COURSE(S)
Since it was NYE, they had a special menu to order from. For some reason I also feel like I need to order off the “special menu”. I think I justify it because the regular menu will always be there, but you never know when the specials will go away! I am a sucker and fall right into the restaurant’s trap. FOMO! Anyway, Jenna ordered a clam fettuccine pasta, and I ordered a steak (to be honest, I can’t remember if it was a New York Strip, Ribeye or what).
From what Jenna and I talked about, both dishes were just “OK”. I had requested my steak to be cooked medium, and while most of it was cooked at that level, I felt like it was kind of uneven throughout (some parts were medium-well, some were more medium-rare). My plate came with mashed potatoes and squash, and while I forced myself to eat the vegetables, the potatoes mysteriously disappeared off my plate and into Jenna’s mouth (mashed potatoes have been a HUGE pregnancy craving for her).
Jenna’s plate was pretty standard, and while she enjoyed it, I think she also wished they had gone a little lighter on the sauce. Also, since the clams came in shells, it was a very “active” dinner for her. I think we both left wishing we had ordered something different (maybe just two giant plates of mashed potatoes).
ATMOSPHERE
Now onto other “non-food” related things, the atmosphere at Pig & Finch was really pretty cool. It almost had an old-English pub feel to it. It wasn’t too loud, and although some of the tables were pretty close together, I never felt like I was dining with other people.
SERVICE
The other important thing for us was that the service was outstanding. Along with the extra bread mentioned above, our sever checked on us just the right amount (not too little and not too much). She was very pleasant and was patient as we asked different questions about the menu.
CONCLUSION
Overall, we had a good experience at Pig & Finch on NYE. While I’m sure the experience would be different during Happy Hour (M-F 3:30-6 and weekends 2:30-6), I don’t think Jenna and I feel an inclination to go back. We both seemed to think it was a little overpriced for the experience, but maybe your trip there would be different! Overall grade: B-
Logan
Leave a Reply