The Carriage House Downtown
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About
It was a fund raiser and as that it was ok, except that without tables, standup or sit down, it was very difficult to balance a drink and flimsy paper dishes without spilling.
I've been to events at Carriage House before. This was the City of Gastronomy event. When we got inside, there were no seats or even bistro tables. Think about it--you have a plate of food and a beverage in your hands and need to cut the pork adobo with the side of your fork--how is that supposed to happen? I complained, and the staff provided a dozen chairs in our little corner of the room. It wasn't long before there were chairs everywhere! Also, of the 4 promised dishes, only 3 were served; an unpleasant pork belly was served instead. The advertising promised several cocktails and "non-alcholic beverages." When I asked the bartender, he said the non-alcoholic beverage was water. Really! Again, I complained, and the staff found several Cokes and Diet Cokes.
The waitstaff worked really hard--I hope they got paid accordingly. But for $40 a person, not the quality experience I expected.
This was a special event at a special events venue. It is not open on a daily basis.
Overall, we enjoyed the venue and the food presentations, but have a few suggestions for future events. First, let the public know that this is not a sit-down meal, but rather a tasting and you will be standing. Our confirmation stated that we were confirmed for a table for two. Secondly, when you’re pouring a glass of wine, give the customer at least a half glass, and not in a stemmed plastic glass where the stem falls off. And last of all, since many of your customers were older, have some/ more chairs and a few small tables set around for convenience. It’s awkward juggling a drink and a plate of food with no where to sit or a place to put your plate other than the floor. These are not criticisms, simply suggestions.
We attended the Gastronomy chef's meal creation samples from the countries each chef attended. The food was delicious but the seating and lack of tables wasn't a very comfortable dining experience. There were too many people for the occasion. It would have been better to do two evenings with fewer people at each event.
We were led to believe it was seating at tables — but this wasn't the case. We asked for chairs as my friend with foot injury in a boot couldn't stand the whole time. It was awkward trying to hold a drink and food, and then also eat (where's my 3rd arm/hand)?
Other than the above, the event was well run, the food was wonderful, would do it again in a heartbeat! loved meeting and talking with the chefs.
We went to a fundraiser/dinner here, with several chefs from downtown Tucson doing the cooking. It was fun to see what they would all come up with for the event and it was all sooo good. We will come to this event again next year!
Great fun--the Lebanese cuisine showed me that lamb could be delicious; my partner was surprised by beets. Great presentation.
Cooking presentation was a fantastic experience! The chefs were amazing. The service was excellent.
I took a cooking class -excellent food and service!
The class was more for beginners-I was hoping to learn and see more advanced techniques /tips being used. I've taken other cooking classes and the exciting part is learning something new.
The "pop-up" dinner we attended was really a lot of fun and the food was top-notch!
This was an expensive cooking class that did not even begin to meet expectations. The experience was not as advertised. Spanish wines were not served or discussed as was advertised. Did not learn a single thing about cooking. Recipe handouts were missing some prepared items or simply had errors. Instructions from chefs were boring and offered little interest. Showing a recently buchered lamb in a cooler was considered a "high light". I have taken many cooking classes and this was defintely my worst experience.
Wonderful Chinese New Year dinner. 8 courses enjoyed with 3 other couples over 4 hours. Delicious and filling selection of food for a special meal.
This was a Janos Wilder cooking class with a guest chef. She is the best and his classes are the best in Tucson.
We went here for their pop-up dinner "The Last Harvest" and it was amazing! I wasn't sure what to expect and initially thought it was a bit pricey. The ambiance, food, wine, and hospitality of the crew were all splendid. The amount of wine served (my glass was never empty!) was well worth the money. I highly recommend this, especially if you're a culinary explorer.
It was so much fun watching a sauces/cooking preparation and consuming those fabulous sauces for our lunch. Delicious!! Great group setting.
Having just returned from several trips to Asia, the dim sum brunch was appealing. The food was very good but there was soooo much of it. I had hoped for all small plates that could be shared but by the time the main course cart rolled out it was clear that that course was a much larger quantity so , because we still wanted to try multiple things, we ordered too much without realizing and felt too full too quickly. It was also quite pricey as a result since everything was a la carte. Also - be advised that the foods are pre- prepared and roll out on carts that you can choose from, which could mean the item (specifically the main course) might not be fresh from the stove / oven .
So, not what we were expecting for "dim sum." Yes, they bring out food on carts, and they do serve har gow (steamed shrimp dumplings) but that was pretty much the end of the resemblance to dim sum. The siu mai were strange and included too many chopped vegetables which made them fall apart. Most food was served luke warm. The "steam cart" was not steaming in the least. As soon as the waitress put down those steamers, I could touch them to move them without any worry. Each steamed bun dish was one bun which had way too much bun and little to no filling. Now, if I take out any expectation of dim sum, the food was overall tasty. They have a duck dish with flat rice noodles (wrongly advertised as Korean rice cakes) that was very tasty. A spicy eggplant and gai lan (Chinese broccoli) stir fry was the highlight dish. One thing all my friends commented on was the service. They are very attentive and had excellent service. But they also went a bit too far with their verbal dish descriptions (as is the trend). The waiters and waitresses had to recite long monologues about each dish and one even needed to refer back to a piece of paper to get through it. Just tell me what's in it. I don't need to know each step of how it is prepared nor every single ingredient. A little annoying we had to ask about 4 times to get tea cups for everyone in our group (it isn't standard to serve tea to each diner there). I also don't like that they use those cheesy plastic dishes with pseudo-Chinese designs to serve the food. I may come back to try their food again but we will not be returning for this Sunday meal at the Carriage House.
First time visit for Dim Sum on Sunday Brunch. Food was great and service was excellent. Will definitely come again. Thank you.
An absolutely outstanding experience loved the food demo and cooking class The Carriage House provides. I have recommended to my family, friends and co workers. Excellente!
So pleased to have relaxed and elegant dim sum and brunch experience in Tucson, yet cadyal dress shorts are appropriate. Love that various Asian and southwestern food choices are added to carts, such as green papaya salad. There is even a drink cart with exciting and innovative mimosas.
Excellent selection of food.. from traditional to fusion. Mimosa and bloody very good. All servers were exceptional.
I've been hearing wonderful things about the Dim Sum and Then Sum brunch for months now, and The Carriage House didn't disappoint. Friendly, attentive service from our server, Elizabeth, along with knowledgeable servers on the dim sum carts, added up to a terrific and delicious experience. The "traditional" dim sum steamed dumplings were complimented by creative and unique "then sum" items, including the most amazing Nutella Mousse, with house made cajeta - I can't wait to go back!
We came for Dim Sum after church on a Sunday. We were originally a party of 4. At the last minute we added 4 more to our party and 2 babies as well. They were very accommodating. The service was fast which was great when you have 2 babies with short attention spans. The food was really interesting, out of the ordinary and tasty. A very good experience overall. We were in and out in about 50 minutes and didn't feel rushed at all.
While food was good, it could have been served a bit warmer.
The cooking demonstration on the food of Phuket and the dinner that followed was terrific and a lot of fun. We enjoyed the whole evening. The wine pairings were interesting.
Janos and his staff did a very professional and well organized presentation. They obviously did a great deal of research. Our thanks go out to them and we look forward to doing this again.
A friend and I attended a cooking class to kick off (sister restaurant) Downtown Kitchen + Cocktails' special Phuket, Thailand menu. The class was informative, fun, casual. Dinner was exquisite! Course after course of delicious Thai-inspired offerings. What a feast!
We arrived at noon and were promptly seated. The hostess explained there were several carts, hot food, dimsum, salad, alcoholic beverage and other beverage. There seemed to be no order at which they arrived. So the hot food one came first. Then salad. Then alcohol. Never saw the other beverage cart. Had to ask twice for water. The Dimsum servers managed to miss our table each time he circulated around the dining room. The manager came by when my daughter started stacking plates saying someone would come get them. Didn't happen. He asked about the food which was generally good. He noticed that two crab cakes were uneaten and asked why. When I said they needed a sauce, he said oh and did not offer one. Overall it was not a good value for the money.
My husband and I went on our "day date" to The Carriage house, as a friend had recommended it . I wasn't sure what to expect when we arrived to folding chairs and sparse decor, but the food offerings were exquisite! So creative and perfectly prepared. Having worked in restaurants for over 15 years, I am a bit hard to impress, but the Carriage House did the job.
This was a fun and innovative brunch! We really enjoyed sharing it with our friends. Better for groups as you can try more things!!
First time to The Carriage House, and very pleasant experience. Visiting from out of town, and jumped at the chance to have Dim Sum Brunch. Definitely recommend it!
Very fun idea, I love the Dim Sum carts and the mix of foods from around the world. It is something I would recommend for a date or a group if you're friends and family enjoying trying new things. Service was very friendly, knowledgable about the food and happy to talk about it. My favorites were the chinese pork bun and the jamaican banana fritters.
The dim sum experience is authentic down to the colorfully designed Asian serving plates and metal carts. Red bean sweet bun and salads were delicious. Vegetarian versions of the classics are great. The macaroons topped with whipped Japanese yam were some of the best we have ever tasted. Can't wait to return with more friends.
Interesting food, was good but nothing special if you're familiar with authentic Chinese cuisine. They push these carts with food around the restaurant and we asked several times for the cart to return and it never did. Fail concept if you're hungry. $95 bucks for 4 of us and to have to waive the food cart down sucks. Not going back.
Loved it. Janos knocked the ball out of the park once again.
We enjoyed the dim sum experience. servers friendly and child friendly which was A plus with a baby.
We had a thoroughly delightful time at Janos' dim sum brunch. Gorgeous and delicious from start to finish. And the decor is stunning!
Set in a Tucson back alley The Carriage House is a wonderful repurposed industrial space. Concrete polished floors and whitewashed walls with extra high ceilings give alice urban feel to
the place. The Dim Sum Brunch starts with an adult beverage cart with everything from spicy Bloody Mary's to Bellinis and beers. Moving on the next cart features traditional buns, pork ,beef veggie. Mixed menu items include grilled eggplant, sliders, lettuce wraps as well as banana fritters on the next cart. Desserts abound as well. Something for everyone, best to go with some friends to sample the selection. A few things that were perplexing;There was no mention of prices from our server or any of the other servers for that matter. There was no offer of coffee at the end and the hosted seemed disinterested. Those items aside we will be back.
Overly dough-y dumplings with minimal filling. Stumbling staff who struggled. Long wait time between carts. Expensive. Mushy, soggy vegetables.
Place was okay. Really wasn't what I was hoping for. Main issue that should be addressed, is your hostess. She's terribly unfriendly. No personality . Do yourself a favor and find someone new.
FAQs
The Carriage House Downtown is rated 4.1 stars by 49 OpenTable diners.