We had a reservation last month for a birthday party for our son. We made it for 7 but one did not come. It was the attitude of  the owner that I disrupted the whole restaurant seating. We keep getting the eye because we were In the front seating and one of the grandsons was not dressed to the tee!! The food is out of this world but I agree with some other reviewer that the server we had to flag down numerous times. I am going back tonight and hope that attitude etc improves or we will be looking elsewhere
Review Source:I was just here on a Friday for a dinner party I arranged as a surprise for someone's 30th birthday. I was a little anxious that everything go smoothly, but the people at Bis totally handled everything. The service was really good, and they really helped make it a good experience.
I was especially worried about the surprise being ruined by the host saying something like "party of 10," so I called in ahead of time and asked that they make sure to keep it under wraps and they were more than accommodating.
I arrived with the guest 15 minutes after the reservation, and the host made sure to say, "party of 2." We got to the table where our 8 friends were already waiting, and it was perfect!
The overall consensus seemed to be that the food was pretty good, especially the halibut and filet mignon. Personally, I found the rigatoni good, but not as good as some of the other dishes that people ordered. The lentil soup with bacon was also quite good, and possibly one of the best lentil soups I've had.
I was really disappointed with this place. Â
Lots of folks in the reviews mention the obnoxious prices and they aren't kidding. Â It's ridiculous for what you get. Â John Howie prices for red lobster quality food.
The décor and atmosphere are mediocre.  Not bad, just plain, like a hole in the wall breakfast café.  You should be ready for extremely tiny tables packed tightly together.  We could hear every single thing the couple next to us said and they could hear us just as well.  You'll see your waiter's butt a lot since he'll have to squeeze in between the tiny tables every time he comes to you or the tables next to you.  That tables are very tiny and uncomfortable, the plates barely fit on them.  I'd understand if they were packed and needed to add more spots, but were there on a Friday night it was half full at best at peak.
The staff seem undertrained considering the prices. Â Our waiter was scarcely around and didn't seem to know the menu well. Â He would occasionally show up and scrape the crumbs off our table with a knife to make it seem like a high brow experience but it didn't compensate for the rest.
The food  was nothing to get excited about.  The kitchen substitutes excessive salt and pepper for proper ingredients and taste.  I had the crispy chicken and mashed potatoes ($26).  The chicken had so much salt/pepper fried into it that I had to remove the skin, after which I found the meat dry.  The mashed potatoes were decent.  We also had truffle frites, which would have been amazing if they hadn't over cooked them.
The one high point, the bread was amazing as long as you can get through the nearly frozen butter.
If you want  to spend this kind of money, go to John Howie, you'll be happier and better taken care of.  This place will get a better review from me when they reduce prices by about 35%.
We've loved this restaurant for many years, but recently took about a yearlong break from them. When I heard they'd made a few changes to their menu, I knew it was time for us to go back.
Oh wow. Â There are just a few tweaks, but wow, we were happy. Â We had the potato crusted goat cheese appetizer, served with bread and assorted tapenades. Â I'm gluten free (GF) so just stuck to the cheese as I hadn't inquired about the crust. Â I also had the house salad, which was delicious. Â In all my years eating at Bis, I can honestly tell you they've never served me bad greens. (You know the types of restaurants I'm talking about!)
My husband plunged into an updated duck main course - Maple Leaf Duck. Â He was extremely happy with it. Â Cooked perfectly, tender, not fatty, with sweet cherries, spaetzle and something they call a confit crepinette. Â He loved it.
I went with the grilled salmon special, and it was perfect. Â It was a tough choice between that and the crispy garlic chicken - next visit:)
As always, the cocktails are unique, delicious and potent. Â There was not enough room for dessert, although we've been known to get it to go.
A GF tip: Â talk with the waiter or waitress. Â They are very knowledgeable there about it, and no matter how busy will check with the chef to verify if something is GF or not. Â I've never ordered GF food here and had it come out not GF. Â That's something I really respect, and definitely appreciate.
Besides all the oysters I ate, this was actually my favorite meal on my recent trip to Seattle. That crispy garlic chicken...I still think about it every so often. *drools*
We made a 9pm reservation on a Saturday night. The restaurant was pretty empty, only about 3 other tables besides us. This review is for dinner even though I heard that Happy Hour is a great deal/option during that time too.
First, there is valet parking conveniently behind the restaurant. Then walk up the stairs and enter from the back. My friend ordered the duck confit and said it was very well prepared. However I think my crispy garlic chicken was still the winner. It was literally an entire half chicken (breast, wing, thigh) fried crispy with garlic over a bed of mashed potatoes and asparagus. Only $26! It was so delicious and I wanted to keep eating but my stomach couldn't power through. And then the dessert menu came and my stomach redeemed itself, "Ok let's do this! You're on vacation!" We ordered the chocolate souffle and creme brûlée. Both were to die for! And again...extremely large! How does this restaurant make any money selling us such large portions?! The chocolate souffle had a warm sauce on the inside and everything executed well with the vanilla ice cream topping. The creme brûlée was creamy and the sugar top was crisp and yummy.
The meal was good and the whole experience was even better since the service was great. Our waiter was very knowledgeable, funny, and attentive. He made great recommendations and checked in on us just enough.
Now that I'm back in San Jose, I reminisce about my meal at Bis on Main. How do we get that crispy garlic chicken out to California?!
Came here for the first time. Â Was expecting a totally different experience. Â Our wait staff was very nice. Â We had a drink each and they were fine. Â Nothing to write home about. Â We then ordered the fish and chips.....Fish was quite good if not barely warm....chips were cold but tasty. Â Ordered creme brulee for dessert and found it over burnt on the top and liquified underneath. Â When asked if that was normal we were told that is how it is served. Â We paid and left. Â I will consider checking back in a month or 2 to see if it was just an off night. Â Dissappointed.
Review Source:I don't know how to say this differently than so many before me, but you need to try their crispy chicken! This is not a suggestion, this is a command. You don't even know how good poultry can be until you try this heavenly dish. Just be sure you're really, truly hungry since it's huge.
Review Source:Quite possibly the best meal I've had in the Seattle area in 10 years. I had gone to Bis for lunch a number of times, but we selected Bis for dinner on a lark. The food, the wine list and the service were impeccable. MFI and I had the seafood specials - both expertly prepared, We enjoyed a Willamette Roco Pinot Noir with dinner, and the mousse assortment for dessert. We can't recommend Bis highly enough.
Review Source:Amazing food and the owner is funny, but watch out; he may be seating you. Â We were an out of town party of four that didn't know to make reservations. Â Thankfully through some dry satirical banter with the man at the front, we were seated. Â As it turns out, it was the owner that was jabbing us about how bad the restaurant reviews were and consequently how bad critics are. Â The reviews are awesome and for good reason as is this critique. Â The food was amazing. Â It's been too long ago for me to remember the details, but I keep thinking back to that meal. Â Something inside me tells me it was the best meal I've had in a long time and one that will not shortly be topped. Â It's a shame I live in NJ. Â Bis on Main, I miss you.
Review Source:Upscale fare, you'll find at Bis,
(with matching atmosphere and price).
I had halibut, my friends salmon and steak.
All of our entrees were nice.
My only complaints: House salad; Too plain,
It didn't impress me much.
And service was attentive, but overly so.
Which made the meal seem rushed.
Great food. Really, delicious food. Our server was great. The main problem? The surly white-haired maitre d', whose comment - "It's a dinner, not a career!" - was uttered on one of several trips where he stomped past our table. Whether directed at us or not, it was completely unprofessional and discourteous, to say the least. Funny in a sitcom, not funny in real life. This was one of several comments he made "under his breath" while passing our table.
Look, if I'm going to pay $400 for two people to have dinner, I don't think an hour and a half is an unreasonable amount of time to spend savoring it.
So - enjoy the food, beware the host.
Held a Birthday party for a friend there. Even though we had a large group (~15 people), the service was really professional.
About the food, the maple leaf duck, crispy chicken, prawn and also the special salmon of the day were all really good, but the crabcake was a little over fried, I could still feel the driness of the fried layer after eating it for one hour.
Took my wife here for Valentines Day dinner, which was excellent. Â The restaurant was as busy as I've ever seen it for obvious reasons. Â We were seated in the bar at our reservation time. Â There was a special menu for Valentines Day and my wife ordered artichoke pasta with Maine lobster - this was not a tail, but rather several chunks of lobster that surrounded the pasta. Â I had a pheasant leg/breast that was stuffed with spinach and both entrees were delicious. Â We also shared a wonderfully dressed ceasar salad. Â
Considering that the waiters were slammed due to the packed restaurant they did an admiral job and we have no complaints regarding the service. Â The wait times were a little long, but quite understandable and not at all unreasonable.
The total bill including time came to $199, which included a half bottle of Pinot and two martinis. Â Not inexpensive, but certainly a good value due to the quality of the food offered. Â We will be returning again in the future.
Bis on Main. Â A welcome alternative to the decidedly paternal & virile corporate restaurants in DT Bellevue. Â Good date place according to the math running Yelp!
Food is very good. Â Their braised pork shank can't be missed. Â Halibut was buttery beyond belief. Â The legendary fries are great for the first 5 minutes, but get pretty flaccid and soggy quickly (and contrary to other reviews, the fries are not exclusively available at the bar). Â Wine list did very little for me (so bad I actually skipped wine). Â And pricing on wine is stupid expensive, for what you get.
Service had some attitude. Â Not sure why. Â We were nice.
Ambiance, very noisy and rather cramped.  Shared booth arrangement (not sure the official name for such) means people are kinda crawling all over you to get in and out of their seats.  Plus the place has a totally deficient amount of coat storage.  Meaning  you have piles of fake fir and tanned leather surrounding your seats.  Yeah, some might call it quaint.  I call it uncomfortably cramped. Â
(food is good) + (wine too expensive and rather botring) + (service a little disappointing) + (quarters overy compressed) = 3 stars
DELICIOUS! We went there for my husband's birthday last night.
My husband had their Dry-rub NY Steak, I had the garlic crispy chicken. Both are delicious and portions are generous. We left the restaurant absolutely STUFFED!
The service was attentive, our water glass was never empty. The waiter was nice and even brought out candles when he noticed the birthday card. (We didn't tell them it was for a birthday).
We are a fan of this place!
I felt that for a high end restaurant, the dinner menu was very boring:
Grilled Shrimp, 2 Steaks, Braised Pork Shank, Rigatoni, Chicken. Â I expect so much more, do better than what I make at home. Plus the $49 steak was not as good as Daniels and Howies right up the road. Â Boring ambiance, reminded me of a retirement home. I will say the food wasn't bad, just average, not exciting, not a lot of flavor. Â For the price, go elsewhere. Â If you want to mingle with a 50+ year old crowd at the bar this might be your place.
Our family has been dining at Biz for years.  Although the food continues to impress, we were SO disappointed in the service tonight.  Our server never introduced himself, threw our plates down,  brought us our glasses of wine sporadically, and never offered a second one.  Lots of lost opportunity to sell us more wine.  Would have liked the chance to order another to go with our entree's, but they were pre- occupied.  Plan on way better service at Starbucks. Nothing flowed, timing was all off, and the servers were loud talking between themselves.... But not to us.  The maitre'd ... The least attentive I've ever  seen. Cold as could be.  We hope management  wakes up and brings back the warm and friendly service that made Biz the restaurant we used to love.  Doubt we'll be back.
Review Source:I went to Bis for the first time recently with my mom and sister for a birthday, and it was divine. Two words: saffron risotto. I'll be thinking about that dish until I can make it back some day, preferably with someone willing to treat me to dinner again. :)
We also shared the cheese plate, which was small and sporting insufficient crackers; my mom and sister both had the duck, which they enjoyed. But all of that pales in comparison to the risotto. Don't just take my word for it.
I've been here for happy hour as well as dinner. Â
I love that the main courses remain the same but each time you go depending on what is fresh... you'll get a different side and the meat is prepared differently every time. Â Love that! Â The food is delicious, but it's not an inexpensive meal. Â I'm not usually a fan of French cuisine. Â I find it too rich, heavy and lacking in flavor. Â Bis on Main does not serve bland dishes.
The brussel sprouts were the best I've ever had in my life! Â OMG - cooked with honey and some nuts and bacon. Â Holy yes. Â I could have had that alone for dinner and I would have been a happy girl.
Beef bolognese was incredible! Â
Salmon special was probably the best I've ever had... so many layers of flavors with an apple pure, mashed potatoes, some crunch on top and something else (forget). Â Delicious.
Our server was quite knowledgable and described the specials for the evening to the T. Â
There's free valet in the back.
Case of the "not so happy" hour.
4 star food with 3 star prices. Â Tight lipped server. Â
What do I mean? Â In search of happy hour, I saw Bis on Main about 5:30 p.m. in the evening. Â The menu, prominently displayed on the table for happy hour looked good (no times for happy hour posted on it so I assumed the standard 4-6PM every place in Bellevue does) so with the server taking my order I said "hmmm, the happy hour menu looks good at the right price, I think I will order from there." Â Made my order for kobe sliders, Ceasar salad, Manila clams, plus crabcakes - all with no comment from the server on whether or not it is happy hour. Â
After enjoying my meal, my hair stood up on its end looking at the bill - happy hour is 9 PM and after only. Â Crapola, I had to pay full price. Â Please guys, read the fine print in the menu or ask the server first before ordering (server didn't bother to tell me it wasn't happy hour time). Â I ended up paying $20 more for my meal (33% more than I had anticipated). Â My happy hour wasn't so happy after all.
Had steak frites and split pea soup. Soup was a little bland. Steak was cooked correctly. However the ju was a little too runny for my taste. The fries were tasty but a little too greasy. Service was appropriate.
Had steak frites and split pea soup. Soup was a little bland. Steak was cooked correctly. However the ju was a little too runny for my taste. The fries were tasty but a little too greasy. Service was appropriate.
Wife and I had dinner based on the high Yelp ratings. Â Nothing terrible, but food and service were consistently mediocre--well below our expectations based on both the reviews and the prices. Â We won't be back. Â (My wife has had lunch here in the past, once, with similar experience.)
FOOD: Â 2.0. Â Every bite was disappointing. Â No "Wow!"'s.
- For main dish I had cassoulet. 1.0. Â I had outstanding, reasonably-priced cassoulet at a Parisian restaurant the previous month, so was looking forward to a repeat when I ordered the same dish at Bis on Main. Â
Deeply disappointed. The dish here was a bland mix of beans and meats with unpleasant textures. Â Meats (duck, bacon, Italian sausage) were all rather chewy, with little difference in taste.
- My wife had the halibut special and rated it a 3.0.
- We shared Brussel sprouts. 2.0. Â
- Baby Greens salad. Â 2.5.
- Cheese plate. 3.0. Â A hard cow, a soft sheep, and a soft goat. Â The fig jelly was nice.
- Dessert--we decided against trying dessert.
DRINKS: Â 2.5. Â Glasses of red wine were good. Â Also shared a glass of the most expensive port--not worth it; contained much in the way of fruit skin.
SERVICE: Â 3.0. Â We generally prefer older wait staff because they invariably offer excellent advice based on their experience with customers and the food. Â The waiter was grey-haired--a good sign. Â But he didn't seem familiar with the food or port.
AMBIANCE: Â 3.0. Â Clean, with white tablecloths. Â A bit loud, but tolerable.
Let me first start off by saying how a tad bit confused I was about their valet parking! I think that a sign may be helpful about the complimentary valet. I was just thrown off, especially when I noticed a few other cars right behind mine - a bit rushed is all. But nonetheless, I think its really awesome how valet parking is available!
I enjoyed my experience here. It was a Friday, rainy night and the place was packed! At first, we (4) were told that the wait might be a while... But then we were seated about 15 minutes in! Our server was very pleasant. Let's just say that our bread plate was never empty. I ordered the Crispy Garlic Chicken. Its something that I would recommend for chicken lovers. The pieces were huge and very thick. It wasn't dry and the seasoning was amazing. My boyfriend ordered the Maple Leaf Duck and after a bite of it, I never knew how good duck could be. The sauce was very sweet which I really liked.
The only downside was the chicken taking about half an hour but the nice thing was that our server told us beforehand. Thank goodness for the bread.
I'd like to return here for happy hour next time.
Love Bis on Main for their reverse happy hour! Â Happy hour starts at 9pm (Monday-Saturday). Â In addition to the actual bar/lounge, there's some table seating as well. Â I've had all the items below, which are all good bar bites. Â These are my favs - truffle fries, ahi tuna poke (LOVE it, 2 orders please!), and the Manila Clams. Â And a glass, or two, of the riesling! Â Great place to meet up with friends or to have a late snack. Â
Regular Price / Happy Hour Price
Kobe Beef Sliders (2) : Bleu cheese aioli, caramelized onion, tomato, frites. $8 / $5
Ahi Tuna Poke : Wontons, mixed greens. $11 / $7
Potato Gnocchi : Oven dried tomatoes, pine nuts, pesto & Grana Padana. $14.50 /$9
Manila Clams : Concasse tomatoes, soprasata & lemon herb wine broth. $16 / $11
House Cured Salmon Gravlax : Potato pancake, dill crème fraiche. $12 / $7
Truffled Pommes Frites : Bleu cheese aioli . $6 / $4
Fish Tacos (2) : Fresh fish w/ pico de gallo & avocado crème fraiche. $9/ $5.50
I wasn't fond of their new item, grilled duck liver. Â It was gamey tasting and dry. Â :( Â It doesn't look like it's on the menu anymore.
Based on the great Yelp! reviews, we decided to try Bis on Main for dinner last night. I was very curious about the happy hour too (the bar menu looks great and seems to have a lot more options than most other HH menus) but we thought it best to try Bis for dinner first. We're always visiting Ginza across the street (fantastic sushi!) and I had never even realized that Bis on Main was tucked away there too.
* The complimentary valet parking at the back of the restaurant is a great touch. Sure, parking on Main is that tricky as there are plenty of side streets etc, but it's still nice to just show up and not think about the parking situation.
* My first impression of the restaurant was that it looked nice and seemed to have a good ambiance. The lighting is intimate, with illuminated art on the walls (local artists paintings) helping to add a touch of warmth. We had a reservation for 9pm and we were greeted politely and sat immediately.
* My wife and I both had starters (House Cured Salmon Gravlax and Baby Greens Salad) which were good and quite generous. The Salmon Gravlax was particularly tasty and is something that we would order again. We actually felt quite full after just the starters and were hoping that the main course would not be too much food...
* For main, my wife had the Rabbit & Mushroom Ravioli and I had the Crispy Garlic Chicken (based entirely on all of the rave reviews on Yelp!). The Rabbit dish was nice and quite rich, but not very generous with the rabbit meat. It seemed more like they treated it as a novelty that the dish contained rabbit, as opposed to rabbit being the star of the dish. My crispy garlic chicken was very pleasant and seasoned to perfection (it was also extremely generous and there was no way I could finish the dish by myself).
* We were both so full after the main course and starters that we couldn't fit in dessert. Maybe next time :) I had a coffee to end the meal, but it was pretty standard drip coffee.
* The service throughout the meal was spot on. Water glasses were always topped up, wine was poured for us whenever a glass was below the half-way mark, food was brought to the table promptly, and plates were cleared efficiently.
We both agreed that we would return to Bis on Main again (and definitely to try their happy hour).
This is one of the most pleasant dining experiences I have had yet!
Our waiter for very professional, you know you're in a classy restaurant, however he was also personable and friendly! When I joked about him singing 'happy birthday' because he had mentioned the restaurant does not do it, he did in a soft, audible tone in the style of Frank Sinatra!
The food was good-- brussels sprouts never tasted so good! It is a side dish, prepared with walnuts, and honey truffle oil.
We had wine by the glass. Both the Sauvignon Blanc and the Pinot Noir were excellent.
This is one of the few French restaurants in the area-- and I am so very thankful it is good!
The restaurant is brightly lit in some areas below their ceiling/roof windows. Ambiance is bright, and intimate. Easy to have an in-depth conversation.
Looking forward to eating here again!
My new favorites HH in town. Why? Because they actually serve entree foods instead of fried appetizers. The $14 steak frites is very generous in portion and very delicious. The kobe sliders with fries for $5.50 are also to die for. Other HH menu items are OK, I didn't really like the duck confit or the fish tacos.
The best thing here is the truffle fries. They are so amazing and comes with with both the sliders and steak. Best truffle fries ever, and I will keep going back for them.
The food is amazing, but what I really love about Bis on Main is how it feels like it's your place. Â :-) Â It takes a very special team to make people feel at home and comfortable in an establishment. Â
Whenever I walk in I'm always greeted, the owner is very good at making you feel good, but you can see and tell that he treats his employees well also, so in turn they treat us (his customers) with care and provide excellent service. Â They are happy, having fun with their customers and each other. Â It's a pleasure to visit Bis on Main, because the food is delectable, however it's an "experience" because the people and the atmosphere is one of a kind, you feel at home :-)
I have frequented Bis for short visits usually involving delectable appetizers and drinks while meeting friends in the bar, but never, have I had the honors of dining in this fine establishment for dinner... until last week.
I came here for a company party and we were seated in a private room with a fireplace and servers walking around with trays of stuffed tomatoes, spanakopita, prawns and several other tasty bites. Joe the owner checked on us ever so diligently and delighted us with his charming charisma and great sense of humor. Â
I can assure you, we're a tough crowd to please with numerous foodies and let's just say finer palettes and gastronomically demanding personalities in our company. I truly mean this in the best possible way, and no, I do not include myself as part of that either.
Take away the fact we had amazing service in a finer setting, the dinner we experienced earned this place 5 stars alone. This experience in my book, could not have been any better... it just couldn't have.
Although everything was great up until the point we were seated for dinner, my husband and I were a bit concerned about what we would be eating this evening, being the only two vegetarians in our group of close to 45 others. We were thrilled to find the prefixed menu created for our party had a vegetarian option on it and oh, how I loved that. So, we both ordered the mozzarella, tomato and basil salad for starters, the lentil, carrots, garlic, onions, and blasted cauliflower entrée for dinner, and polished our meal off with a ginger berry sorbet and the molten chocolate cake.
Heaven awaited me with open arms after this incredibly wonderful meal. If it was my time to go, you'd get zero complaints out of me after that meal... :)
Thank goodness we left the party with a Bis on Main cook book signed by Joe himself, which is several hundred pages and worth every penny because it actually included many of the items I still can't stop thinking about 6 days later. Â
Everyone clearly enjoyed themselves and the party at Bis was a total success.
So, Bis on Main is in fact the BEST on Main. This is absolutely a new favorite of ours and we cannot wait to return for another wonderful dinner on our own here.
I came here for a work party. We made reservations and were taken straight to our table as we came in in groups of 3 or so (carpooled). The waiter was attentive and fun and very good-natured. He was great at recommending dishes and when he heard it was a work party, he took one of the little Christmas standing ornaments off of the mantle and put it in the middle of table. Cute, really.
The bread they have is delicious. It's some kind of rustic bread with a nice thick crust and fluffy middle. Most of us had the creamed potato and leek soup, that came with a dollop of truffle oil - delicious! I normally don't like this kind of soup, but I loved this one.
For an entree, I had the seasonal grilled King Salmon over fall vegetables in a beurre rouge. Whatever they put in the beurre rouge is almost to die for. I'll put it this way, there were Brussels sprouts in the fall vegetable mix and dipped in the sauce, they were heavenly. How often can you say that about Brussels sprouts?
Some of my companions had a prawn dish but weren't terribly happy, saying that the rice was undercooked. One other person ordered the pasta bolognese, but said the pasta was undercooked and the sauce wasn't blended well enough into the dish.
I was very pleased with my food. My only complaint is that the prices are sky high. I would NEVER come here on my own if it weren't on the company dime.
Ah, one thing to add. There is free valet parking behind the restaurant. Yay!
Almost all local people have rated this place so far. If you want an honest review from an outsider, READ ON...
This was the third time to this restaurant because a couple people proclaimed the service and food had improved in the last year. It hasn't! Â We moved here last year from the East and have been sampling all the "best" restaurants in the area. This is not one of them.
SUMMARY:
Bis-on-Main is an overpriced, insipid, restaurant missing any type of exciting food. The only thing that gives this place any character is the fact that its location is down in Old Downtown Bellevue. The décor is even lacking causing the ambience to feel cold and dry. They attempted to fix this by adding colorful abstract art on the walls and fake candles on the tables.
REVIEW:
The hostess was a snob placing my wife, on her birthday, my son, and I in the cornerback of the restaurant even though there were plenty of nice tables in in the main dining room. It was apparent that was where she put "outcasts" because the next group she sat there was a couple who was dressed down with one wearing sweat pants. Â This was after three phone calls to confirm my reservation and a "special table" with no call back.
[Side note(s) We were dressed in a suit and dress. Also, they knew it was my wife's birthday, but didn't say anything to her until they handed us the check... Nice!]
- Hors d'oeuvre
The meal started with hors d'oeuvre of Sweet Breads. If you don't know what that is, don't look it up, but either way normally they are very tasty. The Bis On Main's were flour dusted and fried until they were too dry to eat. The chanterelle mushrooms and onions with sweet wine aided the dish from being unbearable. The other hors d'oeuvre was their "French" rendition of an Italian Insalata Caprese ( which is a simple salad from the Italian region of Campania, made of sliced fresh buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes and basil). It was a $12 of nothing. The mozzarella was skin and small, the tomatoes were butchered and bitter, and the basil was julienned and scattered all over place. What made it worse was the fact it was swimming in oil that wasn't even extra-virgin olive oil.
- Entrée
For the main entrées were their Half Roasted Duck and Butternut Squash Risotto. The Duck was REALLY dry and overcooked. It was sitting in its own juice which they called a "Saba Glaze"... yahhh, not so much. The 5 spice rub on the skin was good, which I ate, but the meat was tasteless. It was NOT worth the $30 dollars they charged for it The Risotto was not bad at all, but the squash wasn't cooked enough and it needed more salt. It DEFINITELY wasn't worth $20 they charged for it.
- Dessert
The desserts looked amazing on the menu, but didn't partake in them because the bill was already $150 and didn't enjoy any of it
CONCLUSION: (Final Thoughts)
Skip it!
Spend your good earned money somewhere else that will satisfy your taste buds and your romantic ambiance needs. We spend $150 and left unsatisfied and annoyed. It seems people eat here because it is expensive and not because the food and service is good. There was mostly business people eating here during out dining.
Since we are new to the area, we don't know enough people to watch our child. He is well behaved, so we bring him everywhere. He didn't make a peep the whole time. The worst part was they didn't even have a good booster seat for him. Poor kid!
You are better off trying another place!
worst service ever in  for fine dining.
If it was a dive bar, then I wouldn't care about service, but come on. Is this fancy place to go out?
I went to there for late happy hour. no greeting for 5min. Guy just pointed out table and said "menu is on the table" ,but there wasnt a menu to be found!
my server wanted go home so bad, I know this was Thanksgiving eve, but hello you guys are still open!!!!!!!!
Food was OK, Truffle fry was the best dish. I enjoyed it so much.
I can honestly say best truffle fry in town.
The Ahi poke tasted like the inside of cheap spicy tuna roll.
it was so mushy, if you say poke(hawaian cuisine), it has to be a sliced fish.
its comes with deep fry wanton skin,and pre mixed salad.
Cheese plate was ordinary.and the sliders was ordinary too.
Great deal for HH wine ($3off)
Service made me so mad, and I will never come back.
50 years oldish bad server with pink tie!!!!gahhhhh
So the most recent object of my attention was no. 69 on the Seattle Foodie 100 Challenge; the steak frites at Bis on Main. Â This list supposedly lists the 100 best dishes in town, and to this point it has been spot-on. Â In this particular instance?
.....It's a trap!
Bis on Main is a cute little place located in old town Bellevue, nestled in between some little boutique stores. Â There's a parking attendant on duty, but nobody drives the Deathstar but me, so I self-parked. Â The interior was clean and cozy, if a little dark. Â The general decor is one I would label as your typical white-linen setup that you find at any French bistro trying to give off the elegant vibe. Â
Seating was prompt, although the host failed to take my cape and darted off without answering a question I had. Â When the menus arrived, there was one glaring omission: Â The steak frites. Â When I inquired about this, I was told "Oh, those are on the bar menu, you'll have to sit over there to get them". Â To which I responded with "But I'm not in the bar, I'm over here. Â I'm already sitting over here. Â Do you have any idea how much of a pain in the rear end it is to get comfortable in this getup?", but they would not budge. Â Clearly, Bis discriminates against the Empire by forcing us into sitting in a different section of the restaurant.
I was going to Force Choke everybody in the building, but my therapist tells me that I need to learn to let things go if I'm ever to get over my obsession with enslaving the galaxy. Â Whatever. Â I went ahead and deferred to his advice anyways, and went to the bar section.
The bar is....interesting. Â It was full of people trying way too hard to be pretentious and more sophisticated than they were. Â For a while, I honestly thought that Frasier Crane had some plastic surgery to hide his face, and was sitting next to me, judging from the commentary he was making about the wine he was trying. Â Meanwhile, the restaurant section I started off in was quiet as could be. Â If these people are indicative of the citizens of the Empire, it's no wonder so many people join the Rebellion. Â
So the food finally arrives, and I'm ready to scarf it down and get the heck out of there before Niles comes in and starts arguing about the quality of the Pinot with his brother. Â My immediate thought was "What's the big deal? Â This is one of the best dishes in town?"
It's nothing but a slab of hanger steak with some french fries. Â A poorly cooked hanger steak, at that. Â It was cooked medium rare per my order, but it was excessively charred and leathery. Â It takes skill to properly cook a hanger steak so that it's not tough, and they didn't do it. Â It was also served with some oversteamed and limp broccoli. Â Granted, the "frites" were tasty with whatever they were sprinkled with, and the ketchup provided was indeed tasty, but one can't help but feel they're paying 4 dollars to have them called "frites" instead of "fries". Â I've never paid 4 dollars for a 't' before. Â The aioli was forgettable. Â I'd go into detail as to why, but I forget what I was going to say about it.
The bill came out, and I was surprised to find that I was charged the full 19 dollars instead of the happy hour price. Â It was 5:30 when I went in there. Â Upon inquiring, I learned that their happy hour didn't start until 9 pm. Â Who the hell considers 9 pm Happy Hour? Â 9 pm is when the best shows are on! Â Hell, the Stormtroopers have a 10pm curfew, for crying out loud. Â And what was up with charging me 12.50 for a simple mixed drink? Â It was well made, but come on - it was vodka and cranberry with a twist of lime. Â We're not talking light-drive mechanics.
I am going to generously give Bis 3 Deathstars on the strength of the decor and the  fries...I'm sorry, "frites", but only because I'm feeling especially generous this evening.  This dish certainly does not belong on the Foodie 100, and I found it to be grossly overpriced.
My boyfriend took me here for our six monthaversary and it was absolutely an incredible night. Bis was great too, but not quite up to five stars. I'm not an incredibly fancy person so this is a bit out of my comfort zone, but in spite of that fact I had a really good time.
We had the cheese platter as an appetizer, which was yummy -- but it's hard to go wrong with cheese, as you all know.
Entrees? Boyfriend had the salmon special, which was tasty and had really delicious skin, as all salmon should, as far as I'm concerned. I had the duck risotto... in contrast to Jenni L.'s risotto, mine seemed undercooked. It was still flavorful but considering I had eaten duck that day at Kau Kau BBQ for lunch and gotten way more duck paying for the $5 lunch special than I did in my $21 plate of risotto? Well, it's a good thing I wasn't footing the bill.
Dessert, however, was magnificent. I wish we could have just eaten dessert, and lots of it. We had a lemon berry tart with mint, and it was absolutely to die for. I nommed that stuff up as fast as possible. I normally give bf the last bite, but I actually fought for the last bite this time. It was worth the struggle.
One last thing... when we ordered our entrees, my boyfriend ordered a glass of wine to come with his dinner... it never came, but we were never charged for it. I'm doing my best to abstain from alcohol so he didn't push to get the glass of wine out of respect for me. Servicewise, that was the only flaw we experienced that night.
Seeing as this was a special event dinner... I hope if I return it's for happy hour ;) But I wouldn't object to coming back.
I wouldn't come here again..
We came for an anniversary / birthday, and were not greeted right away..
Eventually, we were seated and we ordered some wine.
Waiter comes back to order food. I decided on the lamb..
Waiter brings the food, and asks if we need anything else. "Yes, the wine please." "Oh, right sir."
Damn, this lamb is great, but I could really use that wine..
The meal portions were too small for my appetite, and apparently my dates as well.
We get the wine halfway through the meal, and while finishing we have a fun chat about how hungry we were, and where to go after this.
We get the check, and end up paying $100 for 2 small plates, and 2 late glasses of wine. Both of which were not to die for.
So we decided to go out and get a better meal afterward.
I went with a party of 4 and did a partial HH. I loved the food, the ambiance and the staff was honest AND friendly..imagine that. OMG the drink that I had was fabulous but can't remember the damn name...but I think it was a silk teddy or something. Totally worth it.
We had the gourmet cheese plate, red beet risotto (SO good and I generally don't like beets), kobe sliders w/ truffled pomme frites (yummy!). I definitely recommend and can't wait to go back!
This was a sweet introduction to Main Street dining in Bellevue. Â For me, it was also an introduction to French cuisine. Â Tonight was a spur-of-the moment suggestion by Penny. Â Otherwise, I would have been on a jog on the Burke-Gilman Trail between the U-District and Ballard. Â Evil Penny! Â
Dinner reservations are recommended.
We were warmly greeted by both the maitre d' and our waiter. Our waiter was cheerful, enthusiastic and provided flawless service. Â We were seated at a table with a view of some great wall art - I was across from some colorful Impressionist reproductions.
Of course, we commenced our meal with martinis. Â Made with Tangeray, a splash of Cointreau, and served very cold with a twist, they turned out superb. Â I mean superb!
We were served complimentary warm bread and butter. Â The bread was very good. Â The best way I have to describe it is "homemade", or at least it was like what my Grandma used to make.
Instead of beginning with soup or a salad, which we could have had, we started with two sides: pomme frites and brussel sprouts. Â The "pomme frites" turned out to be French Fries. Â Served a la Dick's style (not a bad thing) they came with ketchup and this compelling garlic dipping sauce. Â The amount of fries provided was huge, definitely enough for two people.
But even better were the carmelized brussel sprouts, served with bits of prosciutto, then topped with candied (but not over-candied) walnuts and truffle oil. Â I definitely recommend this dish!
We went with the rack of lamb and the salmon. Â The rack of lamb was good. Â It came with a delicious au-jus-like sauce, brocollini and a thick square of layered celery root and parsnip. Â The lamb flavor was pungent, perhaps even a bit muttony. Â It's spices were very low-key. Â The celery root was a new flavor to me and likeable (but not necessarily loveable).
The square of tender King Salmon came with a fabulous beurre blanc sauce and was served with roasted potatoes and two different kinds of mushrooms. Â This dish was delicious having a great balance of flavors and textures.
For dessert, we opted for the orange-blueberry sorbet and the chocolate soufflé. The sorbet (three huge scoops, mind you!) was a nice combination of flavors.  Served with a biscotti.
This was my first soufflé, so I didn't know what to expect.  I thought it was going to be something like a cross between a croissant and a crepe.  Boy, was I off!  It was like a brownie with a very moist inside and served piping hot with vanilla ice cream.  This soufflé was divine.  I highly, highly recommend it!!  I also recommend the Taylor 20-year port that I ordered to go with dessert.
So Penny forgot her debit card tonight and I had to pick up the meal, but with the promise that now she has to treat me to dinner at El Gaucho. Â That I am looking forward to!
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