1st star lost First time I get refused a glass o...

1st star lost First time I get refused a glass of water in a restaurant..

I ordered my food and drink, and as I was coughing badly, I asked: "Please, could you bring me a glass of water too?".

Then, I got kindly offered to choose between a $6 small bottle or a $10 large bottle of water. Never saw that before.

I know it sounds like a detail for most of those who will read this review, but being refused a simple glass of water in a place where I am going to spend $50+ for a lunch usually gives me the worst first impression.

The reason they gave me when I insisted a bit was: "It's because the tap water isn't drinkable." Never heard such an excuse after 2 years living in Bali and eating in the simplest warung to the fanciest restaurants.

Besides that, they offered to bring me twice free crackers, which cost more than a simple glass of water...

2nd star lost Quality of the food.

I ordered the beef rendang and was really excited as this is one of my favorite Indonesian food.

But what is traditionally supposed to be sirloin/ribs type of meat served with a sort of dry curry came in my plate as fatty beef chick with way too much sauce to be called a rendang.

And the flavor was far from the complexe and tasty aromates of beef rendang.

When the chef came to talk to me and I mentioned, he simply replied that those was the standards of Four Seasons, and apologized.

-- Side story --

I called them before coming and explained I wanted to review the place on my personal Instagram (@thomasdespin) and on Google.

I asked if I would be allowed to fly my drone to shoot the beautiful Lotus Pond they have as a rooftop in the entrance.

They to me that we could talk about it when I arrive, which turned out in a single sided talk from the staff not even asking me any details and saying flying drones was forbidden for outsiders and guests.

After hanging out and asking different manager, I actually learnt that there is a service to contact for this that gives the permissions to fly it or not.

Seems pretty hard to get accurate informations even from managers for such a high standard Resort Brand.

CONCLUSION

Please, do NOT refrain yourself from going there. The place itself is gorgeous even if it looks fairly old now.

The staff is welcoming and even though itms hard to communicate properly with some of them (I had so speak Bahasa Indonesia at some point to facilitate the communication), they are really doing their best to provide the best experience to the guests.

If you go there to enjoy the restaurant, I obviously don't recommend the Beef Rendang, but please note that you will also have free access to their swimming pool.

As from my experience, I feel that the place is slightly hyped and overrated, but I will assume I had an isolate case of average experience there.

The place is still totally worth visiting and you will mostly have a great experience there.

If you thought my review was helpful, don't hesitate to like it, and if you want to see more pictures of the places I explore, feel free to check my Instagram @thomasdespin