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Amazing food, wine and service. The Herb Farm was on my 'bucket list' for years, and I should not have waited so long! This was one amazing experience, from the exquisite service on all fronts, to the truly creative use of flavors, seasonings, focus of the 'theme' (this one was mushrooms & worth waiting for), and fantastic wines. We loved the back and forth insights into the pairings done by Bruce, the Sommelier, and Chris the head chef - who knows a stunning amount about food for his age. The hosts gave a fun intro about the herbs, passing them around to smell and/or taste, getting our taste buds ready for the wonderful meal. Loved the whole evening! Will return for sure and bring people who "get" great food and wine.…
Most memorable dining experience. My girlfriend and I left our husbands at home as they would not have appreciated this indulgence. We drove up from Portland and made a weekend of it. It is an all evening food lovers indulgence and it felt like I was in a dream. This is not a place for those who want giant platters of average food, but you will find quality ingredients, to include hard to find items (locally harvested saffron) and amazingly thought out menus. The sommelier, Bruce, provided stunning facts about the wines poured and our glasses were always full. There was also an opportunity to sample other wine flights and I splurged on fabulous Krug Grand Cuvee. The Herbfarm is an experience, a destination, a food lover's dream. It is not an "in and out" big platter place, but then that is not what I was after either. I prefer the intricate details and the impressive quality of the ingredients they use. I have already decided that I will return and treat myself to this one of a kind place again.…
Like Being Held Hostage for Over 5 Hours. My wife and I visited the Herbfarm with high expectations. Unfortunately, the experience was off putting from the moment we arrived. The food was mediocre at best. Courses are served on small dishes meant to showcase the fresh herbs grown at the "farm," which is really nothing more than a plot in front of the hotel. Overall the dishes served are one dimensional and almost flavorless. Most maddeningly, however, is the skimpiness of the wine service. Each course is served with a ridiculously small pour which is far too small to cover the excruciatingly slow service and inexplicably long intervals between courses. Consequently, most of the evening was spent making awkward conversation with strangers, wishing the evening would move along and having nothing but water to drink. The staff seems to feel that the evening is so stupendous that you won't mind a few hundred dollars in service charges or being at the table for hours on end with no wine or food. My wife finally left to go back to our room at midnight and it was about another 45 minutes until I was able to escape. Bear in mind we started the evening about 6:45pm. Do not bother as better food is available all over Woodinville for a fraction of the price and with none of the silly pretension. Please understand that my wife and I are pretty serious foodies and have eaten at some of the best restaurants in Europe and North America. The bill is usually not an issue when we dine, but when the lasting memories of the evening are of frustration and pain, the $300+/head we paid when all was settled up was simply outrageous.…
Not Recommended - Average Food Outrageously Priced - Tourist Dining. My wife and I recently visited Seattle for our 25 Anniversary. After some research we decided to spend an evening at the Herb Farm. This was a major disappointment in nearly all respects. If it had not been such an important evening and so rediculously priced it would have been worthy of a "Stienfeld" espisode. The wines selected for the evening where below average, the presentation at the beginning of the dinner of each individual staff's resume was over the top and foolish, the attitude was poor. There was a sense that we should truely be honored to be in their presence. Very odd. The ingrediants were okay, presentation fair, overall dinner a major disappointment. I would agree with an earlier writer that this is not a European three star or one star experience. And yes, as stated in another review, dessert was ... wow - nonexistent. In the end we faced the same hidden charges - corkage eventhough we did not bring our own wine, mandatory gratuity, service charges etc. I cannot in good conscience ever recommed this restaurant.…
not worthy of their attitude. The Herbfarm has a quite high opinion of itself, and unfortunately, it is not deserved. The food did not live up to expectations, or price. The food was mediocre- only the mussels were well prepared. In fact, soem dishes were inedible- main course of very bland lamb, "smoked" salmon, desserts were awful...They were not gracious about our desire to buy wine off the wine list- in fact charged us a $20 fee to open the bottle, which they sold us!! When questioned, about this "service charge" which was added to the bill- they said that "it was state law". All in all, very disappointing and we felt we could have spent our money more wisely elsewhere…
