Trio Restaurant - Egg Harbor, Door County WI

I've eaten at Trio one time only and it was just before the start of the 2010 season in late May.From their website they describe themselves as "Country French and Italian Cuisine in a Bistro atmosphere". I couldn't argue with that.

I'd heard mixed reports from people who have eaten at Trio's. It really isn't where the locals head, and that's usually either a sign of a place being too expensive or not good enough (or both).

We ordered appetizers, baby spinach endives and artichoke hearts. It was OK. It seemed pre-prepped maybe even batch frozen. I can't be sure about that, but it was just OK. We chose not to order entrees until after the appetizers arrived, and what was really strange was that the entrees appeared on our table within around 3 or 4 minutes of placing the order. I don't think fresh pasta can be cooked, sauced, plated and garnished in 3 minutes, but it can be served from a pre-cooked batch in that time. I ordered the special, a beef pot roast, which was quite good. A little bland on the seasoning front but quite good. Nothing on the plate seemed to be freshly cooked. Obviously the pot roast would be made ahead, but the veggie's could be cooked to order from fresh, and I'm sure they were not.

I'm sorry to say that I was disappointed overall with the dining experience at Trio. The ambiance and the way the menu is presented suggests fresh, local, freshly prepared and fresh vibrant foods. What came to us on a plate did not have any of that, it was not fresh.

Maybe it was the timing of our meal, the pre-season can be quiet in Door County and it was certainly quiet in Trio. But isn't that the time when the locals dine out, and isn't it the locals who create the 'word of mouth' advertising that is so important for local businesses? You'd think not.

The service had an air of pretentiousness about it which I didn't much enjoy. If that comes as part of a package of excellence then I can tolerate it. But don't serve me crap food and pretend that you're running some fancy New York restaurant. My other pet hate for dining out was also triggered at Trio. It was quiet, there were maybe six people in the restaurant and the staff were congregating and chatting around the bar. Get in the kitchen and figure out how to cook a meal for two people without resorting to batch-frozen pre-prepped food which is limp and lacking in flavor.

I hope to try Trio again during the season, and hope that they prove that my one experience there was not representative of their normal standard. I like the place, it is casual despite the best efforts of the staff, I like the menu and the food compositions, some of the best in the area in terms of creativity. But execution was poor.

My ratings

Food 5/10

Service 6/10

Overall Experience 6/10

Score 17/10

Rooze - 2010