Author: Sheila_3

I was staying in the Westin Bayshore for a staycation, and the room rate included a dining credit, so naturally, I tried the H Tasting Lounge for dinner. Being a Thursday night, I wasn't expecting it to be very busy. I was wrong. I arrived...at 4:30pm hoping to take advantage of their happy hour, but because I had no reservations, I had to go on a wait list and ended up waiting 30 minutes. I would advise anyone to make reservations to avoid the wait time. We sat in the middle of the lounge, and sure enough, the place was completely full, but still within physical distancing guidelines. We ordered the following: - Kusshi Oysters - Good. Very simple, but nice. - Cheese & Charcuterie - OK. Individually, all the meats and cheese were good, but the best boards have the pieces complement each other. I didn't really feel that here. I did like the baguette crisps though. - Miso Ling Cod - Mixed. I like the furikake on the cod, it gave a nice layer of umami. The grilled bok choy and shimeji mushrooms were good too. But the soba wasn't prepared properly. It had a lot of starch still, so the noodles were clumped together. The broth was not that flavorful either. Nice concept, just not greatly executed. - Kids Grilled Cheese & Kids Chicken Tenders - OK. Standard stuff, nothing special. - Cotton Candy & Cream Puffs - Fun. All show, but kids fought over it nonetheless. - Blueberry White Chocolate Cheesecake - OK. No complaints, but nothing too memorable either. Server was nice enough, but slow at times. Didn't seem that busy, but really long wait times in getting our food, having our plates cleared, getting our dessert and paying our bill. Overall, it was OK. The H Tasting Lounge is probably better known for its Secret Garden Dining Bubbles, and afternoon teas, but I didn't try either. All I can say is that dinner was OK. I noticed the dinner menu for H Tasting Lounge and H2 Rotisserie (also in the Westin Bayshore) are almost identical, so I would imagine the same hotel kitchen services both. The difference between the two is the atmosphere they provide.