I have been to Mandalay in Steveston 4 times over the past year. The first time was for a private party held upstairs, the second was my own invitation to a client to have dinner on the deck, next came a private business directors lunch (again upstairs) and the most recent was an invitiation by another client who I just helped to move into the area.

 

Mandalay is located on Bayview Street and boasts a pretty nice view of the Fraser River looking toward Ladner. The whale watching tour boats are right outside. The location is definitely nothing to sniff at. Of the four times I have eaten at Mandalay my first experience was decidely the best. The finger food menu that had been created by the party hostess and the chef was very well executed and there were plenty of food options for all kinds of tastes and appetites. The service for this particular event was very good given that we had staff assigned only to our event. The challenge for some of our party was that there is no elevator and we did have seniors and one handicapped individual. The washrooms are on the main floor.

 

The second time I dined at Mandalay, I was a guest for dinner. We did not have a reservation and requested to sit on the deck. They did accomodated us but informed us we had a limited time to sit there. Understood. Unfortunately, the tables around us never did fill up. We both had a glass of pinot gris which was a bit on the warm side. I found the menu items to be a bit of a mish mash of styles and quite expensive. We both ordered the Lobster Ravioli and passed on the appies. The meal was "okay". When we were finished we ordered coffee and waited a long, long time. We tried to get refills but they seem to have forgotten and this is the trend I would experience the next 2 times as well.

 

My next meal at Mandalay I ordered the Butter Chicken. Again, just okay but my lesson to myself is that eat Indian food at Indian restaurants or your Indian friend's mom's house. The coffee took forever and again, we couldn't seem to get a refill. I think the stairs are a genuine challenge to servers as well as patrons.

 

The other day a client asked me to dinner and she choose Mandalay. We shared the crab cakes which were good and each had a dinner salad. Leslie had chicken with hers and I had prawns. While the food was good, there wasn't enough and again, I found the price high for what you get. The wine selection is mid-range. Again, the start of service was attentive and seems to fall off once the entree is in front of you. Also, we were seated right in front of the singer and his equipment. While his choice of music was great (bluesy) it was very loud and he increased his volume to the point where Leslie and I were unable to even talk and so we decided to leave earlier than we would have normally. I had asked the hostess about the volume before we sat down and she assured us he played quiet. It became unpleasant. Again problems with the coffee service, getting plates cleared and getting the bill. The worst table is definitely the one by the stairs near the entertainer but within a few feet of the bathrooms.  

 

 

http://www.mandalaysteakhouse.com/ 

3900 Bayview St
Ste 140
Richmond, BC V7E 4R7