Rendez Vous Bistro

Love the double happy hour here. Tim is the BEST! He creates a great atmosphere in the whole restaurant. The food is delicious as well.

Sucks this place closed. I liked their food but it was pricey. This was the first place I ate at when I moved to Rosa a year ago. They had a great review from Unilocal.Sad to see them go.

This place is decent, but overpriced for the quality and the fact that dishes seem to lack accompaniments. Food is good enough, but not what one should get at a place like this. It lacks any sort of finesse or care and seems to be a bit sloppy and characterless. Service is also a bit rough and lacks professionalism, although it has not been terrible.
The building is lovely, with lovely windows, etc., and they have done a nice job of redecorating the interior to go with the windows and building character, which has a nice turn-​of-​the-​century (19^th) feel that almost is like a real Parisian fin-​de-​siecle character, going well with the character of the place. However, the interior (which previously was a coffehouse and sandwich shop at the corner and a separate Japanese place further on the square) has a cramped, uncomfortable layout as they use it. Also, the huge covered outdoor seating area is, with the big awning and horrid plastic window screening, ugly, almost completely covering up the façade of the lovely building.
That said, the place is certainly ok and we’ve not had anything bad here. There is also a menu of free food for kids everyday, a plus.
It’s kind of on the border between 2 stars and 3, but 2 feels more right to me.

Rendez Vous Bistro is awfully cute, and I was surprised to hear that they were renovating the place. It’s quaint, has great atmosphere, and has a lovely outside seating area with heaters for winter dining. We’ll see what the changes will look like.
We’ve eaten here before and are consistently happy with the food. There are crêpe dinner choices with a side salad for a reasonable price, so you can get buy without spending too much in an elegant little restaurant.
I had the French onion soup, which was delicious. The beet salad with hazelnuts, assorted greens, and other goodies was also wonderful. There were both red and golden beets, both seasoned perfectly. If I hadn’t had the $ 12 glass of Carol Sheldon Zin, it would have been a reasonably priced dinner. Oh well, you have to decide on what the priorities are!
This is a nice little restaurant in downtown Santa Rosa. Follow dinner with a walk around the street to see some of the other offerings in the area. It’s a cute and busy place to be on a weekend evening.

We had our company dinner there this week and the staff was a pleasure to work with. Despite our last minute planning and reservation the manager was accommodating and friendly. We received the best customer service from beginning to end with everyone we encountered.
The food was delicious! We were truly impressed. Not one person had a complaint. Quite an accomplishment when you have a group of 20 people. We will definitely be referring this restaurant to our clients.

Late night happy hour is DELIGHTFUL. Go with a couple friends and sit at one of the tall tables! Enjoy the fun european décor and a cocktail for extremely reasonable prices.
Only complaint is the Manhattan is not currently on the happy hour menu.

Still love this place! Popped in again late last night — and that brings me to the epic, unbeatable, #1 best thing about the place (in my humble opinion):
Late Happy Hour, that starts at 9 and goes to midnight. I love this because I work past 6, which means I never EVER catch a normal Happy Hour. Few dining/​going out/​grabbing drinks experiences can compare to Happy Hours.
So! 9pm+ Happy Hour, still great. I tried an «Angry Ball» which was quite the experience, even if it’s not going to become my regular drink. The Nicoise Salad (not on HH) is AWESOME, it’s a giant pile of great stuff covered in multiple sushi-roll’s worth of delicious tuna. I also highly recommend the Happy Hour truffle fries and the mini sliders are quite good, and there was a cheese thing (I have no recollection of what it was called…) that was spectacular!
Still have mixed feelings on the service. At a table, service is excellent. At the bar, it seems intentionally… Ok. Not good, you will be deliberately passed over to make it seem like there’s a longer wait than there is. But, it’s a lot better than other places around.

$ 5 bottomless mimosa & bloody Marys. WOW!
The eggs Benedict were pretty stock standard, I have had much better and for the price they certainly not worth it. The other dishes that people were getting looked good, but I wont be back for the Benedict any time soon.

Reviewing restaurants is an act of journalism in which I share with you, the Unilocal reader, my experiences with all kinds of eateries. These personal posts are written with the intent to help other Unilocalers make a decision where to spend money while getting the best value. So, it stands to reason that in my travels I will encounter a few excellent restaurants, along with a few so bad you might expect Chef Gordon Ramsay to barge in and shout expletives at the staff. This might as well have been the case recently when we visited Rendez Vouz Bistro as my daughter choked down her dried-​out slider hamburger that could be considered, oh, I dunno, well, well, well done (if there is such a term).
Having two young children, I should state for the record that my family and I infrequently visit Rendez Vouz Bistro only because kids eat free. Unfortunately, as experience has dictated, whatever «cooking» is going on in the back of the house is so consistently poor that it makes me want to congratulate the ownership on its complete and total incompetence.
Beyond the food, I am always amused by restaurants that operate under the guise of providing seemingly serious guest service, but fall sadly shortly of the high mark. Such is the case at Rendez Vouz Bistro. My conclusion is that service there isn’t so much «service» rather it is a random sequence of events. I could describe it as bad — and believe me, it is, but in a very sad way. I think the servers and floor managers give it a good, honest totally misguided effort, and fail on a regular basis, or at least whenever we dine there. As a fine dining foodservice management veteran myself, to have the servers consistently blame food errors and mistakes and delays in service on the kitchen speaks volumes.
My dining experiences at Rendez Vouz Bistro have left me disappointed, dispirited and mainly baffled by the level of incompetence. It is perhaps the single saddest combination of professional food and service in Sonoma County that I have encountered.
This Unilocal post is simply offered as an act of journalism and restaurant goers need reviews that are honest and unfiltered: now you know about Rendez Vouz Bistro and, in doing so, cleared the way for a new low water mark in the restaurant business.

+1 star for allowing us to bring our dog onto the patio while we ate. I only wish more places were like Rendez Vous in Santa Rosa and let dogs hang out on the patio. That was our reason for coming here as it was 80+ degrees outside and we were traveling with our dog.
We were greeted immediately and seated at a table. Our server approached us and provided us with water. We order two crepes and shared. The water wasn’t served with ice which would have been nice with it being such a hot day. The Crepes were reasonably priced, but weren’t super filling. With it being so hot outside, it worked to our advantage, but value of food we received wasn’t on par with pricing. I don’t know how often we’ll travel through Santa Rosa, but we’d probably try some place else next time.

Amazing

Way less than stellar.
I went in with my friend to grab dessert and some drinks. We wanted to sit out on the patio. They told us that it was filled up for reservations. They made us sit on a high table with the most uncomfortable stools. We waited forever for someone to take our order. When the hostest came with my tea, all of it poured out. I said that I don’t think that it should do that and she argued with me. Really?
Whilst we were waiting for our dessert the hostest was preoccupied hanging decorations. Multiple guests walked in and out because no one would help them. I thought it was ridiculous.
The food is alright. Too expensive. A very disappointing experience. Will not return.
ALSO. The tables outside were empty the entire time! We could of easily of sat there!

Everytime I come here I feel very unwelcome. Not sure if it’s the patrons here, or the staff, but I never feel comfortable. I’m always anxious to go to our next stop, never wanting to linger here long. The drinks here also are just sub-​par. I’ve had a couple different ones off their happy hour menu and regular drinks. Either they are too strong or too weak, never a happy medium.
Service here is also not great. Expect to wait awhile for your drink or even to be noticed. I’ll continue to come here because they do have cheap drinks before 11 and it’s right downtown.
I would like to come here for lunch and try some of their foods so I can formulate a better view towards them.

Based on my Restaurant Week Experience here I will certainly revisit again. I highly recommend anyone to come in for this Restaurant Week menu because they are really are knocking it out of the park with this one. The three course meals we had for $ 29. each were great value for the price.
We were really impressed with both appetizers. The escargots had lots of fresh herbs on them yummy garlic butter and tasty fried onions. The house cured salmon had a lemon cream under the salmon and sat on the yummiest tastiest potato cracker I ever had.
My husband had the Lamb Shank. It was big and tender and layered with many flavors. He really enjoyed the beans under it too and said he wouldn’t mind coming back again for this deal.
I had the truffled Salmon. The salmon had a great sear in it giving it a tasty crust. It was cooked to about well done and was a bit over cooked for my taste but still was good. They made hollandaise sauce and laced it with lots of truffle aroma and topped it with salmon roe for a finishing touch. Grilled asparagus and seasoned fingerling potatoes completed the dish.
Desserts were yummy as well who wouldn’t like little coconut and carmel pops and a terrific delicate lemon tart.
We also had really great professional service. It was a great evening out.
As a slight update someone from Rendez Vous contacted me and told me they plan to keep the Restaurant Week Special Menu around for a while after Restaurant Week!

I have mixed feelings about this establishment. I joined a large group of colleagues here on a bustling Friday night for a late dinner. Immediately, I was drawn to the bustling and lively downtown atmosphere and the kitschy quasi-​french style. You walk right into the bar, and continue through it to make your way to the restaurant. Though… one could just stay at the bar and enjoy the nightlife scene.
We had reservations for our group of 7, but the staff seemed to have a problem with their reservation system, which undoubtedly happens now and again to most popular restaurants. What I didn’t really care for was that the hostess seemed a bit too nonchalant about it, seating several large groups without reservations before ours. Rendez Vous’s redeeming quality was that they originally had reserved a table for us in the restaurant which we didn’t want, but ended up giving us a premium table out on their heated patio so we could enjoy a nice evening outside. That’s what Californians do, right?
Our server was very friendly, but not as attentive as I or others expected and definitely absent-​minded. Perhaps he wasn’t used the hustle and bustle, or maybe he had a lot on his mind. The saving grace for this place, is really the food. This is not a high end French restaurant by any means, but they serve a solid and pleasing meal. I had been eating healthy salads and fruits all day, so by this time, I was craving a nice hot meal, but also nothing too heavy. I ordered the Beef Bourguignon which came with a side of steamed vegetables and mashed potatoes. The Beef bourguignon was so tender, it just melted in my mouth. I was actually quite pleased with my meal. I will come here again, though perhaps not on a loud Friday night. I’m thinking the lunch hour downtown business crowd and a plate of escargot is more my speed? There is only one way to find out.

I am seriously shocked to see such a low rating on one of my all-​time favorite restaurants to frequent. I am a huge fan of Rendez-​vous, and I definitely make it known. I feel that their cuisine is the perfect combination of local ingredients, health and class!
If you’re in the mood for a classy romantic dinner, a happy hour outing or just dropping in for a drink and a snack, this is your place! They are open until midnight! And, they have happy hour every day! 3−6pm AND 9 – 12 midnight. If you’re a 9−6pm worker, this is possibly the only happy hour you’re gonna find! And, it’s great!
On the happy hour menu, they have $ 5 glasses of house wine, and let me tell you that I’m a pretty big fan of the Mark West Pinot Noir. :) Another favorite is the Mini Tuna Tartare. If I remember correctly, it costs $ 5, which is a bit pricey for a MINI Tartare, but it’s worth it! Also, they have a pretty grand order of truffle fries that are so yummy!
The crepes are a great choice as well – I love anything with Gruyère!
If you’re EVER walking around in downtown Santa Rosa, you should definitely try this restaurant out. They have an impressive outdoor seating, with such a calm atmosphere – I’m convinced it’s because of the bistro-​style lighting outside. And, they have heaters and clear wind-​blockers in case you get cold easily.

I have this theory that Rendez Vous Bistro gets their business from people who are too hungry to wait two hours for a table at Russian River Brewing Company. I had been to Flavors before, and was starving so I accidentally popped in here thinking it was it… it wasn’t.
This place needs a major re-​haul. Their soup of the day was chowder. Are you a french restaurant or a fish and chips joint? STAHP. It’s a french menu, make a vichyssoise or something! Fuck!
The Croque Monsieur (or Croque Madam if you order it with a fried egg) is literally meh. God do I hate that word, but it applies so eloquently here. I personally had the crêpe with the English peas and truffle scented something, with duck confit and mushrooms in a Mornay sauce. Put it in a buckwheat, gluten-​free crêpe and it’s a recipe for disaster. If you can eat gluten, don’t order the buckwheat. It is PURE buckwheat. The taste does not mesh well.
The service was okay, nothing to complain about, but the food was just awful. I ended up apologizing to boyfriend for over an hour afterward because I felt so bad. He was expecting delicious Italian and I gave him terrible wannabe French. And we’ve both been to France so I felt EVEN WORSE.
Two stars. Would not return. They get a bump of one star ONLY because the service was nice enough.

We had the worst service ever the other night! Maura was really horrible!
First of all, I have been in the high end restaurant business for 25 years, Our server was so rude. She was defensive and she made things up. Appetizers took forever. We asked for some cheese to go with our Charcuterie plate. She came back with the wrong cheese 25 minutes later. She ordered it thinking we wouldn’t no it was the wrong cheese. When I asked her 10 minutes later she played dumb and said that they were out of the cheese we ordered. Then she treated us horribly the rest of the evening. No apologies… We could not locate a manager anywhere. All the tables in our section were complaining. I don’t know if I will ever go back.

I had a wonderful time dining at Rendez Vous Bistro. Eight of us sat outside in some awesome weather enjoying the sunset and sipping cocktails. The service was very good.
We tried an array of appeitizers and entrees from crab ravioli to steak frites. We all felt the food was decent. This place will not wow you with their food but it is good and the atmosphere is spectacular.
Fun place for a small group. medium price/​value relationship.

The restaurant staff was very cordial, I was greeted with a warm smile and a hello as soon as I walked through the doors! I think the Bartenders name was Dan or Danny, he was super friendly and helpful in deciding what I should order to drink, I landed on the «Flirtini», tart and strong! I ordered the daily special of an alfredo pasta which was pretty good. Moderately priced food with a high end taste. Well done Rendez Vous ! I’ll be back soon :)