Werner Staub’s Peppermill Restaurant

My 1^st Review of 2016 I would like to think I’d be adding a positive review on an old Restaurant but unfortunately it has so many flaws it is on the downside of the 3 stars which in my opinion is considered average. The original Peppermill was in the Waterway shops and 5 years ago owner «Werner Staub» moved his Swiss /​European themed place to a small outlet in a condo complex known as the Arlen house on the south side of Sunny Isles. Through the Guard house trying to find and park is problem #1 but once that is completed it is time to eat.
6PM Reservation on a Sunday Night for 10 persons and they have no idea we are coming. Fairly busy but still they had to set up table with no recollection of a reservation. Stated in other reviews upon walking in that there is an odor of some sort. I noticed it but it was not as alarming as one might imagine. Place overlooks the Intracoastal Waterway and has both indoor and outdoor seating. On this cool evening outdoor was not available but views through the windows were very nice. Table for 10 is round table but I know we are in for a long haul tonight. The Table cloth had holes in it. Some persons had incomplete setups, while the silverware was dirty; the water glasses were as well.
Our waiter takes 20 minutes to bring us menu’s and take drink orders, while they have NO bartender so the owner /​chef is doubling as bartender and has no idea how to make a drink. A simple Vodka tonic had little to NO ICE at all, while an Appletini was so tart it was undrinkable. I asked for wine list and list of wines by the glass. NO GLASS LIST existed and the wine list itself was 300% markup on every wine. When our wine did come glasses were also dirty with lipstick smudge on mine.
Hot fresh bread was presented with Garlic Butter and regular whipped butter. All entrees come with Salad which I was told would be «unforgettable». It was a mix of coleslaw, hardboiled egg, mixed greens, beets, carrots and some sort of homemade dressing. It was unforgettable alright as I wish I could forget it.
Soups:
French Onion was ok nothing special while the Lobster Bisque was simply awful
Entrees:
1 Child had chicken fingers and French fries no comment on this
Fettuccini Alfredo was massive amount of pasta in rich creamy sauce but pasta was overcooked and sauce tasted like buttermilk.
Grilled Chicken Breast Paillard was dry, overcooked and utterly tasteless
Chicken Piccata was ok but no real depth to the sauce made it only passable
Pork Chops were 1 Chop so thin it looked like half a chop to me. It was tasteful, but size of dish was disappointing.
NY Prime 14 Oz Steak with Peppercorn Brandy sauce $ 26.95 I KNOW BEFORE ORDERING IT IS NOT PRIME it can’t be at that price, and it was tough and only the very good peppercorn sauce saved this from a complete disaster.
Stone Crabs were fresh if not smallish in size but not cracked properly.
The Wiener Schnitzel was topped with a cold chop tomato salad and was actually the best thing on the table next to the Pork Filet Mignon w/​Cherry Sauce; unfortunately the latter was completely forgotten until everyone had completed their meal forcing one of our dining patrons to eat alone as we were all done.
No coffee or deserts at this point, as it took forever to get through the meal, and everyone was ready to get out of there at this point. Simply stated it is remarkable that this place has lasted 5 years, I can’t imagine ever returning so no need to knock it any more that it already has been. I’ll simply pass on any future invites as aside from its killer view the food is downright awful.

No no no. Do NOT eat here. Where do I begin? When you first walk in you will be greeted with a nasty smell. Although when you get in further, it doesn’t get much better. The other review was absolutely correct about the smell! The owner was so rude. We went for Christmas dinner. He sat us at the table, gave us the Christmas menu only. My mom asked if we could order from the other menu he said yes then walked away. He didn’t offer to get us the menu then overlooked the fact that I didn’t have a place setting where I was seated. I had to take the setting from the next table over. The waiter was so rude. Comes up to the table and says «yes.» Wtf kind of greeting is that, no hi welcome to the Peppermill, my name is…(no idea what it was). The food was terrible. The bathroom definitely had mold that was painted over it. My sister found a steak knife in her stall… why do you need to have a knife in the bathroom.hmmm.

This place is horrible. Looks at the pictures
If you’re driving turn around if you’re walking run the other way
First of all it’s hidden in a gated type of condominium community and it’s not completely easy to find .
On this particular outing it was a large family outing for a celebration of a birthday we had 18 people in total.
You will be greeted by the smell of sewage when you walk through the front doors it smells like rotting dirty diaper. If that doesn’t turn you back the bathrooms will definitely be a topper. There is mold on the walls the smell of urine and bleach is exquisite. Upon walking to the bathrooms there was a nice bag of trash on the floor with a small white towel saturated in some type of cleaning product similar to bleach. The family restroom directly in front of you as you walk in the door will be your best bet don’t mind the blood on the wall next to the toilet. in the family bathroom there is also a large burn mark above the paper towel dispenser from a candle that apparently got out of hand. The main men’s and women’s bathrooms are completely disgraceful I would have rather use a porta potty that’s been on a construction site for six months !
The food — — -
The bread was OK French onion soup not bad but then Mt drink with a fresh fly drowning on the surface above the ice came …
I ordered the whole snapper it was OK it’s deep-​fried and then finished in the oven the capers and tomato sauce on top is whatever and the wine sauce the waiter describes was almost absent on the bottom of the plate !
Pretty fair when it comes to a review and I enjoy good food and a nice outing this was one of the worst dinning experiences I’ve ever had .
About 96% of everybody at the table agreed oh I know it wasn’t just me having a bad experience
And I opened up the Unilocal app. Lone behold there is more people with less than perfect experiences here

I am an old fan of the once great restaurant LaPaloma. Peppermill is a restaurant opened by one of the former owners, actually the former husband and can never compare to the service, ambiance, food and class of what once was. For many years, I had eaten in LaPaloma and expected the same to continue, but it’s never been close. Now, it’s a lost cause. Don’t waste your money in a dump with lousy food. You can get a better meal at the local McDonalds.

Went to check out this restaurant because it was Swiss, and was considering it for a group event. Was happily surprised. The value is outstanding. I ordered the peppercorn steak because I was in the mood for steak and I love pepper. It was a big 12 oz, excellent and cooked exactly to my requested temperature, medium rare. Plus it came with a great mixed salad, served just like they serve salads in Switzerland (not mixed), and with the same type of dressing, creamy. My husband’s Veal Française was very good too. Dishes came with Röesti (very Swiss) and vegetables, cooked just right. He had a peach melba for dessert. There was good bread, all this for under $ 50 for both of us. Would definitely go back for the food. Our waiter was nice, the décor ok, view during day seemed great, near water, but we went on a rainy night so didn’t get to enjoy it. Room was spacious and well lit, had a slight strange smell, but didn’t bother much and only smelt it upon entering and a few minutes later.
Place is a bit hidden among condos, and no clear signage indicating when to turn into it.

My mom, Clyde, and I went to this restaurant to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Mom goes there a few times a month because it’s not far from where she lives. Clyde goes along but he’s not thrilled to go there. He says the place always smells like urine. There is a definite odor that hits you when you walk in. I always attributed the smell to dampness because of their location on the Intercostal Waterway, although it is worse near the kitchen and bathrooms.
They had a set price, $ 28.95, limited menu for the holiday. Mom ordered a salad with gefilte fish for her appetizer and brisket for her entrée. Clyde and I ordered matzo ball soup for our appetizers. For our entrees Clyde ordered chicken and I ordered fish.
Mom’s salad was okay but she said the piece of gifilte fish was small. Our soups were fair. I had asked for noodles, but none were served. The matzo ball was pretty good but the broth was bland.
When Mom’s brisket came it was mostly fat. She took a bite and had to spit it out. I showed it to our server who took it back and brought another plate. The new plate was fatty, but it was better then the first plate. My fish and Clyde’s chicken was okay. We also got dessert and coffee.
I wanted to let someone in charge know that the chef had served a piece of brisket that was obviously mostly fat. When we were about to leave I told our server that I wanted to talk to the manager. She said they didn’t have a manager. I recognized a man who was always there. I don’t know if he’s the host, manager, or owner, but he acts like it’s his restaurant. Since he seemed to be a person with authority I wanted to let him know that mom had to spit out the brisket. In a very sarcastic voice he told me if she can’t eat the food then she shouldn’t come back. What a nerve. My mom has been a regular customer for years and I don’t remember her ever complaining. Mom was so mad. She said she would never go back.
I’m mad also. Mom’s holiday was ruined, and we paid for a meal we didn’t enjoy.
I posted a picture of Mom’s brisket.

The worst experience I ever had in any resturant, the food was not fit to eat, the chicken was raw, they trout was not trout, but some foul tasting fish. I took pictures of the raw chicken to show Werner Staub, but the coward hid in the kitchen and wouldn’t come out. The server couldn’t be nicer and was embarrassed when she looked at our plates. After many years of eating at the pepper mill at both locations, past and present my wife and I feel if we ever go back to this horrible excuse of a resturant, we will pay for every one in the room.

I’ve eaten at the Peppermill many times and I’ve been reluctant to review it because it is so inconsistent. The last several times, however, have unfortunately been horrible. The place smells like a urinal. I’ve brought it to the management’s attention but to no avail. The food is frankly awful. The brisket of beef was a huge ball of fat. They replaced it with a semi-​acceptable version that was still a little tough. The chicken matzoh ball soup (served luke-​warm) was OK as was the salad. The chicken francaise was also OK, probably the best thing we had. It was served with rather bizarre home fries that they called Roesti Potatoes and carrots and prunes-​also weird. They also gave me one floret of overcooked broccoli. The staff was very unfriendly. The dessert of Apple Streudel with ice cream was fair but impossible to enjoy over the stench of Werner Staub’s Peppermill– reeking of what I presume was urine because it was dramatically worse in the bathroom if that is possible. I won’t be returning to this pit unless I’m dragged kicking and screaming. If I could give it less than one star I would.

Would not recommend. Restaurant has a foul smell, there is constant banging noises, and there was a bug in the butter. Friendly server but very slow. Try your other options, we wish we did.

I went here after going to the owners previous previous restaurant la Paloma and had the plan of getting schnitzel. The lunch menu was reasonably priced but I opted for subset menu with a first course and dessert. The rolls were excellent with a nice garlic butter offering. The Caesar salad was good and he French onion soup someone else got looked impressive. The Wiener schnitzel was excellent the portion was a good size for one person and came with broccoli carrots and a potato. The meal was excellent and the schnitzel did not disappoint. The dessert was 6 – 7 options I had a cheesecake which was ok but my wife got the strudel and said it was fabulous. The location is bizarre on a condo clubhouse setting but the food and service was excellent. The low point is the old bathrooms with low sinks but I would love to come back soon. It is closed for 2 months in the summer so be aware of that if planning a visit. The view is gorgeous try to get a table by the windows with a view of the water.

Update: Tried the Trout Almondini the other night, and it was fantastic. A surprisingly large piece of fish for the price.
And this time I ordered the Caesar salad. Much better, plus it came with anchovies on it, as a true Caesar should!
I still can’t give this place any higher than a 4-​star because the potato/​hash brown side for dessert is still just weird.

Mediocre food and poor service. The host seemed irritated while he took us to our table as if we were bothering him. The soup came before the drinks and then only two out of three drinks. One glass of wine arrived about 10 minutes after the other. The server also kept forgetting which person had ordered what.

Service was not great. Food was ok. Warner, the owner, was rude from the minute we walked in. Then our waiter couldn’t get the bill right and the owner blamed us and was rude to a senior who was with us. Not b enough servers for the amount of diners. Poor customer service.

My husband and I was looking for this place and didn’t realize its in the back of a bunch of condos. We walked in and thought we were getting older by the second, everyone was in their golden years. It was more than half empty and must be were all the retirees go to dine. We just left and decided to spend our night somewhere else.

The meal itself wasn’t bad: 3 of us shared the calf liver (more like cow liver in texture), scallops (rather small and overpowered by their bed of mashed potatoes) and trout/​capers (I found it tasty).
The meal was preceded by the obligatory breadbasket and each main came with a salad and an array of sides including hashbrowns, carrots, and broccoli. It was too much food for us — 2 meals for 3 would have been plenty.
What stood out the most was the absence of service. One had the impression that most of the customers were there because they lived in retirement housing proximate to the restaurant, i.e. there did not seem to be an incentive to please. Each course was separated by a 20 minute interval. Our water glasses were only filled once at the beginning — the glasses sat empty for most of the meal. We were never offered the chance to order drinks or dessert.
As we walked out, I described the Unilocal 5 star rating scale to my grandma … She said it was a ²⁄₅ — I agree.