Kitchen 919

It's ok. The atmosphere is nice. Upscale feel. The tables are set to close for comfort. I bumped elbows with the lady at the table across from me. The food is good, but nothing was exceptional or memorable. I would recommend it for an after work drink with customers or business group. Maybe a small plate and drink with a date. Better options for a meal are plentiful.
Nov 4th, 2020

A disappointment but may be redeemable. The occasion for our trip to Kitchen-919 was a birthday. There were five of us, and one guest was elderly and required some assistance, access was easy and they gave us a table near the front of the restaurant, which was quite nice. The ambiance was surprising to say the least. In the first place, the light fixtures - while interesting - did not cast very much light at all. We all had trouble reading the menus (the font didn't help), even our 20-somethings in attendance. But worse was the NOISE LEVEL. We arrived between six and seven, the restaurant was busy and LOUD. The waitress had to recite the specials at both sides of the table (even though we sat just 3 across) in order to be heard. It was that loud. Perhaps we should have chosen a less busy time. That brings me to the waitress. She was very young to be sure. Perhaps this was her first job, I don't know. But someone at Kitchen 919 should have taken her aside to give her some pointers. It was a little disappointing that she had to read the specials (rather than taking the time to memorize them). It was still more disappointing when I inquired about a detail regarding one of the dishes and she did not know. Nor did she reply that she would ask. Oh well. The service was slow. Again, we came at a busy time, still it took 45 minutes to get bread to the table. The waitress never actually made it to the table to check on us, my wife continually had to flag her down to get bread, more water, etc. Now the food. First off the website is only a passing resemblance to the actual dishes they have available, so don't rely on it too much. I had the duck breast, excellent. Another in the party had the bistro steak, and and another had the center cut tenderloin, both superb. The scallop dish and the red snapper were the remaining entrees, both highly recommended. Too bad that everything else was not up to the entrees. Sides such as orzo or mashed potatoes were - at best - lukewarm. Most of the vegetables were either overcooked (the carrots were burnt on one side) or under-cooked. When the menu described the asparagus as "crisp" I thought they meant al dente - lightly cooked; not rinsed-and-brought-straight-to-the-table crisp (raw). To be fair, one in our party thought the veggies were perfect, but the other four shared my opinion. The desserts were a continuation of the sides. I had the chocolate cake, which was passable. The one in our party that ordered the berry cheesecake proclaimed it tasted "old". The two creme brulees were uninspired. The best thing about the desserts was the owned comped them after the waitress brought our observations to the attention of the owner. So, to sum it up, the atmosphere was a little too dark and a little too loud to make for what I would characterize as a pleasant experience. The sides and the desserts were a "C" grade at best, although one in the party thought the vegetables were just right. But the entrees were excellent, and the owner was sympathetic with our feedback, for that reason I believe the restaurant has possibilities and the potential to become a premiere dining spot in Knoxville.
Oct 29th, 2020

Aug 12th, 2020

Not a good experience in general: took nearly an hour to meet our waiter. Beverage server allowed us to order salads but not entrees. Salad was good, but it took an hour and a half to get our entrees; they tasted marginal, did not have all the ingredients, waiter never checked back to refill drinks, tables around us were similarly waiting for service. Expensive meal for what we got. They said they had a large party in the party room and the kitchen could begin filling our order after the party was served. Nice setting, but don’t have their act together. Also the restaurant was so noisy it was difficult to talk at the table and uncomfortably hot. Sad.
Jul 26th, 2020

Jun 20th, 2020