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By: Greg Karpinski
Date: 9/20/2007
From: Palm Coast
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I am a resident of Palm Coast. This restaurant is my favorite one. It has exquisite food. In addition, this is one of a few places in Palm Coast where one can converse with his dinner companion without talking over other people. |
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By: Steve
Date: 9/12/2007
From: Ormond Beach
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The menu has gotten better but that's the only plus side to this restaurant. The blonde woman always has a glass of wine in her hands along with a cigarette upon entering the restaurant-not a very nice welcome, especially if your wife is allergic to the smoke.The server seems new, curious about what happened to the young lady and tall gentleman who worked there. Perhaps they had enough of the atmosphere also. After this last visit, I sure have. |
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By: Lynn
Date: 5/12/2007
From: Palm Coast
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Last night we decided to go to Mateus and eat outside, which was wonderful. First we enjoyed crisp bread which was served very warm. Then a nice salad . I had the lamb chops with veggies. The serving included 3 loin lamb chops, which was almost more than I could eat. My husband ordered the Hungarian Goulash which was great, although he would have liked it with more spice. It was served with two crispy potato pancakes. On Friday nights, there is entertainment in the European Village, so it was great to enjoy an upscale dinner with wine and excellent food and entertainment. I think this is the best upscale restaurant in the area with interesting food selections and beautiful atmosphere. |
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By: Lucy
Date: 11/15/2006
From: Palm Coast
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I visited Mateus restaurant and I come from a European background. The food was very good and it reminded me of my grandmother home cooking. It's hard to find a place that you can find pierogi and golabki let alone have it taste very good. I would recommend this restaurant for anyone who wants a change from the everyday pizza and chinese. |
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By: Stephen
Date: 10/28/2006
From: Naperville
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The Food was good and I enjoyed the sevice. Anyone that would visit there would be pleased. Its worth the trip. The shopping, food and hotel was awesome. |
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By: Mike
Date: 10/26/2006
From: Chicago
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We dined here the other night. The service was excellent. The food was very good. My mother is a little hard to please when we dine out, however, the meal was to her liking. I'm happy when she's happy. |
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By: John
Date: 10/25/2006
From: Naperville
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We had dinner Saturday night on October 21st, 2006. Nick was our waiter. I thought he had done a great job. We were a party of seven people, celebrating our mother's eightieth birthday. The dinner was excellent and I would definitely dine here again. |
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By: Anna
Date: 9/19/2006
From: Palm Coast
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I'm just waiting for the restuarant to move somewhere else so that a new place can open in its place. This place will definately not last long if nothing changes. Service was untrained, bringing soup not on a tray and as a result sticking their fingers in my soup. Water was not offered. Prices were extremely high, what kind of soup would I get for $8.00, you are thinking. Nothing special. Yes, correct the owner is very nosy and rude. It should tell you something that at anytime of the day you go there you never have to wait for a seat. Where as the Italian place right accross from them is doing so well that they had to buy the store next to them becasue they get so many clients. People are willing to wait than to eat at Mateus. Food is ok, just way to expensive for the portion that you get. They have to either change prices and train their servers or move before they go bankrupt. |
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By: Denis
Date: 9/2/2006
From: Palm Coast
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Have eaten at this restaurant 1/2 dozen times, each time as a party of 5 - 10 persons. Service has been friendly and quality of food generally very good. They have a good variety of European dishes that you don't typically find in Palm Coast restaurants. Last weekend, however, I was unpleasantly surprised by the taste of the lamb served as a main course special, and told the waitress. She was professional and polite and took it away. When asked, I told her that the meat almost tasted as if it was "off". A few moments later a lady, who was presumably the owner, stopped by, asked me what was wrong and if I thought the meat was bad. She pressed me for an explanation even though I had never asked for anything - exchange, credit or otherwise - just did not want to eat it. When I said "yes", her response was "Impossible". She proceeded to explain where she obtained a special marinade recipe and essentially intimated that my palate was not sufficiently educated for the taste. Maybe her rudeness and arrogance are one of the reasons that you seem to be able to get a table at Mateus at any time without a reservation when there is up to an hours wait at every other restaurant in the European Village. I was with my family for an enjoyable dinner, not a debate. Mateus now has one less of its scare customers. |
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By: Charlene
Date: 4/8/2006
From: Palm Coast
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Went there this evening. The food was excellent, the server was in need of additional training. We would have had dessert if it was offered. The filet was perfect, the pork schnitzel was okay according to my dining partner. |
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FOOD CRITIC REVIEW
Palm Coast Lifestyles Magazine Food Critic Rating: |
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When you enter Mateus European Restaurant you know you’re in the right place. Its features play perfectly on one’s recollection, or expectation of a romantic dinner nearly anywhere in Europe. Romantic lighting, outdoor seating, and on this occasion, the softly playing music of Italy all added to the initial appeal of Mateus.
On this day, there were several large tables seated when we arrived. Our Hostess/Waitress acknowledged our seating preference and sat us promptly. My company and I scanned through the small menu and soaked in the surroundings. Loud celebratory conversations in a foreign language only added to the authentic feel of this place. We settled on sharing the almond chicken salad for an appetizer, which was quite good. As it was an unseasonably cold evening, we both needed something hot, so we ordered soup: with dumplings for me, and red borscht for my company. Served promptly and certainly looking the part, the soups could have been better, especially considering a price tag of $7.00 each. However, that was the only disappointment for this evening. Ossobuco was a special this evening, so my company’s decision was an easy one. I ordered the filet. While waiting for our entrees, we found ourselves being able to just relax into The sounds of foreign speech and the music. Everyone in the restaurant seemed genuinely happy to be there.
Our waitress appeared carrying two oversized plates of food. Even the filet was a lot bigger than I expected. My company’s ossobuco was in fact falling off the bone, and the little morsel of it that I was offered was outstanding. I cut in to my filet, noting that it was done just as I ordered it, medium rare. It was a fabulous cut, very tender; and prepared with just a hint of smoky flavor. The accompaniments of both our meals consisted of garlic mashed potatoes and some veggies that tasted of basil and olive oil. The fragrance of fresh dill floated in the air, and we were given plenty of time without any interruptions to enjoy our meals. It was an entirely cosmopolitan experience, and while it is pricey, it allowed us a trip outside of Palm Coast in a way that we did not expect.
Feeling rather stuffed and lethargic, we needed coffee and chocolate to end our meal. The dessert menu is also quite limited, so we opted for a slice of chocolate cake. The coffee was as good as any decent metropolitan coffee shop or bistro would serve, and the chocolate cake was so full of dark chocolate, that between the two of us, we couldn't finish it.
All in all, we thoroughly enjoyed our evening out, and will undoubtedly return. This restaurant is still very new, and we hope that the menu will slowly expand to accommodate a larger variety of tastes, and maybe include some vegetarian dishes, as well as more interesting dessert offerings. For the time being, we are thankful for this little retreat to Europe, noisy, yet romantic, where no one rushes you through your meal, because sometimes people go out to eat for the sake of being out as much as to satiate their hunger.
Review by the Food Critic, Palm Coast Lifestyles Magazine March 2006` issue.
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By: Isabella
Date: 2/25/2006
From: Palm Coast
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I do not know what happened in the kitchen, but we had to wait forever to get our food. The waitress never refilled our drinks, nor gave us any reason why our food was so late. We did notice several tables with customers left after their waitress talked to them, they had been served drinks but did not even pay for them. So I know something was going on, again our waitress did not pay any attention to us. We finally got our meals, they were good, but I have had much better meals at restaurants around this area. I will not frequent this place again. |
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By: Julie
Date: 2/23/2006
From: Palm Coast
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I barely get time off and when I did my boyfriend and I ate at Mateus restaurant. We expected the high prices considering it is in European Village...so you people who expect everything cheap DON'T BOTHER GOING! The food was good, I actually liked it a lot better than a few places I have gone to in St. Augustine. I will definitely be back when I have the time and money. The only negative was having "ritzy" people next to us expecting everything on a golden platter...if that's the case and you have money invest pay people better! |
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By: Barbara
Date: 2/12/2006
From: Volusia County
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Our luncheon was quite good- very tender stroganoff, stuffed cabbage and goulash. Quite tasty. However, I agree with other reviewers- the male waiter is distant and not attentive. We had to ask for refills on all beverages. The hot tea should be served in a personal tea pot and gourmet teas not LIPTON- would be far more appropriate. Thinly sliced lemon was skimpy. Additionally, background music should be appropriate- classical- piano- whatever- not Frank Sinatra. Brown paper towels in restroom were more appropriate for a fast food restaurant. Why was a bottle of make up in ladies room? For the prices, ambiance was not up to par. Dessert menu needs to be more extensive, related to menu and include a chocolate selection. We will try it again, maybe as the restaurant becomes more seasoned the above negative issues may be resolved. |
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By: Eric
Date: 1/15/2006
From: Palm Coast
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I had a similar experience with a waiter with no personality and no interest in our satisfaction. The food was ok at best. NEWS FLASH... This past Friday evening my wife and I went to visit the Piano bar and on the way back to the car we witnessed a short woman with dark hair in an apron, and older gentlemen in a white apron and a server out back smoking. Something doesn't seem right about that. |
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By: Mary
Date: 12/17/2005
From: Palm Coast
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My review of Mateus is being kind when I say average. The restaurant is nicely decorated however the ceiling is already in need of repair, it is bowed and close to falling down. The waiter had left his personality at home and barely said 5 words the whole lunch. Food was good, however VERY OVERPRICED for the cuisine. I do not think we will be regulars at Mateus. |
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By: Matt
Date: 11/27/2005
From: Palm Coast
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Excellent cultural experience. It was the first cold night of the season when my wife and I enjoyed our dinner at Mateus in European Village and sitting inside at night, it felt like we were in a far away land...like inside a small tavern (Heurigen)in Budapest. The menu was short in choice by American standards, but the lack of description and the waiter's lack of knowledge of the courses offered (he kept going back to ask the chef what was in each dish) added to the quaint experience and truely reminded me of my trips to Europe. The best part was the food itself, which was an excellent diversion from typical Florida fare. We purchased a $20 bottle of wine from the wine shop two shops down and were charged an additional $10 by Mateus as a corking fee...that came as a surprise as we were not informed by the staff of this 'hidden' cost. Minor issues that a brand new restaurant needs to work out in its first weeks of opening. Overall though the experience was excellent and much, much needed in Palm Coast - culture, diversity and fine taste! |
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By: Tom
Date: 11/17/2005
From: Palm Coast
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My wife and I went to Mateus for dinner on 11/15. They don't have their liquor license yet, so you should bring your own bottle of wine. They're really just getting started, so they aren't doing the full menu yet, but still have quite a few selections.
The food was good. My wife's family (on her mother's side) is Ukranian, so some of the food is familiar such as pierogies, stuffed cabbage, potato pancakes, borsch (they only had the white borsch last night), homemade kielbasa. The service was a little slow, but not bad for a start-up.
One thing they should work on is that the menu just has the name of the dishes with no description. The menu they post online has descriptions of the dishes. For some reason, the actual menues they use don't have the descriptions, so we had to ask the hostess (owner?). For example, they listed Deutcher Schweinbraten and De Volaille as two of the main courses. Even my wife had no idea what they were (the first one is a stuffed pork and the latter a chicken recipe).
Anyway, the food was nicely prepared and very tasty. It is quite expensive for what is essentially peasant food, but it is good (not as good as my wife's grandmother's, reportedly) and different than anything you could get around here.
The decor is nice, sort of European which you'd expect, and they do have outside seating.
We will probably try it again sometime, especially for lunch (which is less expensive). It probably won't become a regular haunt, but when you just need a pierogi or a stuffed cabbage, it's the place to go. |
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By: Adrian
Date: 11/12/2005
From: Palm Coast
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This was our first dining experience at the European Village and it wasn't too bad. Mateus is Eastern European food. Inside it is sparse and cold but the server was friendly and we finally opted to eat outside. I has the Hungarian Goulash which was quite good and my wife had the Stuffed Beef which she enjoyed. Both had good flavor and portions adequate. The prices are quite high though with entree's averaging about $25. |
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