Bistro 400

Jambalaya is great, but the service is horrible… I’ve always gotten the food to go so never really had to deal with the service. But tonight I decided to bring my bro out to dinner here. Really bad service no host in the front walked in and asked bartender if we should seat ourselves. He flagged a waitress down and she proceeds to give him attitude in front of us about seating us, so bartender seats us thankfully another waiter came to our table to wait on us. lesson learned next time ill take my order to go…

Did they close this place down??? Anyone know?

I’ve always loved the Bistro from their food, staff, vibe, and location. All these 1 and 2 stars especially from locals I have to say, «SUPPORT YOUR LOCALS»! I don’t mean just your new pop up hipster snobby joints. If maybe we had spend more time supporting and not just saying we do than these great venues and restaurants would still be around providing quality food, service and a true Santa Ana vibe like Memphis, Crosby, and Bistro gave. It’s so upsetting and heartbreaking to see these wonderful restaurants close down. The chef here is the MOST hard working and amazing chef I’ve had the pleasure knowing and enjoying his dishes. It’s a shame that many of you will never know the real local Santa Ana nightlife with good quality food and service we once had in our downtown. All these new places with their «Oh we’re so exclusive and have a better pallet than you» chef attitude with their bearded gnomes and b versions of american apparel models serving staff have mistaken downtown for Pasadena. I see ALL of them running to food 4 less to buy ingredients such as meat and produce, that many of you pay way too much to eat. At least Bistro kept it real and ALWAYS gave back to the community! Thank you Bistro and I’m so heartbroken that it’s over. I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!

The fortunate parking spot on the street outside determined my visit for lunch at the Bistro. Service was lightening fast. Got the Bistro salad and iced tea. Not feeling very adventurous today. It’s a gorgeous and historic little hideout across from the civic center. I can imagine the live bands playing in here at night. Will have to try that sometime. Good prices, fast and easy.

Last evening was our final visit to Bistro 400. The quality has declined considerably over the last several visits and it is no longer acceptable. There were 4 of us for dinner and we opted to eat outside because it was way too warm inside the restaurant. The service was okay, but we did have to go to the bar to ask for more wine. The house wine was crappy and we were told they lost the wine list. Really??? Some of the food was okay while some was dreadful. The French fries tasted like they were made a week earlier, refrigerated for days, and then microwaved. The veggie wrap was atrocious and covered with two slices of American cheese that were overheated and crunchy. The vegetables were cooked okay, but the tortilla was soggy and the wrap was almost flat because there was hardly anything inside it. It is unfortunate the quality has gone down because we used to really enjoy Bistro 400.

Came here on a Saturday night around 9pm. They had cleared out the whole area for a birthday party that was taking place. The bar was not crowed, and they had a DJ who may have just been there for the birthday party.
I think this place is a little overpriced for it’s location and atmosphere. $ 6 for a bottled Dos Equis is pretty steep in my opinion, plus I couldn’t even order a draft beer because they were ‘sold out’ of all their drafts!!! I can understand being out of one draft option, but all 4 is ridiculous for a bar.
Also, the bathrooms are disgusting. I just couldn’t, I had to hold it until we left for the next place.
I hate giving bad reviews, and maybe this was an off-​night for Bistro 400, but it was a pretty bad experience.
I will say the staff was nice and welcoming, but this place needs some work if it is going to keep up with the growing Santa Ana night life.

This place is conveniently located across the street from the Ronald Regan federal building in Santa Ana. It is a great place for attorneys to grab a drink and a quick bite to eat. I liked the food. But, our waitress hardly came around to attend to us. Not great service, but great spot to grab a drink after court.

Went there two Saturdays ago with friends, had to ask someone to clean off the table twice before sitting on the patio.
After spending two hours there with a total of four drinks cashed out with the bartender who was drinking on the job.
Two days later looked at my bank account and apparently the bartender put in the wrong amount tip, which is fraud. I called the restaurant several times that day just to speak to a manager and to no avail. The manager passed the buck on the bartender that was in charge that night and told me to call back when the bartender was on shift.
Worst customer service, worst customer resolution, overall the worse. This is failed business waiting to happen.

$ 4.00 prep fee for a drink? Really? I’ve dragged myself to bars across North America, from San Diego to Toronto, Anchorage to Miami and I’ve never been charged a «prep fee» for a simple cocktail. For two martinis, $ 32. I’m sorry, did I somehow teleport myself to Manhattan? I could’ve sworn I was in downtown Santa Ana, staring at that behemoth of a federal building with the fragrance of hobo urine wafting through the air.
On top of it all, I had to clean off my own table. When I asked the bartender for paper towels or a rag to wipe away the moisture from the table (hobo urine?), he let me know it was damp because he had wiped it down. Uh huh. What did he wipe it down with? Pure cane sugar? Because that table top could’ve served as a «bus driver’s holiday» for a honey bee. Ant farms were itching to get at the gooey surface of that table. A diabetic would’ve needed an insulin injection after coming in contact with that table top.
Here’s the thing: If you want to pretend you’re some swanky bar, excuse me, bistro like they have in the big city, you should probably provide, I don’t know… clean tables, faster service, and a bartender who doesn’t say things like, «It’s been a long time since I made a martini.»

We often come here, and really enjoy the atmosphere. We usually arrive early on Friday afternoon — around 4. We take off early on Friday after a hard week, and want to unwind. We’ve found Bistro 400 to be one of our favorite places to go in Santa Ana.
When we arrive, the waitress, Cindy, is always friendly. By now she knows us by name and is ready to take our order. She knows that we like to sit at one of the two tables that are close to plugs so that we can charge our laptops, so she accommodates us.
The martinis are really good, as is the wine. After we imbibe a bit, we generally order appetizers. They have a plate that has a bit of everything on it, but I can’t remember what they call it. It has always been great! We have come here for lunch a time or two, and the sandwiches I have had a also really good.
Not sure about the bad reviews, as we’ve always had great service and great food. There is a tall male that has worked there waiting tables, that seems a bit aloof, but other than that the owner and staff are really nice!

I love that this restaurant is off-​the-​beaten-​path from the rest of the activity that happens in the artist village, but is still within a couple of blocks walking distance. I really like this little Bistro for it’s atmosphere, cute and quaint vibe.
My first visit to Bistro 400 was to support a friend who was playing her original music there for a few hours. The restaurant is located across the street from the Federal Building, there is not a lot of street traffic and it’s right next to a parking structure, so parking is definitely not an issue.
But, I’ll be honest. I was not impressed with the food quality. I ordered one dessert item, the apple beignets, and was not thrilled. The apples were dry and overcooked, the skin was still left on them and the beignet batter was extremely over cooked as well. The actual item was not at all what I would expect based off the description. It was supposed to be «Cinnamon Apple Fritters served with Caramel Sauce and whipped cream» I couldn’t taste any cinnamon, there was very little caramel sauce and only a small dollop of whipped cream. For 3 apple beignets of a decent size, the small dollop of whipped cream was not enough.
This restaurant may not be in the main downtown area of the artist village, I honestly believe with some changes it has a lot of potential, to attract more customers!

I really feel bad giving a poor review but sometimes there is no choice. Last night three of us had Chicken Provencal. One ate it without comment, one ate it with lots of complaints, and I could not eat it at all. The chicken was dry and had a gross taste — reminded me of the scent of Glade air freshener. My husband had steak and fries — the gravy was canned (or seemed like it was), the fries were frozen fries, and the steak had a ton of fat. Two others had another chicken dish and one did not like it at all. The chicken is very dry.
Three of us had arrived early and my son went to get some water for my husband and himself, while we sat outside. When we were all seated, the waiter offered water or drinks to the newcomers and didn’t even notice that I had none. Aside from that, he was a good waiter, but the meal took so long, even though we told them that we needed to be in time for a performance.
We arrived when the place opened and were initially the only ones. The place is small, as well. But for some reason, the musicians played as loudly as though they were playing to a crowd in a large venue.
Doubt that any of us will ever return.

Great service! Make sure Keith is around, he makes the experience.
We had the pulled pork sandwich, blackened chicken sandwich and sweet potato fries. To drink we had the xplicit martini, flirtini and the high roller… everything was fantastic!
Thank you our Irish doll for your «special sauce»!

Omg I went here for the first time on Valentine’s Day last night. The service was superb and the food was Ahhh-​mazing!!! Our server was Carissa and she was sweet, attentive, funny and on point!!! The atmosphere was beautiful, dim and they had live music to go with our dinner. The dessert I ordered was Banana Fosters and omg I’m DEFINITELY going back to have that again. I loved the menu because it had many opions (burgers, sandwiches, pasta, fish, chicken, etc). Thank you for the amazing experience!!! Worth trying out!

Food is good but a bit overpriced. I had the mango salmon and for $ 19 I expected a bigger fillet. The sauce was good although I couldn’t taste the mango. The dirty rice was a bit too hard and had a little spice in it. Seems like it was the same rice as the jambalaya which my friend ordered. Interesting dessert choices and the banana foster crepes were good.
Our waitress was super friendly and sweet. However, she was the only one so it took a while to get our food.
Nice atmosphere and nice patio.
There’s street parking as well as the parking structure which was $ 1/​hr. No validation.

Abandon all hope, ye who enter here. Our order took all of 28 minutes to arrive at our table from the time we ordered it… And it was only fries and garlic bread! Our server did not see fit to clear our menus or check that the food was to our satisfaction, either.
Credit where credit is due, the food was pretty good, though not hot, sadly. The fact that I had developed a ravenous appetite by the time the food actually arrived may have helped my opinion of its tastiness some. Not, however, good enough for me to brave the wait again.

— Locale Destination —
It’s on W 4^th St and N Birch St in Santa Ana.
It’s in the Santa Ana downtown. It’s a bit tacked away from the dead center of the Art district, yet it’s a good location. 30 seconds walk from «The Crosby» (toward right). I had to kill 30 minutes for waiting at «The Crosby», so I decided to drink one. This is located right across the street from US Bankruptcy Courthouse. You see a little outside seating — that’s the place! You need to go through in the middle of the outside seating area to get inside the establishment. Once you get in, you see a nice bar on the left, and a small stage area for live music on the right (next to the inside entrance), and some tables on the right. Its decors are very «downtown Santa Ana» — Dim, dark brown (bricks, wall and tables), nice and cozy atmosphere. Outside seating is quite chilled, too. The staff were nice. They’ll give you 15% discount if you worked for government included as a juror. Parking around here sucks as you know. Parking structures nearby or street parking with meter.
Bar: I think this bar is more tuned to cocktails, which is kinda cool. Beer selections are so so — especially in this area (this Santa Ana downtown Art district offers quite interesting and good drink menus!).
— Gluttony Expedition —
Fire rock pale ale (kona brewing co): Mild, medium body, well balanced beer. Not bad.
Goose island IPA (Chicago): Light body, too hoppy, and too smooth.
— Conqueror’s Deduction —
Nice and cozy atmosphere. I had only beers, though foods here are supposed to be good. Next time!

A fun night ended on a very bad note that will make me (and my friends to probablt never come back)
Me and my 2 friends were a part of a larger group on a Friday night party. We each had burgers ($ 11+11+13) and we each had 3 beers (IPAs) (9x $ 6=$ 54) We didn’t drink any more since we were driving later that night, so we asked that older blonde waitress for the check. She said that she can’t give it to us since it’s all in one check (?!). After that we noticed that there were some issues with the bill since after everyone chipping in we were still short.
But the worst part was that at some point that same waitress came to 3 of us and said, quote: «you all had a burger and AT LEAST 4 beers, so you OWE AT LEAST FIFTY BUCKS»
We were like, WTF? So no tip for her for sure… and I’m not coming back for sure

Kuddos on the locations. Beautiful patio view of the new court house. I only had the house salad and calamari, my friend had the Seared Ahi tuna sandwich which looked really delicious. It looked like a new place but when I asked the owner he said the place has been there for 10 years! Now grant it, I’m on Jury Duty, so I wouldn’t had even known about this place had I not been working at the Federal District court across the street. Prices are pretty reasonable and if your a Government, Federal, or Juror, they give you 15% off your bill! I will post a photo when I have time :) You can also make reservations on
which is nice because I’ve seen this place pack before. Enjoy!

I had a Groupon for this place and one of the stipulations to use it was that you had to call and make reservations and mention the Groupon. That always worries me because what difference does it make? As long as I present my gift certificate or coupon or whatever to my server upon being seated, does it matter if I mention it over the phone to make reservations? Is there a special Groupon seating section? Anyway., made reservations for a Friday night at 8 pm. Upon pulling into the parking lot a block away, things pretty much went downhill…
As we made the walk from the parking lot to the restaurant around the corner, we walked past an open door with a screen and saw a cook drop a burger patty on the floor, pick it up with his spatula, and throw it back on the grill! Right around the corner we arrive to Bistro 400… oh whoa!!! That cook works in the kitchen of Bistro 400! Just great. Well, 3-​second rule, right?
We approach the host (seems like he was the manager and/​or owner) and tell him we have a reservation at 8 pm (it’s is 8 pm sharp at this time, by the way). He looks around to a full house of people (there was a wedding rehearsal dinner going on!) and tells us to have a seat at the bar and he will find a table for us. Really? Is it because I had a Groupon reservation? Sigh…
We order drinks at the bar and notice that the barstools are very old and the cushions are stained. It definitely had seen better days. As we nickel down on the last few drops of our drinks, the host/​manager/​owner? finally comes over and seats us at this tiny table that was directly behind our barstools. Why the delay? Why weren’t we just sat there to begin with? It was empty the entire time we were sitting in front of it wondering why THAT table was empty!
Finally we order the following: coconut shrimp and «G» bread to start. The «G» bread is NOT all that. I don’t understand the fuss over it. The coconut shrimp was fine, just your typical coconut crusted, deep fried shrimp. For our main entrees, my fiancé ordered the jambalaya (this was ok… wasn’t very exciting) and I ordered a burger (what can I say, I like living on the edge). My burger was VERY bland. I’m used to restaurant burgers being big and juicy bountiful. In this case, I would’ve been happier with a BK Junior Whopper.
For dessert we had the Southern Comfort coffee and a chocolate Vesuvius cake. Again. Nothing that made me go run for the hills screaming, but nothing that tickled my palette at all either.
The Groupon was a $ 50 value, so with that we paid an additional $ 50-​$ 60, plus tax and tip. At those prices, there are so many better places to go in downtown Santa Ana, let alone Orange County in general. But in all fairness, the service was good and I think it may have been an «off night» because of the wedding rehearsal dinner orders and what not. It felt really strange being the only table in the restaurant (not including the patio diners) that wasn’t part of the wedding party…