Joe Forte's - Review

Intro
Joe Forte's – Dude Grade: D
777 Thurlow Street
Vancouver, BC V6E 3V5, Canada
Phone: (604) 669-1940

After having phenomenal BC oysters from Elliot's Oyster Bar, I figured I had to have these oysters directly in Vancouver. Based on some numerous Yelp! and Chowhound reviews, Joe Forte's seemed to be one of the best oyster bar in Vancouver. Unfortunately, this place blew donkey balls. Oysters were awful, service was subpar, and the non oyster dishes were average at best.

Our Menu
Oysters ---
These were the exact opposite of the oysters served at Elliot's. They had absolutely zero flavor which maybe due to either the quality of the oyster or the quantity of the oyster juice. It was like almost all liquid which was really ridiculous - almost like drinking a soup. And this was not because I picked bad oysters, I had every single one on the menu - a small one at that (about 7 varieties).

Clam Chowder
Decent, but borderline bland. Nothing to write home about.
Fried Oysters
My requirement for fried oysters is that I want them crispy and juicy. This was borderline good (great crisp, not oily, decent flavor), but it was not juicy at all. And the tartar sauce was a little too sweet which reminded me of McD's fish fillet sandwich.

Rating System
--- WTF - in a bad way (no stars - poor to average) | * Good | ** Great | *** WTF – in a good way

Overall Restaurant Experience

• Food (4.0/10) – Garbage oysters and average food.
• Service (5.0/10) – Our server had a massive attitude problem. Felt like we were at Peter Luger's with the attitude, except the steaks there are fun at least.
• Atmosphere (7.0/10) – Classic steakhouse feel with lots of wood, starched white table cloths, and mirrors/old paintings on the wall. The place was packed even at 2pm on a weekday. Tons of large groups there.
• Price (5.0) - It was a tad pricey and for the quality 100% not worth it. Oysters at Elliot's is around $2-$2.50 a pop, but this joint was charging $3.50 for the crap they call oysters.
  

Closing Comments
Kinda sad, since I was expecting to be blown away considering how much I loved the BC oysters at Elliots. Granted there has to be a better Oyster joint in Vancouver, but with so many people on Yelp and Chowhound talking this place up - I don't know.