01/25/09

French cafe?! Well, they have the rude part down!

by TwincitiesFood

I wish I would have read the reviews before visiting Barbette's. My brother and I decided to try Barbette's for brunch after seeing it mentioned in the Best of Twin Cities City Pages. It was a horrible experience from start to finish. As we walked in, we looked to the baristas/host for direction as to where to sit. No one made eye contact with us or talked to us for a good 5 minutes as we stood there next to them. Instead, they continued their conversation which included one barista referring to a customer as "the guy whose face looks like something I threw up this morning". A very educated staff -- I think not. That should have been our first clue to leave. Finally, a passing waitress motioned for us to just sit anywhere as she rolled her eyes (maybe a sign that read "please seat yourself" would have been appropriate?). After sitting in our ripped up and dirty seats for nearly 15 minutes, we were getting extremely frustrated. When the waitress finally made her way over to us, she helped a table next to us that had arrived about 5 minutes after us. When we finally ordered, the waitress was bothered by our question regarding meat in the quiche and failed to mention any specials etc. on the menu. When our food finally arrived, it was a pathetic attempt at French cuisine, reminding me much of any other granola restaurant that decided to call themselves French because they threw a crepe and some brie on the menu. Barbette?s was described as "romantic". If "romantic" means being treated horribly, insulted, and dining in a dirty lamp-lit garage, so as to hide that dirt -- then yes, Barbette's is romantic. In this market, a restaurant and its staff should be more than polite, especially when the food is such a disappointment. Do not waste your money here -- you will be sorry you did.

11/03/08

What a surprise

by brook88

Brunch this past Sunday was a pathetic experience. Food, service, bathroom, cost: not worth it. Have tried over and over to write a detailed and factual review, but it is always rejected here. Great honesty citysearch. Read the true review at City Pages regarding brunch on November 2.

10/22/08

High expectations with low results

by baglady22

My husband and I went here for our anniversary hearing that it was voted the 2008 Most Romantic restaurant. First of all, the entrance was not super obvious and once we finally found the correct door we were ignored for 10 minutes. We finally got a table next to some very obnoxious wine tasters, who obviously were not dumping their wine samples after the taste, and again were ignored for another 10 minutes. When the server finally came around to us she did not even attempt to explain the menu or any specials, even though I told her it was our first time there. She merely asked if we wanted drinks and then ran away without asking if we wanted an appetizer. We had to snatch her as she was running away to ask if it was "ok" if we put in an appetizer order because we were hungry. I had to ask the manager if she could describe the specials and suggest anything on the menu, and surprisingly she didn't even know the specials! We ordered seafood and it took at least an hour to make and when we got it we were very unimpressed. The fish special seemed overcooked and very blah, and the salmon was very blah as well, although it was incredibly fresh.

All in all, we were very disappointed and will never go there for a special dinner again!

07/24/08

Very Surprising

by wall1941

Perfectly cooked french style omelet with no browning. French fries without fault. Sauces made from homemade stock. Awesome hanger steak. Fantastic mussels. Cool atmosphere. Great beers and wine. What's not to love about this secrcet spot for people love good bistro fare?

• Pros: Totally cool spot with great bistro fare.
• Cons: None

06/20/08

Perfect Uptown Restaurant

by Shanny79

Barbette is hands down one of the best restaurants in the Twin Cities. The food is consistently impressive and served with attention to detail. Beyond the menu, the wait staff is courteous, professional and attentive. This restaurant has perfected the balance between great food and great service. I can't wait for next week's special.

• Pros: atmosphere, service, cuisine
• Cons: none

06/02/08

Perfect outdoor eatery

by crolfes

This is my first review of any restaurant but I would HIGHLY recommend Barbette to anyone and everyone. A perfect place to take a friend/family member(s) for a great food and wine. They have an extensive wine list with a large variety of wine choices. For food, I recommend the farm chicken entree - it was prepared and seasoned well and the carrots and beans were cooked just right. I frequent Barbette quite often and the staff is friendly and accommodating. Their outside tables area is a great place to relax and people-watch. Give it a try!

• Pros: Food/Wine and location
• Cons: A little spendy

05/23/08

expensive

by vinceprofessor

This is restaurant definitely is NOT cheap. Who gave it $ rating. It is more like $$$.

I was very disappointed with this restaurant. Pesto pasta had no pesto in it. Red snapper special was tasteless, and smelled not fresh. I don't recommend it!

05/13/08

YUM!!!

by pdgud

My mother and I ate at Barbette over the weekend and it was fantastic! I had the wild rice salad with lamb sausage, which I heard the chef makes herself and my mother had the mussels. Both were fresh-tasting and delicious. For entrees I had the shrimp risotto- to die for- and mom had the steak with a HUGE pile of those great fries. I was reluctant to go after hearing a few reviews about bad service, but everything we had was great. They did seem a little slow with the entrees, but considering the place was completely full it seemed ok with us. I will definately be going back.

• Pros: Excellent food, great atmosphere
• Cons: Noisy, a little warm

05/05/08

Save your money or go elsewhere!

by mplsfoods

My husband and I dined with another couple at Barbette over the weekend. We both hired babysitters and were very excited to be out on the town and leaving our younguns at home! Very very disapppointed and wished we would've eat elsewhere. Food was cold, bland flavors. My chicken dish all tasted the same. Husbands steak was okay. The best part of the whole dinner out from appetizers to dessert was the fries. Although they were good I'd rather pay $1.35 for McDondalds fries. We felt awful when we left that we spent $150 on a crappy meal. We were dissappointed to say in the least and wil never return.

Do note the service was excellent. This is my first restaurat review I have ever written but felt the bad experience justified it. This was just a big bummer for our night on the town.

03/24/08

Great breakfast with a relaxing atmosphere

by AMSnyder

I recently meet a friend at Barbette for breakfast and it was great as usual. The coffee and espresso/latte can't be beat. The eggs benedict I ordered was excellent but I didn't really like the greens served with it. I love this place because the food is great and it's a very relaxing place to come. We drank coffee and ate breakfast for about 90 minutes and we never felt rushed. Another great visit!

• Pros: Great food and atmosphere.
• Cons: Parking