07/29/08

Good steaks, OK Sides and Awful service

by vandyky

I went to Avenue M with a large group for a special occasion and left disappointed. I started out with the lobster bisque which had no lobster meat in it. Then the wait staff came out our entrees and they had no idea who ordered what from the table. After taking a few minutes to sort out the food, I was able to try the 12 oz. filet I ordered. It was excellent (if Ruth's Chris is a 5 then this is a 4) however I never recieved any of the $2 sauces I ordered with it. I finished my entire meal with a half glass of water because I never recieved a refill. I also had an empyt beer glass in front of me for the majority of the meal because no one came around for me to ask for another.

The waiter really took away from the experience. He wasn't polite and calling him "slow" would be an understatement. To top it all off, he made us get up and walk to the register to sign the bill since we split it 10 ways and there were 10 separate checks. He thought that would be easier. Overall, the steaks were good but the service was awful. And when I say awful I mean it was bad for an Applebees. I would expect more from a place that charges $40 for a steak.

Based on my experience, I can't recommend it because for a $100 a head I would want better food (steak being the exception) and better service.

03/28/08

Great atmosphere, salty food

by SJH333

I have heard rave reviews about Avenue M and was impressed by the decor when I arrived, but disappointed by the dining experience. The food was very salty and I am someone who likes salt. The wine list was somewhat limited and our waiter very apologetic about that. I will say that the warm chocolate chip cookie dessert was wonderfully indulgent. Perhaps we went on an off night, but for the hype and the price, I was not overwhelmed.

• Pros: cool atmosphere, somewhere cool to grab a drink
• Cons: food - very salty

03/10/08

Great Service and Great Food to Match

by James23

I walked into Avenue M with the pretension that the food will be good and my expectations were far exceeded. The Cowboy steak was cooked to perfection, and my girlfriend said she has never tasted salmon so good. Throughout our meal, our server was consistently attentive, pouring drinks before we even needed to ask. I will definitely be going back, and recommend checking out the patio when the weather warms up. I've heard it is the place to be in the summer.

• Pros: Service, Valet, Food

09/04/07

great food in a healthy preparation

by stronger

The uncluttered, sleek and modern dining room is conducive to enjoying the meal. We had the bone-in filet and sea bass; the high quality ingredients and straightforward preparation were excellant. The unexpected flavor combination (tuna and grapefruit) of the appetizer was delicious. The s'more dessert was a sophisticated version of the old favorite treat. The waiter was very knowledgeable about the food and wine and quite personable. We met one of the owners who couldn't have been more welcoming and hospitable. All in all they made my birthday celebration a wonderful event.

06/25/07

GREAT Chilean Sea Bass!

by cduncan55

We had an OUTSTANDING meal at Avenue M!! We went out for a birthday dinner with a group of 6 & we were ALL very pleased with our Avenue M experience! The servers are friendly and very helpful, answering any of our questions and serving us happily!

The food was EXCELLENT - we all tried something different on the menu...they told us that Avenue M is known for their Steaks, but we also thought that their seafood was GREAT!!

Especially the Chilean Sea Bass (that's what I had to eat!!)

We'll be back!!

• Pros: GREAT FOOD
• Cons: NONE.

05/27/07

Underdelivered and overpriced

by bldoolit

I made reservations for my anniversary to go to Avenue M. We walked into an empty restaurant, so reservations seemed a little over the top. However, despite an empty dining room and reservations, they seated us in the bar area. This "trendy, hip" restaurant had bad 80's rock music blaring and TV's with sports on in what should have been a classy establishment (ignoring the places? dilapidated surroundings), ruining all ambiance and class.

As a result of our poor seating, we were served by the bartender, who didn?t make any recommendations when asked, and didn?t really seem to care. This sort of service for the price didn?t add up.

Hoping the food would outshine the service, we ordered the chicken dish (which we had read rave reviews about) and the duck breast, with Brussels sprouts on the side. Sadly, the highlight of the meal was the Brussels sprouts. The duck was like eating thinly sliced pieces of fat, and not very well seasoned fat at that. Even after cutting off large pieces of fat from the duck, what I did eat still took awhile of gnawing on before I ?put it? in my napkin. The lobster stuffed chicken had very little sauce and absolutely no flavor. There was no flare or imagination in the dishes whatsoever. We sat for 20 minutes without being attended to by the bartender before the manager happened to walk by. We flagged him down and let him know that this was some of the worst food we had ever had, regardless of price. I have never complained about food in my life, but this was worth saying something. He was kind enough to cover the entire meal, but at that point we weren?t much in the mood to spend the time to reorder, so we left. Had the meal (2 glasses of wine, 2 entrees, 1 side) not been covered by the manager, it would have nearly exceeded $100. What I received wasn?t worth half of that.

The only saving grace was Kevin, the manager, who did try to make it a good experience for us, but at that point it was too late for Avenue M.

• Pros: Helpful manager
• Cons: Food, Service, Location, Prices

05/22/07

I thought the food was very good, but where's the service?

by johnniebgud

I happen to see this place as I was visiting something else nearby and it looked great. A friend had a small birthday dinner there with 6 people. I would say that it is a very expensive restaurant, and we knew that going in; but with places like these you expect impeccable service. It was anything but. The bartender had a difficult time getting drinks out in a timely manner. We waited quite a long time. And where is the friendly service? I felt like a number. The food server was much better at his job than the bartender. I would say go. They had a good wine list. The food was very good. I just think that when you're spending this kind of money on a group of people, the restaurant really needs to pay attention to those little things that make an okay place an experience to remember. I wouldn't go back any time soon.

• Pros: beautiful outdoor space
• Cons: poor service

05/21/07

Arrogance

by kchicago

On Saturday evening, my girlfriends and I anticipated a fun night on the town. Unfortunately, the evening was a major disappointment due to the restaurant Avenue M. Our 8:30pm reservation sat us at 8:45pm. We ordered wine and moments later confirmed our meal including the starters. I would estimate the submission of our orders was about 9:15pm. Five girls, 4 salads probably should not take an hour. We inquired about the salads with our waiter, for we were not sure if the vegetables were being grown in the kitchen! Nothing. So we asked for a manager. After our complaints, he came back only to insult us by noting that the salad order was put in at 9:40pm and asked if we were still on East Coast time! Rather than apologize and get us our salads, he argued with us. I did say he was the manager, right? We canceled our entrees, asked for the check and went on with our evening. I suggest that if the restaurant Avenue M wants to stay on Avenue M, they would be best to enroll their employees in hospitality school to learn customer service 101.

03/12/07

Yummy without the attitude.

by smartsusie

A friend and I went to Ave M on a Saturday night with an 8:30 reservation. We were not seated for over an hour. Some peope may freak out about this, however, the atmosphere was great and the host comped us two glasses of wine each. We were starving by the time we were seated and were not disappointed! Our meals were great! We split a salad and scallops as starters-both creative and tasty. We both has steaks, cooked to perfection, and a twiced baked potato that was the best I've ever eaten. To finish our meal, we were surprised again by the host with a dessert on the house. We popped upstairs afterward to check out the nightlife. We weren't impressed and basically did a walk through. Go for the restaurant not the lounge. I can't wait to return in the summer--I hear the outdoor dining is amazing.

12/11/06

great in every way

by winelove06

My husband and I eat here often and we have never had a bad expierence. The wine is always paired well and the servers know what they are talking about when it comes to wine and food. Every one is helpful and attentive but does not bother you ...which what i like the most.

• Pros: ambience, service, overall
• Cons: getting a cab