Chez Lola
Categories: French, American (New) [Edit]
Neighborhood: Brooklyn/Clinton Hill387 Myrtle Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11226 (718) 858-1484
- Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: No
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: Yes
12 Reviews for Chez Lola
"Tasteless cat food" that should have been the name of what I ordered. I read these other reviews and I'm starting to think that instead of trusting other people's tastes I should not let these reviews dictate my decision. Everything mentioned I disagree with. I don't mean to be such an angry reviewer/blogger but I can't help but warn others on the bad experience and the food that should not pass for 20 dollars a plate. You have been WARNED!
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I've been to brunch at Chez Lola about 5 or 6 times. It's a bit out of the way for me (I live in Red Hook), but the quality of the food, the beautiful colonial French decor, and back garden have kept luring me back. It's a comfortable place, one to while away a lazy Sunday afternoon.
That said, I've found the service to be above-average on only one or two of my visits. The last time I was there, which was very recently, my waitress splattered a dollop of bernaise sauce on my white shirt as she was removing my silverware. I'm never one to cause a stink, especially over a harmless accident like this, but I never received an apology - even after pointing it out. (She did bring Seltzer, at my behest, which suggests acknowledgment of the stain). Additionally, there was an incident with her a month or two back. After patiently waiting 20 minutes to have our order taken, I very gently mentioned that we were now ready. Judging from her response, she seemed far more agitated that I had the gall to point this out than the issue at hand. Now that I think on it, on my most recent visit, she didn't even take our orders. The runner did.
At any rate, the brunch is tasty, the decor tops, the service, not so much. Caveat Emptor.
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Yeah that's right i gave it five stars..(4/28/08 - oops, i had to take one away...sorry) I have to say this is a great place for Dinner, but frankly the Breakfast/brunch leaves something to be desired...
no the food is not perfect, but it is well thought out with nice flavors and good balance:
The Rack of lamb with sauteed bok choy and leek mashed potatoes in a not-too-salty jus.
The talapia was very a nice thick fillet which was seasoned and pan fried (in BUTTER) until it was crisp in part and soft in others and really nice.
The Arugula and watercress salad with a (creamy?!) lemon dressing and mandarin wedges sounded odd, but the combination was actually nice.
As mentioned before, the wine list was GREAT We had a higher priced barolo which was fantastic for only $36. on top of all of this, the staff are cute and helpful and i only JUST learned about the outside seating!!
Also i did not try them but the drinks menu was great and imaginative - i think this may be my new local.
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Yelp really needs to add 1/2 stars! Read this as 3.5 stars. Brunch fare was okay, not as exciting as the old Liquors (sigh) but Lola gets extra points for her backyard and one cute waiter wiz zee accent francais who escorted us around one day when we were just scoping her out...
Will have to try her dinner steak to see if it is up there with her cousin (Chez) Oscar's...
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Happened upon Chez Lola for dinner once, as we were just looking for 'something new' in the neighborhood. I wasn't particularly hungry,so I ordered a specialty appetizer that resembled empanadas and some wine. The waitress was very nice, and the back patio outdoor seating was lovely for the summertime. It's a bit too dim inside for my liking, so I probably would only eat here when the weather is nice.
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I'm new to the area so when an out of town friend came to visit I had no idea where to go. Luckily, we stumbled accross Chez Lola and were both pleasantly surprised.
First of all, the restaurant is really cute and the weather was nice enough when we went that we sat in the amazing garden area.
We were also lucky enough to get there in time to catch the tail end of brunch just before 5pm. I forgot the names of everything we ordered but mine was a take on eggs benedict with spinach and bechamel sauce that came with really good potatoes and salad with great dressing...and the ruby red/mint/sparkeling cocktail I got was fabulous (and stiff, too)! My friend got the ham and cheese sandwich with an egg on top...I didn't try it because I'm a vegetarian but she was loving it.
It seems that the brunch menu is a little more vegetarian friendly than dinner so we stumbled across this place at the perfect time. Overall, we loved the whole thing!
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The paris martinis are so delicious, fresh and delightful, like biting into a pear,. but so much more complex. the bread they set on the table is chewy and fresh--but where are the plates? i had a pile of crumbs in front of me and nowhere to set the bread down! the olive oil was a nice touch, though I thought that was an Italian thing. Anyway, I went with two friends, myself and one other had the salmon burger with skinny onion rings--the burger was so damn good.. and the chipotle mayo made it all worth while. the onion rings were fair.. could've used less salt. i had to drink a LOT of water, although the wait staff was incredibly attentive. any time my glass went below half full they were there filling it up! my other friend had the cheese burger..which she phrased as being "the bomb".. she loved it. they cleared our empty plates promptly and asked if we wanted more drinks or dessert--we had the white chocolate lavender bread pudding--FANTASTIC. so so good. I have to say, the space is a bit crowded and cramped.. my friend got smacked more than once as a waitress passed, though apologies were given. The ambiance is quite nice as well. it made me enjoy my food all the more. Reasonably priced considering the amount of food we had and what we ordered...I look forward to going again!
Pros: dessert, drinks, ample portions, conscientious wait staff
Cons: too salty onion rings, a little too cramped
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I'm only giving this 4 stars instead of 5 because it's my local and I'm probably biased -- it's probably not actually The Best Food Ever, but it's my local. Any night I'm sick of cooking, in a terrible funk, am missing the one vital ingredient that would make dinner happen, etc. I just go to Chez Lola, and everything is magically fixed.
1. Guinness on tap. I think this might be the only restaurant in the neighborhood that has it.
2. Fantastic wine list, and very reasonable. Lots of simple reds that go well with their incredible burgers.
3. Inventive specials -- my only caveat is that their special empanadas and raviolis always seem to both have meat, which frustrates my roommate the vegetarian. Would it hurt to do a veg special every now and again?
4. French onion soup which is at least 40% bread and melty gruyere. Just the way I like it.
5. Best fries in the neighborhood, by far.
6. Fantastic interior, ditto the garden.
7. Reading Allyson's review below reminded me of how much their variations on eggs Benedict rock. Also the home fries - only home fries I actually like. And that yummy side salad with the boston lettuce...
The waitstaff is generally rather clueless, but only in the most charming of ways.
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I took a friend of mine from out of town to Chez Lola for brunch on a Saturday and we both ended up getting the "slow roasted pork" sandwich. Big mistake.
Not only were there a lot of tendons/fat on the meat, the meat itself smelled and tasted old. It was nothing like the description on the menu - clearly, it was pan-fried - and they nearly forgot to give us the chipotle mayo.
"It's not their specialty," would be an excuse, but if you can't even use fresh ingredients and present what's on the menu, why even have it on the menu?
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When my friend told me we were having dinner here, she said, "It's by the gas station. I know that sounds bad, but it's not." Chez Lola is a couple of blocks from Ft. Green's concentration of restaurants, and fairly new, so it was a nice quiet place to have dinner on a Sunday night.
The interior is super-cute, the food absolutly amazing. I tried the salmon burger, it was flavorful, spicy, a perfect consistancy and on a good bun.
The specialty drinks were very tasty. I hear the garden is great, but it was still too cold to check it out.
See photos and stuff here:
http://www.clintonhill...
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We've eaten at Chez Lola twice. The first time was several months ago, in the winter, and we ate inside, and it was OK, nothing great, but not horrible. Perhaps it was because it was wintertime outside and we were eating in a Mediterranean-themed restaurant. Perhaps the restaurant was having growing pains. We felt it wasn't any better than Chez Oskar (where we are regulars).
More recently, we had the opportunity to dine here on a sunny Sunday evening in June when the garden was open, and we had a great time. The drinks were great, the sardine appetizer was great, and the burgers (salmon and beef) were great. The garden is beautiful -- you certainly didn't feel as if you were dining on Myrtle Avenue -- and we just had a great time. So we will be back!
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