Baton Rouge Grillhouse & Bar — Restaurant in Moncton

Just opened; already coasting?

First things first - I’ve visited twice. First visit was Sept 16th for a business dinner and second visit was Sept 28th for a personal dinner. The location is perfect. One of the most prominent corners in downtown Moncton. Atmosphere is amazing. Lots of life in the restaurant, if not a bit crowded. It has a very high-end feel when you walk in.

Overall, both visits were “ok”. Menu isn’t overly long and complicated but has plenty of options. Their drink menu is equally interesting. I chose their old fashioned (1st visit) which was good but quite sweet. I had a Madri beer (11.50!) on my second visit, which was recommended by my server as being a Mexican beer (it’s Spanish but close enough I suppose).

For my first visit our table started with tempura shrimp and a spinach dip. Both were really good! It set my expectations fairly high for the rest of the meal!

For my entree I ordered a sirloin steak (38$) with potato skillet (+5$) on my first visit. Steak came cooked properly, but was exceptionally thin. The cooks didn’t really trim much off of the steak and the gristle was really tough, so I was only able to eat about half. Kudos to the cook for being able to cook it medium rare though! Potato skillet was substituted for a baked potato without a real explanation - not a huge deal as a baked potato is my usual side option for steak anyway. However the baked potato was bad. It was dry and bland. I suspect it was cooked a few days prior and reheated in a microwave lol

We finished off the meal with dessert - key lime pie. It was delicious!

Overall was an acceptable first visit, especially considering they had barely opened by this time. I did provide feedback to the restaurant GM regarding my meal.

My second visit was a date night with my wife. We had an early reservation (5pm) so we could eat before the Wildcats game. Service was prompt and friendly. Our server was very attentive, but seemed a little inexperienced. We skipped the appetizer this time and just ordered entrees. She chose the smoked salmon salad (31$) and I opted for a cheeseburger (23$). I figured a cheeseburger and fries is a safe choice. I mean, you have to TRY to mess up a cheeseburger, right? lol

Her salad was good. I tried a couple bites and it was good. Couple of core pieces she had to eat around but … overall it was good. My cheeseburger was … ok. Bottom bun was soggy. Awkwardly soggy. But the worst crime was placing two TINY tomato slices on the burger with the STEM STILL VISIBLE! What is that?? For 23$ that’s just unacceptable. I placed the two pieces to the side of my plate expecting our server to come and ask how everything was but he never did. He cleared our plates without a word. He did return to ask if we wanted dessert but time was getting tight so we chose to pay the bill (100$ with tax and tip) and head over to the arena.

Disappointing. That about sums it up for me. I’ve eaten at the BR in Halifax and two in Montreal before. They’ve always been great experiences. This is just disappointing.

Maybe their ribs are better? I don’t know that I’ll return to find out though lol

For a better cheeseburger go to Milestones (25$) or Skipper Jacks (15$). For a better steak you can literally just cross the street...

I tried this location with family this past weekend, I am a bit conflicted on my experience.

At first, the vibes seemed pretty good. nicely laid out, tables were a decent size, modern look, etc. But the longer we sat at our table the more we felt it was too dark. There was a little lamp on our table, which was a nice aesthetic, but didn't really do much for actual lighting. So, small critique, but I would have preferred if it was a bit more bright overall.

Service was a bit hit or miss. Every waitress/waiter seemed quite young and inexperienced. The girl we had was extremely nice and helpful, full marks to her (I think her name started with an M). Unfortunately, it did take quite a while for her to take our drink order once we sat down. The place was quite empty, and we all had our menus shut after 5 minutes thinking that would be a hint for someone to come take our order, but we waited about 15 minutes total for someone to even come to our table after being seated. Other than that, the service from that point on was great.

The food was also hit or miss. I got the chicken tenders and fries, with a slice of chocolate cake for dessert. The chicken tenders were quite good! They seemed hand-breaded, and the chicken was really good quality. The fries were extremely underwhelming though, and they tasted and looked a lot like McCain's thin '5 minute' fries, so for the price of the meal I was quite disappointed that the fries were underwhelming. The cake was pretty good, but tasted a bit off. I can't remember if it was vegan or not, but it kind of tasted like it. I have no complaints about places offering vegan options, but if that cake was indeed vegan then I'd like to see traditional chocolate cake offered as well. If it wasn't vegan then... it just alright. Not worth the price, as there are better places in town for Dessert, like Gusto.

To finish off the review, I would consider returning in the future for sure, but it would be far from my first choice. The rest of my family felt similar. I think there are a lot better options in Moncton for food, especially for the price.

No serious knock against this location though. I would still recommend anyone to try it if they haven't already so they can form their...

I’ve been to other Baton Rouge’s in other cities. I wouldn’t return to this one. Service started out fine, I got sat at a table outside, and the server was there immediately to take my drink order. The tables on the patio are so close together, they sat two people behind me they were so loud I had to move. And I could barely get by to get out because the tables were so close together. It’s a massive patio there is no need to have a giant space in the middle and have the tables crammed in the corners.

pics below, but I ordered the mushroom chicken, $31.00, crazy overpriced. 1/2 a chicken breast, and a whisper of “seasonal veggies”… it was a 2 star meal trying to be a 4 star meal. Chicken was over done, gravy was heavy salted, and I think the mushrooms might have been canned.

The service ended up being the downside. I asked my server to fill my water a few times, and then she literally ignored me. One server Michael (who was lovely) served me my food, and I was able to ask for a drink menu. The next server that came by was able to bring me a drink. And finally when I saw someone come out with a pitcher of water, I was able to get water from another server.

I then waited 20 minutes for the bill, while I watched my server come out on the patio 5-6 times without acknowledging me once. She didn’t even check to see how the food was.

I had to flag someone down to get the bill, I had someone come over to clear plates. And say “yay, you are done”… still not my server. She eventually did come with the bill, dropped the debit machine on my table, and bolted. I paid, and another server thanked me, and took the machine. I watched several other servers wait with their customers until their bills were paid. Silly - it was also $75.00 for two drinks and a small plate of chicken.

So as above Food 2, service 1, weird patio set up 1

EDIT- contacted the BATON ROUGE below as requested and there was zero follow up, it appears the concerns for the less than stellar reviews...