Marcel — Restaurant in Atlanta

Mixed Experience at a Michelin Guide Venue

Steak: 2/5 stars

I ordered the Bone-in Filet Monsieur, a 14 oz cut, priced at a premium befitting Marcel's Michelin Guide status. For a $196 meal, expectations were understandably high, but unfortunately, Marcel faltered in its core offering: steak preparation.

Steak Doneness Analysis:

Requested: Medium Rare

Expected center color: 50-60% pink with a hint of red Expected grayish-brown exterior: 20-25% (4-5 mm) Expected internal temperature: 135-140°F (57-60°C) after resting

Received: Rare

Actual center color: Approximately 75-80% bright red Actual grayish-brown exterior: Only about 10-15% (2-3 mm) Estimated internal temperature: 125-130°F (52-54°C) after resting

The steak was significantly undercooked:

Cool center, characteristic of rare, not the warm center expected for medium rare Insufficient Maillard reaction, resulting in a thin 2-3 mm crust instead of the desired 4-5 mm Myoglobin likely only 50-60% denatured, instead of the 60-70% expected for medium rare

For a Michelin Guide steakhouse, this imprecision is a critical failure. The approximately 10°F (5.5°C) difference in cooking temperature resulted in a steak underdone by one level of doneness. This isn't a minor discrepancy; it's a fundamental error in the restaurant's primary offering.

Bread Service: 3.5/5 stars

The bread service, while personally enjoyable, had objective flaws. The bread was doughy, indicating underbaking. In professional baking terms, this suggests issues with proofing time or oven temperature. While I found the doughy texture appealing, it's important to note that properly baked bread should have a fully cooked crumb structure. The doughiness, though tasty to me, represents a technical flaw in bread making.

Customer Service: 5/5 stars

The service at Marcel was truly exceptional, earning its "legendary" status. The staff demonstrated an admirable level of attentiveness, with one server and one server assistant attending to my table. Their presence was consistent without being intrusive, showcasing a well-choreographed service routine.

The team's knowledge of the menu, wine list, and general dining etiquette was impressive. They were quick to address any needs and showed genuine interest in ensuring a positive dining experience. The service staff's performance was flawless, living up to the high expectations set by Marcel's Michelin Guide status.

Overall Rating: 3/5 stars

For a meal priced at $196 in a Michelin Guide restaurant, Marcel's performance was a study in contrasts. The core offering - a properly cooked steak - was mishandled, and the bread service had technical flaws. However, these culinary missteps were somewhat offset by the truly outstanding service. The discrepancy between Marcel's Michelin Guide status and the quality of the food is notable. At this price point and with this recognition, diners rightly expect near-flawless cuisine. Instead, what was delivered was a meal with fundamental errors in food preparation, saved only by the exceptional service.

Recommendation: Given the high price point and the prestigious Michelin Guide inclusion, it's difficult to wholeheartedly recommend Marcel based on this experience. The legendary service provides a glimmer of the excellence one expects, but the kitchen's performance falls short. For those seeking a high-end steakhouse experience, Marcel's inconsistency in food preparation is a concern. If you do decide to dine at Marcel, be very explicit about your steak doneness preferences and be prepared to send dishes back if they don't meet the standard expected of a restaurant of this caliber. The service staff will undoubtedly handle any issues with grace and...

I've been to no less than 100 great steak houses around the world. This one was getting a lot of great reviews so we checked it out.

On arrival promptly greeted and seated (btw - the place is a bit hard to find, the only sign is a small Red M).

We had barely sat down when our waiter "Maurice" introduced himself. What a great personality, attentive, funny, the best waiter I've ever had, ever - My daughters said the same thing. Then there was his assistant Nicole, also attentive, never missed a beat. Made sure our waters stayed full and our wine. :) Both made sure nothing was missing, wrong or needed. They both came to our table almost without notice to take away plates, etc. Then there was Bob, the Maitre D, What a blast! He too has a great greeting and personality. Made sure more than once to see how we were doing. I wish I could take these 3 people to every restaurant to serve me.

Now for why the 3 stars and not five (BTW there would only be 1 star if it were not for the 3 AWESOME Servers).

Starting with the appetizers Steak Tartar - it was plain tasting. I couldn't taste capers, onion, salt, egg nothing you normally would taste in a tartar. It was like they just put meat on the plate. No flavor. The Escargots were delicious - cooked perfect, great flavor and the green sauce was so good I saved it for the rest of the meal. The Tomahawk (30oz $133.00) was over fatty. Cooked right but the fat was not rendered enough. Every bite was 50% fat. I know ribeye's are fatty, that is why I like them, but this cut was horrible. Then there was the flavor issue, no flavor, no salt or pepper, nothing (they don't add those I'm just giving an example). The quality of the meat was top notch, no doubt but is was as if they grilled a piece of meat and tossed it on the plate. This after they said they cook with real hickory wood. I didn't taste any. The Chicken Paillard was delicious, huge portion - seemed like half a chicken, great flavors, cooked perfect but had some fat that was hard to see because the room is so dark you'd occasionally bite into fat instead of meat. The Gnocchi was cooked to perfection but the mushrooms were under cooked so they were a bit chewy. Lastly, they put way to much garnish, parsley, on top - see photo. The two sides - Creamed Corn and Roasted Asparagus were both a let down. The cream corn had little flavor, just bland. It was so bad no one took another bite. Not to be rude but I've had better out of a can. The Roasted Asparagus was over smoked with hickory flavor, so bad I didn't take another bite (this is what my steak should have tasted like not the asparagus). My daughters said it tasted like someone just hung it over smoke. We love asparagus, we have never had leftovers. No one finished there portion. Then there was desert - creme brulee. The entire inside was cold. Now I know they make it the night before and then before serving fire roast the sugar top layer. But the inside needs to be heated as well. This wasn't even attempted. Maybe the chef serves it cold? I've never had it that way, not even in Paris, NY, Chicago steakhouses where I've had it many times.

The atmosphere was wonderful, a little too dark, but still nice, very Paris 1900. The seating was pleasant and as noted the service was simply perfect!!! Unfortunately the food was not French in terms of flavor. The French are world known for great flavors that pop! There are too many other great steak house in the ATL to come here again and burn almost $500.00 and...

First, I’d like to start out by saying, I’ve dined at Marcel’s several times prior to yesternight and each experience (environment, food, and customer service) was remarkable.

On another note, yesternight’s experience was a disaster…Hence, the reason for this review. Yesternight, my fiancé and I had dinner at another restaurant; however, decided to venture over to Marcel’s for dessert - Apple Galette which we’ve done previously. Upon arrival, we were greeted by the hostess and requested seating at the bar. We were informed it would be approximately a one & half hour wait. Not sure we could fully grasp that response as the universal practice for bars is “first come first serve.” Nonetheless, we noticed there was only one couple seated at the cocktail tables, so there appeared to be availability. We kindly inquired w/ the hostess about said seating (again, which we’ve done for dessert, previously). The hostess stated, that due to limited staff, the cocktail tables were not being served tonight. Given, my fiancé and I traveled 20 mins, I offered a solution to what I believed was a compromise for both parties. To no avail was it even considered. So, I requested to speak to a manager. A manager appeared (Vinnie), we greeted each other and he asked how could he help. I begin to share the fact that my fiancé and I had dined at Marcel’s several times previously. When we dine elsewhere, we often return to Marcel’s for the dessert. After sharing this w/ Vinnie and the option I proposed as a compromise, Vinnie remained firm in the position that the staff could not serve us tonight. As a customer who has patronage this business numerous times before, I was taken aback for a couple reasons. The option I presented was a fair compromise and even more so, as a manger “why approach me and ask how you could help” if you’re not really intending to help? It’s obvious his mind was made up prior to speaking with me. What was even more disappointing is that the couple at the cocktail table had drinks. If a decision had been made to not serve that area yesternight, how did the couple get drinks? I’ve dined at a host of upscale restaurants here, domestically and abroad and I’ve found that when a restaurant staffing is to the level for the crowd that evening/night, the manager will demonstrate their respective leadership by leaning in to help. It did not appear that Vinnie was willing to do so, because having available tables that could have certainly accommodated returning customers, and not willing to compromise to do so, spoke volumes. Lastly, a kind gesture at minimum would have been to validate our parking. It’s certainly not about the money, but more about principle - turning away returning customers. Trust me, as entrepreneurs, we realize staff challenges present themselves and for that, we are overstanding; however, we presented a fair and accommodating proposition for both parties which was given little to no consideration. If left to our own devices, we’ll likely never return to...