Chez Fonfon — Restaurant in Birmingham

As with all my reviews, I make no claims regarding the generalizability of my/our experience - this is simply what WE experienced, early Saturday evening, February 4, 2023; and it was a tad mixed, although (as will become clear) the final result was overwhelmingly positive. The service was spectacular. I wish I could recall our server's name (attractive 30-something man, close-cropped beard), but he was fantastically attentive throughout: A+. Now to the food. You're not GIVEN bread - which strikes me as odd - but you have to ORDER it. And when the menu says "petite" baguette, they MEAN it. Although crispy, chewy, and delicious, this tiny baguette provided enough for each of the four of us to have 1-2 bites. Then you're in the uncomfortable position of having to order AGAIN, should you wish more bread. Not a fan of this. Appetizers: the four of us ordered four different items, and shared. The escargot (despite various rave reviews) were quite average: well prepared, mind you, but a bit greasy (in a pool of melted butter), not especially or unusually flavorful (tasted like snails sauteed in butter, nothing more or less), and with a bit of grit in one of them. Grade: C. The red snapper special was tasty and fresh; good but not great. A solid B. But the Bibb salad and salmon tartine were both VERY flavorful and delicious - the clear winners of this round. Solid A's for both. Mains: the much-touted burgers lived up to their reps. Pretty much perfectly-prepared; and although they weren't THE absolute "best burger I've ever had," they were darn near close. Solid A. The fries were crispy and well-prepared, but a bit under-seasoned. Grade: B. But (and here's the big "but" of this review), the Coq Au Vin was TO DIE FOR. I mean, the kind of dish you take a bite of, and just pause, close your eyes, and go (out loud and involuntarily) "OMG!" One of THE most delicious things I have EVER eaten at ANY restaurant (my mouth is STILL watering, at the mere recollective thought of it). And the Flatiron Steak was the same - melt-in-your-mouth delicious, with INCREDIBLE flavor. All four of us (two got the burgers, the other two the steak and Coq) agreed that although we may have had "different" at other restaurants, we couldn't recall ever eating anything that was "better" than the steak or coq. A++ for both (100/100). Astonishingly good. Desserts: across-the-board winners. Much argument ensued regarding which one was "best" (we ordered the Basque cake, the chocolate pot de creme, and the lemon tart), but I will say this: I have NEVER had a MORE delicious lemon dessert than this tart. It was PERFECTION. A++. So yeah, taken as a whole, there were a few minor "misses," but the "hits" were SO spectacular, the overall experience was 5/5 stars - especially when price and service are factored in. The former is important: bang for the buck, this is the runaway best restaurant in the Birmingham area. And the most telling indicator is that we're all still talking about "how incredible that meal was," the day after - and planning our...

A symphony of a meal at Chez Fonfon yesterday with the most beautiful ambience and a wait-staff synchronized like the finest orchestra. I adore the huge windows looking out onto towering trees, antique Parisian prints, buttery walls & creamy tan booths. It's such a welcoming atmosphere without the fussiness of fine dining, but the food is certainly fine dining caliber. I didn't even take photos because I was so enamored by the experience, but here's what we had for lunch. Ginger lemonade with house-made ginger syrup (not too acidic), melt in your mouth escargots with decadent garlic butter and shallot. Nathan, our amazing server (knowledgable and attentive, but not overly so), suggested ordering bread to dip into the sauce. It tasted homemade and was piping hot. For entrees, we ordered the trout with capers, brown butter, local green beans and roasted potatoes (perfectly cooked and wonderfully seasoned with not too much caper) and the Gulf coast crab cake with local green beans and new potatoes- best crab cake I have EVER had. So delicately seasoned with lemon zest, chives and bursting with succulent crab instead of breading like most places! For dessert, we had the James Beard award-winning coconut pecan cake (so incredibly moist with fascinating depth of flavor from the desiccated toasted pecans folded into the batter and the vanilla bean crème anglaise) and the sumptuous chocolate pot de crème with chantilly cream and chocolate biscotti. We can't wait to go back to this exceptional local restaurant that magically transports you to Paris in times past, but has a slight southern twist that makes you feel...

We dropped in on a drizzly Thursday evening without reservations, thinking we might score bar seats. Instead we got a sweet table in their covered patio, and it was perfect. Our drinks came out quickly and were very good. I got the Sazerac on our waiter's recommendation, and it hit the spot. My date got an Old Fashioned and it was good, but not the classic boozy recipe I love. We started with the Fish Paillard and it was delicious. The thin tuna was buttery and perfectly seasoned. I came for the famed burger, and it was amazing served medium rare. The generous portion of pomme frites were crisp on the outside and needed nothing but eating. If you think Trout Almondine sounds boring (as I did), that is incorrect at least at Chez Fonfon. It was absolutely addicting. Everything on the plate was outstanding. The haricots verde were as good as the fish. We had to get the coconut pecan cake and it lives up to it's vaunted reputation. The only glitch in the evening was at the end. We ordered a cappuccino to go with our cake and added frangelico at our server's suggestion. But it didn't come and instead, he brought us a little herbal digestif he said he wanted us to try. He realized his mistake after we'd tried the bitter but enjoyable (to me) infusion, but we'd already finished the cake so passed on reordering the late cappuccino. Unfortunately we still paid for our mistakenly delivered digestif, which left a bit of a bitter aftertaste in an otherwise near-perfect meal. Barring that lapse, service was as good as it gets in BHM. We'll...