Helen — Restaurant in Birmingham

This is a revisit. The initial review is below and some of it still stands but I'm basically positive about the Helen experience. The only reason I don't award another star is that at this level of aspiration and price I expect a Frank Stitt/Big City experience. Food- ok. Very Heavy, and not thoughtful at all. I've eaten 85% of the menu, (yes it changes, I'm a critic- so I get to use poetic license and etc). I'm a man. I'm a construction worker and I eat 2-5K calories a day. This is a heavy menu even to me. Service- EXCELLENT. Last trip we tipped 30%. But- WTF? Jeans? Visible Ink? These folks should be knocking down 6 figures. This isn't the Vortex or the Rondezvous. If you're a professional server look like one, don't keep me guessing. Go to Ruth's Chris or Perrys/Flemings and make the same money with long sleeves and double knit- You don't have to remember the 'Specials' either. . Atmosphere? Brick walls and self-anointed celebrities. gee Thanx.

I'm sure you do 80% of Charlie Vergos gross and turn tables as quick. Congratulations. It doesn't seem "As Advertised", but you're obviously successful, so what do I know?

ORIGINAL VISIT TWO WEEKS AFTER OPENING- This is a very nice space with a thoughtful menu, albeit a bit pricey. Four biscuits are ten bucks. Automatic puts some awesome yeast rolls on the table for half that...Hmmm. The bar made an effort to produce a requested non-menu cocktail, and scored a hit. Apps were a success. Our party had sweetbreads, fennel sausage and the biscuits. Everything was tasty and well presented. We were pretty stoked for sides and mains-FYI sides are steakhouse style, a la carte and sized for two. Proteins are lonely on an otherwise bare plate. One of our party had the ribeye and proclaimed it excellent. My wife had some also and declared it good. WHY my wife was sampling it was because her snapper was inedible. It had the texture and appearance of conch. At first it appeared to be chicken but....who knows? It was curled into a U shape and took a steak knife to cut. It should never have left the kitchen. Heck, it should never have left the Gulf if it ever swam. My wife sent this back to the kitchen. We also had two of the lamb shank. These absolutely beautiful Fred Flintstone chunks of meat would have saved the night. They had a tremendously tough exterior (steak knife, again). Once peeled away, the interior was tough and fibrous, rather than sweet and tender as lamb should be. Bleah, Sides were variable. Roasted potatoes were acceptable, eggplant was ok. Baby summer squash was poor. The okra was simply horrible. The menu described it as 'coal roasted'....and that is exactly what it tasted like. Coal. Not Charcoal or smoky southern goodness, but COAL, as in steam engine fuel. SOMEONE (he did not introduce himself) came to our table and explained that the fish was 'a bad piece' and he would talk to the supplier and adjust our bill. When he asked about the rest of our meal my fellow lamb-eater voiced displeasure. The fellow looked at them and declared they had perhaps spent too much time on the grill. At the end, the snapper was removed and the lamb discounted 50%. Perhaps this was an instance of Early Days in the kitchen, but the place wasn't very busy. I have NEVER been in such a hurry to get home and brush and floss. It left a bad taste in my mouth, literally and...

Our recent experience at Helen was mixed, as I'll detail below. But my overarching appraisal is that this (unfortunately) represents one of the lower bang/buck restaurant experiences I've had. Let's start with service: first-rate, and five stars. I'm blanking on our server's name, but he was SUPER attentive - and ALL of the staff were WONDERFUL, helpful, informative, and friendly. The overall "vibe" of the place is DELIGHTFUL. Drinks: superb. We tried the "Piano Man" and the "Placebo" - and BOTH were interesting, complex, well-balanced, and flatout delicious. Props to the bartender!! Starters: their much-touted biscuits were FANTASTIC - super flavorful, light, and fluffy. I could have eaten a dozen of them. Main courses and sides: we ordered the New York Strip, the Iberico pork, the iceberg salad, and the mushrooms. The Strip was cooked irregularly: 80% was RARE (even though we had ordered medium rare), and the edges were MEDIUM. Not caring much for rare meat, we worked our way around the edges. But - and this is the most important part - in line with the review by "AZ" below, we were startled by how BLAND it was. Virtually no discernible seasoning - basically, the meat, and the char from the grill, and that's it. The Iberico was a bit more flavorful, but still radically under-seasoned - and for the price ($56!) pretty underwhelming (I mean, we're talking a 3x4 inch piece of meat for over $50). The mushrooms too were surprisingly bland - and pretty much hit the same single flavor note as the meat dishes - so everything ended up being one-note. Now, we're NOT salt-fetishists, or picky restaurant haters (see my many other restaurant reviews) - it's simply the case that our dishes were all under-flavored. And when you're paying more than $100 for two pieces of meat, you want to be WOWED with every bite, instead of going, "Hmmm....this tastes like.....grill?" The salad? My wife described it best: it basically looks like a pile of shredded lettuce for a taco - with two onion rings and a slice of bacon laid on top. I mean, that's basically it. Upon its arrival, we actually thought it was something else. But yeah, it's basically a pile of shredded iceberg, on a plate, with a mild dressing mixed in. Desserts: DELICIOUS. We had the chocolate mousse tart and the strawberry tart, and they were both EXCELLENT and FLAVORFUL. Taken as a whole, the meal was solid. Nothing was "bad" or "problematic" (except for the misfire on the meat cooking). That being said, when one factors in the price - we spent over $200 (with tip), this comes in as one of the lowest bang-for-the-buck restaurant experiences we've had, and that makes me sad, largely because we were SO looking forward...

I have heard great things about Helen ever since they opened, and even hearing all the great things, I was not prepared. Our server was incredible 😍 he was knowledgeable and attentive without smothering us. It was a perfect balance. The skill with which Feyard took care of us was a masterclass in what fine dining service should look like. The staff really works cohesively to provide a homey feeling of comfort and care, like you are visiting your favorite grandparent. It was a wonderful mix of doting and allowing for time and space to digest and process the experience. Before I speak on the incredible food and beverage experience, I want to thank the other staff members who checked on us, namely Matthew, Nate, and Seth. Now the food.. I was just floored by the simple elegance and elevation of dishes that I have had or seen before without feeling like we got a tiny portion or afraid to ruin the art of the presentation. We started with a couple of the Non alcoholic beverage options, and they were fantastic. The skill behind them really showed through in the flavors and execution. The angel biscuits were so good. It reminded me of my grandmother's after church lunches. We had the crudo, which is not something I would usually go for, but the mix of citrus and savory with pops of herbaceous flavor was perfection. We also had the corn ribs and the Bleu cheese celery slaw, which were both fantastic compliments to the iberico pork that was really just divine. I wish we had saved room for dessert, I can't even imagine what treats they have in that department. All in all, it was a wonderful experience that I would describe as an elevation of a familial dining experience. I really felt cared for and can not recommend this restaurant enough. The food was great, but the service and care really made this experience memorable. Thank y'all for a...