Helena Modern Riviera — Restaurant in Dr. Phillips

My friends and I visited Helena over the weekend for brunch, and we could all agree that we left with very mixed feelings. The atmosphere is hands-down the highlight of this place —the decor is stylish, and picture worthy, clearly designed with care. It’s the kind of place you’d definitely go if you want great content, especially if you’re into aesthetics. I will say though if you don’t enjoy loud music or if you want to have a conversation with your party, then choose outdoor seating.

In terms of service, it didn’t quite match the vibe of the establishment. Our waitress Jess seemed a bit inattentive and not particularly welcoming. Nothing terrible, but those little check ins make all the difference when dining, and unfortunately we didn’t get that with her. For example I ordered just a regular lemonade to drink before our food came out. My friends opted for alcoholic beverages. Once the food arrived, of course my drink was finished, but instead of being asked if I would like to order another, my cup was just refilled with water. (Mind you I had a full glass of water sitting right next to my empty cup) An attentive wait staff would have asked if I would like to order anything else to drink.

As for the food, it was… just okay. Not bad, but nothing memorable either. It took a little bit of time for our food to arrive, which was understandable, the kitchen just could have been busy. But not only was my cold, it wasn’t what I asked for. (This seemed to be the trend with all the tables being serviced around us as well. Multiple parties were seen sending their food back) My friend and I both opted for their butterfly burger. I asked for mine to be prepared medium well with no tomato, while my friend wanted hers well done with customized toppings. Imagine the disappointment when my burger arrived not only cold, but extremely well done with a huge tomato slice right between the burger and the lettuce 🙃. It seems as if they gave me my friends order by mistake. Needless to say the tomato was removed, but unfortunately I ended up stuck with an over cooked burger. Out of consideration for my friends I opted not to have the burger remade since they had already started eating. But our waitress was no where to be found, so trying to get a remake would’ve been close to impossible anyway.

Would I go back? Maybe—for the atmosphere, and to experience a different menu other than brunch. I’m willing to give Helena another chance I would just suggest they improve on their wait staff, and their communication with the kitchen. This place has great potential and is in a great location, but could improve especially when an 18% gratuity is automatically tacked...

Like many others, we were introduced to this restaurant through social media and decided to drive two hours to experience the much-praised ‘magical dining experience.’ Unfortunately, there was nothing magical about it.

Our excitement quickly turned into disappointment due to the poor quality of service we received. Both our waiter and the manager, Victor, displayed unprofessional behavior, and it felt as though our concerns were not being taken seriously. The waiter falsely informed us that certain menu items were unavailable, even though we saw those very items being served to other tables. We confirmed with other waiters and they did inform us that they in fact had food items we had inquired about. Three of the four people in our group ordered alcoholic beverages, which didn’t arrive until after we had finished eating. While we understand that the bar may have been busy, the one person who ordered a Pepsi should not have had to wait. When we inquired about the delay, the waiter explained that it was due to a lack of clean cups. Shockingly, she took a water cup from our table, only to return with a different cup containing Pepsi—with lemon seeds floating inside! When we pointed it out, she gave us excuses instead of an apology.

We politely asked her to excuse herself so that we may finish our meal, but she refused and stood there with her arms crossed, adding unnecessary hostility to an already unpleasant situation. When we requested to speak to the manager, Victor arrived, only to mock the situation further. His response about our server needing to return to her previous job at Disney was completely unprofessional and did nothing to address the issue. In fact, it made the situation worse.

To top it all off, as we were leaving, we noticed the floor was littered with food, crayons, and even a child’s art work on the tile. Overall, this was a very disappointing experience, and the lack of professionalism and cleanliness is unacceptable for any restaurant, especially one with such high expectations. What saddens me is the fact the food was actually really good but this experience has left such a bad taste...

Ate here last night for Magical dining. Let me say there is nothing magical about dining here. Other review like mine are spot on. Food is mediocre at best. There is not much flavor. Portions are small. 2 of the package desserts are not even Publix quality. Raspberry one was described at cheesecake by waiter😂. Had the aligot bites and the beignets. They were both decent but hardly count as an appetizer. Wife had the salmon dish. Salmon had to be old. It stunk up the glaze so bad. I had the Dijonaise chicken that had no mustard taste. My meal came out cold and not made correctly- missing bacon bits. Our waiter finally came back around so I could send it back to remake. The remake was the same piece of chicken with the same piece cut off before I sent it back. But now it had bacon. Sent it back again. New dish came out fast again. New piece of chicken but drag as heck. The broccolini had no taste other than water. By now my wife has been done eating for 30 minutes. You think you would at least get a visit from a manager- heck no. No wonder both that busy. I have a degree in Culinary Arts. If this was my place that would all be gone. That is just not right. Meal should have been comped by this point. To top it off our waiter Christopher has a racket going. He asks you if you want water to start. You say yes. He then asks if you want a bottle for the table sparkling or carbonated. You answer tap is fine. He brings over an $11 bottle and leaves it in the table. He overlooks any saying tap. Heard the same thing 3 times around me. The ladies behind us now had to split that on 3 checks and they clearly also said tap. So deceitful. Then you are hit with an 18% gratuity added to the bill whether your experience was good or not. Stay away from this tourist trap of a place. Hopefully they will be banned from Magical dining next year. If they stay open long enough. Just go elsewhere. Any of the Rosen places around the area or down...