Cotton Restaurant — Restaurant in Manchester

Honestly I’m sad to give this place 3 stars. I know that by doing so, nobody will read this review and write it off as being written by a “hater”. There are so many of those thoughtless and uneducated reviews out there that we all laugh at then disregard. If you want to know why, please indulge me to read on.

I have eaten here twice myself on business travel, sitting at the bar, and both were outstanding experiences. So I thought I could bring my wife here. Caution, she’s a picky eater. But I felt this place would accommodate her tastes and we’d have the same great experience I’ve always had.

Big mistake.

DO NOT come here unless you will order and eat precisely the dishes on the menu. She requested a very simple substitution of mashed potatoes for the polenta on a pork chop. She will not eat mushrooms or polenta, period. The restaurant served mashed potatoes with many other dishes so we know they had them and it would be a simple thing to do.

We asked the server and we’re summarily dismissed. Really? So I called on my cell, spoke to the floor manager and received the same response, but at least she explained why. The owner / head line cook feels his food pairings are perfect and cannot be changed under any circumstances. The staff isn’t really at fault here, it’s the head line cook’s direction.

I use the term line cook because a true executive chef knows that not all people are the same and is skilled enough to adapt. We ate at French Laundry in Napa once and they were so accommodating… whatever you needed they’d try to do. As will just about any other fine dining restaurant.

But not Cotton. Don’t even ask. Their head line cook knows better than you do and if you don’t believe it just ask and he will tell you. And his staff doesn’t dare to cross him. You can see that in how they act. A hostile workplace for sure.

BTW, my meal was excellent as was the backup choice my wife settled for. I was happy for my meal but I’d hyped this place to my wife and Cotton embarrassed me. That I can’t overlook.

After I went over the server’s head to the floor manager, we never saw the server again till it was time to sell us dessert (refused obviously) then settle the check. Cotton could have upsold us to the more expensive dinner for my wife (fail), a bottle of wine (fail, never saw the server again), then dessert and after dinner drinks (fail). For the same 2 top seating, Cotton could have collected an additional $100 in Sales, half of which would have been a high margin bottle of wine.

Since I was unhappy why not point out other issues I’d normally overlook.

The cloth napkins are yellow and linty. My wife who had to settle for a second menu choice ended up with yellow lint all over her pants. Places that know what they’re doing use black or lint free napkins. She was self conscious about the lint the rest of the evening. Thanks, Cotton, because who do you think had to hear about that the rest of the evening.

And the wait staff/ management could have handled the situation many better ways than “too bad, this is what we do”. Even that would have gone a long way to preserve a nice experience us. But in a hostile workplace, employees don’t cut the leadership any slack. And they shouldn’t. This is clearly a leadership/ ownership problem, not the employees. Anyone can see that.

So, Mr. line cook/owner, is your draconian policy and hostile workplace good business? You answer, not me, because none of us is as smart as you.

I did love your place till you embarrassed me. And you get only one...

Cotton is my personal favorite restaurant in Manchester. They have one of the best varieties around, and everything I've ordered here has been fantastic. The atmosphere is cozy and romantic and the service is always cheerful and attentive.

As for the food, wow. The first time we came to Cotton, I had a strip steak that was a special of the day. Now, I've eaten at both Peter Luger's and Burns Steak House (recently named #1 and #2 in the nation for steakhouses, and rightly so), so I can't truly call this the best steak I've ever had. However, given my personal #1 and #2 experiences, this is a fairly close third. When you consider that it cost half as much, it is truly amazing. The seasoning was such that it perfectly enhanced the flavor of the steak without dominating the mouth. The cook was perfect...a spot-on mid-rare with a beautiful sear giving that wonderful caramelized flavor. I don't remember the sides being anything fantastic (fingerling potatoes and broccolini, I think), but they were quite good and well paired.

Some other favorites of mine:

-Baked Goat Cheese: This is a wonderful app. The goat cheese is creamy and tart and complemented by a fantastic tomato sauce, which is very fresh tasting with a bit of latent heat. The bread which is served for dipping is surprisingly good as well.

-Turkey Schnitzel: So good that I've been trying to replicate it home ever since I first tried it. I've yet to match the wonderful crunch and interesting seasoning that elevates this simple-appearing dish. The bourbon applesauce is a wonderful complement to the pork, but also packs enough flavor to stand on its own.

-Butternut Squash Ravioli: I'm a sucker for brown butter-sage sauce, but the addition of cranberries and hazelnuts along with great ravioli (cooked al dente!) makes this a great dish.

-Sea Scallops: This is actually my wife's favorite as I don't particularly enjoy scallops. I will say that they are quite good as far as scallops go, but the real reason I add it to the list is the sweet potato chorizo hash that comes as a side. Wow. So good that I could eat dish of this as my meal. I've tried to replicate this with an egg for breakfast, but it's still a work in progress.

-Apple Butternut Squash Soup: this was a special, but I'm hoping it comes back around this fall as it's delicious. I personally think my butternut squash soup is the best, but this one has given me some serious doubts. It's different than most, with actual apple pieces and a thinner base than I'm used, but the spices used are brilliant. Seriously, if they have this when you go, you must try a bowl.

All in all, the food alone is enough to sell me on Cotton a hundred times over, but the whole package is so great that it makes it. Any restaurant that has me trying (and failing) to emulate one dish, let alone multiples, is a winner in my book. I truly can't believe this place has only 4 stars. My experience has never been...

Lunch yesterday at Cotton was absolutely wonderful; service from our waiter Chris was also really great. Can't wait to go back!

Here's the thing: when I arrived just before 11:30 there were only a few people seated at the bar or at tables. A group of 6 to 8 people came in and asked for a table and were told that there were none available as they were booked. This did not go over well as, looking around the restaurant, there were many empty tables. One of the women looked at the hostess and said "we'll just go elsewhere" and they left in a huff. The wildest part was that, within only a few minutes, the restaurant was totally full with people enjoying their food.

The reservation for our table was completed via Open Table (the app) which I have used many times to reduce the stress of having to wait for a table at a restaurant with food I love. Additionally, one of the members of our party is a chef who also uses Open Table to reserve tables at times where you wouldn't expect tables to be booked but hey, you nevah know and who likes the stress of having to wait for a table when you're starving?

Here's the point: This is a great restaurant with amazing food and service. You should definitely stop in for lunch or dinner. But please, take a few seconds to download the Open Table app (no, I don't work for them) and make a reservation so that when you arrive, you can give your friends a huge hug for joining you and sit down and have an amazing meal.

And yes, it was sad to see a party of 6 - 8 to leave angry (especially when seeing so many empty aka - reserved tables); who doesn't love great service? But then think of what happened to them next: They had to decide on and find another restaurant Drive there - and find parking Walk in and hope that seats were available (it would be closer to noon when they arrived) Have a little more stress and frustration - maybe not the same enjoyable meal they would have had if they had scheduled reservations at their first...