Hen House — Restaurant in Memphis

The main concern I have is that our table of six ordered several items from the small plates menu and shared them. We also ordered main entrees and drinks. When the bills came there were multiple share plate charges.

This was not disclosed ahead of time. I have never been to a restaurant with small plates where sharing those incurred an extra charge. In fact often the Wait staff says to pick 2-3 and share. I have never been charged multiple share plate charges on a single bill. I have never been to a restaurant where everyone ordered appetizers and entrees and yet was charged for sharing their food.

In addition no serving utensils were provided for the cauliflower, Brussel sprouts, salad charcuterie plate. Also who charges a plate fee for splitting a charcuterie? The lack of serving utensils would indicate that the dishes weren’t shared. D The place is well decorated and had special touches for Valentine’s Day. I did not objected to the included gratuity for our party of six.

It is very loud.

My steak was cooked perfectly, but the pasta it came with was dressed excessively with the heavy cheese and cream sauce. It came with two stalks of under seasoned broccolini.

The Brussel sprouts were more steamed than crispy and the maple syrup sweetener was very sweet.

The cauliflower was excellent but it is spicy — which I like but several people at the table were surprised by.

The charcuterie was good with a nice diversity of meats nuts cheeses and a Cherry preserve (I’m not sure it was cherry)

The waitstaff was good. I would have much preferred to be told about the charge ahead of time. Burn I do not think this is the waitress’s fault, I think the owners are trying to nickel and dime the patrons.

The rationale for plate sharing fees (at least until I dined here) was to prevent people from splitting entrees from costing the restaurant money, to make up for the extra dishes that need to be done. One member of our table did order a small plate as a meal but she also ordered the charcuterie plate. The rest of us ordered entrees and small plates and we were all ordering 2-3 drinks each. No body was given more than one appetizer plate. And we reused our silverware for the entrees.

The pace was very busy.

If you’ve been to the strip mall you know the parking is a challenge.

This was not in my top ten of Memphis dining experiences. I suggest Maximo’s in Broad for a better wine bar option, Panta for a better small plates experience, and Bounty for better...

The Hen House... should be renamed The Gouda House. This menu is Gouda based. I love gouda myself but sheesh. Where do I started with this terrible experience? The host had to give us water after waiting 10 minutes for a waiter. Another 5 waiting and our waiter finally reveals herself or so we thought. We didn't see her anymore after our order was taken. We went ahead and ordered drinks and our food. You know when a place is a bit overwhelmed so you just order everything at once for fear you won't see your waiter for another 20 minutes. Food was very high which I'm okay with a long as it's worth it. Beef was MRKT price. I ordered. Chile... to receive this beef cold with 6 cold noodles on my plate and one piece of brocolini is an insult to a customer who appreciates food and the art of a chef. My money was insulted here in this establishment. My cold beef plate was just warmed up. 🙄 And the kicker... my 6 noodles were hot but beef... still cool. 🤬 No real chef serving food at this price bring you out the same food you were eating knowing its unsatisfactory. This dinner was pure robbery. No one should ever leave a restaurant paying what we paid needing something else to eat. Even the cocktail was a joke. I love a good cocktail no matter the price. This restaurant won't last. I'm for sure people don't come back especially if they received the service and dining...

Went here for dinner and had a pretty solid experience overall. It’s one of those sleek, upscale spots tucked into midtown. We had a reservation, which I’d recommend, because the place gets busy. Ambience? Super classy with a cozy, welcoming vibe.

Heads up: parking’s a bit of a pain. Not much space, so plan accordingly.

We kicked things off with some house cocktails—honestly, really well done. Mine packed a punch (borderline too strong), but still tasty. For starters, we tried their California guac with crabmeat. Interesting combo. The crab added a nice texture and fancy twist, though it could’ve used a touch more seasoning.

For mains, I had the lobster roll, and my friend went with the Mahi Mahi. Portions looked small at first glance, but surprisingly, we were both full by the end. Lobster roll was decent, not mind-blowing, but the fries? Chef’s kiss. Perfectly crisp and seasoned just right. The Mahi Mahi dish was pretty good.

Wrapped things up with an Italian lime cake that was straight-up fantastic. Loved the subtle sweetness and that not-too-creamy frosting. BUT—and here’s the letdown—the dessert plates were cracked. At a place like this, that’s a big no-no. Kinda killed the...