Doris Metropolitan New Orleans — Restaurant in New Orleans

I'm giving this a two only because judging by the other reviews, we hit the restaurant on a bad night and had a bad waitress. Also, the bread was good. Otherwise, it would be a one. We went with friends and requested courtyard seating for the six of us, which we were given. Proof of vaccination required, which we appreciated. After being seated, our waitress - Ember - came and my husband gave her his gold American Express card with instructions to charge the entire meal to him. I don't know if that affected her or not, frankly, but she up-sold us so hard, and so fast, that my head was spinning. First, almost insisting we order cocktails and mocktails - one for each person. Heaven forbid anyone truly just wanted water. As we perused the menu we were pushed to order their combination meat platter. The waitress kept insisting she'd never been wrong yet, she could just tell what we wanted. She didn't bother listening to anything anyone said until my husband put his foot down and said "One of us doesn't eat meat!!! What is today's fish?" The bread came and it was excellent, but along with it came a push, again, to order the meat combination platter. I'd really been excited to order the rib-eye, my husband desperately wanted his own bone-in rib-eye, my nephew wanted lamb chops - she completely ignored us and kept shoving the combo , insisting she would "know" what we wanted. We had a vegetarian at the table as well, so we asked for side vegetables. Did we get to choose them? No. The order was put in without anyone ever agreeing to it. The waitress talked so fast, and was so intent on us having what she chose, that she just ran over us. The fish came, red snapper we were told, but you couldn't tell. It was so salty that when I was offered a taste, I almost had to spit it out. Inedible. The oblivious waitress never noticed that the fish was mostly untouched when the table was cleared. The combo platter came, too, and her proudest moment was showing us the marrow bones. Again, we'd REALLY been looking forward to this - but sorry, the rib-eye was not good. Not at all. The shortribs, which she'd lauded as fall-off-the-bone, were stringy. Admittedly, the marrow bones were delicious, the presentation was great, but she never shut up long enough for us to get a word in edgewise. Lamb chops, such as they were, overdone to the point of tasting vaguely like liver. Not that she'd asked how we wanted anything other than the steak. As to our poor vegetarian, the waitress had chosen our sides already - asparagus (5 pieces, each smaller than the last), pureed potato of some sort (not enough for three, let alone six), and French fries (not what we would have ordered in that restaurant.) The drinks were good, though very sweet. We managed to order only one dessert, though she insisted on bringing every single one of us a plate and fork despite the vegetarian saying he wouldn't touch the dessert. We were with local family and felt obliged to say nothing, since they'd been so excited to take us here. But we will never, ever go back. This was one of the worst dining experiences we've ever had. And at $175 a person including tip, very much not worth the price. And today, all of us agreed that we had never, ever, had such a pushy, overbearing wait person...

My wife and I ate here on Saturday, December 16, 2023, to celebrate big news about a new job. After a round of cocktails, apps, entrees, a bottle of wine (one of the few on the menu under $100), and 20% tip, we were out $500. For that money for two people, I think it's fair to expect excellence and consistency. Both were lacking. It was disappointing enough that it turned a celebration into a pretty frustrating evening of feeling like we got fleeced.

First, what was good. My negroni was very balanced and clearly well made. The Ten Green Salad was excellent. (As a $19 salad should be!) The mushroom ragu was tasty, if not a little sloppy and undefined in presentation. We enjoyed our bottle of wine, presented by a friendly and knowledgeable sommelier. Our server, increasingly aware through the evening that we were having a bad time that was not her fault, was charming and professional.

Now, everything else. We were seated at a table that maybe ought not exist: stuffed into a corner, between two drafty doors, just feet from the busy and noisy service station. Every other table in the room was more comfortably situated, and we were fortunate to move to one before things got started. The bread was nearly inedible. My guess is that it was substantially overkneaded, as it was as tough to chew as I imagine leather is. The tuna tartare appetizer did taste good, but was sloppily presented (this is a theme), and felt meager for the price.

The mains were flat-out not worth the money. Full stop. My $105 ribeye was, to give credit, cooked to a consistent medium rare inside. But the outside was grey, it was under seasoned, and there was absolutely no hint of dry-aged flavor. My wife had the "Falls off the Bone" braised beef dish, which had good flavor, but also had some caveman-grade bone laying across the plate (I guess this is the joke in the name of the dish?); more of the plate was bone or garnish than beef. The asparagus side was, to be blunt, a complete failure. For $15, we were given 4, maybe 5?, overgrilled and overseasoned asparagus spears topped with some sauce that looked like mayonnaise squirted from a pastry bag in a rush.

We were not inclined to stay for dessert.

I think my limited Google Review history will show that I'm not a complainer by nature. The strong reviews for this place may also indicate that we were there on an off night. (For this price, however, I'd argue there shouldn't be such a thing as an off night.) My wife and I have both worked service jobs, and we try to be the customers we would want: tip well, be patient, don't sweat the small stuff. But for this money, we'd have rather gone to, for example, Saint Germain twice, Marjie's (RIP) five times, Chandelier Bar, or even Crescent City Steaks, which is clearly not the same caliber of steakhouse but is just as intermittently consistent and loads more charming than Doris. I am happy to spend $500 on dinner when the experience is worth it....

All I have to say about Doris Metropolitan is Wow. I could end my review here but I want to do it justice. Wow to the food, wow to the drinks, wow to the service, wow to the prices....

This was a special occasion, my daughter's 25th birthday, and our 32nd wedding anniversary. My daughter chose the restaurant. (She has good taste.) She knew some people in the industry so they were expecting us. A table was ready and they immediately brought us a complimentary drink, Cynar, an artichoke liqueur. I happened to try it the day before. If you are curious, it starts out sweet, then ends on a bitter note. Worth trying. I don't think I would want to experience a Cynar hangover.

Their steaks are dry aged and priced accordingly. We had agreed before going that we would order and share, having heard their portions are also large. However, they offer a chef's choice. You say how many ounces of meat you want per person and the chef puts together a spread. There were five of us, and I asked for eight to ten ounces per person. (I think it worked out to about four steaks in total.) We also ordered several sides - asparagus, grilled vegetables and truffle fries.

It really did not take long for the dinner to arrive. The meat comes out on a large butcher block, with it served flambe. The server slices the meat at the table. I am not 100% certain what cuts they were, but think we had Bone-in Rib Eye, Strip Steak, Tenderloin, and their Butcher's Cut. I cannot begin to describe the flavor and tenderness of every bite. The only disappointment was the size of the side orders which really were not enough for the table. They were all delicious.

They have a sommelier on staff who suggested a wine. It was a light bodied red wine that did not overpower the taste of the meat but had enough body to hold up to the other flavors. There was a lot of food and we finished every bite.

We were also comped for dessert because of the occasion. They brought small portions of Halvah, Olive Oil Cake, Chocolate Torte, and maybe they also brought some Affogato (but I'm not sure about that one). We also had coffee and espresso.

Their server to patron ratio was fabulous. We must have had three or four people serving us, checking in on us, and ensuring we were completely satisfied. They did a great job. I'm very happy my daughter suggested Doris Metropolitan. It was definitely worth...