The Graceful Ordinary — Restaurant in St. Charles

Alright, lets start off by getting the one bad thing out of the way here, and that is, this place is EXTREMELY expensive. Given the location, quality of food and service though, that should not come as a surprise to anyone who dines here. This is a 5 star restaurant right on the river. Expect to spend at least $80-$100 per person coming here if you want a full course meal (appetizer, dinner with sides, and dessert), and that is NOT including drinks. They also do not include any sides with your entree, you have to request and pay extra for those, which I thought was pretty bogus. But they are honest and upfront about it when you ask.

Alright, now that we got that out of the way, lets talk about all the great things, because there are a lot of them... The taste and quality of the food here is amazing. Simply incredible. All of the food and drinks here are top notch, 12 out of 10. I started off with the Octopus Carpaccio. Absolutely delicious. Its seasoned and marinated so well. Im a big fan of octopus and squid and this mini appetizer did not disappoint.

For my entree, I had the "Le Pigeon" (by the way, any place that has the balls to put PIGEON (ok squab, but basically pigeon) on their menu, my hats off to you, and I GOTTA try it!). I can see why its not a more popular item at other restaurants. Theres not a lot of meat on it compared to chicken or other poultry. But... it is EXTREMELY tasty!!! Im not exaggerating when I say this, it has the texture and taste of fine beef like filet mignon. If I didnt know it was pigeon (squab), I would have thought it was a fine red meat like filet mignon. Super delicious. Im a fan of exotic meats (or at least, uncommon ones) and this is one of the best Ive ever tasted in my life.

For my side, I had the fingerling potatoes. Again, very good. Very well seasoned and cooked. I could have eaten and filled up on those alone. Delicious.

I did not have any dessert, but instead opted to try 4 drinks off their signature cocktail menu. The drinks are actually very reasonably priced for how good they are. The quality and taste are a giant step above most restaurants and honestly some of the tastiest Ive ever had. I think the owners are smart enough to know people who get liquored up spend more money so they dont try and stand in your way on that one. Lol. They also make them quite strong, at least, for me they did. Not complaining at all, lol. Just something to note.

Its hard to say which was my favorite because they were all excellent. The "dont be salty" one is an EXCELLENT before and during dinner drink. Great appetizer drink. Their version of a dry martini. Nice hints of basil and proscutto infused Vodka that you can definitely taste.

The one that has wisconsin badgers in its name (cant remember the exact name) was really good. Like chocolate and cherry infused with an old fashioned. Probably more of a desert drink, but, could be enjoyed before dinner if you have a sweet tooth.

The pumpkin one (again, cant remember the name), which i believe was 2nd or 3rd from the top, most definitely a dessert drink. Great hints of pumpkin and cinnamon in that one. Very sweet and delicious.

Last one i tried was called the hulu tulu zulu or something like that. Its the tequilla/mezcal mixed one. Very delicious as well. Could be a before or after dinner drink. And as you can tell by the fact I cant remember most of the names, they werent stingy with the alcohol and got me buzzed quite well.

Lastly, I will talk a little about the atmosphere. Loved the atmosphere in this restaurant. Very professional and well done. Even the restroom had some really nice toilet paper. Lol. You really feel like youre in a high quality place. Decor was very nice. Lighting was excellent. I dont remember having to yell over the music (huge pet peeve of mine at some places). Awesome seating on the river.

All in all, an EXCELLENT restaurant! One of the best I have EVER been to! I will definitely be back again soon! Thank you owners for such a great...

While we love the atmosphere, it is not enough to make up for its shortcomings. Between my SO and I, we’ve been here 5 times. Every time, but once, there has been an issue/s. Usually food is not prepared as ordered, or is just not delicious. The small plates are usually good, but found them to be lacking in desirable options with the last visit (personal preference). The the large plates are what usually disappoint. Usually, we order the ribeye or pork chop. They have both been meh at every dinner, or overdone (rare should be an easy temp to cook to).

The most recent visit failed on multiple fronts. We sat on the patio to enjoy oysters, champagne, and a meal. Service started off great. Oysters were delicious and the champagne was enjoyable. Had a small bread cheese appetizer that was excellent. But as soon as we ordered a ribeye to share for dinner, that’s when the service declined. Right next to us was a large party that showed up after us. I believe it was the owners of the building (we knew some of the party). They completely took over the service on the patio and we went 30+ minutes without seeing our server, nor receiving our meal that we ordered. I had to get up multiple times to request drinks and inquire about the dinner. While we really liked our server, she should have had some help with that demanding table, or to assist other tables. When the ribeye arrived over 30 minutes after ordering, the presentation and temperature were excellent, but the flavor and texture was bad. Our server apologized profusely for the problems, but honestly, it’s just another detractor from an otherwise amazing location. I don’t see us returning in the near future. For reference on timing, we arrived at 4:15 and left at approximately 7:00.

Also, for as long as this location has been open, no one I know has been able to reach anyone at the restaurant by phone. I assumed the number online was incorrect, so when I arrived in the lobby on Friday, I called the number to see if it worked. It worked, but barely audible (I get that you want to maintain a nice atmosphere). And not once did any of the 2-3 hostesses make an effort to answer.

One last thing; the general consensus from everyone I speak to about their first impressions are that the atmosphere is amazing, cocktails are on point, small plates are great, large plates are lacking, and kitchen/wait times for food are subpar and long.

We really want your restaurant to thrive, as it’s a beautiful addition to the area, but you need to deliver what you claim to...

First time eating here, we've been to other comparable places in the area that were priced similarly. I have to say walking in the atmosphere is amazing. Wait staff was very attentive and kind.

Where everything fell flat was the food. We ordered two snack plates. The bone marrow and the goat cheese with pear preserve.

The bone marrow tasted bland and wasn't rendered properly. I was expecting something delicious to put on a nice piece of toast and instead it tasted like nothing but grease (the toast was also very greasy) The goat cheese and pear were pretty good - but at 12$ as well you can simply buy these two things at a grocery store for half the price. I got an Americano and my wife got la Granada - both fantastic. Seriously if your looking for great cocktails and nothing else, this place is it. For entrees I got a duck confie. The duck was phenomenal, crispy skin and falling off the bone. But the butternut puree had orange juice in it ...why? Just use oranges. If your doing fine dining don't cut corners on small details like this. My wife had the beef cheeks - fantastically cooked and literally the most perfect mashed potatoes both in consistency and taste - but where were the parsnips mentioned? It also could have used some sauce - if you braised such a hard piece of meat why not give that flavorfully liquid along with it? We also got a side of the brussel sprouts - great flavor for the most part, but again it ate very greasy to the point you could probably get a teaspoon of grease out of one Brusselsprout if you squeezed it. The overall issue is that your being charged 12-25$ for small plates or snacks, and 35-60 for entrees and are met with small portions - which also wouldn't be an issue if every little thing on that plate is done perfect. And it just isn't and overall ate very greasy (look at some other reviewers pictures and you can even see the grease). Overall it's not a bad place to eat - very surprised that so many people blindly are giving 5 stars since it is far from this. It's a masked fine dining experience that just falls short for the food on key points. We'll more than likely be sticking with other restaurants in the area in...