The Butterfly Club — Restaurant in Town of Turtle

I was not going to post a review, thinking that the owners would respond to a very well thought out letter I sent regarding a Birthday dinner that we had there last Saturday 11/25. But they didn't. And when my husband called to discuss the issue with them on Sunday, they completely brushed him off. So much for 20 years of patronage. I have attached the letter here for all to see: Good Afternoon, I wanted to reach out personally and let you know about how our meal went since it was absolutely so out of character for the Butterfly Club. I have been going to the Club for over 30 years, it was my aunt and my special place. Now that I have gotten older, and have a family of my own, we are frequent guests of the Club. It also usually ends up being our meeting place for my family from Rockford and us from Lake Geneva. My husband and I met my sister and brother in law Saturday at 630 pm for my husband's birthday dinner (The Butterfly is his favorite). We were seated promptly at 630pm in the main dining room, tucked back in the corner along the wall with the mirrors. Our waitress was absolutely amazing, unfortunately, I cannot remember her name but I wanted to make that very clear, she was great. We ordered the following:Oysters Rockefeller for the table - mediocre and just barely warm#1Ribeye dinner, salad, baked potato - brother in law#2NY Strip, Seafood Bisque, au gratin - sister#3NY Strip with skewer, baked french onion, au gratin - myself#4Pan Fried Walleye, baked french onion, baked potato - my husband #1, no problems#2, Seafood bisque arrives and it is cold. I had my sister's medium rare steak on my plate and she had my medium steak on hers. Au Gratin potatoes were ice cold#3 once we switched steaks, I was fine. Au Gratin potatoes were ice cold and so were my shrimp#4, the "pan fried" walleye looked like it had definitely been deep fried with a very heavy coating of batter on it, also cold. My husband and I shared my steak, we each ate one shrimp because they were just not appetizing, both my sister and I declined warmed up potatoes, frankly,  to be honest, we were very frustrated by the meal as a whole by this point.  My husband's meal was taken off the bill, we asked if perhaps since it was a holiday weekend that maybe the chef wasn't the same as usual, but she said Michael was back there and that wasn't the issue. It certainly did not seem unbearably busy there and there were plenty of tables open. We were definitely confused. Each couple spent around $100.00 each including drinks for a meal that I couldn't even say was mediocre. And I was beyond disappointed for my husband since we were so looking forward to celebrating his birthday dinner. I rarely take the time to send feedback to establishments when I have a bad experience. There are a hundred places to eat and I usually just don't return when there is a problem with almost everyone's full course meal. I took the time today because I am hoping that this is a one time fluke and maybe there were other factors that contributed to the out character issues we unfortunately ran into. Again our waitress was fantastic (she has long dark hair, super sweet), she probably remembers us because as much as she was apologizing to us, we were apologizing to her because we know it isn't her fault. My sister and I both grew up in the restaurant industry and understand that the waitress has absolutely no control over the kitchen. We did make our way to the bar to have an after dinner birthday drink and  listen to the live music, which we adore. and I even sang a couple of lines with your lead vocalist. Thank you for your time and best wishes for the...

I have been wanting to visit this restaurant for a long while after seeing many advertisements in the Northwest Quarterly and reading many reviews online. So I surprised my wife with a spontaneous date night last Saturday night and I'm so glad we went here. We arrived at 8 PM without a reservation and a full parking lot. Not to worry because the hostess made us feel welcome, assured us the wait wouldn't be too long and invited us to have a drink in the bar to listen to the live music while we waited which is of course the best way to experience a supper club in the first place - don't be in a hurry, start with a drink and ease yourself into dinner. The lounge is great, clean, and perfectly preserved. The bar itself is huge seating roughly 50 guests, when you include other bar seating I'm guessing that number approaches 100 guests or so; plus there is a very large deck off the lounge. The bar service was prompt, the drinks well made, and the Mike Williamson Band a real treat. Mike definitely knows how to work the room and during the course of the evening managed to make personal contact with most everyone in the audience, which is a true talent all in itself. It's clear the band truly enjoys what they are doing which explains their regular schedule at the Butterfly Club.

After just one drink at the bar our table was ready and we were led by our hostess in to the main dining room. Just like the bar it was very clean and comfortable. Folks don't be put off by the color scheme, remember you are stepping back in time and the feeling of authenticity rings true in this simple and colorful arrangement. The menu had many tempting choices and our waitress did a great job of answering our questions and guiding us to a choice that we were both very pleased with. We both had the Prime Rib & Shrimp. While the prime rib was an average cut, consistent for a supper club, it was flavorful, juicy, and non-fatty. The Honduran Shrimp was the real surprise though arriving butterflied in the shell and served with drawn butter - much like mini lobster tails and every bit as sweet. While three shrimp may not sound like a lot I can assure you they were quite large and oh so delicious. The wine list had many fine choices and we selected a nice Pinot Noir - the prices for both the food and wine was very family friendly. As we finished our dinner Mike, the owner, visited our table and others to say hello and inquire about our satisfaction. After a brief and friendly chat he offered us a complimentary tiramisu which we enjoyed in the bar over some additional after dinner drinks - Thank you Mike!

On the night we were there the crowd tended toward senior citizens who appreciate both value and authenticity and based on the lounge crowd it was clear many were there to soak up the great song selection and performance of the Mike Williamson Band - a trio the night we were there. But there were also many younger people too in their early thirties and forties I would say, some with younger and well behaved children in tow, and all of us watching many of the seniors dancing the many popular dances of their day like the Cha-Cha and the Tango. There were a number of special occasions in the crowd the evening we were there including birthdays and anniversaries.

We enjoyed our experience so much we stayed until the band finished around 11 PM. We look forward to returning and sharing the experience with friends and would encourage others to...

This by far was the WORST I have EVER been treated by a restaurant! On Saturday, Oct 28th, my four year old daughter and I came to have dinner for my deceased mother’s birthday. Our reservation was at 7:00pm. Our waitress didn’t come to our table to greet us or take our order and at 8:15pm I asked the hostess if she new who our waitress was? She was shocked that no one had taken our order. She said she didn’t know who it was but would find out for me. 10 minutes later The waitress comes up BEHIND me and asks “what can I get you?” (Without any introduction or an apology for keeping us waiting.) I gave her my order, she left, by this time people who had come after us were eating and leaving and we still had not gotten our food. By 8:40pm my four year old daughter began to cry about how hungry she was. That’s when I asked a waitress walking by if I could switch my waitress, I told her that I felt I was being treated differently due to my skin color because there was no other reason for her to be treating us as if we were less than. We were the only African American people aside from one other African American man at a table w/several other people. Kathy took over as my waitress and I was pleased that she brought our food quickly after she noticed my daughter crying as I rocked her in my arms. I asked to speak w/ the manager, Kathy said that she had already spoken to the owner and that the owner/manager preferred NOT to come to my table and would speak w/ me on the way out. I let my daughter eat some of her food as she was starving at this point, I ate part of my salad and asked for the bill right away w/ to-go boxes. Our bill was 81.00 and I gave Kathy a $20 dollar tip for her kindness. As I got to the front I was told the manager had left for the evening and would not be returning until Wednesday. I left my name and phone number. Never received a call. I called Wednesday and was told she was not there. I called Thursday (today) and spoke w/ the owner. I expressed to her (very politely, might I add) my frustration and how everything made me feel. She dismissed my feelings by stating that the waitress did not feel like that after telling me she didn’t even know who my first waitress was. She proceeded to tell my that she had mixed race kids and how dare I even think something like that. She told me that she didn’t care about my complaints and unless there was something wrong w/ the food she didn’t care to do anything about the situation. I didn’t even want to mention our food came Luke warm she already had in her mind that she wasn’t going to resolve the issue as she was be combative w/ me about how I felt. I told her that she was unprofessional for leaving that day without even speaking to me about my concerns, I told her it was unprofessional that she hadn’t returned my phone call and how she was treating me on the phone at that moment. I told her I would just leave a review. I’m highly disappointed that the OWNER of all people brushed off my concerns. I will never EAT here again and if you are of COLOR come at your own...