Colette

It was our 2nd time here at Colette. The 1st time was right when it opened. I guess it's just like French wine, gets better with age!But I must say, this time was definitely memorable. It started at the reception area, where we were promptly greeted. But more importantly, it was our waiter, Eric, who was knowledgeable andtimely. And he had a couple good dad jokes! We also appreciated, that every waiter or waitress that went by, filled our waters, whenever needed. We started with the bluefin tuna Crudo with an orange citronette , but it was the Yuzu aïoli we think that intensify the wonderful taste of this. Very light and delicious.Next we went with the escargot a la bourguignon with garlic parsley, butter, and bread. It came out so hot, that all we do was go crazy smelling it. It smelled so good. A minute later it was in our mouths and absolutely delicious. The bread was not only a tool to get it out of the crock, but also delicious for dipping the leftover delicious garlic butter. Might be the best escargot we've ever had.Next was Vol-au-vent puff pastry. I honestly don't even know how to describe it, but it was delicious.Next was Brandade de Morue, whipped salt cod. It was so yum, between the brown butter and the trout roe. It was fun in your mouth, as well as tasty.We ended with steak frites, true to temperature, with a large amount of steak frites. The steak was extremely flavorful. The fries were cooked perfectly. I would like to tell you that we ended with some amazing dessert, but in all honesty, we could eat another thing. We were so full. Can't wait to go back.

We had such high hopes for this "mostly French" restaurant, especially considering that Danny Combs trained under Chef Falk at Boca. The mascot, if you will, is a snail. It appears to be a direct appropriation of Petit Trois, by the celebrated and accomplished Chef Ludo, located in California. However, and I can't stress this absurdity enough, there is no escargot on the menu--at a "mostly French" restaurant whose flag and moniker outside the establishment is a snail. Snails aside, the menu is small. This isn't a drawback, but a small menu equates to "these are the dishes we have dialed in." They do NOT. The ravioli, which they practically celebrate, came out cold. Had we not added the black truffle accoutrement, we might have actually sent this flavorless dish back--a first for us. Now let's backtrack to the bread service. We ordered both the laminated brioche and the bread and butter service. The laminated brioche, which the server talked up as if it was his first born son, was good. It is not made in-house, so we can't exactly give credit to Colette for reheating bread. The butter, which we were informed came from twelve specially selected cows was served rock-hard cold. Every novice knows that bread should be spread and at room temperature. The bread that accompanied the (very cold) butter service was mediocre. The carrot salad was good. The dressing was completely at the bottom of the dish. The server never advised us to toss the dish on our own, so the first few bites were just raw, spiraled carrots. The dressing distribution either needs to be performed tableside or given as a directive, not dropped off and dashed away.Thankfully, we ordered the cod. It was excellent. It was the saving grace for the restaurant. If you are not a fan of cod, skip Colette altogether.We ordered three desserts. The mousse was by far the best. The profiteroles were the most highly recommended and they were mediocre. Think an ice cream sandwich with overly frozen vanilla ice cream in the middle. The puff pastry with cherry topping was pretty good. We were hungry after a less than mediocre dinner, so it's possible we are overly generous with our praise of the desserts.At the end of our meal, a manager came over and whisked away our AMEX card. We noticed other tables were given the courtesy of inquiring how their meal was. Keep in mind, we were polite the entire duration of the meal, so it is puzzling why we were treated in such a curt manner.At the table next to us, Chef Danny Combs came out and personally regaled those guests with--guess what--escargot! Well, we got to smell it? Ha! Also, Mr. Combs only acknowledged that table of six and didn't even make eye contact with anyone else. Our server quietly whispered to us that the person was his sister. Great, but you don't acknowledge anyone else in your very small restaurant and openly serve off-menu items (the damn escargot that DOES EXIST)? Highly unprofessional behavior and off putting to say the least. Regale your personal guests in a private room or during non-business hours. We ordered a white Bordeaux. The wine bottle was never presented to us (a common courtesy, who knows what we were truly served) and was hastily delivered in cheap, thick wine glasses. Yikes. Again, fine for a no-name bar, but unacceptable for a "mostly French" restaurant. For transparency, our bill was $303.00 before tip. For that price range, go to Boca or Sotto. Chef Danny Combs, you have been open for over a year and have many years of exquisite training under your belt. I was rooting for you. You should be ashamed of yourself. We have dined at many--more casual than yours--French bistros and restaurants and Colette is an absolute atrocity. Your patrons deserve much better in every aspect--from respect, service and quality cuisine.Update: My husband and I got violently ill from Colette, the gift that keeps on giving. Food poisoning. We believe it was the cod, the only dish we truly enjoyed. Oh, the irony.

Our dining experience at Colette was nothing short of exceptional, earning a well-deserved five-star rating. The meal began with their bread service. I do wish they provided a mini carryout container to take any leftover butter home as it was superb. We then shared a vibrant roasted beet salad, perfectly balanced with fresh flavors and creamy goat cheese. My husband's Icelandic cod was flawlessly cooked, showcasing delicate, melt-in-your-mouth texture. My Herbed Cavatelli with braised lamb neck ragout--a rich and hearty dish that combined the earthy, herbed pasta with the depth of the slow-cooked lamb, creating a wonderful cacophony of flavors. I also ordered a side of pomme frites which were crispy and hot. Of course after that exquisite meal we had to end with dessert. We shared the profiterole and Mille-Feuille. Both were delicious but the profiterole was the clear standout. For a future menu consideration, I would love to see Crêpes Suzette.Every detail, from the service to the ambiance, made for an exquisite dining journey and I would dine here multiple times over.

Hands down the best meal I've had in Cincy. The lamb cavatelli was outstanding. So savory and light, not heavy at all. The bread was very flaky and had a rich buttery taste, almost a little too rich for me. The ravioli comes in a sheet and the brown butter gives it this sweetness that you would not expect. The gin cocktail had such a nice bite and bitterness from the sage that it paired so nicely with the lamb. Can't wait to eat here again.

Wow! I enjoyed this place so much more than I expected I would! Everything we had was delicious! The service was friendly and helpful. The ambiance is casual, with dim lighting, with some plate and art decor on the walls. The Steak Frites - perfectly cooked steak at medium. The flavor was the best I've had in quite some time, including the sauce, which I typically don't even like on steak. It was savory and warm, and even paired well with the frites. The frites were fresh and crispy, not greasy! The Raviole du Dauphiné was served still connected, which I had not seen before. It was cooked perfectly and tasted so good I think I ate it all in under 5 minutes The cocktails were made well and tasted good. The Mille-Feuille was divine. I was so full yet I couldn't stop eating it! So light and fluffy, not overly sweet, with a lovely touch of tart cherry. We can't wait to go back!

We finally made it to Colette for dinner with friends before a show! We got Vol-au-Vent, Roasted Beets Salad, and Laminated Brioche for the table and they were all delicious bites. Vol-au-vent was so rich and savory, while the brioche was light and airy and oh so buttery. My partner and I split the Herbed Cavatelli pasta and Icelandic Cod entrees. The cavatelli pasta was cooked perfectly and paired well with the lamb ragout. I was, however, a little disappointed by the cod. I'd heard such great things, and while it was very good, our dish was over salted. The cod paired really well with the wilted spinach - a nice contrast - but the sauce was overly salty - perhaps a outlier?Overall, great experience! Service was superb. Recommend if you're looking for a high quality meal in Cincinnati.

ce restaurant est magnifique. This restaurant is magnificent. We have been trying to get to Colette ever since it opened. It was worth the wait. The service was top notch. The way they break down the menu makes you want to order everything. Hard choices have to be made. But it seems there are no bad choices. We started with the brioche. Fantastic and buttery. Although next time we will try the butter service. The Vol-au-Vent was insane. Love shrooms. Don't be scared of sweetbreads, they are delicious and basically taste like sausage. The Parisian carrot salad was crunchy, loved the nuts and acidic dressing. A nice way to cut all the butter on the menu. For the "plats" we ordered the Icelandic cod and the roasted mushrooms. The cod is crazily buttery and crispy and delightful. The bitter spinach plays off of it nicely. The roasted mushrooms are a mushroom lovers delight. So many textures and flavors from all the different types of shrooms. They made me shroom crazy. The sauce they're served with tasted unlike anything I've ever had. I want that tahini hollandaise on everything. As Guy Fieri says, "you could put that on a boot and it'd taste good."For dessert we splurged and got the rice pudding and the layered puff pastry. Both were delightful and not overly sweet. We preferred the Mille-Feuille. This place is a treat and it's with a splurge. Vibes were great. Wasn't too warm inside. Decor was clean.

My family went for dinner on a Friday night. There were 7 of us and we had reservations. The place has a nice vibe with hardwood floors, brick walls, interesting wall art. It's actually several connected rooms, none of which are large. This is helpful in keeping the noise down. We had an excellent server, who knew the menu completely. We had one with food allergy, and the server even made a marked up menu, with the help of the chef, to guide him on what could be ordered. We had the two bread options as starters, both which were amazing. We had steak, cod, a few pastas, lamb, and mushrooms as meals. Everyone really enjoyed them. We shared two desserts and they were great as well. All in all, a very nice meal and great atmosphere. I would highly recommend this.

In a surprise to absolutely no one, Colette was amazing. My party of 3 dined here for the first time tonight, and it exceeded our expectations. I'll admit that I was a bit nervous because French food isn't my favorite, but everything was delicious. The laminated brioche, which comes from the geniuses at Sebastian's Bakehouse, was incredible. We also got both pastas, which were super yummy. My mom, who is a tough critic, said the burger was one of the best burgers she has ever had. The sole was delicious and a large portion.For dessert, we had the chocolate mousse and Mille-fueille. They were both delicious, but the chocolate mousse was divine. I have absolutely nothing bad to say about anything we ate. The only thing I noticed is that everything I ate tonight was very butter-heavy, but that was 100% on me and my own food choices. I'd order every dish again, but maybe not all together. Service was wonderful as well. Overall, amazing experience!

On a whim I decided to treat myself to a meal in OTR after a concert in Washington Park last Wednesday evening. I was torn between Colette and a competitor across the street, so I chose the place with the better views and snagged a table in the window at Colette. Let me start by saying if this review was based on food alone, Colette would only receive a 3 (as you'll read why). I prefer to assess the totality of an establishment, however, and given the exceptional service and wait staff, this place earns that fourth and final star. As a matter of fact, Colette has a real "star" in Brian, who was as attentive a server as I've ever experienced. Kind, polite, knowledgeable about the menu, knows when to engage in conversation and when to let you enjoy your meal. He alone is the reason for the fourth and final star.I purposefully chose to order several dishes so I could experience the totality of the menu offered, and there was a clear stand-out: the cod. I'm unsure what kind of voodoo-black-magic-seance-type rituals they have going on back in that kitchen, but damn...that cod is special. This is easily one of the best fish dishes I've ever had anywhere in the world (and I travel, friends). It can easily rival a Chilean sea bass I once had at Nobu and dreamed about for a week afterward. I'm absolutely still thinking about the sauce on Colette's cod dish.The greens beneath the cod were perfectly cooked and a wonderful accompaniment to the cod itself, which had the most delicate texture. The true star of the dish, surprisingly, is the SAUCE. I'm glad I boxed most of the dish up after a few (glorious) bites, because I might have embarrassed myself at the table licking this sauce off everything it touched. I mean, wowzers. Truly one of the most delicate, creamy, and citrusy accompaniments I've ever experienced...from a sauce. The restraint! I had an "experience" with a damn sauce. I only had a few bites at Colette to save tummy space for the rest of my dishes, but you'd better believe when I got home with my leftovers I LICKED that box clean. (Get your minds out of the gutter and just go see what I'm talking about).I'll admit I was underwhelmed by the beet salad. This was the only "miss" for me on the menu. If you're going to offer a beet salad at a place like this, people expect special (like that cod!), but this salad didn't really deliver. It felt more like a dish that was "assembled" rather than "prepared," and the pairing of mushy things (beets plus tomatoes plus dense pistachios) was somewhat disappointing. I had 2 bites to make sure I wasn't being unfair...and I wasn't. Chefs can go HARD in the paint on some beets if they're really inspired, and this dish was just interesting to look at, but not necessarily to eat. The brioche is a must, but I had one for a (first) dessert rather than an appetizer as suggested on the menu. Layer upon delicate layer of pastry drenched in butter with a crispy outside and dense croissant-like center? Give me 2. If you order this for your table, I suggest you just go ahead and get each person their own. It's considered low-brow to fight at the table over food, you know.I would have LOVED to have raved about the mille-feuille (my second dessert), because it was truly a sight to behold. This is easily one of the more difficult desserts to pull off for a number of structural reasons, so when it's done well you can't help but dance in your seat when it's in front of you. Visually, Colette's mille-feuille is perfect, and I was so excited to see the structural integrity hold through my first spoonful where I was able to get a bit of every taste/element in that first bite. I was less excited, however, to taste the scorch on the middle pastry layer, which permeated the dish. You just can't out-sauce or out-pretty a burned/scorched dish. I only had a bite and had to leave the rest behind. It was still lovely to look at, but I'd have preferred to eat it.The establishment as a whole was a real treat, I must say. I love a place that has clearly taken the time to be very particular in its training with staff. Tables are cleared quickly, servers largely operate in silence, and when they re-set the tables they're clearly using some system that's been DRILLED into them. The distance between your flatware and your plate isn't just a haphazard coincidence at Colette, it's "The Way." There's an understated Parisian elegance to Colette, and if you can snag a seat at the window you'll have the best of both worlds: a few tasty treats and a delightful view.But Holly, you only ate 2 of the 4 dishes you ordered (and nursed a tasty G&T) , why would you give this place a 4? The cod and the service. Period.