Cafe Renaissance

Where do you start? The exquisite ambience.? The fresh fish? The captivating Middle East spices?All great starters. However, it's the welcome that starts when you walk in

I am a regular at CR, so I am quite familiar with the menu, servers, owner, normally eating at CR 1-2 times per month. I regularly try items and last night, for an anniversary, I ordered the 8 oz. Lobster Tail Trio dinner (see menu item pic, attached). What I received was totally unexpected - notably, that there was no lobster tail on the plate, only a lobster tail shell.Let me explain, and see if you agree that I should have received a lobster tail, as I believe the menu item description is very deceiving.The owner explained that the lobster tail was actually chopped up into little pieces and 1) placed on the shrimp that was in the shell. Yes, as expected, there were shrimp in the shell with small bits of what I expected was a bit of lump crab as the menu item describes it; and, 2) mixed in with the Mac and Cheese. Yes, the M&C did have what likely was the lobster mixed with it, but since is described as "lobster Mac and Cheese" I didn't think I was donating my 8 oz lobster tail to make it! The owner provided a $20 gift certificate and didn't charge for our crème brûlée, but for a $56 lobster tail dinner (what I expected when I ordered), I felt poorly treated as a regular customer that simply read the menu and expected to get what it says.

Great menu with lots of options. The outside of this place doesn't look like much but inside it is white tablecloths and a fun sophisticated environment. The waiter was amazing and made some great recommendations. We started with the opah flaming cheese. It was delicious and a great presentation. I had the Moroccan Tagine with beef. It was a little on the spicy side, but very enjoyable. The couscous had a strong cumin sent, and was very good with the beef. For dessert I had the Zeppoli that was Brulé on top adding a nice smoky sweet texture to the cream and berries. this place was a great find in an area with lots of quickserve and fast food options.

Great service somehow comes across as even better after a day spent with those fine American who run Delta Airlines. Coming here was the antidote to yet another miserable day spent on Delta. Finding Eagle Rare behind the bar made my night...even if I did get clipped $30 for a single. First bite was their great house-made garlicy focaccia. The owner (possibly manager) was my server and he told me a little about this stuff. It was nothing short of fantastic, straight out of the oven and absolutely set the stage for what was to be a great meal.French onion soup arrived next. It was a bowl instead of a cup so a generous portion for sure. Rich broth, gooey cheese, onions cooked low and slow to bring forward the sugars. Tasty!Stuffed salmon was recommended and is a don't miss here. Really good flavor to everything and an enjoyable sauce to boot. Salmon was a bit overcooked as a result but likely unavoidable given the complexity of the dish. A big win on the entree.

Cafe Renaissance is my type of restaurant. It has all the elements of a great place to dine. It is elegant, has a great selection of quality food, and the service was top notch. - Kudos to our waiter, Sebestian! To top it off we had live piano playing the whole time during dinner, which was so romantic.We enjoyed a lovely dinner here on a friday night. To start off we shared the Meditterrean salad. It was fresh, perfectly marinated with olive oil, and a decent sprinkle of kalamta olives.Then the soups came. I had the delectable, creamy, rice, and filling butternut squash soup. My lovely companion had the vegetable barley soup.Now for the main couse, but oh wait- Sebastian gave us some citrus flavored icey to clear our pallette. I enjoyed every bite of the Guinnes Short Ribs that I could handle. My dear thoroughly enjoyed the Lamb Shank and we both had enough to take home for a second serving.For dessert we had some Baklava. It was a lovely sweet treat to top off the evening. If and when I return to St. Cloud, this restuarant will be at the top of my list. Whether its a special occasion or not. It is just worth it.

We made a trip here for dinner before the cirque Italia show. We pulled up to a sketchy looking strip mall and were a bit hesitant.We entered to what felt like a palace with chandeliers and beautiful murals painted. We got seated and ordered from the menu. The menu was so large it was overwhelming at first and difficult to find a meal.Our server was amazing and we could not choose so we told him what we didn't like and let him order for us. The cheese platter was amazing and the gumbo was on point. We plan to make another trip soon to leave a better review with more time.We sat by the piano guy and in the little time enjoyed his music!

Great atmosphere, great food!! Love this place!Baklava is so good! The best in town!!

We've dined here many times, and the food always impresses. Our most recent visit was for Valentine's Day. We had the stuffed shrimp appetizer, lobster chowder (the best I've ever had), followed by filet mignon and a lobster tail, and shared strawberry cheesecake for dessert. They also had a great pianist, which added to the romance of the evening. The food was fantastic, and the service was excellent. Highly recommend!

Nice atmosphere. However, beware of entrees listed as "MP", maybe check that price before you order. The steak I ordered ended up being 69 dollars (just the steak)!! To add insult to injury....it was overcooked and a bit tough. If I choose to pay that much for good food, I can think of much nicer places that would probably justify the price.....this one doesn't.

Great food great services. Love the atmosphere. Lots to choose from. Great place to celebrate