My first experience here, I have to say it was top notch! Our server was really good, had a wry…read moresense of humor, and didn't forget a THING. I had a chicken garden salad with French dressing, it was a good size, the other five people had various dishes that all looked tasty. I really liked the way the place was laid out, dark woods, cozy. My only complaint would be the old-fashioned I ordered, it was pretty small for $15 bucks. I guess I should know better trying to get a mixed drink in a restaurant these days. I switched to an IPA that came in a pint glass, cold and yummy, I had two. We will be back!!

Braised brisket my first try food and new old fashion was great…read moreService not so Upon return shared 65.00 bill 11.00 tip was happy hour and not honored still kit honored and bar tender flagrant new old fashion Red flags No return no service no drink Socialistic establish discrimination

This place is an absolute treasure! The husband-and-wife team offers wonderful service and makes…read morethe best mango shake you'll find anywhere. The cozy, modern atmosphere gives you a great feeling the moment you walk in. The food and baked goods are outstanding--especially their warm Colombian buñuelos, which are downright addictive. I love their beans and rice with chicken, and my husband can't get enough of their red snapper when it's in season. A must-visit!

10/10! The food is delicious, the service is great and the ambiance is lovely. Will definitely be…read moreback!

Great ambiance, delicious food, and really good service. The filet mignon was cooked perfectly as…read morewas the potato gratins. Great overall dining experience

Finally got a seat at the bar! This place is always packed. They take reservations but not for one…read moreperson. Bar seating is first come first served so I went right after work and got there about 4:45. There were a ton of seats open at the bar. A friend met me at 5pm. We were seated with Fin, the bartender. He was awesome- very attentive but not overbearing. I could tell when he was coming by to peek in on us but he never interrupted our conversation. He would glance over and check our drinks and pause, and then keep moving. I'm sure if I was alone he would've provided me with some banter, he seems nice enough. He recommended a cocktail - The Last Word. I've had one before and this one did not disappoint. The other drinks I had were the espresso martini and the New York sour- both favorites of mine and done very well by Fin. I love that this bar uses frosty glasses for their cocktails. It's a nice touch. I had to have the Wagyu meatballs. They're mentioned in many reviews and people at work agreed they're a must have. My friend wasn't very hungry so I ate 5 out of the 6 haha. The bread that comes w it is a focaccia that is his divine! I thought it was deep fried but it's just soaked in oil and then heated on the griddle. The meatballs are Wagyu 75/25 so kinda fatty but so smooth. They are served with a marinara sauce and ricotta. So good. Would get this again. The menu looks awesome but we were just there for drinks and snacks. Next time I'll make a reservation (Resy) and have dinner. Parking is typically awful. No valet. Bathrooms are multi sex unistalls, clean. The restaurant is noisy- maybe not a great first date spot. Seemed to be a lot of well to do people in the restaurant, based on the outfits and accessories I saw. Might be a place to meet someone new if it wasn't so loud and incredibly busy. It's hard to get a table during dinner hours especially if the weather is perfect. But try your best to get in. They do take walk ins and it's worth an hour wait.

Butcher's Union will always be one of my favorite go-to's. They consistently have amazing food and…read moregreat service. Now that they take reservations online and not just in person, it's so much easier to get a seat! Every time family or friends visit in town this is our first stop. The decor and ambiance is top tier and I wish there were more like it in GR! I highly recommend for a date night or nicer dinner out since it is a nicer place and the prices reflect that somewhat. My favorites are the whipped feta, wagyu sirloin, and the Daisy Du cocktail. For dessert, the bourbon apple crisp and chocolate mouse cake are incredible. But you truly can't go wrong with anything on the menu!

Hype is REAL around Butcher's Union. Came here to visit a friend who just moved into the area! The…read moreambience is very vibey - reminds me of a big city spot specifically DC for whatever reason, ha. I felt like had to try THE burger (BU butcher's beef blend, cheddar, caramelized onions, spicy pickles, creamy aioli, griddled brioche). This ate like a fancy Big Mac - and I mean that in the most complimentary way. So tasty! I, of course, had to add the hand cut fries. These were done VERY well. Also, they had a very SOLID spicy bloody mary. So why only 4 stars then? Welp, best burger in the state still goes to Ricewood (Friday & Saturday only!) - that smoked brisket burger is dang good. I'd come back to BU to try other items and enjoy their patio. Reservations can be made on OpenTable.

Went on St Patrick's Day weekend. It was super busy but the staff was getting everyone through…read morepretty quickly! We got the chicken and rice bowl and the meatloaf. Both were delicious! Dante stopped by regularly to check in on us and the manager Josh stopped by when we got our food to make sure everything was just the way we like it! Great experience!

EDIT: Read to the end, because it turned out very well…read more We called and booked a reservation a few weeks ago for GVSU's graduation, then just tonight got a call from the manager saying they "overbooked" and were cancelling our reservation. In other words, all these weeks later, it appears they gave our table to someone else and cancelled us. I'm sure the food is fine, but I will never know because they did us dirty and now we can't find a reservation elsewhere in town, as everywhere else is booked for the very busy night. Worst part, there was no sincere apology. Would not recommend, as they are not a reliable business partner. EDIT 11/14/25: THE DAY AFTER I POSTED THIS, THE ASSISTANT MANAGER CALLED US BACK, APPOLOGIZED AND REBOOKED OUR TABLE AFTER GVSU GRADUATION. I AM UPDATING MY RATING, AND WILL UPDATE AGAIN AFTER OUR EVENT NEXT MONTH. SO FAR, THEY HAVE MADE THINGS RIGHT FOR US! (although we did spend two hours last night calling every other restaurant in the area to try and book and had not luck, causing more stress). EDIT 12/8/2025: GVSU's commencement got out early, so we headed to the restaurant to see if they could seat us a little earlier than our reservation. They did! The food was excellent and everyone was satisfied with their plate. Good service, and a great atmosphere. I highly recommend this place and they made things right after our initial experience.

The food....excellent! Service.... Big praises here for…read moreMaize! She was so fast and friendly! It was a great experience and I highly recommend it. All 3 of us were very impressed and will be back!

Stopped on Friday night with my family for the perch dinner. When we got there at 5pm there was a…read more45 minute wait for 6 people. We only ended up waiting maybe 20 minutes and then were sat in the extended patio type area. personally, I don't like sitting out there because it is really loud. we are quickly greeted by our waitress in, ordered some waters, a captain and Coke and a white sangria. where then read the specials and then brought a basket of rolls. my nephew loved the role so much. I think he ate six while we were there. we all ordered the purge dinner which came with coleslaw, fries, and lemon wedges. It is my favorite local fish dinner and very reasonably priced for the amount you get. highly recommend but do know it gets busy during lent season.

I really wanted to love Bowdies, but given the small menu and some steak temperature issues, I feel…read morevery middle of the road. We arrived at 4:55pm for a 5pm reservation and had to wait outside in the cold / rain for 5 minutes with several other guests. It would've been a nice gesture to open the door 5 minutes early let us all take a seat in the foyer. Our waiter was a gem.. really friendly, knowledgeable, and made our experience better. The cocktails and refills took QUITE a long time, but once they did arrive we really loved the French75 & the espresso martinis. All appetizers were good: the truffle fries, oysters, and escargot. The biggest bummer of the night was that all three of us ordered filets and all 3 of them were cooked incorrectly. (I've attached a photo of my "medium" steak with bleu cheese crumbles.) We mentioned this to the waiter but nothing was done about it. I ended up scraping the bleu cheese off and trading steaks with my husband to get closer to the temperatures we ordered. They did taste good, and we enjoyed the spinach and au gratin potatoes as well. Overall, I'd choose Ruth's Chris over Bowdies any day. Ruth's steaks are always perfect, their fresh bread is delicious, and they have more options on their menu for the same pricing as Bowdies.

I have been to Bowdies a couple times now for work dinners and really enjoy the restaurant. It's…read more"casual nice" in terms of a steak house. And the lights are very dim. The service is very nice and a little slow but waiters do know their stuff. Slow service didn't bother me at all work dinner, however, because my party was busy talking. The drinks have been consistently good and you can tell they're not trying to cheap out on the alcohol. The quality of meat is excellent! I compare it to the Chop House. I also enjoy the appetizers I've had: bone marrow, escargot, ect. My only "complaint" would be that everyone is verrrry buttery. I think that's not necessarily bad at a steak house, it's just something to note. Another thing to note when ordering is that the main courses do take about a half hour for the kitchen to prepare. Almost for got to mention, Bowdies does validate parking. Over a 4/5! I will return again.

First time here and on my birthday and it was a real treat!…read more I've never been inside and realized how deep it goes! We were brought to a dim lit area downstairs and the vibe felt moody and romantic. Right away we were greeted and got water and some drinks ordered and they brought us some bread and butter to eat while we picked out what we wanted for dinner. I already had decided on trying the Beef Wellington because I've always been curious about that dish and had never been anywhere fancy enough to serve it. Since this restaurant serves items à la carte we decided on two sides: we ordered the brussel sprouts and the au gratin potatoes. Both were unbelievably good! The brussel sprouts had Dijon mustard and bacon lardons which made the sprouts shine and the au gratin potatoes were rich and cheesy and I loved them! My Beef Wellington really exceeded my expectations! They mentioned with it having a puff pastry the steak could only be cooked medium rare to prevent the pastry from burning which I am completely fine with. The puff pastry and the filet were so good together especially with the Cabernet demi glaze that came with it. The flavors really complimented each other so well I finished this and was super satisfied! I also want to mention I've never been to a restaurant that plated everyone at the same time. It felt very fancy and special and was awesome to see all around us. My water glass was never empty either! The servers were obviously very well trained and so helpful. For dessert we ordered the peanut butter tart and that was so yummy! They drew a happy birthday message for me which always makes me feel special no matter what age I am. Loved my experience here and would gladly recommend and return here! The prices are elevated but not as bad as you'd think! It's definitely a special occasion spot for your loved ones!

We were in town for a company event. We had dinner here. The staff was amazing. My new york strip…read morewas perfectly cooked. Had a little of the bark on the edges. The oysters were salty and corn was creamy and good. Its a perfect date night type of place. Next time im in town we will stop in

The atmosphere was upbeat and at least 2 areas that were well lit with good seating. Food was…read moreserved in what seemed to be no time at all and there were five of us with different palates. The menu was big and varied and each of us loved our selection. We ordered dessert (1 for 3 people) and it was delicious & satisfying) Honestly, the price for our meals was surprisingly low, ambience was lovely (we sat in the porch area) and food was delicious. All of us said we'd like to come back soon since there were so many good selections on the vast menu!

Stopped in the other night for dinner with my family. We waited 30 minutes for a table then were…read moregreeted by the world's rudest host. That's why I took one star off, I was shocked that it was like asking for a kidney to sit at a table instead of a booth. Luckily our server was so kind, definitely making up for the rude start. My husband got the turkey sandwich with the pretzel bun - he loved it! I ordered the nachos with half pork half chicken. They were HUGE and absolutely delicious. So we will definitely be back!

Carvers must be doing something right. Three of the four people in my family chose to get a meal…read morefrom Carvers over the multiple other choices at Grand Rapids Downtown Market, so that must mean something! Carvers has an actual kids menu. I don't think any other food stall in the market has a kids menu, so that's a bonus. The kids' menu includes the standard kid fare: chicken tenders, grilled cheese, a hot dog, a cheeseburger. That was enough variety for my children, who picked a grilled cheese and cheeseburger. All of the kids' meals are served with fries. We also got steak fries, which I was told were "very good." OK! The steak fries were what you'd imagine them to be: fries topped with chopped pieces of steak, topped with white cheese sauce. I was impressed by Carvers ready-to-eat offerings in their refrigerated case. They had stuffed baked potatoes, ready-to-grill asparagus, cole slaw, egg rolls, and even elote salad (which is labeled as street corn salad). Lots of delicious-looking foods ready to take with you.

Located in the Downtown Market, this full-service butcher is also a restaurant featuring quality…read moremeats. There is a lot of foot-traffic in the market, but ordering has never been difficult and the service is typically decent. Over the years, I've been back to Carver's multiple times and they have upped their game since my first visit. The burgers have been great and the fries are particularly good. Their menu changes with their inventory, but there are always burgers and good sandwiches. The French Dip, Pulled Pork and Reubens have been standouts. This is now my go-to for lunch when the family stops at the Downtown Market.