Met some friends here as a new dining experience. We made reservations since it was a Saturday night but there was plenty of seating. We ordered wine which we ended up getting charged a dollar more per glass than was on the menu but it wasn't worth complaining about. Our party ordered the meatball which was pretty good size for an appetizer and was pretty tasty. The whipped potatoes were cold. The crab cake was okay but odd food in the "bed" of veggies it was on. Broccoli cheese soup was nice and hot but a bit salty for me. The ravioli dish has 5 small ravioli- costing $21. It was so ridiculous even the waitress said it was such a small portion hat she brought a free Mac and cheese - which might have been the best part of the meal. The atmosphere was very nice and we had a very nice waitress but for the cost I will go elsewhere. read more

I like this place for their pasta because they make it in-house and the texture and tastes is great. However, I would shy away from the steak though. Ordered medium rare skirt steak, first time it came out burnt/overdone so I sent it back and the manager came to apologize. Second time, the steak still came out well done instead of medium rare so I just gave up and ordered pasta instead (which I should've done in the first place since that's what they're good at). But the waitress offered no apologies nor did the manager the second time which IMO if something came out wrong twice after the customer has been waiting 45mins+ that deserves an acknowledgement of some sort...usually when restaurants mess up this badly they would offer some sort of compensation but they didn't even offer any discounts to my meal or drinks for the inconveniences...won't be going back due to lack of customer service. read more

Excellent service, great lunch menu where everyone will find something for their taste. I had a lamb chitarra (stewed lamb, octopus ink coloured pasta with snow peas and hot peppers in a lime zesty sauce ) - amazing, beautifully balanced dish. Too much salt for my taste though, but once again, it is a question of a preference. Thumbs up guys and I am looking forward to see you again! Cheers! read more

Lela - Wine bar, a lot of light..... - New American Near Me - Minneapolis, Minnesota

See all

This couldn't have been a better spot to dine this week for Restaurant Week (and in the future)! Not only was the food amazing, everything timely and fresh, location easy to get to with lots of parking, and the restaurant clean and bright - but the team at Lela are of their own stellar caliber. read more

Lela - New American Near Me - Minneapolis, Minnesota

The steaks are amazing and Jodi was the best server! It was a great dinner and I will be back when I visit Bloomington again.

I love this brunch here. It's not your typical brunch. It's all you can eat and with option to bottomless mimosas. They have Mac and cheese, the most tender steak skirt, this amazing salmon frita, Pancakes, eggs with chorizo which were amazing, seafood paella which was okay, and so much more. read more

I found this restaurant to be a hidden treasure! We used to be regular customers of Chez Collette and La Fougasse - during the Sofitel times. When they closed we suffered! But believe us: Lela is a fabulous restaurant. We liked every single dish we tried - and we tried many. The Tuna poke, the crevice, the tagliatelle the flat breads. Do not miss Lela. An exceptional place to enjoy great food and fine wine. read more

The place is great about presenting food in a daring way that most places wouldn't dare try. I like the variety, the menu changes fairly consistently and the staff is exceptional. Kiel and Todd ate fantastic at craft cocktails and service. read more

Ok, this is my favorite restaurant in MN. Every time I come to MN, I want to come here. The food is fantastic, creative, authentic. A bit pricey, so I risk the expense max., as I travel on a per diem. Nonetheless, I am worth it, and so are you read more

Had a great lunch with my 89-year old Dad. He was very pleased as well. The three course lunch menu is reasonable and interesting. We will be back. read more

Went with a small group for dinner and it was very good. We had the barramundi and crab cake with carrots and pomme frites. I really liked that they had multiple fish choices. They were also willing to accommodate dietary needs. These are always pluses in my book!! Service was good but took a while to get our order in. Food was good but fries were a little too salty for me. The biggest negative was that it is noisy. We chose this restaurant because the info said "quiet." It has an open concept kitchen and even though it was only 75% full, with the kitchen noise, music, people it was quite loud and we were sitting by a window. We could finally have a conversation when it cleared out. All in all, our party enjoyed our evening! read more

I rely on Yelp a lot to choose places in my fair city and in others that I travel to. I think it's a valuable tool, and I'm grateful for the folks who contribute. I had not joined because I didn't feel I had anything to contribute to most places we have been. However, our experience at Lela last weekend pushed me to think that I needed to join so I could tell our tale. I'm not here to trash the restaurant, I'm sure it's a well-meaning place with kind and genuine people behind it. Maybe it was just a bad night. We arrived at the bar of the restaurant around 8pm, and were greeted by the barkeep with a 'What do you want"...an interesting greeting for a place we've never been and didn't even have the chance to sit in our stools first. We asked for a menu, which didn't seem to please the barkeep. This was the tone of our entire experience with said person. The space is nice, well outfitted and modern. They have all of the cool touches like geometrical tile and clean modern whites as far as the eye can see. We contemplated getting a table because the bar was empty and the service thus far was well below par. We ordered drinks from the cocktail menu after asking a few questions of the barkeep about specific ingredients. Said barkeep could not describe those ingredients and their purpose in the drink, and come to find out many of them were not available and had been swapped out for different ingredients altogether. We ordered two drinks that were quite intolerable, and we have experience with cocktails of all varieties and consider ourselves 'enthusiasts'. The drinks we had were somehow excessively dry/salty tasting (not in a good way) and somewhat warm/lukewarm though they were on ice. They were not stirred or measured or anything. I expect that for a $12-$14 drink! We politely asked the barkeep to retain the drinks and opted to switch to beer, to which they agreed. At this point we could see the barkeep was somehow in the process of closing down, including saran-wrapping bottle tops, mopping, etc. We thought that was strange for 8:30 on a Saturday. We ordered a round of small sharing items and a second 'course' of two more standard dishes. The first round included the caesar salad and blue crab cake. It took just over 40 minutes to get these dishes, mainly because the barkeep was not paying attention to the kitchen in the slightest. The salad was well overdressed and most of the lettuce leaves had submitted to the weight and were a soggy mess. The crab cake was the highlight of the night, it was well cooked and had plenty of meat, we were 3.5 out of 5 on it. Then the wait for our second course... We looked at the clock, 45 minutes had passed an no sign of food though the place was nearly empty. Then our dishes popped up on the pass and proceeded to sit for maybe 10 more minutes before the barkeep remembered to check on our food after we prodded them, in between drinks of a protein shake, more mopping, and cell phone checking...There were also 3-4 servers standing at the pass, looking at our food without thinking to possibly help the barkeep and take the 8 steps with our dishes to the bar. When we got the food (sweet pea agnolotti and a side of honey vinegar carrots) it was a befuddling few minutes. The sweet pea agnolotti (agg-know-low-tee as the barkeep pronounced it) had crunchy bacon on top (not mentioned in the menu and 1/2 of our party is pescatarian) and some sort of red chili sauce that you would expect to see in an Asian setting. I've never had anything more paradoxical and strange in my life. We ate the tiny agnolottis and ditched everything else. The carrots were another odd juxtaposition of grotesquely sweet syrup over mildly roasted carrots with a tinge of acid that read more sour than pleasing. I can't honestly say we've had a weirder experience in general in the cities. Between the service, the lack of knowledge/urgency, the quality of the food and the general lackadaisical attitudes of the staff there I can say we have little interest in coming back. I'm going to say this place will do well, the amount of hotels in the area beg for it to be a stop on any traveler's expense account tour, the prices sure are right. It's well-appointed but could learn a lesson from other failed places in the outer ring of 694/494, that the appearance can only get you so far. They should look to somewhere like FireLake grill, which has similar characteristics but far better service, execution and consumables. read more

We attended the Omakase with Chef Thomas and Sous Chef Javi and were absolutely blown away by the thoughtful care put into the new menus. The wine pairings were exquisite, the food was prepared flawlessly and the ambiance is as pretty and sparkly as any fantastic establishment in Minneapolis or St Paul. Lela is an absolute gem in Bloomington, thank you so much for the exquisite meal and wonderful experience! read more

Great atmosphere and the best meatballs I've ever had in my entire life, the steak with the flavored salts was out of this world. Highly recommended. read more

It was very funny feeling not seeing Sofitel sign but Sheraton when I walked toward main lobby. It was the only French hotel in Minnesota. I remember the first name; Hotel D'France! Hmmmm...early 80's. Then became The Sofitel. ...... 3 fantastic restaurants. Le Cafe Royal; Gourmet Restaurant with a table side service. Che Colette; French Country Style restaurant. ...and La Terrace which many people's stop place after the club hours. ....and never forget their patisserie with great breads and sweet pastries. Good old memories. Now, Lela, the only restaurant at the Sheraton and completely independent. They did a great job after the remodeling. I read great reviews about restaurant, like being ' Precious Michelin 4 or 5 stars. They might be right because you feel like it when you step inside. Unfortunately ,I am there just for the breakfast this morning. The table sets are very modern looking. Silverware, shakers, napkins, glasses. I was contacted right a way after sitting. They serve Starbucks Coffee and nothing is wrong with that but I prefer the dark roasted French coffee with my breakfast. Great items on the menu. Eggs benedict, fruits, yogurts, cereal but I ordered my favorite, French omlete with vegetables. Perfect presentation! It came with hash browns, delicious, crispy outside and softer touch inside. Prompt service! The prices are moderate during breakfast but it is a different story at dinner. Well, you pay for quality.....:)) I left the place very happy. Next step will be their lunch before heading for dinner. read more

Beautiful space but the food quality was quite uneven. Halibut which was the catch of the day was lovely and fresh but the lobster gnocchi was mushy and sad. Iced tea was awful, burrita salad was adequate but tiny. Took forever to get seated even though not busy. Server was friendly. read more

I'm not going to lie, I was surprised that this restaurant had 4 stars. I've experienced quite a bit of inconsistency here, mainly in their steaks. My biggest complaint is with the sear, it's just not there. And they're not consistently cooked to order. The breakfast is fantastic and I completely recommend this place for breakfast. The dinner menu is a bit underwhelming. read more

We decided to come try this place out based on a recommendation. Dined on a Monday night, around 7pm. The place was maybe 1/4 full. No hostess to greet us so we sat ourselves in the bar at a table. After 5 minutes a gentleman brought us menus. About 20 minutes after that, a server finally came up to us asking for a drink order. No "hello" or asking us if we'd dined here before or specials. I asked about a specific Pinot Noir and the server said, "All Pinots are the same." To which I replied, "I guess you are not big wine drinker." He simply replied he was and asked the others for their drink order. For a place that has such an expansive and expensive wine list I expected a better response. After taking our drink order he didn't come back. About 15 minutes later, after watching our wine sit at the end of the bar, I stopped a manager and asked her to check and see if that wine was ours since we had been waiting for so long. Sure enough, it was! She simply came over and poured it into our glasses without any apology. Not sure how long it was after that when the server finally came back to take our order but I will say our wine was almost gone. I don't want to drag this out but he also screwed up the order and didn't order my friends entree. She eventually did get it. I gave this 2 stars vs 1 star only because my 2 friends thought there pasta dish was fine. I would not order mine again (corn ravioli). I will say the server did ask if I liked my dish since I pushed it to the end of the table with most of it still uneaten. I told him I didn't enjoy it and he was kind enough to take it off the ticket without me asking. I did appreciate that. However, it does not make up for the BAD service we encountered for most of our visit. They did a beautiful build-out and its a nice looking place. The open kitchen is nice but watching the staff touch their face & hair and then bring out my food out was not so great. I believe in giving places a 2nd chance and may go there again someday for drinks but not anytime soon. read more

Came here for a business lunch and breakfast. As a vegetarian I was disappointed with options. I ended up selecting the burrata salad which was made excellently! I ordered a soft drink and did not have any come around to refill my drink which was frustrating. For breakfast the options where excellent! Both times the atmosphere was very pleasant for conducting business and talking. Would recommend this place to anyone who is traveling and needs a place for business meetings. read more

It was ok. I went there for breakfast and the french toast was amazing but my dad got a steak and eggs and honestly our mouths dropped. Very disappointing haha. Everything looked pretty on the plate but there was barely any steak. Looked like it was made for a fancy living pet. Maybe the place was a tad too fancy for us. There was no flavor either so to us was not worth it. But you guys were good. read more

Unbelievably delicious. I don't ever think I have had carrots so good. The sea bass was Perfect Everything that we ordered was amazing. We had 7 different entrees & almost all the appetizers. All wonderful! read more

This place is ridiculously good. Don't let the Sheraton hotel location fool you. The restaurant could easily be in Manhattan or South Beach. The menu is not too large, yet creative. Try the Ceviche...try the S daily soup offering...try the house made pastas. Everything was cooked to perfection, and seasoned perfectly. I never saw salt and pepper and I didn't need any. Attention to detail on the plate is obvious. The flavors are well thought out and executed superbly. Don't walk, run to this place if you are in the Minneapolis area. read more

Visited for lunch with my mother. Our waitress was friendly and warm right off the bat. I ordered the turkey panini and my mother ordered the tuna brioche. We both ordered french fries, which are homemade. The fries were hot and delicious. The turkey panini was tasty; however, I didn't care for the brussel sprout salad that came on the sandwich. It had a funky taste to it that did not compliment the rest of the ingredients, so I ended up scraping it off and it was fine after that. I had a bite of my mother's tuna brioche which was cheesy and filling. The tuna definitely did not over-power the dish. They have a three-course lunch tasting menu with an appetizer, main course, and dessert for $15 that I will definitely be trying next time. Very good meal and friendly staff! read more

Went last night with several friends - food was mixed - tuna tacos, outstanding - filet was ordered MR and came MW - desserts, outstanding - all in all this place has lots of promise, they just need a bit of restaurant etiquette training - busboys a little over zealous, wine service was not quite up to par (change glasses, not combine wines in same glass, etc) read more

Great food and service. I went for the happy hour and ended up staying and having dinner. Would definitely recommend.

Amazing new restaurant by the newly renovated Sheraton hotel. Food is wonderful, never disappoints, and the wine & drink list is great too!

Lovely place to meet a friend for breakfast! Love their new look. We had to start with a chocolate croissant and moved onto eggs benedict. Drank enough coffee to last for awhile. The new bar area is gorgeous! read more

This is a tough one. Literally experience two star to four star moments, so decided to rate in the middle. First, beautiful place with a ton of parking. You really don't feel you are in a restaurant attached to a hotel. This was a Saturday night and we had reservations for 6:30. You do not need reservations...very empty. Yet, we were seated at a two person table right up against a wall. We were able to more and the four top was much better for my husband and I. Here are the things that didn't go well... waitress had limited knowledge of liquor available, husband ordered medium rare filet and got a fully cooked piece of meat (I ordered medium and it was even a little over cooked, but not like his), they fired him up a new one, delivered it but didn't stick around to have him check it before she walked off. Never came back to confirm it was ok. Good news is that it was ok. Probably more rare than medium rare, but he was pretty hungry at this point! The place was not at all busy, so not sure why it took so long to get drinks during the meal. What went well; the taste of the steak was great and the brussel sprouts were delicious! The waitress did come back eventually and told us our first round of drinks were on the house and we could have a free desert as well. Raspberry Mouse....delightfully delicious! So, they saved it at the end, but it was a very choppy experience and I'm not sure we will rush to go back. Price for the 6 oz filet was steep. So...the review is right in the middle. Glad from the service side they comped us or this would have been a 1 star review. read more

Eating with friends here, it serves delicious sautee salmon, nice and clean space and great services!

Go elsewhere. I went to Lela for dinner last night to celebrate a friend's birthday with 5 people, and it was by far one of the worst dining experiences. Our server, Charlie, was awful. We waited forever between courses because he was busy setting up empty tables and rolling up silverware. It was not busy; there were possibly 4 or 5 other tables dining there. The worst part of the entire dinner was when Charlie brought the bill over. He had added an automatic 22% gratuity to our table of 6 people. Nowhere on the menu was it stated that they have automatic gratuity. And Charlie definitely didn't say a word about it when he dropped off the bill which we can only suspect because he was hoping for a double tip. What a jack ass. We never saw him again that night, and instead spoke directly to the manager about the egregious auto-gratuity as well as the items on our bill that we simply did not order but increased the bill for a nice fat tip. The manager removed the wrong items and took off the gratuity and then apologized that he accidentally hit ".22 rather than .20." What a liar. While the food was excellent, everything else was horrendous. And for the price of the dishes, you can get a much better meal at Manny's or Zelo for much less money and a much better experience. read more

The food here was very yummy. We had the Crudités sampler and it was beautiful and delicious. My husband got the 1lb stake! It was huge and amazing. I got the house fish. They were both $36 and I was super disappointed. The fish tasted good and was cooked well but it was just a small piece of fish. I should have gotten something else there was no sauce or sides or anything to go with this tiny little piece of fish. The stake was totally worth the money but the fish really? $36 for that? All in all great place good food and drinks, great service but if you go get the stake the fish was a bust. read more

See all

Went for the first time and everything was great at lunch. The wait staff is friendly and efficient. They have a fun lunch option that includes three courses with a few choices in each course. Lobster deviled eggs, soup and half sandwich with chocolate mousse for dessert was one of the numerous choices available. Really glad we found it and will definitely go back! read more

Fantastic. From the service to the food, it was perfect. Went during happy hour and the server was knowledgable and attentive. Ordered two drinks, two appetizers and a pasta. The pasta was made fresh and tasted delicious. I would highly recommend this place. The Sheraton is also beautiful after the remodel as well. read more

An excellent restaurant with a chef who cares and is always innovative. Lunches are a fabulous bargain and Sunday brunch is always fun, but needs a refresh. read more

The atmosphere is inviting and classy and the dishes have a lot of great and unexpected variety. I will certainly be going back! Definitely the freshest gnocchi I've ever had. read more

My mom and I went to Lela for dinner the other night and had a wonderful time! Our server, Reed, was incredibly helpful and provided amazing service. He helped my mom with their massive wine list and suggested a few different meal options to me. I got the Lobster Gnocci and it was some of the best Gnocci I have ever had. I highly recommend coming to this restaurant if you're looking for exceptional food and a nice atmosphere. read more

Delicious food! Great atmosphere! Will come here for dinner again when I'm in Minnesota.

I went to Lela last weekend for their new brunch buffet and wow was I impressed. Cost is a bit higher than other brunches but this doesn't compare to those brunches. This is really "Not Your Basic Brunch!" will be back with my friends next weekend! read more

The staff is friendly and nice, but pricy with small portions. If I pay 89 dollars for steak I want a massive steak.

Thus far, we've only been to Lela for Happy Hour and would highly recommend it. Not the usual happy hour food but creative, well executed offerings. We have a hard time choosing from the extensive menu so usually order lots of items to share! The patio is open now and there is a new Food & Beverage Manager so I suspect it will only continue to exceed our expectations. A great happy hour spot in a lovely location without the maddening noise level! read more