How do you rate something that embodies the conceptual idea of "getting what you pay for"? Lindey's is every bit the rich man's bird-in-hand, and the poor man's incidental indulgence.
This is where men and women get down on one knee and profess their undying love to each other while presenting a giant piece of compressed coal nestled in a box of velvet. This is where business executives come to decide the fate of next year's operational budget. Or, alternatively, it's where hungry people go to eat with the forbearing knowledge that they're going to annihilate the porcelain of their particular abode due to a vast and immediate consumption of rich, decadent sauces and ingredients mere hours before.
Didn't think I was going to go there, did you?
Basically, it's fancy.
Restaurants on the higher end around town like to play house with the idea of being high-end. Prices can be high. Food can be organic. Chefs can be imported from afar. But at the end of the day, the bar is set by establishments like Lindey's. They aren't playing the role of excellence and rules of hospitality. They abide by it.
The service? Impeccable, executed in an old-world style of professionalism and stratified front-of-house hierarchy that can be felt as much as seen and heard. I would not feel out of place handing my hat and coat to the attendance-at-large here as I would, say, after handing my keys to the valet at an establishment of prominence on Fifth Avenue.
The ambiance? Stoic in the same style, adorned with enough brass, glass, and wood accents to immerse the customer into a 19th century Victorian world entrancing in it's implacable devotion to making you feel like the money leaving your wallet thanked you for it's liberation into the hands of white gloves knitted by angels themselves.
But we're hear to eat, right? Well, then.
The food is amazing. The kitchen staff is a team working at the peak of their profession and experience, working with ingredients that exude quality.
Of particular merit is the Lobster Bisque, which if you're a Lindey's "regular" is either a mainstay of the experience or something you indulge in every so often to maintain its special nature. While some would pontificate upon the merits of the various steak dishes, I for one always lean more towards the Risotto, the quintessential Italian peasant-food-made-good that is often overlooked for some of the flashier menu items.
Oh, and for the love of all that is good in this world get the Key Lime pie. Because reasons. Look, I *KNOW* you'll see the parfait on the desert menu or on the tray, alright? I know. I get it. But trust me. If you even have a small affinity for Key Lime pie, you owe it to yourself to get this first.
I would highly recommend this place for birthdays, romantic interludes, dinner with friends, celebrations, and pretty much any excuse under the sun to justify the series of numbers at the end of the night you'll see presented on the tab.
But, on the rare occasion my budget allows, I smile and pay it willingly, because Lindey's deserves this. Columbus deserves more places LIKE this, because in a sea of eating options there are few places that keep the standard high for others. read more