Stick to the buffet, it a good deal and good. The people sitting next to us ordered off the menu and the food was not value plus it was cold and had to be sent back.    [27 Feb 2001 10:37:09]

Food:    Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: Cajun shrimp.

     ­Savona   

An incredible selection of ordinary food
My SO and I went to Phillip's on a Saturday afternoon. We arrived at about 2:20pm...still in time for me to try their brunch buffet.

They offered a nice selection: pancakes, waffles, bacon, blintzes, eggs benedict, potatos, creamed chipped beef, biscuits...but timing is everything.

The bacon was cold; the eggs benedict were shrunken and dried out; the pancakes looked stiff - so I didn't sample any of these dishes.

The blintzes were ok; the creamed chipped beef was pleasant enough (I appreciated that it wasn't salty, as is usually the case when I order this out). The potatos were tasty, but a bit soggy, and barely warm.

My SO made the wiser choice and opted for the lunch buffet. He tried several dishes, including crawfish, creamed spinach, jambayla, and a couple of other items. He pronounced everything "ok; not bad, but ordinary."

We both visited the dessert station. I opted for the peach cobbler and the cherry cobbler; both tasted like heated canned fruit topped with packaged crumb topping. Himself chose cheesecake and chocolate cake. The verdict: ordinary.

When I walked around and checked out the variety of offerings, I was impressed by the sheer quantity of items that were available. Several looked quite good, and the atmosphere of the restaurant is such that we might consider going back when we're in the neighborhood.

The real surprise during our visit was the service. Himself had been to Phillips before, and his experience had been that the service is really bad, that he'd had to wait too long for a drink order or anything else that he asked for. Given this experience, we decided to eat at the bar. Our bartender was quick, friendly, attentive, responsive and she made a great Cosmo.

Phillips has a wonderful view of the river (Himself says watching the lighted boats at night is delightful), it's clean, it's charming (I was startled to discover that some of the tables in an adjacent area had bases made from antique Singer sewing machine pedestals). It gets crowded quickly when the tour busses arrive; there is plenty of off-street parking.

It's not a good deal for weekend brunch or lunch ($21.95, as opposed to $18.95 weekdays), but it's reasonable for dinner if you want to eat a lot of ordinary food.    [12 Jun 2003 17:05:07]

Food:    Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: Creamed Spinach, Brunch Potatos

     ­Deborah Rosen, ChefMoz volunteer editor: DC