I have dined at many steak establishments and friends wanted to try out the Palm during restaurant week. Hands down the worst dining experience for such an upscale restaurant with over priced meals. The service was horrendously slow, very unfriendly and the waiter took 45 minutes to even ask what we wanted to order. When we asked about the restaurant week menu he said he "forgot" to give it to us and the one i got looked like a grease stain was all over it. Once he gave us that menu, it took him another 30 minutes to come back. And then he gave us the wrong dessert and we didn't even see him for the check. The food was mediocre at best. The salad was ok. The steak was very small and the crispy onion rings on top were 4x the amount of the steak. They should have been their own side dish. Maybe it was a restaurant week thing but it wasn't really busy. Empty tables all around so i really don't know what was going on. I would rather frequent the other steakhouses in the area that offer the service and food quality commiserate with their prices and ambiance.
(1)
Gigi M.
Went here last night with a friend, spur-of-the moment, and dined at the bar. Lovely room, very warm and professional bartender. Had a couple of lobster bisques (nice presentation!) and were allowed to split a rack of lamb, both perfectly prepared. Some "Educated Guess" wine ... great experience, would definitely return.
(4)
Dom K.
Given the price point, I would never come here again. The green salad tasted supermarket quality. NY strip was dry and bland - even Applebee's would've been better, and that's without the price tag differential. Green beans were even worse- how do you mess up green beans?? The only saving grace was the key lime pie, which was good relative to the other items, but okay in absolute terms. Save your money- go somewhere else. This place is not worth it.
So I have been here a few times now, it is located in my building so imagine I will be here quite often. First off, it is a huge improvement over the original. As I said to one of my colleagues for a client/business lunch recommendation it is perfect (they even have free wifi) but for a civilian looking for a great place to eat, I'm not sure. First off from an architectural perspective it is gorgeous, but things like their tiny bar for such a large space can't help but bottleneck service and eliminate the idea of sitting at the bar. The outdoor patio is really nice, great views of the Greenway and people watching. The food here is pricey, I believe the priciest steak house for dinner in town but their Power Lunch is pretty reasonable. For around $25 you get a 3 course meal. I went with the Caesar Salad - Just how you would want a great salad to be. Plenty of crouton and smothered in dressing. Filet (Oscar style) - 2 4oz filets came topped with what they call Oscar sauce. It was good, perfectly cooked actually. But as far as steaks go I've had more flavorful ones at their competitors Cheese Cake - This raspberry cheesecake was the highlight of the lunch. It was perfect, really. Maybe the best cheesecake ever. Chicken Avocado Sandwich - While the chicken was delicious I think it was a mismatch for the sandwich. It is carved roasted chicken which is impossible to eat without half of it falling out. All of the individual parts were good but together I'll pass. Lobster Bisque - Really well presented dish. Lobster in a bowl, the soup is then poured over it in front of you. It was good but slightly spicy. Final verdict: I'll come back for lunch anytime, dinner probably not.
(3)
Dawn A.
Oh how I wanted to be impressed at the Palm. I was brought here by a company, so no expense was to be spared. We had appetizers, sides and expensive steaks. Everything was fine. Fine. Yes, it was good. It was not great. When you have a $47 steak, you want it to "wow" you. I was not wowed by my steak. If you told me it was not a "prime" steak, I would have believed you. It was not particularly tender. I got the sirloin. One problem was that my idea of a medium steak is a pink steak all the way through. My steak verged on medium well. If I was paying for this meal, I definitely would have returned it. But, I was being gracious and decided to just keep my mouth shut beyond a quick mention to the waiter. At $47, they should have cooked it right. Perhaps I should have opted for the rib eye. The sides were very good. We had the Brussels sprouts, the goat cheese mashed potatoes, the asparagus. The asparagus were a little large for my liking, but quite flavorful. When you have a $12 order of asparagus, you don't want to feel like you are eating little trees, you want them to be sublime asparagus. Perhaps it's just my personal preference, but I prefer a thinner asparagus stalk. These ones were about as thick as my middle finger at the bottom. I highly doubt I would go back to the Palm, unless someone else paid again. When someone drops a few hundred dollars on my meal, I want to walk out saying, "That was a mighty fine meal I had". I want to remember that meal as one of the best I have had in a long time. That did not happen. While my service was quite friendly and attentive, I think my server ignoring my comment that my steak was a bit well done for my liking didn't help the situation either. There was no quick offer to fix it. I think when I have my next prime steak, it will be elsewhere.
(2)
Erica B.
Valentine's Day/snowstorm/No Reservation. Sounds like a recipe for a disaster right? Not for Palm Boston! My sisters and I were in town for a fashion show and we showed up right at 5 praying that they were open and we could get in. They were able to get us in right away and, per usual, fantastic service. Everyone is so friendly! They even gave us chocolate covered strawberries for dessert and roses on our way out! How sweet!!! I will always find Palm valuable purely because of the way they treat their customers. I've been to the location in Nashville and Boston and it's always amazing. If you're in the area, I recommend a reservation to be safe - but either way, it's worth a wait.
(5)
Nancy A.
Our recent dining experience was horrible at the Palm. Server lost our drink order. We waited and waited and then everything came out at once. Large tables take precedence over smaller tables it appears. Outdoor dining while located great, is a disaster in terms of service. Food was cold, for the price of the food, pick another service oriented steak place. There are plenty in the area.
(1)
chris c.
Place is great, staff is friendly and fast. Went there with my wife, kevin took care of us. The 36oz steak is to die for. Cant say enough. Kevin is a great server!
(5)
Tammy T.
I came here today for restaurant week with my friend. I made reservations ahead of time so once we got there, we were seated right away. I loved how the place looked and the space was huuge! It was already fillllllled with people by the time I got there. I started off with the mixed greens salad which wasn't my favorite. The portion of that is too much for an appetizer. For the entree, I got the filet mignon. I asked for well done and as I was cutting into the steak, already ate a quarter way of the 7 ounce, I realized they mixed mine up with my friend. I am not a fan of anything that isn't well done, I have a very sensitive stomach. (I haven't thrown up yet though) So instead, my friend got my well done steak while I got his medium rare steak. Just looking at it made me want to gag. Luckily we were so deep into our conversation I forgot about it. BUT, I will say that the steak was really juicy and it melted in my mouth. Very flavorful as well. Too bad I only got three little pieces of mushroom.... When we finished our entree, we waited for our server for at least 15 minutes to ask what dessert we wanted and then 20+ minutes to get our dessert. He should have no excuse considering there weren't many diners there as everyone left. I would love to come back in the summer to experience the outside seating. Next time, make sure your customers get the right dish they asked!
(2)
Rich M.
Good food great service and orders came as ordered. The bread was addictive. We will certainly be back.
(4)
Diane H.
This review seems to be pretty tricky to write..let me start off... I came here to celebrate my birthday with my bf. Last minute while walking to the seats I decided I wanted to sit at a booth near the windows, i dont know if this made the evening more stressful for a particular waiter or whatnot..but who knows... Our waiter George came by, he's a talker...lots of talk. Action, not so sure..he's probably not very good at wines.. so he should not pretend he is. Anyways, he told me he was going to make my drink, like he would, it would be a surprise. I got my drink it's pretty good, fruits, lots of alcohol that's cool. But he never brought water to the table....service took a long time, i don't know where he went.. but you know he came back and apologized... we ordered the ahi tuna, beef carpaccio--all tasted good. We couldn't decide on a soup, so he let us try both types they had, the lobster bisque had a generous amount of lobster but spicy..and the mushroom soup was really good so we went with that. For side we got the brussel sprouts which i recommend you to never get..they were SOOOO bitter...yuck. The hash browns were very...thick and not hash brown like, more like roasted potatoes so you should skip that as well. We ordered a filet to share....the outside was very charred for a medium rare. I believe the inside was fine. He never really asked if i liked my food or not... no management walked around to see if i liked it... something that i see at a lot of places. AT this point, i was very let down, i worked with many past concierges, and in the service industry so i wasn't very happy especially because it's my bday! I just wasn't feeling the food and it didn't seem anyone was going to do anything about it..it's like where is the SERVICE in this place?! I heard soo much good things and how it used to be the best steak house when it was back in it's back bay location... That's why i'm here splurging, trying to celebrate.. In the end, the server comped us a dessert after we ordered the creme brulee which was really lemony..he gave use the flourless cake that my bf really wanted but i didn't want..and the management took off the steak and 2 apps which i thought was very nice. I really do appreciate the gesture, but you know, i'm really just looking for a good dinner..good service. So I do give them props for trying to fix things at the end.
(3)
diana h.
It is a beautiful space. And that's about it. The food is VERY mediocre and overpriced. The service is heart-crushingly slow. We work nearby and often go to the Palm for drinks/munchies after work. And more often than not we are one of only a few parties in the restaurant, and ALWAYS... it takes forever to get anything. I really don't get it. I go back to the Palm out of mere convenience.
(1)
Mary Ann A.
Excellent, excellent, excellent in all areas. You do receive value for your money. I am very much surprised by the poor reviews. I say, "Judge for yourself -- go and enjoy." This might just become one of your favorite steak places. It is ours.
(5)
Mike A.
Pretty by-the-book steakhouse, but yet also somehow lackluster, even when compared to other Palms I've been to. Perhaps its because it caters almost exclusively to business lunches and happy-hour drinkers that the attention to detail just isn't there? Smith and Wollensky's across the street is a much better bet, and I can't imagine they're not dealing with the same clientele. I don't know, its just one of life's mysteries I guess. I'm also used to the original Palm in NYC which is kind of dingy. The super high ceilings make it seem like I'm eating at a kiosk in the middle of a mall somewhere.
(3)
Michael M.
One of the worst places I have been to in a while. To begin with, prices are sky high and food quality is lower than average. Or average at best. To start with, we sat. A girl brought water and started pouring it to glasses. She began with literally dripping about a pint of that water over my phone. Then she looks at it, says absolutely nothing and continues. Like nothing happened. I had to take a napkin and started to wipe my phone. Of course I told her - "no worries, it happens all the time" sarcastically but, she did not really get it. Next, we HAD TO ASK for a menu.... So, while waiting for a steak, we ordered some wine. Waiter brings our wine in a house decanter. As soon as he put it down on a table, all white cloth around it became red. Again, he did not even look, did not offer to pour wine into glasses. NOTHING! They try really hard to show that it is upscale place but, yet, they brought a main course before removing all salad/appetizer plates. I mean, it was comical - a waiter stays there with hot plates in his hands and has no room to put them. Why? Because him or other staff never bothered to take away our salad plates. Usually waiters ask and pickup all starter plates BEFORE bringing main course. I had filet mignon. To begin with, it was over cooked. It came with mash potatoes with goat cheese.... We were shocked to find out that mash potatoes were instant potatoes from the packet. DISGUSTING! it tasted disgusting, it had no flavor of cheese or even mash potatoes at that point. I mean for $50/plate you would expect at least real potatoes, not instant crap. Filet mignon came with hollandaise sauce on a side, that is what menu said. I have to say, it did look like sauce. But, either their chef has no idea what that sauce is or it was some other sauce. Now, desert. Cake was ok, cheese cake was not bad also. But a $7 cappuccino......I have had much better at Dunkin' Donuts. Overall, dinner cost us $200(with tip) and honestly for this kind of money I wold expect a little more professional staff and a lot better food. On the way out, nobody said good bye, nobody cared actually. They got paid so, why bother. P.S. The other couple we had diner with ordered beer. Guess what? They brought it in a cognac sniffer(!!!!!) HOW BAD IS THAT????
(1)
Mark R.
$24 for a small lump crab salad-ridiculous. Over priced and overrated. Give me Grill 23 or Cap Grille anytime. Overrated.
(1)
Gale C.
This was my first visit to The Palm. We were in town for one night and were recommended the restaurant by the concierge at our hotel. It was a short walk and a last minute reservation. I had long heard positive things about the restaurant and it has a reputation for being upscale and good quality. I found myself wondering what all the hype and long standing good reputation were all about. The restaurant is a good location with large windows to see out on the nearby city views. The decor hints at an old steakhouse feel, but the murals on the wall and the table tents quickly remind you that it is a chain restaurant after all, albeit a pricy one. The waitstaff and servers were attentive and courteous. As a couple next to us asked to be reseated, they were not given choices any other tables, despite there being plenty of others to choose from, only an apology. The drinks were good, and the bread basket was as others have reviewed, nothing special and very subpar for a restaurant at this price point. I ordered a Caesar salad and could not have been more disappointed. The salad was doused in dressing that did not taste all that different from any other jarred dressing that you would find in a supermarket. The lettuce was mostly yellow and the croutons were stale. I really wanted an authentic steakhouse Caesar salad, and this was not it! I opted out of a steak and chose the lump crabmeat cocktail, based on the recommendation of the server. I asked where the crabmeat was from, as I really wanted local seafood. The waiter returned and confirmed that the crab was from Thailand, but assured me that all of the seafood was shipped daily and was fresh. While the portion was fair, the quality of the seafood was also subpar. After reading the restaurants bio, I don't feel this dish meets their claim about sustainable options on their menu. My husband had the chicken parm. The portion size was ample, but the quality again was not great. The chicken was a bit chewy and the sauce was not the best. Overall, a pretty disappointing dinner, and I expected at least a bit more. The prices are way too high for the quality of the food. Better to try one of the other restaurants nearby.
(1)
Shari K.
The new location provides a great atmosphere however the service was not good at all which really took away from the dining experience. For example my Caesar Salad was forgotten & came way after the others had already finished theirs. My 2nd cocktail was ordered & never came & the server needed to be reminded. My friends Salmon dish was made incorrectly & was served after everyone had finished their main entrees in fact the server had to bring new sides for him as they had all gotten cold once his meal arrived. There are great steak options in Boston that I prefer, however I would go to the Palms in Charlotte again.
(1)
Amber H.
My (1) soda water with a splash of cranberry was 5 dollars. Lunch was pretty good, but nothing special that isn't available from the area. I would say the two best parts of my experience were the atmosphere and the service. If soda water (with a splash of cran) and a salad is your thing - go elsewhere.
(3)
Janet D.
I was so incredibly disappointed in our experience that I would not go back again. First off, the service was LACKING. We were basically ignored and had to flag down other waiters to get attention. 4 out of 5 dinners came out together and we waited for the 5th. They said it would be right out. 15 minutes later we flagged down someone and again, told it was on its way. Another 15 minutes and the manager finally comes over. So sorry, it's coming out now. After 45 minutes, the lobster finally arrives only to discover that it was RAW!!!! Took another 15 minutes to get anyone to come over. Then they were on us like flies to honey. We are sorry, can we make you a new one, can we get you something else. Well, NO, everyone at the table had finished eating. They did comp the lobster, one other meal, and dessert, but our special evening was completely ruined. Never going back. Wrote a letter directly to The Palm and never heard back from them. Now that's customer service.
(1)
Larry S.
We loved the Palm at Copley...checking out the new place. The bar is way to small and not intimate as the old one used to be. Dining room is big and beautiful but the private rooms seem to lack the style and fabric of a special place. Look like big cubicles. Sorry. Busy busy busy with the finance district locale....bartenders had no personality or style except one young lady who was top notch. Loved the outside dining area. We used to coem and eat at the bar and enjoy the vibe - not sure this is that kind of place. Wil give it a try for dinner and post an update....
(3)
Kent B.
I was looking forward to going to the Palm restaurant. Although I eat at steakhouses all the time I had never been there. The food was okay , the service was excellent. Great place to people watch and have a drink but I'm not so sure about the food ...............I will give this restaurant another try I know from one night to the next you can have different outcomes , so maybe this isn't fair. I'll keep you updated.
(3)
John P.
This is a really cool place with eclectic decor and a funky lively atmosphere. We get the 4lb Lobster and a couple of side ( potatoes and onion strings & asparagus). It's fun and a cool night out in Boston. The valet parking makes it easy and manageable too.
(4)
Philip S.
Attentive service. Great wine list. Had the ahi salad. It was decent but I would have the crunchy noodles on the side next time. My buddy had the fish and Chios which looked good - reasonable portion, cornmeal batter and fries. The bartender made me a great gin and tonic ( I needed that!). I will return.
(3)
Daniel A.
I cook often at home so I do not go out to eat much unless I want steak. The atmosphere is great for a date. It wasnt noisy at all like most restaurants. The food was very very good. The steaks were cooked perfectly. You cannot complain about the prices. It is expected like any high end restaurant.
(5)
James D.
The new location is very nice. Big space with very high ceilings. The steak is always good but perhaps not up to the standards of the other high end steakhouses in Boston. But still very good. They also have some really good Italian dishes on the menu. The chicken parm is awesome! The service can sometimes be so-so compared to the other steakhouses but overall it's ok.
(3)
Aileen C.
Came here for a work lunch with my managers. The food was great and of large portion. I ordered the Lobster BLT sandwich and they tasted pretty good. We together ordered one fries and that's enough for three of us there! We went there around 11:30 and it got all crowded around 12:15. It is definitely a prime spot for people working in the Financial District to have a formal office lunch. One thing I have to mention is that this location only offers power lunch, but not the quick and simple combinations like other locations do. Because of the large portion served, one would be very full if they ordered the three course power lunch and very likely won't be able to get back to the office within 2 and half hours.
(4)
C S.
The 2 stars are for the atmosphere because unfortunately, thats all this place has going for it. Skip it and head elsewhere...anywhere else.
(2)
Katie V.
Very bizarre experience overall at the Palm. When we first arrived, we were given no menus and just left to wonder if the place served food. Then we got menus, but they had no prices on them. I assumed it was some sort of snooty "we're too classy to think about money" tactic until I asked the waitress, who brought us real menus that did have prices. These menus revealed that the place is hugely overpriced, but at least we knew what we were getting into. Beware of ordering anything not on the menu though; we got 2 glasses of sangria and they were $15 each! On what planet does a glass of sangria cost more than a cocktail? Major rip-off. The food was pretty mediocre and the awkwardness of all the little service/pricing blips made me not eager to return.
(2)
Pauline N.
Wow, was I disappointed. The service was not good....at all. It was almost as if they were going for the Dick's Last Resort sort of vibe, the staff was that rude. They need to pick what they are going for, classy old school Palm, or new touristy Palm. I thought I was going to a great steak house for the prices, but food was just so-so. Not worth the price to me. I really wish I could remember my server's name.
(2)
Michael B.
Pro's: the mixed drinks, service, inside mural. Con's: patio very loud with truck traffic, Monday Salad not appetizing, prices. Not going back. Boston has too many steak houses to return.
(2)
Paul B.
NOT IMPRESSED! Drinks and apps were great but filet came back WAY undercooked and then after it was sent back, it came back BURNT and with a HAIR on my girl's plate. Ultimately, the manager comped the whole bill and gave a $50 gift card for future visit. Been hearing from coworkers they've also have had issues with food not cooked to order so beware!
(1)
Kristy L.
Two of my girlfriends and I had been wanting to try their new location and thought the holidays were the perfect excuse to do so. The chefs definitely have it down, as the food was delicious...but the service still needs a lot of work! I don't usually bother providing feedback to restaurants when I receive bad service but this experience could not be ignored. Let me summarize: * The floors were beyond slippery! It seems like a lawsuit waiting to happen, especially for us women with stiletto heels. * We were seated at a table that had dirty dishes (We think someone had sat there before us and switched tables, perhaps?). We had gathered the dishes and left them at the edge of our table for the staff to clear. Didn't seem like an activity guests should need to do. * One of my friends has a severe nut allergy. When the bread came out, we asked a member of the staff if the bread had nuts. Their answer was no but one type of bread absolutely had nuts. Thank goodness we didn't take their word for it, as we would have ended the night in the hospital. * We had order the Carpaccio of Beef Tenderloin for one of our appetizers. When it came out, it appeared to have pesto on the dish, which wasn't indicated on the menu. We had asked our waitress what kind of nuts were in the pesto...she never came back to tell us the answer but when she came over to bring over our other appetizers, we asked again and she said "It probably doesn't have nuts." We needed to know for sure. * Our glasses had gone empty on several occasions. An experienced server should have never let us get down low enough to end up with empty glasses...just seems like a missed opportunity on your end. And when we switched from martinis to wine, the server took the glasses off the table next to us. For presentation sake, it would make a better impression to bring fresh glasses when they bring the wine out. * Two of us had ordered the Filet and our steaks came out before we even had steak knives to cut them. Actually the only silverware we had were forks, not even our dinner knives to at least start eating while we waited for our steak knives. * The three sides we ordered came out about 10 minutes after we received our meals. * **Only thing done right: We ordered the goat cheese whipped potatoes. The hostess came over to tell us that they were out of them, so they substituted but took the substitute off the bill. One would read these issues and assume that the restaurant was just overly busy and the servers didn't have time to focus on the details. It was a pretty quiet night which makes this experience inexcusable and just terribly disappointing. I'm just relieved that at least our food was delicious...which is why I even gave this restaurant 1 star. While the food was good...what really left a bad taste in my mouth is that I sent this feedback to The Palm (twice) and haven't heard back from them.
(1)
Lisa W.
Just tried the Palm on a friends suggestion. Take my suggestion and steer clear of this grand disappointment. We walked in at 9:45 on a Saturday and were immediately seated on the deck. Perhaps the lack of a wait should have been our first clue. When we were seated we were given only the drink menu. Our friendly waiter arrived 10 minutes later and asked if we wanted to order drinks and appetizers. We placed our drink order and pointed out that we didn't have food menus. He said he would return with menus, water and bread. He returned with menus but it took another 15 minutes before we saw water, drinks or bread. We nearly walked out, but stayed for apps and salad. Mediocre at best. Perhaps it was an off night, but for a fine and expensive restaurant I expect better service and attentive oversight.
(1)
Adriana T.
Where to start..this place is great and massive!! I have been passing by it many times and I ve been wanting to dine there so last night our friends surprised us and took us there to celebrate our engagement and my fiance's birthday. The food was great nothing to complain about but the service was a little bit off. The lady who took our drink order took it for half the table so people wanted to make a toast but we didn't have the drinks because she NEVER took our drink order. It almost seemed like she was only serving half the table at once LOL but not funny Okay we got them in the end!!! Every time I wanted to order another drink I had to flag her down. Even if she came to the table she would take the order for a few people and leave the rest of us hanging?!?! We were 6 people at the table so I understand we weren't the typical 2 top but come on!!! One other ting I would like to mention..if you order wine the pour is huge so that's definitely a plus!!! I didn't quite like my champagne glass. It was too small but it wasn't the server's fault.. The restaurant is expensive but I would definitely go back if they promise me to not have the same server again. Maybe she just had an off day but when you spend close to $1,000 on diner you want the best don't you?!
(4)
Jesse V.
You know those nights when you're very excited for a great meal? Excited to spend whatever it takes to get it? That is what I was thinking at the start of tonight. You know how bad you feel after spending a good amount of cash on a mediocre meal? Especially when you know much better options exist in your city? That's how I felt by the end of my dinner at the Palm. On the positive side, our waiter was a nice dude and the wine was not super marked-up. On the negative side, our steaks were tough (cutting medium-rare strip steaks should not make the table move), we often wondered "where is our waiter," and the sides were Longhorn Steakhouse-level. Example being potatoes au gratin that are mushy enough to be mashed potatoes au gratin. Bottom line. If you're looking for a great steak dinner in Boston head to Grill 23, Flemings, or the Capital Grille. If you're looking to feel silly for dropping $200 on a mediocre meal with meh service, head to the Palm.
(2)
Thomas N.
wow what a range of ratings....had lunch there recently and thought it was great....service was great, water always full, drinks were good and as ordered, burger excellent, salmon excellent, and i am not a big salmon fan, but we shares meals and i thoroughly enjoyed it....it is a lovely place and was very busy....so we liked everything about it!!!! It is not inexpensive and you need to order fries with your burger if you want them but if you do you get alot and they were great! they do have an issue with their outside seating and that is it is outside with heaters and plastic curtains and we were very comfortable but the people who sat next to us were not so the plastic was lowered and it became to warm and the newer arrivals moved inside......so that is an issue to be aware of, and if you don't want to struggle with that, eat inside....we thought it was great!!!
(5)
Brad S.
Great food, service and atmosphere! Wine selection was fantastic. I highly recommend the donuts for dessert!
(4)
Sean H.
On the whole, very disappointing. I chose the Chilean Sea Bass which was barely edible and obviously made from frozen tasteless fish. I shared crabcakes with another - they were ok. The "Monday Night Salad" was supposed to be the beginner item, but wound up being the best thing ordered. I was with a large group - orders were quite varied. Nobody was particularly enthused about the quality and correspondingly the price. Pretty atmosphere, but I would pass on this restaurant. There are better places in Boston.
(2)
Greg V.
I loved The Palm. Exceptional service, great food, beautiful ambiance, and valet parking to boot. So why only 3 stars? My friend and I liked it so much we decided to sign up for their rewards card since we knew we'd come come back. The advertisement on the table stated the following: "Get a Free $25 gift card for signing up!". So we took the plunge, handed over our contact information, and were handed our $25 dollar gift cards... And then the bill came... Two charges for $25 a piece mysteriously appears on the bill. Apparently there is a $25 sir charge to signup for the rewards program to receive the "free" $25 dollar gift card! LOL. We were never told that until the bill came. The advertisement should have said the following: "Buy a $25 dollar gift card and we will take it upon us to to hand your contact information over to a marketing firm. Sign up Now!" Just thought it was a total scam and unbecoming of a restaurant of this caliber. I will definitely be back but I really have no choice in the matter since my friend and I paid for two "free" gift certificates. Oh well.
(3)
Shannon S.
This was our first time dining at The Palm since it moved to its new location. I like what they did with the place -- the covered outside dining area is beautiful. The inside is just as marvelous with marble(?) columns and the familiar Palm decor adorning the walls. Overall, our dinner was pretty good. My disappointments were these: -my boyfriend's mother and I shared the lobster special (our server said that it was available to those who were in the Palm's club or whatever and said that if we knew about it- then we must be, imagine my surprise when I saw that it was a special offered on the Palm's website AND popped up on the yelp page), but whatever, the issue was that we were told we could either have a caesar or a watermelon feta salad as a starter... however, I had seen on the website that lobster bisque was an option but we were not given this option (did i ask? no, so shame on me but shouldn't she have known?) -my caesar salad was OK. Portion size good, but there wasn't much dressing-- and I PREFER a lightly dressed salad. Boyfriend's mom pretty much said her's had no dressing at all and boyfriend confirmed. Server was notified but our entrees had arrived and we had moved on -lobster, great. Grilled to perfection and was really delicious. -boyfriend's steak was ordered medium and came out VERY medium rare, without question. His dad ordered the steak the same way and it came out medium... the way medium should look. -goat cheese potato side, meh. Tasted like regular mashed potatoes to me. -brussel sprouts side, OK, nothing special -beer selection, poor -key-lime pie, i loved it (a tad sweet but I've been on a sugar detox so it could just be me) Would I go back? Certainly, after all, I gotta check out the outside patio. But I'll be sure to do my homework and speak up if something's not the way it was described.
(3)
Michelle B.
I've been here twice so far, once for lunch and once for dinner. Both times I was underwhelmed by the food, although the service was gracious and friendly. When I went for lunch, I went with the salad and soup option. I had lobster bisque with a wedge salad; the lobster bisque was lukewarm at best, with very little lobster meat or flavor, and the wedge was fine and maybe had too many toppings on it. The service was great though - my friends had brought in a coupon for a deal on their steakburgers but didn't realize that it wasn't applicable in Massachusetts. Our waitress was very polite about it and my friends were fine paying the menu price, but then one of the managers came over later and said he was honoring that price for them. It was a nice gesture. I went again for dinner with my husband a few days later, and immediately upon entering felt overwhelmed by the people at the bar. It was perhaps a poor planning choice to have the bar (and it's inevitable overflow) so close to the hostess station. We were seated very quickly thanks to our reservations and were greeted by our waiter whose name was not that which was stitched on his jacket (he was in training and I guess trainees don't get their own jackets?). We were immediately given a bread basket and our drink orders were taken. Now, let's talk about the drinks. They are pricey (some are upwards of $13) and SMALL. I feel like the gin and tonic I get at Morton's is in a bigger glass and slightly better, as well. While they were refilled quickly, I felt that it just wasn't worth the cost. (And trust me: I love my gin and tonics.) For dinner we tried the calamari appetizer, veal parm, crab cakes, and creamed spinach. The calamari was pretty good and I enjoyed the crispy fried peppers served alongside it, but the marinara sauce served alongside was bland. My husband really enjoyed the large serving of veal parm that he received, although it felt slightly deceptive when the waiter came back to our table to ask my husband if he'd like linguine with his veal but didn't mention that it was an additional cost. My crab cakes were good, if a bit creamier than I typically like, and the accompanying chipotle tartar sauce was an interesting addition. The creamed spinach made me sad because it was bland. I will probably give it another shot, simply because I've gone twice within a month of their opening and they will likely work out some of their kinks. Plus, I do enjoy sitting in some nice outdoor seating (which they have) and having some cocktails after work.
(3)
Ed B.
Excellent lunch. GREAT service from Michele. Nice fresh salad. Everyone enjoyed their meals: chicken parmesan, crab cake sandwich, steak sandwich, lobster BLT and baked cod special. All looked great and tasted great. Busy in there on a Friday but not crazy.
(4)
Paul A.
Same ole same old. Menu never changes. Large portions require splitting or taking home. Large prices include saving up the bank roll. Lovely interior. Wait staff attentive. Ask for Steffanie.
Went here recently. VERY expensive but great food. ALL our meat was overcooked from what we specified so be specific and best you order it one level under from what you normally order. We were told it's because the chef is new and needs to get used to the ovens. I think it was a BS excuse. Doesn't matter what oven or meat you use, true chefs feel the meat and know when it's done. But I will give them a pass this time. $12.50 for a mixed drink that's rather small size is very expensive but I guess that's the norm in the area. I laughed at the $4 coffee but it was good. Service was EXCELLENT. Everyone top to bottom was very respectable. I really enjoyed this aspect. We were lucky it wasn't too busy so the hostess and manager came over to talk to us. Very nice. Valet parking was only $12. I will definitely return here!
(4)
David P.
Waiter was good but peripheral staff was awful. Food was marginal - nothing I would recommend - but had taste. Place is way too big and loud, interior design was off. Carrot cake desert was the highlight. The only steakhouse in Boston where I've seen "get this entree, and we give you a gift card to come back". If you are good enough to begin with, you don't have discount your product to help stabilize future revenue. 2 stars in generous.
(2)
Jaime D.
Big open space, but hard to hear people on the other side of the table. I had lobster salad which was good. We had lunch. They forgot dressing on the side for one of my party. I might come back but not for awhile. I'd try something else first.
(3)
Will B.
Business lunch. We all ordered salads. The waitstaff was very friendly, but a colleague asked for no croutons - guess what she got? When the salads arrived, the presentation was very good. Unfortunately, looks can be deceiving. While my ahi tuna salad looked delicious indeed - wonton noodles, oranges, greens, almonds and rare tuna with a splash of dressing - the taste did not follow. Great textures with the crunchy wontons and slivered almonds contrasting the tuna and greens, but not a lot of flavor. For $20, I had higher expectations. The interior has the customary caricatures and is well done, but a high ceiling that probably gets noisy at peak periods. The bar looked fun. My experience was a mediocre meal at a high price. Thank goodness for expense accounts.
(3)
Sophie W.
I blame a lot of this on the place being newish and still having a bunch of kinks to work out. The steaks we got were meh - slightly cold and the sides also were cold. Lunch service took forever (closing on 2 hours) for a group that ordered steaks; the other time we just had salads and burgers and it was closer to an hour in and out. The Ahi Tuna salad was delicious; the filet trio for lunch not so much. Overall it's a nice place and super convenient for business, but they really need to speed up the service during lunchtime on weekdays -- even for business lunches, 2 hours is pushing it.
(3)
Chelsea R.
Dined here last night and everything was delicious!! I had the wedge salad app which was soooo good. I wish I could recreate it at home but it wouldn't do justice! Had frizzled fried onions on top which made for a nice salty crunch. The bread was delicious also- assorted. I ordered the Chilean sea bass which was a generous portion and cooked perfectly. My friends ordered steaks and they were cooked exactly how they had requested. They even accommodated my friend who is gluten and dairy free and cooked her steak without butter. Sides were the French fries (ADDICTING), goat cheese mashed potatoes which were, as expected, fluffy and delicious, and the Brussels sprouts which were very yummy too! The bag of doughnuts for dessert is a MUSTTTT. They are melt in your mouth goodness and the perfect way to end a meal here!
(4)
John S.
Absolutely terrible, food, service, cleanliness, all the basic aspects of any restaurant and they totally make a disgrace of each. Not worth the money and definitely not my time. This place doesn't have a chance of surviving.
(1)
Samantha B.
I have been going to the Palm restaurant with my family for years now. I love the new location, their patio is one of the best in the city. The food there is always delicious, and since I'm usually with my family I make sure to over order which allows me leftovers for days! My one complaint with the new location is how slippery the floors are - after a few bottles of wine this can be a bit rough, I may start crawling to the bathroom on all fours. I would definitely recommend the Palm, especially once the weathers warms up!
(4)
Charles B.
You have to try the... everything! Had some of everything that was on the table - Veal Martini, Filet, Lobster and a Tomahawk steak that was out of this world! Service was wonderful and the Chef came around to make sure we were delighted! I can't believe some of these reviews - we couldn't have had a better experience! I can see bring a large group of customers or just a "date" with my wife. Please is great.
(5)
Laser s.
Ate here for the first time the other day, for lunch. The place was packed, so clearly they get a good lunch crowd. Wouldn't you think they would have the service down pat by now? It was unbelievably slow. We had to wait to get menus at our table (they seat you with only the wine list! How does that make sense?!), then had to wait for the server to come over. We studied the wine list and she came back to take our order. Drinks served, wait some more for her to take our lunch order. And THEN we waited for over half an hour for.....drum roll please.....a salad and a sandwich. No bread brought over -- we had to ask, when other around us were getting bread baskets. I don't get it. Off day? If you're going to serve lunch in the financial district, people, you have to step it up. This is not dinner, where people linger. Lunch is no longer a long, leisurely event like it was 30 years ago. The decor is lovely, the food unremarkable, and the service sadly lacking.
(2)
Steph C.
A friend of mine invited me to the soft opening of the Palm. The space was architecturally beautiful, the staff was friendly and helpful. The filet mignon I ordered was amazing, it was charred on the outside with a nice pink to red on the inside. The quality of the cut was good as well. I was only a little let down by the side dishes, I felt like they were not of the same quality level. Over all it was a good experience. Props to the bar, they made my martinis excellent all night!
(4)
Josaphine B.
Have you ever felt ripped off after dinner? Well, that's exactly how we felt after dinner at the Palm last weekend. We ordered the $99 steak for 2 because the menu was offering a $25 gift card with the purchase. First, the menu touts the steak as a 40 oz. steak big enough for two and our waitress said it looks like its from the Flnstone's, so with the eagerness of a great steak and the allure of a $25 gift card we went for it. The regular ribeye steak is 24 oz. at a cost of $54. When our "Flinstone's" steak arrived the bone must have been 18". I'm serious, 18". The 40 oz steak was all bone! The meat of the steak was no bigger than the $54 regular one. I usually order the 7 oz filet so it wasn't something I was going to make a big deal about and wanted to enjoy the evening with my husband. I have to say I was still hungry after finishing my few bites of meat and a few bites of vegetables (I don't eat starch so no place to turn for filler). How surprised were we when our check came and our waitress announced that they were only offering the $25 gift card in October and we misunderstood because we had not seen the mini, tiny, super small print that stated so. I guess when you print your menus each night it is too difficult to check for current promotion accuracy and its up to your customers to figure out what's currently being offered and what's expired. We were welcome to talk with a manager who I'm certain would have assured us that it was too bad we had misunderstood. We are in walking distance to Ruth's Chris and will never return to the Palm. I wonder, for a rip-off steak and expired promotion is it worth losing a really good, local customer? I guess the Palm thinks so.
(1)
Matt G.
My partner and I went to celebrate Valentine's Day. The service was exceptional, the food was not. My partner ordered a veal dish and it was $33. When it arrived, it was 4 medallions smothered in sauce. I ordered the filet medium-$44. When it arrived, it was well done. The sauce I ordered with it was the peppercorn. It was so thin it was like Italian dressing. The bread basket looked like the bread that you would get at Market Basket. Save yourself time and money.
(1)
Marvin L.
Lunch with clients. Worst lobster blt I think I had. An embarrassment to serve that thing in Boston. Insult to injury Fries are optional. Other orders looked equally bad, although the steak salad looked ok. Service was also poor. They better figure it out soon or they won't be there long.
(2)
J M.
Let me start off by saying one nice thing the staff is wonderful super nice. ....My husband and I love going to different restaurants, some of are favorites Ruth Chris and capital grill but for his birthday I wanted to surprise him so I pick the Palm restaurant. I read reviews on here and open table but I like to make my own judgements. Well probably should have listen to the reviews. Here goes got there early at 630pm the place was empty they sat use right away we ordered drinks and the calamari for an app. When it came out look like the calamari was sitting in oil for days and dry out oil look we ate some it was horrible next I order my entree, I ordered the seasonal feature lobster with filet mignon when it came out the lobster pieces were in a lil bowl and my filet on the plate even the waiter said that was weird. I believe it was suppose to come on my plate with a cream sauce well that was not the case anyway the lobster in the bowl were little balls of lobster I had one they were so over cooked so rubbery very dry over cooked. The filet was horrible of all steak how can u get the filet wrong well it was horrible. My Husband got the new york strip he said it was ok. Well after a horrible meal on to dessert. I love dessert big sweet tooth I ordered the 7 layer chocolate cake gross had no taste nutting to it I took two bites and made no sense to keep eating . The waiter said I will wrap that for u I said ok didn't want to be rude. ( FYI tried to give it to a couple friends they said horrible ended up throwing the cake away) two managers came over during are meals I feel bad to say it was the worst restaurant I have ever ate at. I said nutting but the second manager new by a face I made I just said the lobster was very dry. He took that off the bill. That was nice. But really the filet was the number one issue. All and all great staff ,managers... but food just not good at all .I felt bad wanted to surprise my husband for his birthday taking him some where new and to cheer him up he is a boston firefighter and lost two of his friends in the beacon st fire . Sum it up !!save your money
(1)
Sean M.
3.459 stars There is a new King of the Steak House (at least in the Financial District/ Faneuil Hall Hall/Innovation District) and it is the The Palm. It isn't exactly a waterfront location but you can see the water if you try. The bar is small and at one end your back is exposed to the front door. They could have done better with situating the bar. The indoor seating is spacious and the booths are very cozy. The outdoor seating does not present the best view but you are sheltered by the awning but open to car traffic. The menu is what you would expect from an upscale a la carte Steak House offering with classic sides like cream spinach. They do provide a more affordable lunch menu with appropriate portions. I stick to the meat and I mean the steaks, the au poivre sauce is better than most Boston Steak Houses. They offer the Oscar treatment but i have not tried it. The burgers are thick and juicy nothing too fancy. Hint: burger could be the best a value on the menu. You might need a doggy bag. The "by the glass" wine menu is lacking but the bottle service has some values. * they do have seafood and a red sauce Italian menu, get a steak. * The service is quite good, have not had any issues. * It's pricey but not excessive for an upscale SH, a better value than others... * good choice for work lunch, company functions, private dinning. * parking, street on weekends but better off with a pay lot.
(4)
Della G.
We had a reservation last night for 7:15, walked in to the impressive entrance to then see guys wearing tank tops and cut-offs drinking at the bar. Our server was quite clueless, nice but just not qualified: kept trying to pour our wine after we had told her we wanted to handle it ourselves (letting it breath in the decanter), never re-filled water glasses after the initial fill, told us at the end of our meals "the kitchen closed at 9:00 but I might be able to get you desserts" (we hadn't even gotten to the point of discussing dessert). We were pretty easy going with it all and were having a laid back Father's Day. Food was just OK, shrimp cocktail, Ahi tuna, brussels sprouts, spinach and mashed potatoes were all good, the steaks were the best part. The embarrassment was the Monday Night Salad, mushed onto your plate and yes, finely chopped so much you could eat it with a spoon, not much substance or flavor and limited anchovy. The general atmosphere is wonderful, they did a great job with the space, however it seemed like the lights were a bit bright where we were sitting (upper banquets). We spent just over $500.00 for 4 of us (not including tip), champagne, wine, appetizers, steaks, and sides. This needed to be a real upscale steakhouse! We will not be going back.
(1)
Omi H.
Me and one of my girlfriends ended up at Palm 2 Friday nights ago, because we had a bad experience at Smith & Wollensky down the street. So we were already annoyed and hoping this place would be much better. I've been to Palm before for drinks, as I work in the same building, but this was the first time actually having food. We were seated outside on a chilly night, but it felt really nice because the heaters were on. Our waiter gave us a drink menu and then left because he got busy, so the manager stopped by and handed us menus and asked if we had any questions. We told him that we just left S&W because we thought the waitress was rude and he thanked us for coming there. He recommended a certain bottle of wine, which we took his suggestion and it was great. It wasn't that expensive, especially since my friend recently quit her job to go back to school, so it was perfect. Half way through dinner, the heaters outside were turned off and it got very chilly very fast. At this point, my boyfriend was about to join us, and I wanted to put his steak order in before he actually arrived, but our waiter was again too busy and asked if we could give him a minute, which he disappeared for about 10-15 minutes, at this point, my boyfriend had already arrived. I then told our waiter that it was chilly and he said "excuse me? Did you just ask how I was doing?" My friend and I laughed and said no, we said we were cold, but sure, how are you? He then asked if we wanted the truth or if we wanted him to lie to us. We said we wanted the truth, which he proceeded to tell us that his feet hurt and he couldn't wait to go home etc (I thought to myself, lie to us, lie to us haha). The entire night, the best service we got was the 5 minutes we had with the manager; wish he could have served us all night long. Overall, the food was just ok. We ordered calamari, 4 side dishes: potato au gratin, some potato hash, mushrooms and brussel sprouts. The only one that tasted good was the brussel sprouts, but they were a tiny bit too salty. All the other sides were missing some type of spice, or just missing something. We had assumed it was later in the night and maybe the food was being rushed, we are not actually sure. I think the wine they serve is really good, but the food isn't that great. Service wasn't that great either, but the time spent with management was really good.
(3)
Michele C.
This place was the biggest disappointment. I ordered surf and turf and what a joke. Spent almost $100 for the meal and the steak was cold and the lobster was suppose to be a half of a 3 lb lobster and in reality it was barely a 1 1/2 half lobster. I know the Palm is originally from NY but you can not fool a Bostonian with lobster. This meal was the biggest rip off. E Also we sat down at 7:00 and we were done before 8:00 because all the food was brought out in a few minutes after ordering it. There are too many other great steakhouses in Boston to waste your good hard earned money here. Stay far away
(1)
Jim M.
Went here for dinner Saturday and it was a disaster. Service was awful, food was sub-par to not edible, and everything felt like it was bush league. Manager took a bunch of stuff off the bill, which was nice, but for a chef to not know how to cook a steak at The Palm to begin with is heresy.
(2)
Cole D.
We went here for a friends birthday dinner last evening and I will not be doing that again. I'm surprised, as the scenery is beautiful but the overall experience was not. Our waitress was very nice, but not very knowledgeable on the menu and not very personable. We ordered a few oysters to start, but never received them. When our meal came we kindly reminded her and ended up getting a half order instead. The food is good, but not worth the money. Everything is very expensive and our sides were cold. We ordered the asparagus to have a veggie, and they came out fried, which was never noted on the menu. There was also one member in our group who ordered veal, and another who ordered chicken, which they mixed up and served the veal as the chicken. Luckily, she didn't have an adversity to veal, which many people do, so we did not make a big stink about it. They did comp us, but it was for the chicken and less expensive meal. Overall, for the experience and price, I had higher expectations. I can get a better meal at surrounding area restaurants, I'd skip this and go to one of them.
(2)
Larry G.
New location horrible from management to wait staff and food. Went in first time as a guest of 837 club. Waitress denied us the discount and brought the wrong steak. Manager was going to discount next meal but seems to have forgotten. Next time we went there were a bunch of drunks behind us 6 hours after a Bruins game loud and obnoxious. Seems this behavior is something they condone. Too bad the old location food and service and management was great. Won't be going back!!
(1)
D A.
Went for a business lunch the other day. The food was delicious. The waitress was very rude.
(3)
Elizabeth G.
Great location, surprisingly comfortable place and a very good cocktail but the food was terrible. Terrible. Buy a piece of meat on sale at Shaw's and throw it under your broiler and it will be better than this 40-something$$$ thing they throw on your plate
(1)
Wendy V.
Exceptional service EXCEPT for the rude hostess! There is nothing more annoying than getting all dressed up for a beautiful enjoyable dinner date, and then arriving at the restaurant to be treated like a second class citizen. This is what happened at the Palm. The hostess was RUDE and should NOT be in that role. We showed up for our 6:45pm dinner reservation and was told to wait. She then ignored us while she seated 2 parties ahead of us. My husband and I then got upset and demanded an explanation. Her response was that she "didn't mean to" seat folks ahead of us. This was quite upsetting to the point where it was hard to focus on having a good evening. There should be no excuse for treating customers as if they shouldn't be at the Palm. Boston has a lot of restaurant options, and the staff should know that (1) customers CHOOSE to dine at the Palm, ad (2) when they show up at the Palm, they EXPECT an exceptional fine dining experience. The evening was salvaged by the managers who were quite accommodating. They insisted on not charging us for our meal. While this was very nice of them (and we appreciate this), we felt insulted to some extent. We are NOT there for a free meal and insisted on paying our tab. What would've been better is an apology directly from the hostess. nevertheless, our server (Stephanie) was exceptional. She was warm and quite efficient. The food was good and the ambiance was awesome.
(2)
Roberta H.
I love trying new restaurants so when "The Palm" opened up in Boston I made plans to go. The atmosphere was unique with very high ceilings and an open, eclectic feeling. Clientele very professional. Cesar salad was crisp and fresh (dressing had a definite anchovy flavor - a bit too strong for me), the bread basket was wonderful with a raisin cranberry hearty bread and french to pick from, and the NY strip sirloin flavorful and tender. As an aside if you like Cosmopolitans the one I had at the Palm was the best I've had in a while. You couldn't really taste all the alcohol ?? but it certainly packed a punch! Bar tenders very laid back , auxiliary waiters still learning the ropes. Overall the experience was great!
(5)
Neil R.
The one star is for decor. The food was horrible. Steak had so much gristle it was unedible. The four lb lobster must have gone on a diet. Del Frisco and Morton's so much better. If it was not the location this would be a no star.
(1)
Emma T.
I was just here over the weekend with a few friends for drinks and apps and it was great. We got a table right outside, which was fabulous. It was a beautiful day and a prime spot for people watching. The apps were good and during happy hour select choices were under $6! I think the only thing that would've made this place even better is if there was a bar outside. It was a good time, but definitely not cheap and it felt a little too fancy for a fun night out. I would definitely recommend this place for a night date night...however if you want a lively night out with friends maybe try another place.
It's The Palm. It's awesome. Get the pastrami sandwich for lunch. You will not regret.
(4)
Greg C.
The Palm is a wannabe steakhouse. Cap Grille, Del's, Abe's, Morton's all blow it out of the water. Superior quality meat, actually cooked the way you order, and much better service. My friends and I were pumped for the Palm but after ten of us going out and spending close to $1300, we will not be returning. Wait staff acted annoyed at our requests and they screwed up every single one of our cooking requests. Medium rare requests were served well done and well done requests were served cold and purple in the center.
(1)
Rhea B.
Had lunch there today. They opened just two weeks ago so the service was a bit wonky, but that's OK. The atmosphere more than made up for it! I will be back.
(4)
David R.
The Palm reopened its doors today in its stunning new quarters. It is the handsomest venue in Boston; the pillars are pretentious, but the room is otherwise lovely,the tables are far apart, noise levels allow conversation, the service is excellent, and the food is as good as anywhere else in town. The prices are outrageous, but this is for plutocrats and special occasions. For a birthday, I'd rather have one meal here than two almost anywhere else. It is so different from the cramped quarters at Abe & Louie's, where whether you like it or not, you can't help hearing every stupid thing the people at the next table are saying.
(5)
J D.
My wife and I stopped into the Palm on their opening night and were very happy with our experience there. Having arrived early, we were able to get a seat at the bar and were waited on by several different servers who were friendly and efficient. The restaurant has a covered outdoor patio for those wishing to dine outside, but they also have a number of very comfortable looking booths inside that are not spaced too close together. Since the restaurant was built into the first floor of International Place, which has very high ceilings, the entire restaurant has a very open and airy feel about it with plenty of light and views for those interested in people watching (or being watched). Since we had a late lunch, we opted just to have drinks, appetizers and dessert rather than a full dinner, but we enjoyed everything we ate (and drank). The Palm is a very nice addition to the neighborhood and is certainly no more expensive than other high end steakhouses. On the parking issue - those of us who live in the neighborhood know that you can enter the garage, take a ticket and then pay for your parking upstairs across from the elevator at one of two machines when you are going back to your car to leave. Or, you can use your credit card to gain access into the garage (don't take a ticket) and use that same credit card to open the gate when you leave the garage. The parking fee will be billed directly to your card. I am also told that the Palm will soon have valet parking.
the word grand comes to mind for the Palm. The columns, the chandeliers, and all that blinging jazz. I got he Gigi salad and that was way better and filling then i expected. Ordered the tuna dish (medium rare), came to me so well done, it was barely chewable. I had a few other small complaints (like the lack of water, even if ordered sparkling). The waitstaff were friendly and nice enough. So end in end, i just found my main course a disappointment. Might return for drinks and the salad again, but will probably pass on the fish entrees. Then again, this place is known for their steak, so maybe i should have ordered that.
(2)
Yelena W.
The Palm is a beautiful location, columns, high ceilings, beautiful chandeliers, big windows. We went on Thursday night and had a window table We had to wait for 20 minutes for our Martinis to be delivered because our server was busy with a big party.Martinis were expensive, $14 each. We ordered the Veal Martini entree and it was splitted for us in the kitchen. The food was tasty but the portion was small and we got more mushrooms on our plates than veal. The service was OK. The prices were much higher than the value that was delivered.
(3)
John I.
A busy steakhouse in Boston, the Palm delivers just OK food at high price points. Service was good, but the filet mignon was nothing special. The mashed potatoes were dense and had that buttery flavour. The lobster bisque was somewhat salty, but not awful. Not sure if this is the best steakhouse in Boston, but I would try a few others before selecting the Palm. Enjoy!
(2)
Katie C.
I came here for a book signing event, but since I got there early, I decided to pop in for lunch. It's clear to see that The Palm really invests its energy and resources into appeasing the business 9-5 crowd. It makes sense considering their location and the fact that their stretch of Atlantic Avenue is definitely a 9-5 crowd. Anyway. I got in around 1:00 and the place was hopping. Fortunately I found a spot at the bar with no problem. The hosts at the front were a little condescending since I definitely wasn't dressed as if I was going out to work. Regardless, I got seated at the bar and ordered the biggest glass of wine I could get as quickly as possible. I ordered the steak chopped salad. I asked for the steak to be cooked rare, and it was definitely more medium-rare than rare. However, it wasn't a dealbreaker for me and I could handle it. The steak was a little rough and more fatty than I would have liked. It cut soft and I could use a butterknife. So not terrible. The dressing was definitely more oil than garlic, but it was good and it complemented the salad. As the business crowd died down, the bartender and I shot the breeze while I finished off my second glass of wine. He said I could hang out there until the book signing started. Sweet! So as the book signing started, the staff made the process of getting seated really easy. There were no hiccups with getting receipts or lost reservations; everything was pre-processed and ready to go. We were seated and the staff began passing around appetizers. The only problem were people getting up and down to get drinks from the bar. But overall, it was a smooth process. The author, Andy Cohen, showed up on time, entertained us, and then we all lined up to receive our books and photos. How cool. The staff were definitely running on a tight timeline so we did feel a little hustled. Our favorite bartender kept the drinks coming. I'd be willing to come back and either have lunch with friends or an early dinner. As we were leaving at 6:30 on a Friday night, there was practically NO ONE in the dining room. For a reputable steakhouse like the Palm, it was rather sad.
(3)
YC L.
Personally, I love the food there and their Power Lunch is perfect in terms of size and price. There's a salad as a starter, main course with a side and a dessert. I got their fish of the day and it was delicious. One thing that I have to say tho is that it takes too long to serve.... It was almost a two hours lunch. Not ideal for a lunch break meal
(4)
Todd S.
Very enjoyable dining experience.. The Chilean Sea Bass is to die for!! Amazingly done! And the sides are great too!!
(5)
Jason P.
I was in town for a conference recently which happened to overlap my birthday. My friends were planning on dining with me at The Palm to celebrate, but were unable to make it. However, they strongly recommended this place, so I dined here. My waiter (Leonardo?) was very attentive, courteous, and highly knowledgeable. Simply put, he was a professional. The oysters and lobster were amongst the freshest I've had. The 14oz filet was a touch dry on the ends, but ended up being quite tender toward the center (I would have given a 5th star if they aced the steak). The creamed spinach, though, was excellent. Yes, they also gave me a slice of birthday cake. It was chocolate, tasty, and HUGE. The caveat to my review is that the dinner was a gift to me, though I remember the prices. Still, if I wanted to treat a friend to a special dinner and had some money to burn, I would consider choosing a place like this one. Too bad Hawaii doesn't have a Palm.
(4)
richard m.
I have been to Palm restaurants all over the U.S. and love the service and meals. We went there on a Saturday night and were immediately seated at our table. Our drinks and appetizers were served in rapid order followed by our main courses. The filets were tender snd the half n half was amazing. Our waiter was very attentive without being overbearing. I have no idea why so many negative reviews but whenever I want a great steak the Palm is my first choice.
(5)
Diana Z.
Food was decent. My friend ordered a rare steak and it was very over cooked. Server took it back to kitchen after trying to convince her it was "just the lighting" he then came back with the steak and forced her to get out of her seat and come back to the kitchen so the chef could speak with her because "it was just the lighting" she refused to get up as she was very embarrassed and ended up just eating the over cooked steak that the server/chef refused to re-make. Poor service and the food wasn't even that good.
(2)
H. David H.
The Palm is a beautiful location, columns, high ceilings. Menu favors steak . The filet minion was ok but a small serving size. The veal with mushrooms was mostly mushrooms. Crab Cakes as entree was great. The Chicken Parm was recommended by local food critic, surprised it did not include pasta. The service was OK although not especially friendly. The prices were much higher than the value that was delivered.
(2)
Joe J.
The space is gorgeous, but it was empty last night and that should have been a sign to look elsewhere. Service was slow. Shrimp Cocktail was $20 and came with an astonishing FOUR shrimp, which were not even that large. Caesar salad was OK, but the thing that really got to me was the Chicken Parm. Yes, it was good. The waitress asked me what I wanted for my side, linguini or penne, and I stated linguini. When we got the bill, we realized that it cost $12 extra for the side of linguini. This is deception 101 here. You can't ask what you want for a side without stating its an additional cost. Secondly, what the F kind of place serves chicken parm without a pasta side, especially when it is over $30??? I just don't get it.
(2)
Mr. And Mrs. R.
When choosing one of the hundreds of Boston restaurants to spend $200+ at on a Saturday night, the hope is that the money will be well spent. We know we are going to spend a good chunk of cash on a steak dinner, but it is very disappointing when the establishment under delivers. That is what happened this past Saturday night at the Palm Restaurant. The room is impressive and beautiful. We got a great window table, and the experience started off fine. Server was friendly and greeted us promptly. The bread was delivered quickly and was delicious, especially the cran bread. We ordered a bottle of white wine, and it too was excellent, but we weren't supplied with an ice bucket, which was odd for an expensive bottle. No biggie, we were thirsty and drank a little faster, especially with the crab cocktail appetizer, which was really good and plentiful, even at $24. Then the lull arrived. Wine was gone, appetizer finished, bread basket only held crumbs, and our server was nowhere to be found. A solid 25 minutes went by without seeing him near our table, instead he was focused on the rest of his section, and clearly he was overworked and swamped. He finally came over to our table, at which time we ordered another bottle of wine, salads, and our entrees all at once - in case we didn't see him again. Another ten minutes goes by (our glasses still empty) and he finally returns to tell us they ran out of the wine we ordered. We instead ordered two glasses of another brand. Another 15 minutes goes by....no wine, and still no salads. Finally he frantically comes back to the table with the 2 wine glasses, and apologizes because they "poured the red kind instead." 5 minutes later our entrees arrived. Yeah, no salads first. He forgot them. Awesome. We refused them at that point, and just went into the meal, which was average at best. The $49 filet was drastically undercooked, and the chicken parm (secret family recipe from like 1926 -whatever) was nothing special. Oh, and a side of pasta wasn't included - it was $10.50 extra!! For penne! The best part of the meal was the potatoes au gratin. The manager came over for a routine table check expecting us to say everything was fine, but we told him it was actually pretty terrible. He comped the two glasses of wine, and must have told the server to offer us free coffee and dessert. Thanks, what a sport. Needless to say, we won't be spending $250 at the Palm again.
(2)
Matt W.
Not a great experience. The waitress was wonderful, but we waited (twice) at least 15 minutes for drinks. We were told the bartender was "alone" at the bar. The food also wasn't great. Our chicken Parm dish could have been warmer. All in all, probably won't return.
(2)
Andrew A.
Highly unrecommended - 30 minutes for a Manhattan, really? Supposed "aged" steak was full of fat and grizzle, it was tasty but I've had better at Outback for half the price. We asked for Menu's at which point they only gave us two for a table of four. I had to dress down the waiter to at least get competent service. A sad excuse for a restaurant. The apps were so so but not amazing. Avoid.
(1)
Marina B.
Been coming to the Boston location(s) for 15 years plus other locations when I travel. This place has gone downhill in so many ways. Portions are smaller and prices went up. Really disappointed to the point where I will never come back.
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Dinner Parking : Valet, Garage Bike Parking : Yes Wheelchair Accessible : Yes Good for Kids : No Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Dressy Ambience : Upscale Noise Level : Average Alcohol : Full Bar Outdoor Seating : Yes Wi-Fi : No Has TV : Yes Waiter Service : Yes Caters : No
BostonFoodie T.
I have dined at many steak establishments and friends wanted to try out the Palm during restaurant week. Hands down the worst dining experience for such an upscale restaurant with over priced meals. The service was horrendously slow, very unfriendly and the waiter took 45 minutes to even ask what we wanted to order. When we asked about the restaurant week menu he said he "forgot" to give it to us and the one i got looked like a grease stain was all over it. Once he gave us that menu, it took him another 30 minutes to come back. And then he gave us the wrong dessert and we didn't even see him for the check. The food was mediocre at best. The salad was ok. The steak was very small and the crispy onion rings on top were 4x the amount of the steak. They should have been their own side dish. Maybe it was a restaurant week thing but it wasn't really busy. Empty tables all around so i really don't know what was going on. I would rather frequent the other steakhouses in the area that offer the service and food quality commiserate with their prices and ambiance.
(1)Gigi M.
Went here last night with a friend, spur-of-the moment, and dined at the bar. Lovely room, very warm and professional bartender. Had a couple of lobster bisques (nice presentation!) and were allowed to split a rack of lamb, both perfectly prepared. Some "Educated Guess" wine ... great experience, would definitely return.
(4)Dom K.
Given the price point, I would never come here again. The green salad tasted supermarket quality. NY strip was dry and bland - even Applebee's would've been better, and that's without the price tag differential. Green beans were even worse- how do you mess up green beans?? The only saving grace was the key lime pie, which was good relative to the other items, but okay in absolute terms. Save your money- go somewhere else. This place is not worth it.
(1)Jenna H.
It has been so long since I have been out to a nice dinner since I had a baby! I drive by the palm all the time and it looks so nice. I couldn't wait to try it out. The space is gorgeous and we were able to sit on the outdoor terrace. We went this past weekend and it was dead! This should have been my first warning... For my dinner I had the days special - you can usually not go wrong there. It was a filet topped with lobster, asparagus, and béarnaise sauce. The steak was very high quality and cooked to perfection. The lobster on top was incredibly dry though. It tasted like it sat under a burner too long, which was probably the case as my béarnaise had all but evaporated. It was runny and flavorless. For sides we got the mushrooms and goat cheese mashed potatoes. Our dinner came out without the mushrooms - we were told they were on the way but by the time they made an appearance we were half way done with our meal. The mushrooms were fabulous though - a nice blend of various varieties with a balsamic glaze. The potatoes were awful... they actually tasted instant and we could locate no trace of a goat cheese flavor. For desert we ordered the carrot cake - meh, I have had better. Service was incredibly slow for what was not a packed restaurant. So disappointing - I was hoping to have a never favorite steak house as I both live and work in the area.
(2)Michael C.
So I have been here a few times now, it is located in my building so imagine I will be here quite often. First off, it is a huge improvement over the original. As I said to one of my colleagues for a client/business lunch recommendation it is perfect (they even have free wifi) but for a civilian looking for a great place to eat, I'm not sure. First off from an architectural perspective it is gorgeous, but things like their tiny bar for such a large space can't help but bottleneck service and eliminate the idea of sitting at the bar. The outdoor patio is really nice, great views of the Greenway and people watching. The food here is pricey, I believe the priciest steak house for dinner in town but their Power Lunch is pretty reasonable. For around $25 you get a 3 course meal. I went with the Caesar Salad - Just how you would want a great salad to be. Plenty of crouton and smothered in dressing. Filet (Oscar style) - 2 4oz filets came topped with what they call Oscar sauce. It was good, perfectly cooked actually. But as far as steaks go I've had more flavorful ones at their competitors Cheese Cake - This raspberry cheesecake was the highlight of the lunch. It was perfect, really. Maybe the best cheesecake ever. Chicken Avocado Sandwich - While the chicken was delicious I think it was a mismatch for the sandwich. It is carved roasted chicken which is impossible to eat without half of it falling out. All of the individual parts were good but together I'll pass. Lobster Bisque - Really well presented dish. Lobster in a bowl, the soup is then poured over it in front of you. It was good but slightly spicy. Final verdict: I'll come back for lunch anytime, dinner probably not.
(3)Dawn A.
Oh how I wanted to be impressed at the Palm. I was brought here by a company, so no expense was to be spared. We had appetizers, sides and expensive steaks. Everything was fine. Fine. Yes, it was good. It was not great. When you have a $47 steak, you want it to "wow" you. I was not wowed by my steak. If you told me it was not a "prime" steak, I would have believed you. It was not particularly tender. I got the sirloin. One problem was that my idea of a medium steak is a pink steak all the way through. My steak verged on medium well. If I was paying for this meal, I definitely would have returned it. But, I was being gracious and decided to just keep my mouth shut beyond a quick mention to the waiter. At $47, they should have cooked it right. Perhaps I should have opted for the rib eye. The sides were very good. We had the Brussels sprouts, the goat cheese mashed potatoes, the asparagus. The asparagus were a little large for my liking, but quite flavorful. When you have a $12 order of asparagus, you don't want to feel like you are eating little trees, you want them to be sublime asparagus. Perhaps it's just my personal preference, but I prefer a thinner asparagus stalk. These ones were about as thick as my middle finger at the bottom. I highly doubt I would go back to the Palm, unless someone else paid again. When someone drops a few hundred dollars on my meal, I want to walk out saying, "That was a mighty fine meal I had". I want to remember that meal as one of the best I have had in a long time. That did not happen. While my service was quite friendly and attentive, I think my server ignoring my comment that my steak was a bit well done for my liking didn't help the situation either. There was no quick offer to fix it. I think when I have my next prime steak, it will be elsewhere.
(2)Erica B.
Valentine's Day/snowstorm/No Reservation. Sounds like a recipe for a disaster right? Not for Palm Boston! My sisters and I were in town for a fashion show and we showed up right at 5 praying that they were open and we could get in. They were able to get us in right away and, per usual, fantastic service. Everyone is so friendly! They even gave us chocolate covered strawberries for dessert and roses on our way out! How sweet!!! I will always find Palm valuable purely because of the way they treat their customers. I've been to the location in Nashville and Boston and it's always amazing. If you're in the area, I recommend a reservation to be safe - but either way, it's worth a wait.
(5)Nancy A.
Our recent dining experience was horrible at the Palm. Server lost our drink order. We waited and waited and then everything came out at once. Large tables take precedence over smaller tables it appears. Outdoor dining while located great, is a disaster in terms of service. Food was cold, for the price of the food, pick another service oriented steak place. There are plenty in the area.
(1)chris c.
Place is great, staff is friendly and fast. Went there with my wife, kevin took care of us. The 36oz steak is to die for. Cant say enough. Kevin is a great server!
(5)Tammy T.
I came here today for restaurant week with my friend. I made reservations ahead of time so once we got there, we were seated right away. I loved how the place looked and the space was huuge! It was already fillllllled with people by the time I got there. I started off with the mixed greens salad which wasn't my favorite. The portion of that is too much for an appetizer. For the entree, I got the filet mignon. I asked for well done and as I was cutting into the steak, already ate a quarter way of the 7 ounce, I realized they mixed mine up with my friend. I am not a fan of anything that isn't well done, I have a very sensitive stomach. (I haven't thrown up yet though) So instead, my friend got my well done steak while I got his medium rare steak. Just looking at it made me want to gag. Luckily we were so deep into our conversation I forgot about it. BUT, I will say that the steak was really juicy and it melted in my mouth. Very flavorful as well. Too bad I only got three little pieces of mushroom.... When we finished our entree, we waited for our server for at least 15 minutes to ask what dessert we wanted and then 20+ minutes to get our dessert. He should have no excuse considering there weren't many diners there as everyone left. I would love to come back in the summer to experience the outside seating. Next time, make sure your customers get the right dish they asked!
(2)Rich M.
Good food great service and orders came as ordered. The bread was addictive. We will certainly be back.
(4)Diane H.
This review seems to be pretty tricky to write..let me start off... I came here to celebrate my birthday with my bf. Last minute while walking to the seats I decided I wanted to sit at a booth near the windows, i dont know if this made the evening more stressful for a particular waiter or whatnot..but who knows... Our waiter George came by, he's a talker...lots of talk. Action, not so sure..he's probably not very good at wines.. so he should not pretend he is. Anyways, he told me he was going to make my drink, like he would, it would be a surprise. I got my drink it's pretty good, fruits, lots of alcohol that's cool. But he never brought water to the table....service took a long time, i don't know where he went.. but you know he came back and apologized... we ordered the ahi tuna, beef carpaccio--all tasted good. We couldn't decide on a soup, so he let us try both types they had, the lobster bisque had a generous amount of lobster but spicy..and the mushroom soup was really good so we went with that. For side we got the brussel sprouts which i recommend you to never get..they were SOOOO bitter...yuck. The hash browns were very...thick and not hash brown like, more like roasted potatoes so you should skip that as well. We ordered a filet to share....the outside was very charred for a medium rare. I believe the inside was fine. He never really asked if i liked my food or not... no management walked around to see if i liked it... something that i see at a lot of places. AT this point, i was very let down, i worked with many past concierges, and in the service industry so i wasn't very happy especially because it's my bday! I just wasn't feeling the food and it didn't seem anyone was going to do anything about it..it's like where is the SERVICE in this place?! I heard soo much good things and how it used to be the best steak house when it was back in it's back bay location... That's why i'm here splurging, trying to celebrate.. In the end, the server comped us a dessert after we ordered the creme brulee which was really lemony..he gave use the flourless cake that my bf really wanted but i didn't want..and the management took off the steak and 2 apps which i thought was very nice. I really do appreciate the gesture, but you know, i'm really just looking for a good dinner..good service. So I do give them props for trying to fix things at the end.
(3)diana h.
It is a beautiful space. And that's about it. The food is VERY mediocre and overpriced. The service is heart-crushingly slow. We work nearby and often go to the Palm for drinks/munchies after work. And more often than not we are one of only a few parties in the restaurant, and ALWAYS... it takes forever to get anything. I really don't get it. I go back to the Palm out of mere convenience.
(1)Mary Ann A.
Excellent, excellent, excellent in all areas. You do receive value for your money. I am very much surprised by the poor reviews. I say, "Judge for yourself -- go and enjoy." This might just become one of your favorite steak places. It is ours.
(5)Mike A.
Pretty by-the-book steakhouse, but yet also somehow lackluster, even when compared to other Palms I've been to. Perhaps its because it caters almost exclusively to business lunches and happy-hour drinkers that the attention to detail just isn't there? Smith and Wollensky's across the street is a much better bet, and I can't imagine they're not dealing with the same clientele. I don't know, its just one of life's mysteries I guess. I'm also used to the original Palm in NYC which is kind of dingy. The super high ceilings make it seem like I'm eating at a kiosk in the middle of a mall somewhere.
(3)Michael M.
One of the worst places I have been to in a while. To begin with, prices are sky high and food quality is lower than average. Or average at best. To start with, we sat. A girl brought water and started pouring it to glasses. She began with literally dripping about a pint of that water over my phone. Then she looks at it, says absolutely nothing and continues. Like nothing happened. I had to take a napkin and started to wipe my phone. Of course I told her - "no worries, it happens all the time" sarcastically but, she did not really get it. Next, we HAD TO ASK for a menu.... So, while waiting for a steak, we ordered some wine. Waiter brings our wine in a house decanter. As soon as he put it down on a table, all white cloth around it became red. Again, he did not even look, did not offer to pour wine into glasses. NOTHING! They try really hard to show that it is upscale place but, yet, they brought a main course before removing all salad/appetizer plates. I mean, it was comical - a waiter stays there with hot plates in his hands and has no room to put them. Why? Because him or other staff never bothered to take away our salad plates. Usually waiters ask and pickup all starter plates BEFORE bringing main course. I had filet mignon. To begin with, it was over cooked. It came with mash potatoes with goat cheese.... We were shocked to find out that mash potatoes were instant potatoes from the packet. DISGUSTING! it tasted disgusting, it had no flavor of cheese or even mash potatoes at that point. I mean for $50/plate you would expect at least real potatoes, not instant crap. Filet mignon came with hollandaise sauce on a side, that is what menu said. I have to say, it did look like sauce. But, either their chef has no idea what that sauce is or it was some other sauce. Now, desert. Cake was ok, cheese cake was not bad also. But a $7 cappuccino......I have had much better at Dunkin' Donuts. Overall, dinner cost us $200(with tip) and honestly for this kind of money I wold expect a little more professional staff and a lot better food. On the way out, nobody said good bye, nobody cared actually. They got paid so, why bother. P.S. The other couple we had diner with ordered beer. Guess what? They brought it in a cognac sniffer(!!!!!) HOW BAD IS THAT????
(1)Mark R.
$24 for a small lump crab salad-ridiculous. Over priced and overrated. Give me Grill 23 or Cap Grille anytime. Overrated.
(1)Gale C.
This was my first visit to The Palm. We were in town for one night and were recommended the restaurant by the concierge at our hotel. It was a short walk and a last minute reservation. I had long heard positive things about the restaurant and it has a reputation for being upscale and good quality. I found myself wondering what all the hype and long standing good reputation were all about. The restaurant is a good location with large windows to see out on the nearby city views. The decor hints at an old steakhouse feel, but the murals on the wall and the table tents quickly remind you that it is a chain restaurant after all, albeit a pricy one. The waitstaff and servers were attentive and courteous. As a couple next to us asked to be reseated, they were not given choices any other tables, despite there being plenty of others to choose from, only an apology. The drinks were good, and the bread basket was as others have reviewed, nothing special and very subpar for a restaurant at this price point. I ordered a Caesar salad and could not have been more disappointed. The salad was doused in dressing that did not taste all that different from any other jarred dressing that you would find in a supermarket. The lettuce was mostly yellow and the croutons were stale. I really wanted an authentic steakhouse Caesar salad, and this was not it! I opted out of a steak and chose the lump crabmeat cocktail, based on the recommendation of the server. I asked where the crabmeat was from, as I really wanted local seafood. The waiter returned and confirmed that the crab was from Thailand, but assured me that all of the seafood was shipped daily and was fresh. While the portion was fair, the quality of the seafood was also subpar. After reading the restaurants bio, I don't feel this dish meets their claim about sustainable options on their menu. My husband had the chicken parm. The portion size was ample, but the quality again was not great. The chicken was a bit chewy and the sauce was not the best. Overall, a pretty disappointing dinner, and I expected at least a bit more. The prices are way too high for the quality of the food. Better to try one of the other restaurants nearby.
(1)Shari K.
The new location provides a great atmosphere however the service was not good at all which really took away from the dining experience. For example my Caesar Salad was forgotten & came way after the others had already finished theirs. My 2nd cocktail was ordered & never came & the server needed to be reminded. My friends Salmon dish was made incorrectly & was served after everyone had finished their main entrees in fact the server had to bring new sides for him as they had all gotten cold once his meal arrived. There are great steak options in Boston that I prefer, however I would go to the Palms in Charlotte again.
(1)Amber H.
My (1) soda water with a splash of cranberry was 5 dollars. Lunch was pretty good, but nothing special that isn't available from the area. I would say the two best parts of my experience were the atmosphere and the service. If soda water (with a splash of cran) and a salad is your thing - go elsewhere.
(3)Janet D.
I was so incredibly disappointed in our experience that I would not go back again. First off, the service was LACKING. We were basically ignored and had to flag down other waiters to get attention. 4 out of 5 dinners came out together and we waited for the 5th. They said it would be right out. 15 minutes later we flagged down someone and again, told it was on its way. Another 15 minutes and the manager finally comes over. So sorry, it's coming out now. After 45 minutes, the lobster finally arrives only to discover that it was RAW!!!! Took another 15 minutes to get anyone to come over. Then they were on us like flies to honey. We are sorry, can we make you a new one, can we get you something else. Well, NO, everyone at the table had finished eating. They did comp the lobster, one other meal, and dessert, but our special evening was completely ruined. Never going back. Wrote a letter directly to The Palm and never heard back from them. Now that's customer service.
(1)Larry S.
We loved the Palm at Copley...checking out the new place. The bar is way to small and not intimate as the old one used to be. Dining room is big and beautiful but the private rooms seem to lack the style and fabric of a special place. Look like big cubicles. Sorry. Busy busy busy with the finance district locale....bartenders had no personality or style except one young lady who was top notch. Loved the outside dining area. We used to coem and eat at the bar and enjoy the vibe - not sure this is that kind of place. Wil give it a try for dinner and post an update....
(3)Kent B.
I was looking forward to going to the Palm restaurant. Although I eat at steakhouses all the time I had never been there. The food was okay , the service was excellent. Great place to people watch and have a drink but I'm not so sure about the food ...............I will give this restaurant another try I know from one night to the next you can have different outcomes , so maybe this isn't fair. I'll keep you updated.
(3)John P.
This is a really cool place with eclectic decor and a funky lively atmosphere. We get the 4lb Lobster and a couple of side ( potatoes and onion strings & asparagus). It's fun and a cool night out in Boston. The valet parking makes it easy and manageable too.
(4)Philip S.
Attentive service. Great wine list. Had the ahi salad. It was decent but I would have the crunchy noodles on the side next time. My buddy had the fish and Chios which looked good - reasonable portion, cornmeal batter and fries. The bartender made me a great gin and tonic ( I needed that!). I will return.
(3)Daniel A.
I cook often at home so I do not go out to eat much unless I want steak. The atmosphere is great for a date. It wasnt noisy at all like most restaurants. The food was very very good. The steaks were cooked perfectly. You cannot complain about the prices. It is expected like any high end restaurant.
(5)James D.
The new location is very nice. Big space with very high ceilings. The steak is always good but perhaps not up to the standards of the other high end steakhouses in Boston. But still very good. They also have some really good Italian dishes on the menu. The chicken parm is awesome! The service can sometimes be so-so compared to the other steakhouses but overall it's ok.
(3)Aileen C.
Came here for a work lunch with my managers. The food was great and of large portion. I ordered the Lobster BLT sandwich and they tasted pretty good. We together ordered one fries and that's enough for three of us there! We went there around 11:30 and it got all crowded around 12:15. It is definitely a prime spot for people working in the Financial District to have a formal office lunch. One thing I have to mention is that this location only offers power lunch, but not the quick and simple combinations like other locations do. Because of the large portion served, one would be very full if they ordered the three course power lunch and very likely won't be able to get back to the office within 2 and half hours.
(4)C S.
The 2 stars are for the atmosphere because unfortunately, thats all this place has going for it. Skip it and head elsewhere...anywhere else.
(2)Katie V.
Very bizarre experience overall at the Palm. When we first arrived, we were given no menus and just left to wonder if the place served food. Then we got menus, but they had no prices on them. I assumed it was some sort of snooty "we're too classy to think about money" tactic until I asked the waitress, who brought us real menus that did have prices. These menus revealed that the place is hugely overpriced, but at least we knew what we were getting into. Beware of ordering anything not on the menu though; we got 2 glasses of sangria and they were $15 each! On what planet does a glass of sangria cost more than a cocktail? Major rip-off. The food was pretty mediocre and the awkwardness of all the little service/pricing blips made me not eager to return.
(2)Pauline N.
Wow, was I disappointed. The service was not good....at all. It was almost as if they were going for the Dick's Last Resort sort of vibe, the staff was that rude. They need to pick what they are going for, classy old school Palm, or new touristy Palm. I thought I was going to a great steak house for the prices, but food was just so-so. Not worth the price to me. I really wish I could remember my server's name.
(2)Michael B.
Pro's: the mixed drinks, service, inside mural. Con's: patio very loud with truck traffic, Monday Salad not appetizing, prices. Not going back. Boston has too many steak houses to return.
(2)Paul B.
NOT IMPRESSED! Drinks and apps were great but filet came back WAY undercooked and then after it was sent back, it came back BURNT and with a HAIR on my girl's plate. Ultimately, the manager comped the whole bill and gave a $50 gift card for future visit. Been hearing from coworkers they've also have had issues with food not cooked to order so beware!
(1)Kristy L.
Two of my girlfriends and I had been wanting to try their new location and thought the holidays were the perfect excuse to do so. The chefs definitely have it down, as the food was delicious...but the service still needs a lot of work! I don't usually bother providing feedback to restaurants when I receive bad service but this experience could not be ignored. Let me summarize: * The floors were beyond slippery! It seems like a lawsuit waiting to happen, especially for us women with stiletto heels. * We were seated at a table that had dirty dishes (We think someone had sat there before us and switched tables, perhaps?). We had gathered the dishes and left them at the edge of our table for the staff to clear. Didn't seem like an activity guests should need to do. * One of my friends has a severe nut allergy. When the bread came out, we asked a member of the staff if the bread had nuts. Their answer was no but one type of bread absolutely had nuts. Thank goodness we didn't take their word for it, as we would have ended the night in the hospital. * We had order the Carpaccio of Beef Tenderloin for one of our appetizers. When it came out, it appeared to have pesto on the dish, which wasn't indicated on the menu. We had asked our waitress what kind of nuts were in the pesto...she never came back to tell us the answer but when she came over to bring over our other appetizers, we asked again and she said "It probably doesn't have nuts." We needed to know for sure. * Our glasses had gone empty on several occasions. An experienced server should have never let us get down low enough to end up with empty glasses...just seems like a missed opportunity on your end. And when we switched from martinis to wine, the server took the glasses off the table next to us. For presentation sake, it would make a better impression to bring fresh glasses when they bring the wine out. * Two of us had ordered the Filet and our steaks came out before we even had steak knives to cut them. Actually the only silverware we had were forks, not even our dinner knives to at least start eating while we waited for our steak knives. * The three sides we ordered came out about 10 minutes after we received our meals. * **Only thing done right: We ordered the goat cheese whipped potatoes. The hostess came over to tell us that they were out of them, so they substituted but took the substitute off the bill. One would read these issues and assume that the restaurant was just overly busy and the servers didn't have time to focus on the details. It was a pretty quiet night which makes this experience inexcusable and just terribly disappointing. I'm just relieved that at least our food was delicious...which is why I even gave this restaurant 1 star. While the food was good...what really left a bad taste in my mouth is that I sent this feedback to The Palm (twice) and haven't heard back from them.
(1)Lisa W.
Just tried the Palm on a friends suggestion. Take my suggestion and steer clear of this grand disappointment. We walked in at 9:45 on a Saturday and were immediately seated on the deck. Perhaps the lack of a wait should have been our first clue. When we were seated we were given only the drink menu. Our friendly waiter arrived 10 minutes later and asked if we wanted to order drinks and appetizers. We placed our drink order and pointed out that we didn't have food menus. He said he would return with menus, water and bread. He returned with menus but it took another 15 minutes before we saw water, drinks or bread. We nearly walked out, but stayed for apps and salad. Mediocre at best. Perhaps it was an off night, but for a fine and expensive restaurant I expect better service and attentive oversight.
(1)Adriana T.
Where to start..this place is great and massive!! I have been passing by it many times and I ve been wanting to dine there so last night our friends surprised us and took us there to celebrate our engagement and my fiance's birthday. The food was great nothing to complain about but the service was a little bit off. The lady who took our drink order took it for half the table so people wanted to make a toast but we didn't have the drinks because she NEVER took our drink order. It almost seemed like she was only serving half the table at once LOL but not funny Okay we got them in the end!!! Every time I wanted to order another drink I had to flag her down. Even if she came to the table she would take the order for a few people and leave the rest of us hanging?!?! We were 6 people at the table so I understand we weren't the typical 2 top but come on!!! One other ting I would like to mention..if you order wine the pour is huge so that's definitely a plus!!! I didn't quite like my champagne glass. It was too small but it wasn't the server's fault.. The restaurant is expensive but I would definitely go back if they promise me to not have the same server again. Maybe she just had an off day but when you spend close to $1,000 on diner you want the best don't you?!
(4)Jesse V.
You know those nights when you're very excited for a great meal? Excited to spend whatever it takes to get it? That is what I was thinking at the start of tonight. You know how bad you feel after spending a good amount of cash on a mediocre meal? Especially when you know much better options exist in your city? That's how I felt by the end of my dinner at the Palm. On the positive side, our waiter was a nice dude and the wine was not super marked-up. On the negative side, our steaks were tough (cutting medium-rare strip steaks should not make the table move), we often wondered "where is our waiter," and the sides were Longhorn Steakhouse-level. Example being potatoes au gratin that are mushy enough to be mashed potatoes au gratin. Bottom line. If you're looking for a great steak dinner in Boston head to Grill 23, Flemings, or the Capital Grille. If you're looking to feel silly for dropping $200 on a mediocre meal with meh service, head to the Palm.
(2)Thomas N.
wow what a range of ratings....had lunch there recently and thought it was great....service was great, water always full, drinks were good and as ordered, burger excellent, salmon excellent, and i am not a big salmon fan, but we shares meals and i thoroughly enjoyed it....it is a lovely place and was very busy....so we liked everything about it!!!! It is not inexpensive and you need to order fries with your burger if you want them but if you do you get alot and they were great! they do have an issue with their outside seating and that is it is outside with heaters and plastic curtains and we were very comfortable but the people who sat next to us were not so the plastic was lowered and it became to warm and the newer arrivals moved inside......so that is an issue to be aware of, and if you don't want to struggle with that, eat inside....we thought it was great!!!
(5)Brad S.
Great food, service and atmosphere! Wine selection was fantastic. I highly recommend the donuts for dessert!
(4)Sean H.
On the whole, very disappointing. I chose the Chilean Sea Bass which was barely edible and obviously made from frozen tasteless fish. I shared crabcakes with another - they were ok. The "Monday Night Salad" was supposed to be the beginner item, but wound up being the best thing ordered. I was with a large group - orders were quite varied. Nobody was particularly enthused about the quality and correspondingly the price. Pretty atmosphere, but I would pass on this restaurant. There are better places in Boston.
(2)Greg V.
I loved The Palm. Exceptional service, great food, beautiful ambiance, and valet parking to boot. So why only 3 stars? My friend and I liked it so much we decided to sign up for their rewards card since we knew we'd come come back. The advertisement on the table stated the following: "Get a Free $25 gift card for signing up!". So we took the plunge, handed over our contact information, and were handed our $25 dollar gift cards... And then the bill came... Two charges for $25 a piece mysteriously appears on the bill. Apparently there is a $25 sir charge to signup for the rewards program to receive the "free" $25 dollar gift card! LOL. We were never told that until the bill came. The advertisement should have said the following: "Buy a $25 dollar gift card and we will take it upon us to to hand your contact information over to a marketing firm. Sign up Now!" Just thought it was a total scam and unbecoming of a restaurant of this caliber. I will definitely be back but I really have no choice in the matter since my friend and I paid for two "free" gift certificates. Oh well.
(3)Shannon S.
This was our first time dining at The Palm since it moved to its new location. I like what they did with the place -- the covered outside dining area is beautiful. The inside is just as marvelous with marble(?) columns and the familiar Palm decor adorning the walls. Overall, our dinner was pretty good. My disappointments were these: -my boyfriend's mother and I shared the lobster special (our server said that it was available to those who were in the Palm's club or whatever and said that if we knew about it- then we must be, imagine my surprise when I saw that it was a special offered on the Palm's website AND popped up on the yelp page), but whatever, the issue was that we were told we could either have a caesar or a watermelon feta salad as a starter... however, I had seen on the website that lobster bisque was an option but we were not given this option (did i ask? no, so shame on me but shouldn't she have known?) -my caesar salad was OK. Portion size good, but there wasn't much dressing-- and I PREFER a lightly dressed salad. Boyfriend's mom pretty much said her's had no dressing at all and boyfriend confirmed. Server was notified but our entrees had arrived and we had moved on -lobster, great. Grilled to perfection and was really delicious. -boyfriend's steak was ordered medium and came out VERY medium rare, without question. His dad ordered the steak the same way and it came out medium... the way medium should look. -goat cheese potato side, meh. Tasted like regular mashed potatoes to me. -brussel sprouts side, OK, nothing special -beer selection, poor -key-lime pie, i loved it (a tad sweet but I've been on a sugar detox so it could just be me) Would I go back? Certainly, after all, I gotta check out the outside patio. But I'll be sure to do my homework and speak up if something's not the way it was described.
(3)Michelle B.
I've been here twice so far, once for lunch and once for dinner. Both times I was underwhelmed by the food, although the service was gracious and friendly. When I went for lunch, I went with the salad and soup option. I had lobster bisque with a wedge salad; the lobster bisque was lukewarm at best, with very little lobster meat or flavor, and the wedge was fine and maybe had too many toppings on it. The service was great though - my friends had brought in a coupon for a deal on their steakburgers but didn't realize that it wasn't applicable in Massachusetts. Our waitress was very polite about it and my friends were fine paying the menu price, but then one of the managers came over later and said he was honoring that price for them. It was a nice gesture. I went again for dinner with my husband a few days later, and immediately upon entering felt overwhelmed by the people at the bar. It was perhaps a poor planning choice to have the bar (and it's inevitable overflow) so close to the hostess station. We were seated very quickly thanks to our reservations and were greeted by our waiter whose name was not that which was stitched on his jacket (he was in training and I guess trainees don't get their own jackets?). We were immediately given a bread basket and our drink orders were taken. Now, let's talk about the drinks. They are pricey (some are upwards of $13) and SMALL. I feel like the gin and tonic I get at Morton's is in a bigger glass and slightly better, as well. While they were refilled quickly, I felt that it just wasn't worth the cost. (And trust me: I love my gin and tonics.) For dinner we tried the calamari appetizer, veal parm, crab cakes, and creamed spinach. The calamari was pretty good and I enjoyed the crispy fried peppers served alongside it, but the marinara sauce served alongside was bland. My husband really enjoyed the large serving of veal parm that he received, although it felt slightly deceptive when the waiter came back to our table to ask my husband if he'd like linguine with his veal but didn't mention that it was an additional cost. My crab cakes were good, if a bit creamier than I typically like, and the accompanying chipotle tartar sauce was an interesting addition. The creamed spinach made me sad because it was bland. I will probably give it another shot, simply because I've gone twice within a month of their opening and they will likely work out some of their kinks. Plus, I do enjoy sitting in some nice outdoor seating (which they have) and having some cocktails after work.
(3)Ed B.
Excellent lunch. GREAT service from Michele. Nice fresh salad. Everyone enjoyed their meals: chicken parmesan, crab cake sandwich, steak sandwich, lobster BLT and baked cod special. All looked great and tasted great. Busy in there on a Friday but not crazy.
(4)Paul A.
Same ole same old. Menu never changes. Large portions require splitting or taking home. Large prices include saving up the bank roll. Lovely interior. Wait staff attentive. Ask for Steffanie.
(3)Joe C.
Food is ok. Some things better than others. A bit overpriced for the food quality,. Décor and service and drinks are very good.
(3)Galavanting G.
Went here recently. VERY expensive but great food. ALL our meat was overcooked from what we specified so be specific and best you order it one level under from what you normally order. We were told it's because the chef is new and needs to get used to the ovens. I think it was a BS excuse. Doesn't matter what oven or meat you use, true chefs feel the meat and know when it's done. But I will give them a pass this time. $12.50 for a mixed drink that's rather small size is very expensive but I guess that's the norm in the area. I laughed at the $4 coffee but it was good. Service was EXCELLENT. Everyone top to bottom was very respectable. I really enjoyed this aspect. We were lucky it wasn't too busy so the hostess and manager came over to talk to us. Very nice. Valet parking was only $12. I will definitely return here!
(4)David P.
Waiter was good but peripheral staff was awful. Food was marginal - nothing I would recommend - but had taste. Place is way too big and loud, interior design was off. Carrot cake desert was the highlight. The only steakhouse in Boston where I've seen "get this entree, and we give you a gift card to come back". If you are good enough to begin with, you don't have discount your product to help stabilize future revenue. 2 stars in generous.
(2)Jaime D.
Big open space, but hard to hear people on the other side of the table. I had lobster salad which was good. We had lunch. They forgot dressing on the side for one of my party. I might come back but not for awhile. I'd try something else first.
(3)Will B.
Business lunch. We all ordered salads. The waitstaff was very friendly, but a colleague asked for no croutons - guess what she got? When the salads arrived, the presentation was very good. Unfortunately, looks can be deceiving. While my ahi tuna salad looked delicious indeed - wonton noodles, oranges, greens, almonds and rare tuna with a splash of dressing - the taste did not follow. Great textures with the crunchy wontons and slivered almonds contrasting the tuna and greens, but not a lot of flavor. For $20, I had higher expectations. The interior has the customary caricatures and is well done, but a high ceiling that probably gets noisy at peak periods. The bar looked fun. My experience was a mediocre meal at a high price. Thank goodness for expense accounts.
(3)Sophie W.
I blame a lot of this on the place being newish and still having a bunch of kinks to work out. The steaks we got were meh - slightly cold and the sides also were cold. Lunch service took forever (closing on 2 hours) for a group that ordered steaks; the other time we just had salads and burgers and it was closer to an hour in and out. The Ahi Tuna salad was delicious; the filet trio for lunch not so much. Overall it's a nice place and super convenient for business, but they really need to speed up the service during lunchtime on weekdays -- even for business lunches, 2 hours is pushing it.
(3)Chelsea R.
Dined here last night and everything was delicious!! I had the wedge salad app which was soooo good. I wish I could recreate it at home but it wouldn't do justice! Had frizzled fried onions on top which made for a nice salty crunch. The bread was delicious also- assorted. I ordered the Chilean sea bass which was a generous portion and cooked perfectly. My friends ordered steaks and they were cooked exactly how they had requested. They even accommodated my friend who is gluten and dairy free and cooked her steak without butter. Sides were the French fries (ADDICTING), goat cheese mashed potatoes which were, as expected, fluffy and delicious, and the Brussels sprouts which were very yummy too! The bag of doughnuts for dessert is a MUSTTTT. They are melt in your mouth goodness and the perfect way to end a meal here!
(4)John S.
Absolutely terrible, food, service, cleanliness, all the basic aspects of any restaurant and they totally make a disgrace of each. Not worth the money and definitely not my time. This place doesn't have a chance of surviving.
(1)Samantha B.
I have been going to the Palm restaurant with my family for years now. I love the new location, their patio is one of the best in the city. The food there is always delicious, and since I'm usually with my family I make sure to over order which allows me leftovers for days! My one complaint with the new location is how slippery the floors are - after a few bottles of wine this can be a bit rough, I may start crawling to the bathroom on all fours. I would definitely recommend the Palm, especially once the weathers warms up!
(4)Charles B.
You have to try the... everything! Had some of everything that was on the table - Veal Martini, Filet, Lobster and a Tomahawk steak that was out of this world! Service was wonderful and the Chef came around to make sure we were delighted! I can't believe some of these reviews - we couldn't have had a better experience! I can see bring a large group of customers or just a "date" with my wife. Please is great.
(5)Laser s.
Ate here for the first time the other day, for lunch. The place was packed, so clearly they get a good lunch crowd. Wouldn't you think they would have the service down pat by now? It was unbelievably slow. We had to wait to get menus at our table (they seat you with only the wine list! How does that make sense?!), then had to wait for the server to come over. We studied the wine list and she came back to take our order. Drinks served, wait some more for her to take our lunch order. And THEN we waited for over half an hour for.....drum roll please.....a salad and a sandwich. No bread brought over -- we had to ask, when other around us were getting bread baskets. I don't get it. Off day? If you're going to serve lunch in the financial district, people, you have to step it up. This is not dinner, where people linger. Lunch is no longer a long, leisurely event like it was 30 years ago. The decor is lovely, the food unremarkable, and the service sadly lacking.
(2)Steph C.
A friend of mine invited me to the soft opening of the Palm. The space was architecturally beautiful, the staff was friendly and helpful. The filet mignon I ordered was amazing, it was charred on the outside with a nice pink to red on the inside. The quality of the cut was good as well. I was only a little let down by the side dishes, I felt like they were not of the same quality level. Over all it was a good experience. Props to the bar, they made my martinis excellent all night!
(4)Josaphine B.
Have you ever felt ripped off after dinner? Well, that's exactly how we felt after dinner at the Palm last weekend. We ordered the $99 steak for 2 because the menu was offering a $25 gift card with the purchase. First, the menu touts the steak as a 40 oz. steak big enough for two and our waitress said it looks like its from the Flnstone's, so with the eagerness of a great steak and the allure of a $25 gift card we went for it. The regular ribeye steak is 24 oz. at a cost of $54. When our "Flinstone's" steak arrived the bone must have been 18". I'm serious, 18". The 40 oz steak was all bone! The meat of the steak was no bigger than the $54 regular one. I usually order the 7 oz filet so it wasn't something I was going to make a big deal about and wanted to enjoy the evening with my husband. I have to say I was still hungry after finishing my few bites of meat and a few bites of vegetables (I don't eat starch so no place to turn for filler). How surprised were we when our check came and our waitress announced that they were only offering the $25 gift card in October and we misunderstood because we had not seen the mini, tiny, super small print that stated so. I guess when you print your menus each night it is too difficult to check for current promotion accuracy and its up to your customers to figure out what's currently being offered and what's expired. We were welcome to talk with a manager who I'm certain would have assured us that it was too bad we had misunderstood. We are in walking distance to Ruth's Chris and will never return to the Palm. I wonder, for a rip-off steak and expired promotion is it worth losing a really good, local customer? I guess the Palm thinks so.
(1)Matt G.
My partner and I went to celebrate Valentine's Day. The service was exceptional, the food was not. My partner ordered a veal dish and it was $33. When it arrived, it was 4 medallions smothered in sauce. I ordered the filet medium-$44. When it arrived, it was well done. The sauce I ordered with it was the peppercorn. It was so thin it was like Italian dressing. The bread basket looked like the bread that you would get at Market Basket. Save yourself time and money.
(1)Marvin L.
Lunch with clients. Worst lobster blt I think I had. An embarrassment to serve that thing in Boston. Insult to injury Fries are optional. Other orders looked equally bad, although the steak salad looked ok. Service was also poor. They better figure it out soon or they won't be there long.
(2)J M.
Let me start off by saying one nice thing the staff is wonderful super nice. ....My husband and I love going to different restaurants, some of are favorites Ruth Chris and capital grill but for his birthday I wanted to surprise him so I pick the Palm restaurant. I read reviews on here and open table but I like to make my own judgements. Well probably should have listen to the reviews. Here goes got there early at 630pm the place was empty they sat use right away we ordered drinks and the calamari for an app. When it came out look like the calamari was sitting in oil for days and dry out oil look we ate some it was horrible next I order my entree, I ordered the seasonal feature lobster with filet mignon when it came out the lobster pieces were in a lil bowl and my filet on the plate even the waiter said that was weird. I believe it was suppose to come on my plate with a cream sauce well that was not the case anyway the lobster in the bowl were little balls of lobster I had one they were so over cooked so rubbery very dry over cooked. The filet was horrible of all steak how can u get the filet wrong well it was horrible. My Husband got the new york strip he said it was ok. Well after a horrible meal on to dessert. I love dessert big sweet tooth I ordered the 7 layer chocolate cake gross had no taste nutting to it I took two bites and made no sense to keep eating . The waiter said I will wrap that for u I said ok didn't want to be rude. ( FYI tried to give it to a couple friends they said horrible ended up throwing the cake away) two managers came over during are meals I feel bad to say it was the worst restaurant I have ever ate at. I said nutting but the second manager new by a face I made I just said the lobster was very dry. He took that off the bill. That was nice. But really the filet was the number one issue. All and all great staff ,managers... but food just not good at all .I felt bad wanted to surprise my husband for his birthday taking him some where new and to cheer him up he is a boston firefighter and lost two of his friends in the beacon st fire . Sum it up !!save your money
(1)Sean M.
3.459 stars There is a new King of the Steak House (at least in the Financial District/ Faneuil Hall Hall/Innovation District) and it is the The Palm. It isn't exactly a waterfront location but you can see the water if you try. The bar is small and at one end your back is exposed to the front door. They could have done better with situating the bar. The indoor seating is spacious and the booths are very cozy. The outdoor seating does not present the best view but you are sheltered by the awning but open to car traffic. The menu is what you would expect from an upscale a la carte Steak House offering with classic sides like cream spinach. They do provide a more affordable lunch menu with appropriate portions. I stick to the meat and I mean the steaks, the au poivre sauce is better than most Boston Steak Houses. They offer the Oscar treatment but i have not tried it. The burgers are thick and juicy nothing too fancy. Hint: burger could be the best a value on the menu. You might need a doggy bag. The "by the glass" wine menu is lacking but the bottle service has some values. * they do have seafood and a red sauce Italian menu, get a steak. * The service is quite good, have not had any issues. * It's pricey but not excessive for an upscale SH, a better value than others... * good choice for work lunch, company functions, private dinning. * parking, street on weekends but better off with a pay lot.
(4)Della G.
We had a reservation last night for 7:15, walked in to the impressive entrance to then see guys wearing tank tops and cut-offs drinking at the bar. Our server was quite clueless, nice but just not qualified: kept trying to pour our wine after we had told her we wanted to handle it ourselves (letting it breath in the decanter), never re-filled water glasses after the initial fill, told us at the end of our meals "the kitchen closed at 9:00 but I might be able to get you desserts" (we hadn't even gotten to the point of discussing dessert). We were pretty easy going with it all and were having a laid back Father's Day. Food was just OK, shrimp cocktail, Ahi tuna, brussels sprouts, spinach and mashed potatoes were all good, the steaks were the best part. The embarrassment was the Monday Night Salad, mushed onto your plate and yes, finely chopped so much you could eat it with a spoon, not much substance or flavor and limited anchovy. The general atmosphere is wonderful, they did a great job with the space, however it seemed like the lights were a bit bright where we were sitting (upper banquets). We spent just over $500.00 for 4 of us (not including tip), champagne, wine, appetizers, steaks, and sides. This needed to be a real upscale steakhouse! We will not be going back.
(1)Omi H.
Me and one of my girlfriends ended up at Palm 2 Friday nights ago, because we had a bad experience at Smith & Wollensky down the street. So we were already annoyed and hoping this place would be much better. I've been to Palm before for drinks, as I work in the same building, but this was the first time actually having food. We were seated outside on a chilly night, but it felt really nice because the heaters were on. Our waiter gave us a drink menu and then left because he got busy, so the manager stopped by and handed us menus and asked if we had any questions. We told him that we just left S&W because we thought the waitress was rude and he thanked us for coming there. He recommended a certain bottle of wine, which we took his suggestion and it was great. It wasn't that expensive, especially since my friend recently quit her job to go back to school, so it was perfect. Half way through dinner, the heaters outside were turned off and it got very chilly very fast. At this point, my boyfriend was about to join us, and I wanted to put his steak order in before he actually arrived, but our waiter was again too busy and asked if we could give him a minute, which he disappeared for about 10-15 minutes, at this point, my boyfriend had already arrived. I then told our waiter that it was chilly and he said "excuse me? Did you just ask how I was doing?" My friend and I laughed and said no, we said we were cold, but sure, how are you? He then asked if we wanted the truth or if we wanted him to lie to us. We said we wanted the truth, which he proceeded to tell us that his feet hurt and he couldn't wait to go home etc (I thought to myself, lie to us, lie to us haha). The entire night, the best service we got was the 5 minutes we had with the manager; wish he could have served us all night long. Overall, the food was just ok. We ordered calamari, 4 side dishes: potato au gratin, some potato hash, mushrooms and brussel sprouts. The only one that tasted good was the brussel sprouts, but they were a tiny bit too salty. All the other sides were missing some type of spice, or just missing something. We had assumed it was later in the night and maybe the food was being rushed, we are not actually sure. I think the wine they serve is really good, but the food isn't that great. Service wasn't that great either, but the time spent with management was really good.
(3)Michele C.
This place was the biggest disappointment. I ordered surf and turf and what a joke. Spent almost $100 for the meal and the steak was cold and the lobster was suppose to be a half of a 3 lb lobster and in reality it was barely a 1 1/2 half lobster. I know the Palm is originally from NY but you can not fool a Bostonian with lobster. This meal was the biggest rip off. E Also we sat down at 7:00 and we were done before 8:00 because all the food was brought out in a few minutes after ordering it. There are too many other great steakhouses in Boston to waste your good hard earned money here. Stay far away
(1)Jim M.
Went here for dinner Saturday and it was a disaster. Service was awful, food was sub-par to not edible, and everything felt like it was bush league. Manager took a bunch of stuff off the bill, which was nice, but for a chef to not know how to cook a steak at The Palm to begin with is heresy.
(2)Cole D.
We went here for a friends birthday dinner last evening and I will not be doing that again. I'm surprised, as the scenery is beautiful but the overall experience was not. Our waitress was very nice, but not very knowledgeable on the menu and not very personable. We ordered a few oysters to start, but never received them. When our meal came we kindly reminded her and ended up getting a half order instead. The food is good, but not worth the money. Everything is very expensive and our sides were cold. We ordered the asparagus to have a veggie, and they came out fried, which was never noted on the menu. There was also one member in our group who ordered veal, and another who ordered chicken, which they mixed up and served the veal as the chicken. Luckily, she didn't have an adversity to veal, which many people do, so we did not make a big stink about it. They did comp us, but it was for the chicken and less expensive meal. Overall, for the experience and price, I had higher expectations. I can get a better meal at surrounding area restaurants, I'd skip this and go to one of them.
(2)Larry G.
New location horrible from management to wait staff and food. Went in first time as a guest of 837 club. Waitress denied us the discount and brought the wrong steak. Manager was going to discount next meal but seems to have forgotten. Next time we went there were a bunch of drunks behind us 6 hours after a Bruins game loud and obnoxious. Seems this behavior is something they condone. Too bad the old location food and service and management was great. Won't be going back!!
(1)D A.
Went for a business lunch the other day. The food was delicious. The waitress was very rude.
(3)Elizabeth G.
Great location, surprisingly comfortable place and a very good cocktail but the food was terrible. Terrible. Buy a piece of meat on sale at Shaw's and throw it under your broiler and it will be better than this 40-something$$$ thing they throw on your plate
(1)Wendy V.
Exceptional service EXCEPT for the rude hostess! There is nothing more annoying than getting all dressed up for a beautiful enjoyable dinner date, and then arriving at the restaurant to be treated like a second class citizen. This is what happened at the Palm. The hostess was RUDE and should NOT be in that role. We showed up for our 6:45pm dinner reservation and was told to wait. She then ignored us while she seated 2 parties ahead of us. My husband and I then got upset and demanded an explanation. Her response was that she "didn't mean to" seat folks ahead of us. This was quite upsetting to the point where it was hard to focus on having a good evening. There should be no excuse for treating customers as if they shouldn't be at the Palm. Boston has a lot of restaurant options, and the staff should know that (1) customers CHOOSE to dine at the Palm, ad (2) when they show up at the Palm, they EXPECT an exceptional fine dining experience. The evening was salvaged by the managers who were quite accommodating. They insisted on not charging us for our meal. While this was very nice of them (and we appreciate this), we felt insulted to some extent. We are NOT there for a free meal and insisted on paying our tab. What would've been better is an apology directly from the hostess. nevertheless, our server (Stephanie) was exceptional. She was warm and quite efficient. The food was good and the ambiance was awesome.
(2)Roberta H.
I love trying new restaurants so when "The Palm" opened up in Boston I made plans to go. The atmosphere was unique with very high ceilings and an open, eclectic feeling. Clientele very professional. Cesar salad was crisp and fresh (dressing had a definite anchovy flavor - a bit too strong for me), the bread basket was wonderful with a raisin cranberry hearty bread and french to pick from, and the NY strip sirloin flavorful and tender. As an aside if you like Cosmopolitans the one I had at the Palm was the best I've had in a while. You couldn't really taste all the alcohol ?? but it certainly packed a punch! Bar tenders very laid back , auxiliary waiters still learning the ropes. Overall the experience was great!
(5)Neil R.
The one star is for decor. The food was horrible. Steak had so much gristle it was unedible. The four lb lobster must have gone on a diet. Del Frisco and Morton's so much better. If it was not the location this would be a no star.
(1)Emma T.
I was just here over the weekend with a few friends for drinks and apps and it was great. We got a table right outside, which was fabulous. It was a beautiful day and a prime spot for people watching. The apps were good and during happy hour select choices were under $6! I think the only thing that would've made this place even better is if there was a bar outside. It was a good time, but definitely not cheap and it felt a little too fancy for a fun night out. I would definitely recommend this place for a night date night...however if you want a lively night out with friends maybe try another place.
(3)Nola K.
Ok, I know they just reopened in this beautiful location, so of course there is going to be a few kinks. There is a parking garage next door offering $9 parking so we parked there. (NOTE: there are no signs in the garage stating that if you're paying cash you need to pay upstairs). When I walked into the Palm the décor is stunning with the caricature art and the marble columns. The bar is way too small and creates a clusterf@ck for people trying to order drinks and more importantly for waitstaff to get by to the patio with food. The patio had their heating lamps on and it was roasting hot out there. We had a reservation for 8:00 but didn't get to our table til about 8:30, which was pretty cool with us because we got a chance to check out the wall art and discuss what we'd do differently to design the layout if it was our restaurant. I ordered the Strawberry Mint Margarita which was served in too small of a glass. It was DELICIOUS! We ordered the shrimp cocktail to start. Delicious! The cocktail sauce was slightly over spicy (I wish I tasted it before I added a little horseradish), but the shrimp were enormous! My husband and I both ordered the 14oz filet mignons because we are absolute gluttons lol. He got peppercorn sauce and I got the chimichurri. If it weren't for the sauces the beef had no flavor. The chimichurri sauce on the steak frites at the Littlest Bar around the corner has more robust flavor. For sides we got the au gratin potatoes (boringgg) and the tasteless brussel sprouts. Our waiter Stephani was incredibly nice and accommodating. While we were sitting at our table somebody decided to adjust the lighting and turned the lights completely out but it was pretty hilarious and everyone just laughed. About 20 minutes later, someone messed with the lights again and turned the lights to sunbed bright, and then it was like WTF are they doing... Then there's the parking garage debacle...we pull up to one of the 2 exits and my husband gets out to pay only to be told that they only accept credit card payments at the gate. If we want to pay cash we need to go back up and pay in the lobby. Meanwhile 5 cars were behind us and the attendant came out and told the cars to back up because "this man is refusing to pay" even with my husband standing there with exactly $9 in cash in his hand. I'm not entirely sure I'll be back. Well, maybe if I don't park in the garage. But I did love the Strawberry Mint Margarita. Next time I'll ask for a double to make it a normal size drink.
(2)Fernando F.
It's The Palm. It's awesome. Get the pastrami sandwich for lunch. You will not regret.
(4)Greg C.
The Palm is a wannabe steakhouse. Cap Grille, Del's, Abe's, Morton's all blow it out of the water. Superior quality meat, actually cooked the way you order, and much better service. My friends and I were pumped for the Palm but after ten of us going out and spending close to $1300, we will not be returning. Wait staff acted annoyed at our requests and they screwed up every single one of our cooking requests. Medium rare requests were served well done and well done requests were served cold and purple in the center.
(1)Rhea B.
Had lunch there today. They opened just two weeks ago so the service was a bit wonky, but that's OK. The atmosphere more than made up for it! I will be back.
(4)David R.
The Palm reopened its doors today in its stunning new quarters. It is the handsomest venue in Boston; the pillars are pretentious, but the room is otherwise lovely,the tables are far apart, noise levels allow conversation, the service is excellent, and the food is as good as anywhere else in town. The prices are outrageous, but this is for plutocrats and special occasions. For a birthday, I'd rather have one meal here than two almost anywhere else. It is so different from the cramped quarters at Abe & Louie's, where whether you like it or not, you can't help hearing every stupid thing the people at the next table are saying.
(5)J D.
My wife and I stopped into the Palm on their opening night and were very happy with our experience there. Having arrived early, we were able to get a seat at the bar and were waited on by several different servers who were friendly and efficient. The restaurant has a covered outdoor patio for those wishing to dine outside, but they also have a number of very comfortable looking booths inside that are not spaced too close together. Since the restaurant was built into the first floor of International Place, which has very high ceilings, the entire restaurant has a very open and airy feel about it with plenty of light and views for those interested in people watching (or being watched). Since we had a late lunch, we opted just to have drinks, appetizers and dessert rather than a full dinner, but we enjoyed everything we ate (and drank). The Palm is a very nice addition to the neighborhood and is certainly no more expensive than other high end steakhouses. On the parking issue - those of us who live in the neighborhood know that you can enter the garage, take a ticket and then pay for your parking upstairs across from the elevator at one of two machines when you are going back to your car to leave. Or, you can use your credit card to gain access into the garage (don't take a ticket) and use that same credit card to open the gate when you leave the garage. The parking fee will be billed directly to your card. I am also told that the Palm will soon have valet parking.
(5)John W.
Ehh. The server was pretty great and friendly. She definitely made our group feel welcome. Drinks were pretty good and the wine selection very decent. The appetizers were ok. Nothing spectacular. We had the Calamari, carpaccio (very good), bacon wrapped scallops (amazing sans the balsamic reduction) and oysters (it's Boston, they're good). I wish they would of provided more condiments for the oysters than just cocktail and horseradish. None the less, delicious. I split a rib eye, medium rare. It was ok but under seasoned. I actually added salt and pepper to the steak...crazy?!? Fried asparagus was delicious, veal parm looked good, and the lobster (table split 4lb) was ok. It's hard to cook a lobster that big and ensure it's not tough. Desserts were probably most disappointing. We shared doughnuts, carrot cake and creme brûlée. Get the carrot cake, it was the only dessert we enjoyed. The doughnuts were over cooked and resembled hush puppies. Seems like the recipe was off, too much baking soda! Brûlée was tasteless. I wanted to love this meal as it was my first trip to the Palm. Eh. I may try it in another city.
(3)Liana K.
the word grand comes to mind for the Palm. The columns, the chandeliers, and all that blinging jazz. I got he Gigi salad and that was way better and filling then i expected. Ordered the tuna dish (medium rare), came to me so well done, it was barely chewable. I had a few other small complaints (like the lack of water, even if ordered sparkling). The waitstaff were friendly and nice enough. So end in end, i just found my main course a disappointment. Might return for drinks and the salad again, but will probably pass on the fish entrees. Then again, this place is known for their steak, so maybe i should have ordered that.
(2)Yelena W.
The Palm is a beautiful location, columns, high ceilings, beautiful chandeliers, big windows. We went on Thursday night and had a window table We had to wait for 20 minutes for our Martinis to be delivered because our server was busy with a big party.Martinis were expensive, $14 each. We ordered the Veal Martini entree and it was splitted for us in the kitchen. The food was tasty but the portion was small and we got more mushrooms on our plates than veal. The service was OK. The prices were much higher than the value that was delivered.
(3)John I.
A busy steakhouse in Boston, the Palm delivers just OK food at high price points. Service was good, but the filet mignon was nothing special. The mashed potatoes were dense and had that buttery flavour. The lobster bisque was somewhat salty, but not awful. Not sure if this is the best steakhouse in Boston, but I would try a few others before selecting the Palm. Enjoy!
(2)Katie C.
I came here for a book signing event, but since I got there early, I decided to pop in for lunch. It's clear to see that The Palm really invests its energy and resources into appeasing the business 9-5 crowd. It makes sense considering their location and the fact that their stretch of Atlantic Avenue is definitely a 9-5 crowd. Anyway. I got in around 1:00 and the place was hopping. Fortunately I found a spot at the bar with no problem. The hosts at the front were a little condescending since I definitely wasn't dressed as if I was going out to work. Regardless, I got seated at the bar and ordered the biggest glass of wine I could get as quickly as possible. I ordered the steak chopped salad. I asked for the steak to be cooked rare, and it was definitely more medium-rare than rare. However, it wasn't a dealbreaker for me and I could handle it. The steak was a little rough and more fatty than I would have liked. It cut soft and I could use a butterknife. So not terrible. The dressing was definitely more oil than garlic, but it was good and it complemented the salad. As the business crowd died down, the bartender and I shot the breeze while I finished off my second glass of wine. He said I could hang out there until the book signing started. Sweet! So as the book signing started, the staff made the process of getting seated really easy. There were no hiccups with getting receipts or lost reservations; everything was pre-processed and ready to go. We were seated and the staff began passing around appetizers. The only problem were people getting up and down to get drinks from the bar. But overall, it was a smooth process. The author, Andy Cohen, showed up on time, entertained us, and then we all lined up to receive our books and photos. How cool. The staff were definitely running on a tight timeline so we did feel a little hustled. Our favorite bartender kept the drinks coming. I'd be willing to come back and either have lunch with friends or an early dinner. As we were leaving at 6:30 on a Friday night, there was practically NO ONE in the dining room. For a reputable steakhouse like the Palm, it was rather sad.
(3)YC L.
Personally, I love the food there and their Power Lunch is perfect in terms of size and price. There's a salad as a starter, main course with a side and a dessert. I got their fish of the day and it was delicious. One thing that I have to say tho is that it takes too long to serve.... It was almost a two hours lunch. Not ideal for a lunch break meal
(4)Todd S.
Very enjoyable dining experience.. The Chilean Sea Bass is to die for!! Amazingly done! And the sides are great too!!
(5)Jason P.
I was in town for a conference recently which happened to overlap my birthday. My friends were planning on dining with me at The Palm to celebrate, but were unable to make it. However, they strongly recommended this place, so I dined here. My waiter (Leonardo?) was very attentive, courteous, and highly knowledgeable. Simply put, he was a professional. The oysters and lobster were amongst the freshest I've had. The 14oz filet was a touch dry on the ends, but ended up being quite tender toward the center (I would have given a 5th star if they aced the steak). The creamed spinach, though, was excellent. Yes, they also gave me a slice of birthday cake. It was chocolate, tasty, and HUGE. The caveat to my review is that the dinner was a gift to me, though I remember the prices. Still, if I wanted to treat a friend to a special dinner and had some money to burn, I would consider choosing a place like this one. Too bad Hawaii doesn't have a Palm.
(4)richard m.
I have been to Palm restaurants all over the U.S. and love the service and meals. We went there on a Saturday night and were immediately seated at our table. Our drinks and appetizers were served in rapid order followed by our main courses. The filets were tender snd the half n half was amazing. Our waiter was very attentive without being overbearing. I have no idea why so many negative reviews but whenever I want a great steak the Palm is my first choice.
(5)Diana Z.
Food was decent. My friend ordered a rare steak and it was very over cooked. Server took it back to kitchen after trying to convince her it was "just the lighting" he then came back with the steak and forced her to get out of her seat and come back to the kitchen so the chef could speak with her because "it was just the lighting" she refused to get up as she was very embarrassed and ended up just eating the over cooked steak that the server/chef refused to re-make. Poor service and the food wasn't even that good.
(2)H. David H.
The Palm is a beautiful location, columns, high ceilings. Menu favors steak . The filet minion was ok but a small serving size. The veal with mushrooms was mostly mushrooms. Crab Cakes as entree was great. The Chicken Parm was recommended by local food critic, surprised it did not include pasta. The service was OK although not especially friendly. The prices were much higher than the value that was delivered.
(2)Joe J.
The space is gorgeous, but it was empty last night and that should have been a sign to look elsewhere. Service was slow. Shrimp Cocktail was $20 and came with an astonishing FOUR shrimp, which were not even that large. Caesar salad was OK, but the thing that really got to me was the Chicken Parm. Yes, it was good. The waitress asked me what I wanted for my side, linguini or penne, and I stated linguini. When we got the bill, we realized that it cost $12 extra for the side of linguini. This is deception 101 here. You can't ask what you want for a side without stating its an additional cost. Secondly, what the F kind of place serves chicken parm without a pasta side, especially when it is over $30??? I just don't get it.
(2)Mr. And Mrs. R.
When choosing one of the hundreds of Boston restaurants to spend $200+ at on a Saturday night, the hope is that the money will be well spent. We know we are going to spend a good chunk of cash on a steak dinner, but it is very disappointing when the establishment under delivers. That is what happened this past Saturday night at the Palm Restaurant. The room is impressive and beautiful. We got a great window table, and the experience started off fine. Server was friendly and greeted us promptly. The bread was delivered quickly and was delicious, especially the cran bread. We ordered a bottle of white wine, and it too was excellent, but we weren't supplied with an ice bucket, which was odd for an expensive bottle. No biggie, we were thirsty and drank a little faster, especially with the crab cocktail appetizer, which was really good and plentiful, even at $24. Then the lull arrived. Wine was gone, appetizer finished, bread basket only held crumbs, and our server was nowhere to be found. A solid 25 minutes went by without seeing him near our table, instead he was focused on the rest of his section, and clearly he was overworked and swamped. He finally came over to our table, at which time we ordered another bottle of wine, salads, and our entrees all at once - in case we didn't see him again. Another ten minutes goes by (our glasses still empty) and he finally returns to tell us they ran out of the wine we ordered. We instead ordered two glasses of another brand. Another 15 minutes goes by....no wine, and still no salads. Finally he frantically comes back to the table with the 2 wine glasses, and apologizes because they "poured the red kind instead." 5 minutes later our entrees arrived. Yeah, no salads first. He forgot them. Awesome. We refused them at that point, and just went into the meal, which was average at best. The $49 filet was drastically undercooked, and the chicken parm (secret family recipe from like 1926 -whatever) was nothing special. Oh, and a side of pasta wasn't included - it was $10.50 extra!! For penne! The best part of the meal was the potatoes au gratin. The manager came over for a routine table check expecting us to say everything was fine, but we told him it was actually pretty terrible. He comped the two glasses of wine, and must have told the server to offer us free coffee and dessert. Thanks, what a sport. Needless to say, we won't be spending $250 at the Palm again.
(2)Matt W.
Not a great experience. The waitress was wonderful, but we waited (twice) at least 15 minutes for drinks. We were told the bartender was "alone" at the bar. The food also wasn't great. Our chicken Parm dish could have been warmer. All in all, probably won't return.
(2)Andrew A.
Highly unrecommended - 30 minutes for a Manhattan, really? Supposed "aged" steak was full of fat and grizzle, it was tasty but I've had better at Outback for half the price. We asked for Menu's at which point they only gave us two for a table of four. I had to dress down the waiter to at least get competent service. A sad excuse for a restaurant. The apps were so so but not amazing. Avoid.
(1)Marina B.
Been coming to the Boston location(s) for 15 years plus other locations when I travel. This place has gone downhill in so many ways. Portions are smaller and prices went up. Really disappointed to the point where I will never come back.
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