This review is directed to their catering service but, of course, that will include a review of their tasty tasty food. For a work holiday party, we hired Aviary to handle our lunch. Aviary provided a salad, main, and dessert course for our party; and I must say I could not have been any more pleased than I was with the execution of the courses. Some people weren't wowed by the salad (leafy greens, pear, goat cheese, a lemon vinaigrette if I remember correctly), but I thought it was outstanding.
Then the food from the main courses alone was deserving of 5 stars. I know that my co-workers enjoyed the beef and fish dishes, and let me just say that the vegetarian option (I'm a sucker for ratatouille and will choose it as an option almost very time) of Ratatouille over creamy polenta dressed with goat cheese and arugula was simply devine. I wanted to hug the chef, but I didn't want to freak out my co-workers...well more than I may have already done with my charming personality.
As for our dessert crepes, they were very good as well, although mine was undercooked. No matter, as I actually like them that way. At least one co-worker, however, asked me if the crepe was supposed to be so undercooked, so it wasn't simply mine.
If the review was based on the food alone, I'd consider giving it 5 stars, although I'm normally a give-four-stars-on-first-visit-and-bump-up-upon-Ârevisit kind of gal. The ratatouille and polenta was really that fantastic. Because of a few issues with the actual business of facilitating the catering and the menu, I'm giving Aviary 4 stars. Don't get me wrong, Aviary was great to do business with (4 star Yelp worthy), and I would recommend them to anyone else looking for a great catering experience.
I look forward to visiting Aviary, so that I can hopefully bump up my review soon.
Every time I go here, I have to keep telling myself it's the "CRAPE-ery" not the "CREEP-ery." (And it's "AviaN flu" not "AviaRY flu.")
Joking aside, if you've never been here, you have to try it.
For the moment, just forget the food: this is the most charming little restaurant I've ever been in. Â It's a neat corner lot anyway -- I remember its previous tenants, a small trendy clothing store, was fun to shop in -- but my gosh, every little detail is completely adorable. Â Not adorable in the sense that "my husband wouldn't be caught dead in here", but adorable in the sense, "I'd seriously pay you to come over and decorate my house."
As you might infer from the name, birds are a common theme here. Â But it's also French-themed. Â There are a few French-specific items on the menu, and I didn't feel like bothering our server to figure out what all the things were that I didn't recognize. Â The menu isn't overwhelming, just two pages, but because this type of food isn't common in Springfield, it may take you a few minutes just to decide what you want! Â Shoot, it could take you a while to convince yourself to have a "dessert" crepe for a meal. Â That's perfectly acceptable -- go with your instincts!
My favorite "French" aspect were the checks -- I've never been so tickled to get my check, ever -- they were brought out in little children's book! Â Mine was "Hansel et Gretel," all the pages in French.
The creeps -- wait, CREPES -- are interesting. Â They're very good, though it took me a couple visits to decide I officially liked them. Â I tried the salmon one months ago, and couldn't get over the texture of the pastry with the flavor of lunch. Â That visit, I did have a bite of a coworker's dessert crepe -- something with fruit and whipped cream, if I remember right -- and realized that was where it's at. Â My last visit, I tried a breakfast crepe with bacon, egg, and cheese, and I really enjoyed it. I even dipped some of the dough in maple syrup and pretended that was my dessert. MMM!
Our server was very on top of things, and I could tell they fit in perfectly -- they contributed to the overall sophisticated charm of the Aviary.
Beware if you have a large group -- I don't know if they take reservations, but I don't believe there are many large tables (5+ guests).
This place probably won't please a really picky eater. Â But I think everyone needs to try it at least once, and if you have any fears, just stick with a sweet dessert crepe -- you can't go wrong with that!
Pretty good. The entree crepes I've had always seem to be lacking a little something (maybe just seasoning), but the dessert crepes are delicious. Fries are really good. I do wish I could get the lunch menu with paninis on the weekends as that's the only time I can make it there for lunch.
I also think it would be so much more awesome if they'd do a weekend brunch. I've heard the breakfast menu is great but they stop serving it at 11 a.m. on Sundays. There are no good brunch places in Springfield (tons of breakfast places but they don't serve alcohol) so it seems like something they're missing out by switching to the standard menu that early in the day.
I really do like this place for the most part. Brunch is delicious, pomme frites are to die for, great coffee and generally great service. I've had some pretty bland crepes before here but those were few and far between. I've had some pretty bad lunch experiences here, both of which I ordered some kind of cheesy panini and BOTH times they forgot the cheese .HOW DOES THAT HAPPEN? The first time the waiter remedied it immediately and was extremely apologetic, he was great and not to mention cute, so that helped. The second occasion some bleached hair boy band wannabe waiter just stared at me and didn't offer to fix it or anything, it was a grilled ham and cheese panini, with no effing cheese. I didnt have time to wait for another 20 minutes for them to make another one (which wasnt even offered to me from said waiter) and I also just hate to send anything back to the kitchen, its really not my style. But no cheese, cmon, I don't understand how that happens. Nothing was comped for that and if I handnt sought out the manager nothing would have happened, he offered me a free lunch meal for the future but I havent been back for lunch since. I appreciated that he did that though, it makes all the difference.
Anyway, most of my experiences here have been mostly delicious and it really is a unique place, one of my favorites in springfield. I would just recommend for brunch or dinner, there may be something amiss with the lunch staff/chefs...
We had a lot of fun at the Aviary.
Good food that's different, for a change. French. It's a little more expensive than the cheap options, but you don't expect prices to be rock bottom here.
The restaurant has a French motif with lots of birds, and a book you can write in. Recommended for a fun outing.
Stopped here while in Springfield visiting family! This place was recommended to me by a friend who used to live in Springfield and I'm SO glad we stopped by! I literally don't think this place could get any cuter! Loved the cute touch of them bring the bill in a French book! To me, the atmostphere makes or breaks my experience.
Before coming to the Aviary, I had read some reviews saying the place was fancy and I was worried about being dressed to casually in jeans but it was totally fine for a Friday lunch. Maybe it's different at night but I wouldn't think one would need to dress up to dine here!
The food was really good too! I totally blame this place for fueling my growing addiction to crepes!
Its sad, every Time I come home I am always surprised to see how cheap food is. Even good food. This is coming from a Los Angelino.
Perfect date night spot, and one that I will always frequent when I venture back to the homeland.
Also, the chef is a graduate of the Victory Trade School, and incredible organization that trains people in recovery and who need a 2nd chance. knowing his success story is worth patroning alone.
What a find in Springfield. This delicious little cafe has terrific food. Lunch is served from 11-3 and almost everything on the lunch menu is around $7.
We started out with the pomme frites. These hand cut delicious fried potatoes were outstanding and the garlic aoili just made them even better. I ordered the chicken salad panini which came with a side salad. The fresh sour dough bread on the panini just put this sandwich over the top and the side salad was the perfect size and had a wonderful balsamic dressing. and then onto the berry crepe with vanilla creme.
To say the least, nothing was left on our plates by the end of the meal and I walked away wanting to come back for dinner.
I would highly recommend this place to anyone!
We were disappointed by our merely average lunch today. Â After reading the reviews we were excited about the possibility of finding interesting food in Springfield (not always easy). Â The decor was funky and fun and the service was excellent, but we come for the food. Â Our Manhattan clam chowder was lackluster and the chef should have been embarrassed about the paltry amount of veggies in the veggie panini. Â I don't think we've ever been served such a puny sandwich. Â French fries were the only highlight - pretty good. Â We opted for dessert elsewhere.
Review Source:Great concept, good menu, good decor, food was awesome. Really good. Server was decent till I asked if they had a dinner service. She got some attitude and was sarcastic about me not knowing. That was the last contact I had with an employee Ai it honestly kinda put a negative spin on the whole meal. I hate it when there is something that small that messes up hte whole thing...
Review Source:I can never decide whether to get a savory crepe or a dessert crepe. Â Every time, I have been more than happy with whatever I order, and if I end up getting both savory AND dessert, I usually feel that the money is justified by the deliciousness.
My favorite thing about the place is that it's one of the few restaurants in Springfield where it is possible to eat a meal that primarily consists of perfectly cooked and seasoned VEGETABLES, rather than being loaded with fat and sauce and grease.
Yum! Went here after reading Yelp reviews and trying to find a good restaurant to lunch at in Springfield. Â It was great. Â Quirky and fun, this place is all about the details. Â Make sure to write in the guest book. Â The pomme frites were soft, yet crunchy- perfect! Â All three paninis my group ordered were great- my favorite being the BLTC. Â The bacon was thick and flavorful, the veggies were crisp, and the bread was hot and crunchy and perfect. Â Make sure to order dessert! The peaches and cream crepe is creamy, sweet, hot, and very vanilla-y. I wanted to lick the plate.
Review Source:So I haven't actually been to the main location, however with the invention of food trucks why would you when they come to you.
The first taste of their culinary delights was a pilfered fry from a friend, I was sold. Alas you say how could a fry sell me and where do I get a phrase like "culinary delights" by eating a fry... It's tossed in white truffle oil.
My second introduction was today, a massive Italian panini with roasted garlic aioli, and you guessed it white truffle fries.
As a side note I have a friend that says, "why the hell would you ever eat mushrooms they are not even a food group. Damn fungi!"
Sir I say to you I hope you enjoyed the fry you pilfered from me today cause the oil that it's tossed in is basically mushroom oil! Muah ha ha!
PS please don't tell him that most truffle oils are synthetic.
I don't know anything about Springfield so maybe this is one of the best places around, but I wasn't that impressed by it.
My bloody mary was pretty good and very peppery, and I also enjoyed my french onion soup. Unfortunately, my crepe was rather bland. I got the Venetian Garden which was supposedly stuffed with a myriad of vegetables and ricotta cheese and served with sour cream. The crepe was HUGE (twice the size of any crepe I have ever had in my life) and had tons of vegetables inside, as promised. However, there was almost no ricotta cheese at all, making the crepe extremely dry. It also could have used a savory sauce of some sort, like a bechamel, to add moistness and flavor--the sour cream just didn't vibe well with this crepe (and I was only given a miniature dollop of it, anyway).
Cute place (actually, a little too cute) and great service, but my food just didn't live up to expectations. I'd say it's "A-OK," and if I were in this city again, I might hit it up again to try the dessert crepes instead.
Wonderful restaurant! The decor is great, the food is fresh and their selection is huge! I have been twice now, have had two different crepes and have been with friends having crepes, salads, and paninis. Everything here is delicious and the staff is very friendly. (They checked on us a little too often for my taste, but won't complain about that!)
Great addition to Springfield dining.
YUM! Â We are in Springfield for a wedding and turned to yelp to find a place for brunch. Â This was a FANTASTIC choice! Â I had the shrimp and grits crepe and my husband had the "is it breakfast" crepe. Â Both were delish! Â The bloody mary had the perfect amount of spice and flavor. Â To top the meal off we split the limoncello crepe - melt in your mouth fabulous. Â We will come back to Springfield just to eat here again. Â Don't miss this charming place - good service and food - OH, and they serve illy's coffee!!
Review Source:This is where you want to eat breakfast. I am a giant fan of breakfast, but breakfast is the easiest meal for a chef to do well - but the Aviary takes it to the next level. We walked in and were charmed by the decor immediately. We sat ourselves, and when the waitress came, I asked her if we were supposed to - "No, but it's chill" was her answer, and we felt right at home. I ordered from the savory crepe menu, as did my brother, and we both were very impressed by the meal. The crepes were light and tasty, and really complimented the eggs, pancetta, and cheese that were inside it. The fruit included on the plate was fresh and tasty, and overall it was a great meal. My only nitpick is that there wasn't quite enough sour cream on the plate to get some on every bite of my crepe, but I count that among the first world problems I have to deal with.
I wish there was an Aviary in Dallas, because I would be there every Sunday. We went in about 8:30 am and were able to get a seat immediately. By the time we left, there was a little wait to be seated.
They put a bird on it! Â Aviary, in the old Marquette Hotel (listed in the U.S. National Register of Historic Buildings) in downtown Springfield, MO., is everything for your eyes and taste buds to enjoy! My fella and I split the Crepes Benedict, grits and a fruit cup. It was incredibly yummy and you could learn to like grits if you didn't already, they were that good.
So many wonderful things to view while eating and you can leave a love note in a little pouch on the wall labeled, Love Letters. I can only comment on the brunch, but I find it hard to imagine the rest of the menu isn't as delicious.
My newest culinary crush! Â I moved back to Springfield (which is home to me) from Columbia, Mo where I learned to love brunching with my family at a place called Sophia's. Since moving back I just haven't found anything that compares...until now.
Aviary satiates all of my senses. The breakfast crepes are delicious, dinner is fabulous and the dessert is probably what they will become known for. The ambience is probably my favorite part though, you just cannot find another place like it in town. Every last detail has been so well thought out and executed. I think one of the things I like best is that the owners have other jobs and this is their hobby, their passion, you can tell they have so much pride and have put so many personal touches into this little gem of an eating establishment.
My experiences have not all been perfect but that adds to the character. You must check it out!
Definitely one of my favorite places to eat when I visit Springfield.
Whenever I make spontaneous happy food noises, it's something special and I was making plenty here each time I've come here.
The french onion soup is delicious.
The one thing I totally don't get and completely disagree with is that they put iceberg lettuce on the panninis, at least the two panninis I've tried. The iceberg really brings down both sandwiches and almost brought down my review to 4 stars. The "Is It Morning?" crepe was DELICIOUS.
And the Bananas Foster crepe caused a chorus of more Happy food noises to end the meal.
Met a friend on a Friday for a late lunch at the Aviary.
I ordered a veggie appetizer. It was delicious and filling. Followed that with a pumpkin dessert. It was a plate of 3 ample crepes topped with powdered sugar or whipped cream or something pretty. Yum!
Had coffee with a glass of water and no ice. The server kept both full.
Hope to take my whole family, just for crepes, on a Saturday afternoon.
The decor includes some pieces of furniture that look like antiques but may be reproductions. Painted in a vintage white hue. More like Galloway Village than Eureka Springs.
Took a friend of mine here for her birthday. Â Another friend tagged along. Â I had the Cajun crepe and both of my friends had some sort of chicken crepe which the waiter told them was like turkey soup. Â That does not sound good and it wasn't. Â I liked my Cajun one better but neither were something to return for. Â I would give those crepes 2 stars. Â The dessert crepe is what makes me give the 3rd star. Â It had a raspberry sauce and was absolutely delicious. Â The only reason I would go back is for dessert.
Review Source:Went for an early dinner. Seated quickly. Service was generally efficient but waiter wasn't the most experienced. Decor is funky, eclectic. Food was among the best I've ever had in Springfield - I visit relatives here - and was unfussy, flavorful, and true. Only criticisms were that the crepes seemed slightly underdone and therefore got gummy if it sat in a sauce for any amount of time, and that they used iceberg lettuce!
Review Source:Alright. I'm not wasting my time with elaborate explanations that lead up to a vague conclusion on this one. This place is good- damn good- and I suggest you go. I met with my grandparents, brother, and his date here tonight, and had an expectation that The Aviary would be quite decent, if not excellent, so I guess objectivity is out the window here. Regardless, read on.
I was excited to finally visit this restaurant since set-up for it began late last semester (that's how I define the time of year now... I guess it would have been April). Upon finally visiting, I was charmed by the antique-y but not kitschy interior, and was also pleased to find that the bird theme was not overdone. I was also excited that there were no real birds inside, which for some reason I had suspicions of.
Although it took us some time to be seated, I came armed with the knowledge that The Aviary is an unusual Springfield restaurant in that the servers take their time. Too many people mistake slower-paced service for bad service. To these people, I say bring a book or a good friend, sit down, and kindly mind your manners. You can get back to real life later, and if enjoying your time here isn't good enough, there's a Jimmy John's down the street.
When our patient (and almost overly cooperative) party found our way to our table, we knew we were going to be there for a while, so we ordered a lot of food to share. We started with two appetizers: pommes frites (french fries for you folks who never took French) with truffle oil and olive aioli, and chicken samosa, a lovely dish with chicken, potatoes, and curry. Both were utterly delicious. The aioli with the pommes frites made me question why anybody settles for ketchup; the samosa opened up my world to curry powder, which I had never tasted before this evening, and had incredibly robust flavor.
Moving on to the main course. I decided on a coq au vin crepe, which was composed of shredded chicken, caramelized onions, delicious tomatoes, mushrooms, and carrots, all in a strong red wine sauce. It was fantastic and reminiscent of chicken pot pie, only more sophisticated and in crepe form. As a side I had a dish of three-cheese mashed potatoes, which was delicious and hearty. I'll give two thumbs up any day to a restaurant that doesn't cut corners with something as simple to master as mashed potatoes.
My grandparents ordered the same dish I did. My brother ordered the salmon crepe, which was paired with a lemon-y sauce. Also delicious. My brother's date ordered the Venetian garden crepe, which looked stunning, but I did not try. At this point I'll go ahead and mention that the presentation was very pretty from start to finish; we sat next to the kitchen, and I saw one of the cooks painstakingly wiping splashes off the sides of completed dishes before the servers took them out. I can appreciate effort like that.
Now on to dessert. I waited for this from the second I was seated, for when I saw the dessert options on the menu, I was imagining what my choice would taste like; however, my Nutella crepe with chocolate mousse and whipped cream was seriously one of the best sweet dishes I've ever had, and I can't think of a higher compliment than that. There was little complexity to it; the textures and flavors were flawless in their own way. Just perfect. Beautiful presentation, once again. My brother and his date got the limonchello crepe, which had more sophisticated flavor but, once again, tasted excellent. My grandparents ordered the peach melba crepe, which I think was everyone's favorite. From now on, whenever I think about a prime example of a marriage of ingredients, I'll definitely think of that.
I like to think that I'm not being overzealous in my appreciation of this place, but I had an excellent time tonight eating good food and having good conversation. Other cultures have this down pat- I'm not sure why America can't grasp the concept that sometimes life just needs to be put on hold, reservations need to be cast aside, and tasty crepes must be eaten.
It was a busy Saturday evening about 6:30 when I visited. I haven't heard a single bad thing about their crepes, but I went in for a quick, light dinner. I had the French Onion Soup which was really really good. I felt the urge to cut my soup with a knife. The truffle oil, garlic aioli accompanied Pommes Frites (fancied up french fries) were served up nice and hot. They're a fine choice if you're in the mood.
The atmosphere and decor are both satisfying and eye-catching. It is easy to relax. Even though you get a classy vibe, things are very friendly and casual. I don't drink wine, but those who do will get the attention they desire to that extent. Service, even though it was busy and hectic, was never an issue. The iced tea tasted very good. That is a small thing, but still good to know.
I think the Aviary Cafe is getting things down very well. From reading other reviews it appears that as of late summer 2011, their food is awesome and their service is starting to catch up. There were large groups as well as couples on dates when I was there and lots of staff were around to keep things running. Give them a try anytime you can. I think they can make a successful go of things if they don't raise prices.
This place needs to hire more waiters/waitresses! So understaffed...and the staff they currently have doesn't really know what they're doing, which ruins the experience.
We stopped in Springfield for the night and were looking for a nice place to relax with some drinks and good food, and according to Yelp, this place looked pretty decent. The "full bar" stamp needs to be removed from this restaurant, because they definitely don't have one, and their lone waiter didn't know how to make anything. The drinks we ordered (and waited for...and waited for..) were on the weak side, but tasted good. It also kind of annoyed me how our waiter bent down/leaned over us when he was talking to us...like we were children or something. It was uncomfortable.
The crepes and pommes frites we ordered were delicious, which kind of made up for the bad service, but not enough for me to want to come back. Try the cheese crepe and the vegetarian crepe. They were both good!
Food=4, service=2...I guess.
We saw this had a "full bar" based in yelp reviews and what it looked like inside. Well...they have drinks on the drink menu but we were never presented with a drink menu. Instead we ordered standard drinks, which the waiter didn't seem to know of. He came back and told us he didn't have grapefruit juice, and then finally offered us a drink menu to choose from.
After at least 10 minutes of him trying to figure out how to make the drinks (there was only one other table occupied...) we got them and ordered our crepes. Â They were definitely good.
Then a grossly dressed guy who I guess worked there walked in and asked us if it was okay if he turned the lights on so he could count receipts and do other work at a table right next to us. The restaurant was not close to closing...I don't understand. Just made the rest of the meal unenjoyable. Honestly, this place could be awesome if they got their shit together and hired some competent employees!
My friends and I anxiously awaited for the Aviary to open and we weren't disappointed when it finally did! Â The savory crepes were amazing, each of my friends got a different menu item and we loved our own order and sampling each other's order! Â The four cheese mashed potatoes are amazing, and my personal favorite entree was the coq au vin crepe. Â
The best menu feature, however, would have to be the PHENOMENAL dessert crepes! I was so full from the entree but the dessert was so decadent that I couldn't stop eating it! I got the suzette crepe, if you want a suggestion. Â
I look forward to indulging in the Aviary's menu items on a regular basis! Â Definitely a fun new restaurant to check out downtown!!
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