We had a fantastic meal on the patio. Outstanding service and excellent food. I had the haddock--delicious! The service was the perfect balance of attentiveness while allowing for a relaxing time. This is by far the BEST restaurant we've had a meal at during our 10 day visit to the Finger Lake region.
Review Source:One of the Best resteraunts I have ever been. There is not one dish that I have had that I disliked. The esscorgott is a garlikey buttery masterpice.The Morraccan steamed mussles are to die for. The Duck Confit is some of the best I ever had. The Morraccan Tagine is rich and earthly and full flavored. To be short, it is impossible to have a bad meal here. The wait staff is attentive and friendly as well. I know that it is up for sale. I just hope that this place stays open by the time I go back up to Syracuse for the fall semester.
Review Source:One of my 2 favorite places in the Syracuse area to go for a celebration (the other is Elderberry Pond). Â Grear food and, contrary to what one reviewer had to say, I've always had superb service. The owner/host is delightful, and the homemade pear liquor after dinner is to die for ("on the house"). Â I can't say enough good things about Joelle's! Â I only wish it were closer to my house and that I could afford to go more often. Â [The only negative: the unpaved parking lot can be a menace when it's rainy, and sometimes gets dangerously icy in the winter. Be careful!]
Review Source:This was easily one of the best meals I have eaten in the Syracuse area, though it's not really Syracuse. A quick, 30 minute or so drive to the west will get you to Joelle's.
First, make sure you make a reservation. I don't think you can just pop in here. I had made a reservation about a week in advance for the Saturday before Valentine's Day. Every table seemed to be full the entire time we were there, and I assume all were reservations. Their space, while not cramped, is fairly small so they most likely won't be able to accommodate you without one.
The place, especially at night, can be a little difficult to find. If you don't know where it is, use your GPS. It's a very unassuming place with not so great signage. It just looks like a house (I mean, it is just a house). I have heard that this is on purpose. The owner doesn't mind being a little off the radar.
We were seated right away. Because it was Valentine's Day, they had three separate menus. A Valentine's menu, which was a prix fixe menu, a bistro menu which was also a prix fixe menu, and then an a la carte menu. A little overwhelming, but our server did a fantastic job of explaining everything so it really wasn't any trouble. We decided to order off the a la carte menu.
The food here was very good. I had a crispy sweet breads appetizer. Super tender with a bit of crunch and some lemon flavor. Delicious. Then I had a duck confit, which I think is a good barometer of a French restaurant. Crispy skin and tender meat. Also very good. We finished the meal with a creme brulee which was good, but our waiter poured and lit some orange liqueur on top which had too much residual alcohol burn for me.
It really was a nice evening. My only complaint is that our waiter seemed to disappear for long stretches during the evening. I enjoy being able to sit and relax in between courses, but we sat for quite a long time while he set up another table for a larger party. Other than that, I thought everything was good.
If you budget $200 or so for a meal here, then you won't be completely shocked. But I didn't feel like it was overpriced at all. The food is definitely worth it. Good place to go for a special occasion.
The short form: awful service. The worst in my years of enjoying restaurants. And worse, from what we experienced from several servers and the ridiculous Maitre'd, it was systemic. Don't bother. It was the only restaurant I have ever walked out.
The long form: Joelle's was recommended by the innkeeper of the exquisite B&B we were staying. We arrived just before our res time of 7pm. The place is small, with a lovely patio. It was full. With the rec and the number of patrons in what could only be described as a remote spot, things looked good.
Unfortunately, things went downhill quickly. The Maitre'd was from the Basil Fawlty school - he confused bumbling incompetence (a litany of poor service decisions in a very short period of time) with charm. Sadly, the very poor service continued with the very pleasant young waitress. It would seem that training was not a requirement for hire at Joelle's French Bistro.
So many negatives happened in the hour before the wine arrived, my typing skills on this iPad will not accommodate all the info. We are not food and wine snobs. But, we expect a decent standard when paying for 'fine' dining.
I wish I could report on what looked like lovely food. But, after smiling about the service, then laughing it off, our feelings developed to incredulity. At that time (70 minutes and counting) we threw $60 on the table for the $56 bottle of Bordeaux, and left. I wonder if they noticed?
The only French restaurant in Skaneateles!
This is a great little find on beautiful grounds.
Really great service and ambience.
Very nice French food, nice portions and a wide variety of wines.
Check out their website or become part of their mailing list for fun theme parties all year round.
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