Gilbert & Blake's
Average rating from 18 votes: 3.7 stars
Okemos, MI
Fax: 517-349-1313
Reviews
First reviewed by acgdab
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Gilbert and Blakes Thumbs up!
Upon a recommendation from my Sister who resides in East Lansing, we chose to have our Parent's anniversary dinner party at Gilbert and Blake"s. Excellent idea I must say.
Extensive menu with many delicious main courses along with lovely deserts made our evening very enjoyable. The Asian tuna and a lobster pasta were a couple of favorites in our group. Oysters on the half shell were fresh and tasty also.
A friendly and helpful staff were more than accommodating. With a party of 10+, we were nicely surprised at the detail of service provided. We'll definitely be back next time we're in the area. Thank you!
Enryai
Chicago IL -
anonymous
Jan 23, 2009Fabulous!
The service at Gilbert and Blake's is great. We regularly visit the restaurant to relax from a long work week or with friends. They have a great wine list and some draft beers that are unique to the area (I've tried Michigan Brewing Company and Great Lakes). Their "signature" dish is the Kasu Chilean Sea Bass which is just absolutely phenomenal. I would recommend visiting there. It is a nicer restaurant but there's no dress code, which is nice too!
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Great food-excellent atmosphere
We were nicely surprised to find such a wonderful place to dine within walking distance from our hotel (Hampton).
A wide variety of menu choices along with attentive service made our night very enjoyable. Sushi was some of the best I've had. Main courses were of good quality and very tasty.
Impressive wine list along with specialty drinks were also offered. Superb dining experience. Highly recommend!
Detroit -
Slow and painful
Gilbert and Blakes has many of the pieces of fine dining present but fails miserably at pulling them together for a decent dining experience. My wife and I have dined at G&B before and were not impressed with service or quality of food in the past. We were invited to a large dining party and against our better judgment we accepted the invite. What a mistake this turned out to be. Here is a quick overview of our experience.
1) A reservation for 18 was made for 7:00 PM on a Saturday night.
2) My wife and I were late by 5 minutes late and were the 15 and 16th persons to arrive.
3) We had to wait 10 minutes to be greeted by the waitress.
4) We had to wait 15 minutes from ordering our first drinks for them to arrive.
5) The waitress only asked 1/2 of the table for appetizer orders.
6) We were there for at least 1 1/2 hours before she attempted to take dinner orders.
7) The waitress infrequently checked status of tables for drink orders.
8) The waitress would only check part of the tables for drink orders.
9) The waitress frequently made mistakes and/or omitted drinks when attempting to serve these orders.
10) The appetizers were quickly returned and were of decent quality.
11) There were many dinners that were sub par. My personal choice of a seafood lasagna was decent and my wife's sea bass was tolerable. There were several cases of food being cold and/or being rare.
12) We had requested separate bills (2 people per bill). My bill charged me for 4 drinks but I had only received 3 (had ordered 4 but I was one of the lucky ones that had ordered one, saw her write it done, yet never received it).
13) Sudden realization that around the table that every bill was incorrect.
14) 15-20 minutes of confusion and pain while the waitress and another person unsuccessfully attempted to correct the bills
15) Waitress had to interview each couple and have them repeat what they ordered
16) An older gentleman claiming to be the owner came out and apologized for the delay but he quickly turned it into a 3 minute lecture which blamed us for requesting separate bills - stating the computer had no way tracking people when entered into the system so it was a mandatory 30 to 60 minutes to separate the bills.
17) 3 1/2 hours after we started we were finally able to leave.
Nobody in the group ever plans on returning to this establishment. With average prices of the meals around $25 and drinks at $8.50 one expects a decent level of service and quality. You will not find either one of these at Gilbert and Blakes. If you are thinking of eating there go to Bennigans or Applebees - you'll save money and have a better experience. -
Never Again
Brutally putrid.
Bread should not be greasy. Vegetables should not drip grease. A NY strip steak at this price should not taste the same as a sizzler from the Airport Tavern. Chilean Sea Bass should be rather meaty and firm, not gelatinous and gooey. Salt in abundance can't cover every flaw.
Have I made it clear that this place is less than stellar? The positive reviews on this site were either written by employees or friends and family of the owners.
Yuck. -
You have a good thing going...!!
I went in expecting to eat the usual seafood or beef and had a casual attitude about the whole thing. Was greeted as though I was a long lost friend, seated in an area conducive to conversation, and a pleasant server was immediately at the table. While checking out a diverse menu, I was astounded to see my favorite food that I haven't been able to find anywhere anymore: FROGLEGS!! Now these can be a disaster if they are not cooked properly. Not so this day! The entire dinner was delightful and the entree was perfection. My compliments to the chef, to the serving staff, and to our host for a gourmet dinner and for the pleasant experience. I hesitated to return and thought I might have just had a rare experience, but NO! it's been just as wonderful the past 3 times for the identical meals. Thank you and don't change a thing because I'm coming back!
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Great!
My mother and I came for a nice dinner out. They sat us right away, eventhough they appeared to be fairly busy. The warm bread was delicious. We split several appetizers. The dynamite ahi tuna roll was disappointing, just a little bland and not the great ahi taste we expected. The crab cakes were excellent although small (however, this was the appetizer and not the entree.) They had an excellent taste and texture, you could tell they used quality crab and very little filler (the bread and stuff that many places use to fill out their crab cakes). The wine selection was good, although some wines were slightly overpriced. The highlight of our meal was the mussels ala provance (i think thats the name). They were great!! Full of flavor, not mushy or chewy. The sauce that they were served in was delightful! I will definately go back!
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It was Ok...but never again.
I had read the reviews, I had heard from friends...but I had to try for myself. We walked in and were seated promptly. The decor and restaurant overall were very nice. As we browsed the menu we were informed of the daily specials (which were all seafood). I know going into this that I was not going to try any seafood since I had heard from everyone that his or her experiences were not good. We finally settled on the full rack of ribs. While we waited, we were served warm bread that was very good. When we got our meal...it looked and smelled good. The taste was not bad, but they were not heated all the way through, and they were really tough. Ribs should fall off the bone these did not. The meal was served with fries and corn on the cob (mine was about 2 inches long). Overall, the service was decent; our waitress only refilled our waters once. The décor and ambience were good (except for the paper on the tables). The food was not great...but ok; glad I had a 2-for1 coupon!
I can say I will never go to this restaurant again. -
Horrible
This restaurant is a disapointment. I overheard a manager telling a disgusting joke to a server. How unprofessional! The food was terrible. The seafood was definetly not fresh! I tried the calamari. The only thing good about it was the sauce to dip it in. It was coated in grease and completely unoriginal. I'll never go back.
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Top Notch
My girlfriend at the time (now fiance) and I went to Gilbert & Blakes where I planned an elaborate proposal. The staff at Gilbert & Blakes went well out of their way to make sure that it was a resounding success. The service was phenomenal and so was the food. This is a definite must dine restaurant.
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Great meal - check statement
Recently my wife and I dined for the second time at Gilbert & Blake's. We really like the restaurant. The New England Clam Chowder is excellant. We enjoyed the calamari, the shrimp cocktail, the filet steak and swordfish. The salads were well prepared though some of the lettuce was a bit wilty. The surprise was when we received the credit card statement and noticed that the charge was for $52.00 more than the receipt. We did call and the manager did provide us a gift card for the same amount. We'll go back again...they are trying very hard to serve a finicky community.
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Never Again
Last week my son and I dined at Gilbert and Blakes. We were atracted to the restaurant by the appearance of the restaurant. When we entered we were very otimistic by the way the restaurant looked with the so called fresh fish selection and the open kitchen. Boy were we disappointed. We started with the cold seafood appetizer for 2. The shrimp were mushy and tasted like they were not properly refrigerated. The Sushi was horrible. The seard tuna was a real disappointment. The waitress recomended the Chilean Sea Bass. I orderd it and it was the size of 1 scallop. The vegtables were soaking in grease. My son ordered the Halibut and it tasted awful. When we told the waitress she informed the manager. He said that the sushi is not fresh and he offered a shrimp cocktail to make up for the lousy meal. I rejected that and he did deduct the appetizer and sea bass from the check. I was looking for a quality meal an not a free one. Needless to say I would not consider going back. The folks at the table next to us orderd the calamari apetizer and we overheard them complaining to each other about how greasy it was. The restaurant has a nice atmosphere but they could use a chef that knows how to cook.
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1 of 1 users did not find the following review helpful:
Food questionable at best
Maybe it was just the entree I chose, but it was quite disgusting.
I had a fish dish, I can't remember which one...but it showed up in front of me with the fish head and eye holes intact. That made me want to barf. I had to peal the fish skin off the fish to get to the meat, that was gross too.
They have a nice drink menu. Maybe I'll just go back for drinks and appetizers, but definitely not dinner. -
Dinner at Gilbert and Blakes
Last weekend my girlfriend and I stopped in for a quick appetizer and a couple of drinks and had a wonderful experience. The bar staff was very effeicient, and knowledgeable about the food and wine on the menu. My girlfriend and i chose 2 different appetizers that our bartender recommended, the ahi tuna and the mussels ala blake, both of which were fresh and tasted great. It was our first time in the restaurant but it surely wont be our last visit. I would strongly urge anyone looking for a great meal and an enjoyable atmosphere to try Gilbert and Blakes.
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Wonderful night
My fiancée and I spent last Friday night at Gilbert and Blake’s restaurant in Okemos. It was a fantastic experience with wonderful food that I could not find anywhere else. The service was amazing, not only was our server courteous but she was very knowledgeable of the food as well as the wine. We had an incredible appetizer followed by their grilled Halibut that came with a creamy lobster sauce that was out of this world. I do have to make a quick mention that their desserts were great as well.
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Wow! Finally a great place in Okemos!
When my wife and I decided to out last weekend we tried the new restaurant in Okemos. All we can say is WOW. Everything was top notch from the service to the food. If you like seafood this is the place to go. We highly recomend this restaurant to everyone.
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anonymous
Mar 18, 2005New Year Eve
Enjoyed a wonderful, relaxing dinner. Everything was great, from the appetizers to dessert; especially the lobster bisque - it was amazing.
Food was great and the service was outstanding.
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