Chez Albert

Chicken breast was not cooked through — raw inside, sent it back, still not done ! Not even an apology — Fries were only part of the meal that tasted okay — did not care for burger or «chez salad» — very disappointed — wont go back — perhaps cook was off that night? What a shame

the food is average at best. fries were inedible. the service is pretentious, obnoxious bordering on rude, as well as ill informed about the menu. the place itself has a nice ambiance but is loud. this restaurant could only survive in amherst. they make a good martini.

So great except for the Bouillabaisse… We ordered the Bouillabaisse and it was delish until we noticed that there was no bread to soak up the juices. We asked for some roulier (as Bouillabaisse is traditionally served with an roulier) and our waitress let us know that «thats not how we make it here» and then got us a small cup of aoli. Made the dish 10x better.
Great burger, cocktails and steak frites though.

I had a burger here the other day. It was SO good! Easily the best burger I’ve had in Amherst. The chef/​owner was so accommodating and welcoming. I can’t wait to go back and try more of the menu!

Simply the best. It’s the kind of food that’s so good that it makes me happy.

Delicious! Service is great. Have been a handful of times and always enjoyed my dining experiences. Was recently at the restaurant for Chez Albert’s NYE 6 course tasting menu.

Magnificent. Food was superb. The server was always there when you needed anything but never there when you didn’t. She left us alone to eat. What a concept. We were there 2 hours and it seemed like 15 minutes.
On the way home I was trying to decide if this meal belonged in my top 5 meals of my life. It was surely 1 of the top 10 meals in my life.
My wife and I had appetizers, 2 drinks each, and entrees but no dessert or coffee. The bill was $ 90. This is not a casual corporate restaurant — thank god –so don’t expect those prices.
It reminds me that dinner can be an experience to savor rather than a rushed «refueling».
Go – be pampered by the service and food. Plan on 2 hours and enjoy every minute.

I have now been to Chez Albert several times when in town visiting. I have come to the conclusion after eating there one last time time that the food is not good. The dishes our party ordered last night did not taste good, were not prepared well and were too simple. The risotto was a mess, I had no idea what was in it, the cod was rubbery and salty and the sides were boring. I will never go back. The service was uniformed, rushed and lackluster.

Delightful meal in a wonderful atmosphere. The server was charming, knowledgeable, and extremely efficient. Each meal was prepared expertly. I had a pumpkin soup with lots of beautiful toppings that was presented beautifully. I also tasted the beet salad which was terrific. For dinner I had a gorgeous piece of fish topped with a succulent lobster sauce topped off with a chocolate mousse that was so tasty I wanted seconds. Keep in mind this fabulous meal was served in Amherst– not New York or Paris. This is the PERFECT place for date night. The prices are very fair, but that means not cheap. You get what you pay for and in this case it’s extremely high quality, carefully prepared and artfully served.

We shared a mushroom risotto, followed by a stuffed quail for me and, weirdly enough, chickpea burger for her. Everything was delicious (including the bread), and the service was graceful, friendly and quick. Interesting, stellar cocktails to start, and a nice bottle of wine to follow. A memorable meal.

I am giving Chez Albert 4 stars because clearly the food was fresh, prepared with attention, portion size was good, and it came out quickly, but I was a little disappointed with my experience here this week.
I got the stuffed veal breast. There was an outer ‘ring’ of veal, and then a lot of stuffing. The outer ring – had very little meat and a large amount of inedible (and unappetizing fat). The stuffing was mild and could have had more seasoning. It sat on a bed of also underseasoned potato purée. There was a bit of lovely kale.
When I asked the waitress what was in the stuffing – she said ‘veal.’ I asked what else – and she said «I think there’s a little pork and some herbs» When I asked her what was in the 2^nd sauce that originally wasn’t mentioned she didn’t know. When I asked if the veal usually had this much fat she said ‘yes.’ I felt that for a $ 27 plate the server should have more information about the dish, and/​or offer to check with the chef.
I came once years ago to the old location and had a similarly mixed experience. It took me a long time to come back… and I’m not certain if I will again.

Essentially, the food is great. I’ve tried everything either of us ordered and it was extremely tasty, from the foie gras starter all the way to the crème brûlée. It was all presented in a neat business-​like manner and was the right size too. For example the foie looked quite chunky and I was even a bit taken aback at first, then I started eating it and it suddenly disappeared.
Even in France, such a dinner wouldn’t leave me disappointed. As for Boston, I guess it would take a super-​fancy place like Clio to match the taste. Too often, what you get at ‘French’ restaurants are pretentious interiors, silly-​shaped plates with useless sauce coulis, and insipid taste and/​or tiny size.
There was this interesting character who seemed to speak with a strong French accent but didn’t actually speak French (and got our order in English a bit wrong) but given the quality of the food, I’d even put that to the plus side.

Some students at Mount Holyoke and Amherst say that Chez Albert is «overrated» and «too expensive,» but I disagree. I have nothing but good things to say about Chez Albert!
I took my mother here in October, and we had a fabulous experience. The waitstaff was friendly, the ambience was nice and cozy on a fall night, and our food was delicious. They have a nice wine list, and we each had something sparkly because we were celebrating our visit. Our entire meal was delicious, but the best part was the dessert, which was a chocolate mousse. One of the best chocolate mousses I’ve ever had, certainly!
We liked Chez Albert so much that we are taking my entire family there over graduation weekend in May.

All the wasted years! (Well, one and a half years since we moved to the Pioneer Valley). My wife and I finally found time to come here for lunch while the kids are at school. What a delightful experience. The wait staff was charming and friendly. The choices limited, but each one appealing, making choosing still difficult.
We opted to start with frites with aioli. The fries were crisp, and the aioli more than just mayonnaise. It was mixed with finely chopped cornichon adding a nice brine and celery seed flavor.
My wife had the seafood stew and I had the confit pork with apple cider glaze. The stew was richly flavored with just a hint of heat from the andouille sausage. She was sopping up the broth with the crusty homemade bread they served along with it. The confit pork was delightfully tender and flavorful, but with a crisp crust that added a much needed layer of texture that often gets forgotten with poached food. The glaze was sumptuous, and while I might have wanted more on the plate, I think it’s one of those things where part of the delight in the flavor is the longing for more.
We couldn’t resist the chocolate mousse that the chef «had just whipped up that morning.» And it was everything we hoped for — dark, rich, and not so much that you left feeling sick for having eaten it.
This is clearly a favorite place of many locals, as the waiter said several times «see you next week» as diners departed. We will be back.

Service, Substance, superb; atmosphere to boot. Chez continues to excite the culinary appetite and deliver only excellence. On my second and latest visit to the restaurant, a quiet Sunday evening, I was served by one of the best waiters I’ve ever had. Quick and knowledgeable, persistent but just enough so, and a bottle of delicious white one the house — superb! Our meals — my companions and mine — were each unique and agreed to be among the best prepared examples of seafood and game we’ve enjoyed. An outstanding Octopus appetizer was exotic but familiar in flavor as only a dish I’d return to time and again can be. Desserts rounded out our meal: a banana crème topped chocolate terrine like fudge but perfectly balanced in sweetness and flavor as well as a classic clafoutis with fresh berries.
Were the food any better and service any smoother, and I would have trouble dining elsewhere.

Nice ambiance. The service however was slow and the food items we ordered were fine but nothing special.

As another helper mentioned the menu states no phones but the wait staff (our waitress) had no desire to comply equally.
It’s extremely rude for a restaurant to ask their patrons to reserve from using their phones while allowing their waitstaff to blatantly text on theirs in front of tables. I’ve never actually had this happen in a restaurant where the waitress stands to the side of your table texting, creating a phone glow in the nicely dimmed atmosphere.
Food was not on par with other restaurants of the caliber. Maybe I’m just used to the scale and expertise of Bay Area places but chez Albert cannot compete.
My advice: train and manage the staff to follow the rules and etiquette you request from your patrons.
Revise the quality of ingredients used or the prices.

Good: Nice ambiance. Wait staff was fine.
Bad: I ordered the flounder which had several bones and it was topped with a small pile of spinach which was gritty like it had sand in it and had not been washed properly. The food would have been good but the sandy, unwashed spinach was unacceptable.
So-​so: Food Presentation wasn’t impressive.

I used to love this place. In the old location it was small, cute and had great food. I have many fond memories of the food and service there.
I understand that they wanted to expand so that they could seat more than 22 people at a time and so that they could have a bar. However, I don’t think they were up to the task of cooking for a larger volume of customers.
Since the move I have twice had risotto that was closer to adobo rice from a packet along with a few other disappointing dishes.
It is a decent place for oysters and cocktails, but I miss the way they used to be.
The people are nice.
It is another place that I really wish I could love…

During a recent trip to Western Massachusetts I stopped in to dine at Chez Albert based on Unilocal reviews and was not disappointed. The casual décor is elegant and handsome with dark wood walls and copper top tables. I couldn’t decide on a wine to try, so my server Emmanuel poured a couple for me to taste. I started with the paté de foie accompanied with blueberry compote, whole seed mustard and petite pickles – a simple yet complex combination. The pork confit was delicious and tender, though quite a large portion. And for dessert – seasonal blueberry cobbler with a gorgeous maple ice cream.
I enjoyed my Thursday night at Chez Albert so much that I went back again on Saturday. After pouring a glass of another exquisite red, Emmanuel suggested this time I start with crispy pork belly topped with a fried egg. Yes, a wonderful suggestion indeed. I opted for the braised lamb entrée which was tender and delicious, but huge and cumbersome as I couldn’t take it back to my inn nor could I barely make a dent in it though I tried. Of course, this didn’t stop me from ordering dessert – a sweet and decadent crème brulée.
The bar looked like a great place to sit and have a drink confirmed by the full house on Saturday night. If I lived near Amherst I would definitely be a regular. Chez Albert is a wonderful restaurant with an innovative menu, quality ingredients and amazing service. I look forward to visiting again when I am in town.