Plaza Café Grill & Bakery

This place has to be a drug front, right? I went in yesterday and three-​fourths of the menu was not available. I ordered one of their big pizza slices, and it was one of the worst slices I’ve had in a long time. Dough was rubbery. Poorly reheated.
Avoid this place.

I should have read the reviews prior to going here with my boyfriend this afternoon. I often read reviews on Unilocal,but I’ve never written one until now. I will never come back here. We were sat at a table and ignored for 10 minutes or so. Finally our order was taken and we were brought drinks. We ordered an omelet and the breakfast skillet (which apparently comes in a bowl instead of a skillet as indicated). The coffee was great; however, after our order was taken we didn’t see our waitress again until a little over half an hour later, I should add there were only 3 other tables during this time and they were already eating. When our food arrived, I was out of coffee and asked for a refill as well as jelly, hot sauce, and silverware. Eventually I got silverware and jelly, but my food was cold. I received a coffee refill at the end of my meal, so I had nothing to drink with my cold food. We discussed leaving when our food took longer than half an hour, and I think that would’ve been a better decision than staying.

Bad bad bad service. Sweet sweet server but had no clue what she was doing. Sunday morning 20 minutes wait for biscuits and gravy and eggs came out cooked wrong. Sent back and cooked wrong again. Getting item removed and check adjusted took multiple explanations to multiple people and an extraordinary wait. The owner came to the table and telling him what was wrong took multiple attempts. Ended up leaving very very frustrated and unhappy, never to return. This place won’t be around long.

Absolutely horrible due to small portions and worse service ever. I was excited to try a new place and was very disappointed. We were 1 of 3 tables but it took about 20 minutes to bring out our appetizer of fries and this was only after I asked where they were. It was a very small size, wouldn’t really consider it an appetizer, more a side. One reason we tried was bc of the chipolte ranch which waitress didn’t bring. I asked her for it and it took her 5 minutes to come back out and say «they are making it now. Told her don’t worry about it because we were practically done with fries so she offered to bring with my meal. 15 minutes later (as we are still waiting on food and observe the kitchen employees lollygagging around) she came out and said they are out of chipoltes (why lie and tell me they are making it then?) When we finally got our food they were also very small portions (4 onion rings… didn’t realize onions and bread cost so much to them… insert sarcasm here), cold and wrong. She didn’t come back and check on us so I had to go ask another waitress for help.
I’ve worked in food industry for years so I hate complaining about service but our server didn’t know what was in house salad, messed up our orders, didn’t offer to refill drinks until I asked, didn’t apologize for the long wait we had or offer to «make things right». We will never go there again and wished I wouldn’t have wasted money there. I normally tip over 20% and rarely under tip with horrible service, but it was so bad that she got about 10% and I wish I wouldn’t have even left that because the only quick service we received was getting our check… surprise, surprise she was only worried about money! 1 star is really overrating this place.

I wanted to like this place– I did. Unfortunately, the waitress gave incorrect information and was apathetic about everything. My eggs were also grossly undercooked (asked for over medium, received less than over light– still had clear gelatinous substance throughout). Their menu is very limited and there is no vegetarian combo option that includes pancakes and breakfast potatoes. The pancakes were also rubbery and included too many chocolate chips– I felt like I was eating a cheap chocolate bar. As I was leaving, I went to use the restroom– the coup de grace was the single restroom with no lock. Yes, my misery was ended when I finally left– and will never return.

Under new management is not indicative of better management. 25 minutes in and Ben D. was still waiting for juice. Only one other table and four «servers» milling about the place. None of which could be bothered to refill my coffee, or bring Ben his OJ. We left about 30 minutes in. Still no more coffee, no juice, no indication that food was forthcoming, and no intentions of ever returning.
As much as I would love to see any business in my own neighborhood do really well, Plaza could fall into the seventh circle of hell, and months would pass before I missed it.

Decided to give the place a shot & was thoroughly disappointed! The staff is untrained & not attentive, there’s a long wait time for bad food and the manager is rude.
Biscuits & gravy are okay, but the hash browns were soggy & toast was burnt.
When I returned my eggs for being extremely undercooked (runny egg whites), the manager told me I ordered them incorrectly!
Bad food, bad service & rude manager earns a big fat F! I will NOT be back.

PLAZA CAFE & GRILL — Recently I saw that this was «Under New Management» and so thought I’d try it myself. I like to patronize «local» businesses more so than the chains and big box places.
I got there this morning (Sat) about 11:30am, and was greeted by «Wendy», a «Flo”-like waitress/​hostess with a very friendly personality. She asked if I’d rather have a table or a booth; I responded, «a booth would be nice», to which she pointed to the booths and said, «booths are over there!» and followed me to my choice of booth. To me, that’s NOT a negative; I’d rather have my choice of where to sit rather than to have to follow a host/​ess to THEIR choice of seating FOR me!
Of course (coming in at 11:30am), the first thing that caught my eye on the menu was the hours for the Breakfast Menu is «6am-​12pm — depends on chef.» I chuckled and asked Wendy what that meant, and she said (honestly, she really did!), «depends on if he feels like it or not!» She DID add, «he does do breakfast most of the day.» We both laughed, so I counted that as just a little levity printed on the menu. I did notice their normal operating hours are 6am-​8pm, Tues-​Sun (till5), which I took to mean they closed at 5pm on Sun … strange (closed Mon). I guess they are going for the Breakfast and Lunch crowd, but if THAT’S the case, they should serve «extended Sat/​Sun breakfast till 2PM». Better yet, and maybe eventually they will when they’ve built a clientele and reputation, stay open LATER on Fri/​Sat/​Sun and serve their dinner menu till 10pm — the standard for most dinner restaurants in St. Louis.
The décor is quaint traditional, clean lines, and not a lot of «kitsch» and vendor advertising all over the place. The silverware was clean, but cheap, lightweight ware. Menu pricing was about average for the area, but a little bit «odd.» For instance, there were items priced at $ 5.99, $ 6.57, $ 7.19, $ 8.33, $ 8.70, etc. So you kinda get the feeling that they are pricing based on a percentage of their cost instead of multiples of cost. Really gets you to study the menu, though (and that could be their intent!). Oh, yes… «potato» does NOT have an «e» at the end of it!!! Breakfast was a little pricey, but not overly so, and I concluded that is where they get their business so that’s where the extra quarter or so helps with the overhead costs.
I chose the «Skillet — hash browns topped w/​green peppers, onions, diced ham, 2 eggs & cheese blend.» I expected it to be served in a skillet, but the healthy serving on a melmac (officially, melamine) platter was fine. It was like a hash of vegetables (the chef also included sautéed mushrooms in the mix) and diced ham, topped with 2 eggs and processed cheese slices. (I would have used shredded cheddar instead of the sliced cheese for better flavor and presentation.)
Now, I gotta tell you… in SPITE of the processed cheese choice, this was an incredibly good menu choice, and a LOT of it! I know some of you can’t eat food unless «nothing touches each other», but I’m a huge fan of one pot cooking and casseroled! The diced green peppers could have been sautéed another 30 seconds to soften them a bit, but the diced ham was properly grilled, the potatoes (there IS an «e» in the plural!) were soft and browned just enough, and the onions and mushrooms were perfect!
Wendy did the obligatory checking on me and asking if I needed anything else, or more coffee, but she did it with wit and caring. Yep, I over-​tipped her!
I’ll be back.

Review is two-​star only because I want this business to make it, and I’m willing to give it another try. We live in this neighborhood and saw the last incarnation of Plaza Café slowly trail off and were excited to see it re-​open recently under new management. We kept an eye on how many patrons began to fill the dining room on any given day or evening. We signed on to its Facebook feed to keep up on new information and promotions. Recently, I noticed their new offering, a breakfast buffet. The husband loves a good breakfast buffet, but although there is another option just up the street, we don’t frequent it much due to expense/​quality/​crowd ratio.
Plaza’s buffet consisted of the following offerings: sliced melon, fruit salad, sausage patties, bacon, scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, and dollar pancakes. This was their first try at a buffet and the first day, to my knowledge, it was offered. Had each of the choices been executed properly, the meal would have been worth a quick visit to a local business, but each of the items had problems. The eggs were OK, though my dining partner did not like them (too…wet. Not runny, more like… sweaty.) The bacon was cold, undercooked and incredibly greasy (even for bacon). The pancakes were over-​done (or sat in the trough too long) and rubbery-​tough. The potatoes, also very greasy, were underdone. The kicker was the sausage patties. At first, we both thought the sausage was strangely seasoned, but upon a second bite realized that it tasted spoiled. At that, panic set in as we had ordered a side of biscuits and gravy and feared the sausage would be the same as that offered on the buffet. As it turns out, the sausage gravy was made with links and, once seasoned at the table, the biscuits and gravy turned out to be the highlight of the meal, along with the coffee included in the buffet price — which was very good.
Now, about that buffet price; Plaza Café is charing $ 13.99 for the buffet. The selection here includes less options than say, Ari’s over on Hampton (Ari’s charges, I believe, around $ 7), and is just a couple dollars less than 3 Monkeys (who Plaza nearly neighbors and who includes a much larger selection of overall better quality food). I would highly suggest that, if management/​owners have not done so, they check out the competition with regard to selection and pricing as $ 13.99 is completely out of whack to the meal presented.
Plaza Café has an opportunity to position itself as an alternative to neighboring restaurants (less hipster, less Local Harvest-​y) and just down-​home cooking in a nice space, which seems like the goal based upon the menu items. The neighborhood could use another solid restaurant or traditional coffee shop, and I hope they are able to settle into that niche that’s waiting to be filled. We will probably, reluctantly, try them at least once more to see if made-​to-​order meals are significantly better. If the menu meals are at least hot and made with fresh ingredients, they would have to be.

Ordered the steak and eggs. For some reason, there was a strange brown seasoning on it (very salty) and they butterflied it. Never heard of it, but it’s a great way to cook my medium steak as well done, and it was very dry as well. I personally consider it a sin to use steak sauce: if the chef wanted it on the steak, he would have put it on himself. Sadly, I had to resort to it to try and moisturize this sad piece of meat and de-​salt it.
Girlfriend’s biscuit was very salty — she identified it as too much baking soda.
Place was pretty tired looking, with all the staffers sitting around and an overly cheap priced burger and fries advertised on a sign outside ($ 3.99). This is the set up for an episode of restaurant impossible, but sadly, Robert Irvine can’t be everywhere at once. They need to turn this place around themselves, and soon. I have no idea where these other reviewers were eating — this place was very geriatric for sunday brunch.
Giving them a pity second star because the lady was very nice.
More than likely won’t be back.

Another neighborhood eatery that we tried soon after they opened. The décor was bland and the place was empty, except for us, but we plodded on. I had a breakfast that made me wish I had cooked at home. I walk past all the time and never see more than one or two tables occupied when they are open, and they seem to be closed a lot. There was nothing about my first and only visit that made we want to go back, and with the inconsistent ratings on Unilocal,I get the feeling I should spend my money elsewhere. I’m hoping they will find their groove or their specialty because right now there are much better choices along the MoFo stip.

Plaza Grill and Café on Morgan Ford. Service: F — Food: F — Attentiveness of the wait staff: F — Air Conditioning F — Credit Card Machine: F — Getting the Shitty food out to us in a timely manner F (1.5 hours) Amount of refills: 0 Grade: TERRIBLE F
There were maybe 20 people in the restaurant. Temperature in the room was a balmy 88 degrees. There were 5 servers. Our server was almost completely absent, unless you count smoking cigarettes outside as a part of waiting on our table. Our sub-​par food took way too long to come out considering what we ordered, I had my drink refilled zero times, and when it came time to pay, you had better have cash because the credit card machine was out of order. Worst restaurant experience I have ever had.

I had the best start to a fun Saturday with a Lefty Breakfast at Plaza!
The carp suggested that we go to Plaza because he has since been back here several times and is really impressed by the food, esp breakfast.
Our waitress was super fun and friendly, and we all realized we were lefties!
The blueberry pancakes carp got were SO GOOD, they didn’t taste like they were out of a box. They were huge and fluffy and the blueberries were fresh!
I got a country ham and split hard egg croissant sandwich. I am a huge fan of hard fried eggs, and after finding them on an actual menu, I had to try them. The sandwich also tasted like something you’d get from home, as well as the fried breakfast potatoes, were the best i’ve ever had.
For the money and such good food you really can’t do better than Plaza in the tower grove, s. city area. I know that Plaza has shortened its operating hours since first opening, and I hope that it is still doing well, because I really want it to stay!
Flat screen tvs have been installed since I’ve been last, and I also noticed some wall décor that looked like it was going to be hung soon. Feels like Plaza is working on its personality, and hopefully it gets there.

My husband and I love this place for Sunday brunch! Friendly service, great food, good coffee. Love the music selection. Don’t over look this spot! You will not be disappointed.

Bland.
Reading the other reviews, I was somewhat shocked that so many fellow diners would knock a star or more off for bland décor: How shallow! I thought. But I am now forced to admit: They were right to do so. Nothing like eating in a hospital cafeteria to enliven a meal. The amazing brick building could have made for an amazing space – so much wasted potential. A few pieces by local artists could go a long way to improving the space (as would ripping out the drop-​tile ceiling).
But the décor isn’t the only thing that’s bland. The food was as well. The salmon was overcooked and under-​seasoned, and the grilled portabella sandwich had a uniform, uninteresting mushy texture, and nearly no flavor. The french fries were poorly cooked – soggy from too-​cold oil, I think.
Service was surprisingly slow for a nearly empty restaurant, although quite cheerful.
Perhaps the burgers are why this place is so well reviewed here? Is that what the other reviewers have been eating? Even if they are, I’m not particularly tempted to go back and try them.

Went to the Plaza Café & Grill for a lunch meeting. The service was wonderful, we were seated and greeted by our waiter promptly. The food was good too.
I just wish there was more of an atmosphere or theme or something to give this place some personality. There was nothing special about the menu, it’s just ordinary American fare. I probably would only go there again if I didn’t have any other option, but Clayton has so much to offer in the way of restaurants just keep walking and you’ll find something.

This is a funny place.
Like others have commented, the décor is sort of bland. In fact, it’s not so much bland as generally non-​existent. The walls are blank. Though they’ve only been open a few months, so perhaps they just haven’t gotten to decorating yet. Nice big windows onto Morgan Ford, though.
Also, this is perhaps the least-​hipster and/​or ethnic restaurant in Tower Grove South. It’s kind of odd, but it has a totally different vibe than any other restaurant in the neighborhood. When I was there for dinner on a Saturday, no one was drinking PBR. In fact, hardly anyone else was drinking. The waitress didn’t even know how to pronounce Schlafly. There was no Sriracha sauce and no flyers for the Tower Grove farmers market or some beer dinner. The crowd was mostly families and a big table of well-​dressed, middle-​aged ladies. A little different than Mangia or the Tin Can.
Now, to the important part. The food was great. I had the steak sandwich and I’ve been thinking about it all week. She had the portobello, and seemed to enjoy it thoroughly. The fries were excellent. I suspect their brunch is killer. And the dinner menu looks big enough to stay interesting for many trips. So, all things considered, we’ll be making more.

Very impressed from the first time I went, I have been several times and had breakfast, lunch and dinner and have never had a bad meal. Almost everything seems home made, even the bread! The best part about the place is that the food is cheap. Must try, this will not dissappoint.

I seriously considered giving this place a three star rating only because it lacks atmosphere. It’s bland, brown, not particularly interesting. It feels like a generic imitation of a slightly out of date corporate chain – like a TGI Fridays without the flare. But this restaurant is walking distance from my house so I thought I would give it a shot. I didn’t really know what to expect when I walked in to the fairly boring non desrcript dining room.
First off, I have to give kudos to the waiter, who seemed genuinely enthusiastic when he described some of the featured items on the menu and made a point of how all the food is made from scratch. He really sold it. And to our delight he didn’t exaggerate, all the food was exceptional.
The menu is typical American pub food, with a touch of Soul. Some burgers, some BBQ, fried fish, sandwiches. The food betrays the bland atmosphere – someone with a personality IS in the kitchen! Our party had the ribs, the steak sandwich, and the stuffed pork chop (don’t recall if this was a regular menu item or a special). And everything was beyond what we expected. The steak sandwich was made of medallions of steak cooked to order on a hand made po’ boy roll topped with french fried onions. The slab of ribs was cooked perfectly and coated with a apple cider based bbq sauce. And the stuffed pork chop was big and delicious. We were so pleasantly surprised by the food that we decided to try one of the hand made deserts. The blueberry cobbler was just as spectacular as the entrées, presented as a single miniature «pie» with a side of ice cream and hand whipped cream (whipped quite alot I might add – it was almost butter). This is some serious good old fashioned hearty American food with a southern edge.
So I finally decided to give the Plaza Café & Grill four stars instead of three only because the food transcends the uninteresting décor. Highly recommended.

I went their with my wife and two of our friends. The first thing we noticed is that is way too quiet. I know, you’re asking what do you mean by too quiet. When we arrived (around 6pm on a Wens. night), their was only 2 other people seated in the restaurant. No soft music playing in the background our anything. You could hear the cooks in the back talking even though we were seated on the opposite side of the room.
The service was so so. Only 1 waitress but then again I said there was only one other couple seated when we arrived. She was kind of slow but that really didn’t matter, I wasn’t in a rush. I ordered a beer which was very warm at best but still, I don’t complain much.
The food… was very good. I think for a new restaurant, they seem to have that part right.
Overall, I will go back. It’s nice that’s it’s in walking distance from my house. I’ll give it a couple months and hopefully things will improve. Still, give this place a try and see for yourself

First of all, what struck us were the bright can lights in the dining room — and not in «Wow! This is bright and airy», but «Whoa! This is bright like a department store dressing room» way. We were in a booth and the glare from the bulbs was almost oppressive.
We each had a simple cheeseburger with 1 side. I had the cole slaw. The burgers are hand-​formed which is always a nice treat. However, mine was overcooked (I asked for med-​rare) and the bun was way too big for the burger. A smaller, tastier bun would add a lot. Also, it did not come with lettuce or tomato. Weird. The cole slaw was sour, not tangy.
Maybe next time — if there is a next time — we’ll try one of the specials. They have an opportunity to be a really great café. On a street filled with restaurants, they should do mid– to upscale soul food. I suggest really great pies and solid soul and Southern recipes and specials. Also dim those lights!
I would like to applaud the owners. We met the wife and she is delightful. I really want them to be successful. I hope they get their food and atmosphere in shape soon.