NM Cafe at Neiman Marcus

I like this place. It was the perfect setting for #EricasTableOf20. Gps almost got me lost! Lol. It kept sending me across the street from the mall. NM Café is on the lower level of the Neiman Marcus store at Lenox. The store itself is very captivating. From the spacious aisles to the infrequent tile/​carpet combinations. Quite fascinating. Well I finally got to the lower level and walked into the café. The bright myriad of colors capture your eyes immediately & you know you’re in for a treat. The event was being held in a private room. Upon entering the beautiful table settings were to die for! They were so beautiful you almost don’t want to sit. Fear of messing up the setting. Anyways the food was top notch! First they brought out broth in these cute lil tea cups/​saucer. It felt like I had arrived! Then they brought out this GIANT rolls. I mean giant. No exaggeration there. I had steamed veggies and mashed potatoes as my entrée. I’m usually not a big fan of mash potatoes but these mashed potatoes left me wanting more! They were buttery & bursting with flavor! I loved it! I will most def be back with my crew!!!

Confession: 24 year old me made her way through four rounds of interviews including a flight out to Dallas HQ for the Neiman Marcus corporate buyer’s program. 24 year old me was also brutally rejected and wound up with a far less sexy but far more lucrative career in finance. For years I protested all things Neiman’s. Enough about my personal Confessions of a Shopaholic rant and nearly 10 year old grudge though.
The NM Café at Neiman Marcus is THE definition of «ladies who lunch.» Thus it seems extra fitting that I frequented it this time for my cousin’s baby shower — lots of ladies and lunch. For the record the NM Café has the perfect private room for such events and our server Leland was so on top of it when it came to taking care of our group of 16-​ish women. #somuchestrogen Seriously though, he’s a great server.
The popovers are divine and probably horrible for you, but man they are oh so good with the strawberry butter. The broth gets me every time when I think I’m going for hot tea to cleanse my palette and choke down some soup basically. The chicken salad sandwich, soup, and fruit sampler plate is delicious. None of it is too heavy so you still feel ready to try on designer clothes after eating. It’s a modern yet retro environment as Carrie Neal W. puts it.
The NM Café is a great place for Bulkhead Betties and ladies who lunch. It is good finger food, but you are definitely paying for atmosphere. I’m a fan, but mostly because it gets me in the mood to shop upstairs and remind myself that Neiman Marcus missed out on one hell of a buyer who is now one hell of a shopper instead. Pinky up cheers.

Food was ok… not what I expected for such an upscale place like Neimen Marcus. The service was great!

Strangely, another place which I failed to review. Major overlook :(
Not long after we sat down, we were served with popovers and strawberry butter. The popover here is always fresh and tasty. The strawberry butter is heavenly!
I dine here rather often, my usual order will definitely include the famous she crab soup ($ 12). A lot of times I just had the soup for lunch and it would be perfect for me.
However, today I got rather excited to see the restaurant has a new menu; the «fish & chips» under the Seasonal Section caught my eyes. I have this thing with fish & chips, it’s a love relationship (one sided I am sure). It is a dish I will order almost every time I see it in a menu.
Farouk our server (he is nice though a little awkward) took our order and soon came back with a water pitcher filling up the water cup already set at the table. Whatever happens to those glasses? Why plastic cups? I noticed the silver napkin rings missing too. I have a feeling the restaurant is trying to be more casual, it was not a fancy restaurant to begin with and I am not sure if I like the café trying too hard to be super casual.
People will start to get upset if they equate a casual restaurant with an economical pricing meal when the price of a lunch here will not be less than $ 10. Hopefully everyone realizes that this is still a café inside Neiman Marcus. We have to keep it real.
Anyway, back to my lunch experience, of course. We were served with the yummy chicken broth while waiting for our order. Soon the food came. The portion of my fish & chip was a perfect size for me. Not sure if it will be sufficient for a guy; guys do have a bigger appetite, yes? The fish used in the fish & chips was fresh and of high quality. I am never a sweet potato fries person but I really like the sweet potato fries here that came with the fish.
At the end of the lunch, I asked for the bill and gave Farouk my Neiman card. Honestly, I didn’t know how much was that fish & chips. I have a bad habit, sometimes whenever I love something so much, I tend to just order or buy without first knowing how much. One of these days I am going to be in so much trouble, lol!
I had the best fish & chips in London a very long time ago, so far nothing compares to that, but still this girl was really happy with her lunch today.
Life is good! :)

This café has been one of my favorite lunch spots for many years. I even remember the old décor which was girly and feminine and not quite as modern, but, the food always delicious. One of my favorite things has always been the signature demitasse cup of chicken broth and popover that arrive shortly after sitting down. The past few times I’ve gone, I’ve had to ask, at least 2, maybe 3 times for this. They seem annoyed and reluctantly bring the broth and popover. I ask, «do you all still have the chicken broth and popover?» Each time the response is the same, a sigh, and an, «I wish you hadn’t asked attitude». It’s strange. They should either stop this lovely tradition all together, or return to being pleasant and efficient about this signature NM offering.
The service is generally hit or miss. The male waiters are definitely more pleasant and on their game. The female waitresses seem pissed off to be there.
If I was giving stars just for their She Crab Soup, I would want to give it 20 stars. This soup is insanely delicious and FULL of huge chucks of amazing crab meat. That’s worth going there for.

You know, I just love being home for a week. To visit with my parents and great friends and such. Oh, and to go to new/​lovely/​long-​time-​fave spots to eat. Winner winner, chicken dinner all around.
Mom gave me a special treat today: her Neiman’s card. And a lot of trust because, dagnabit, it was (only) for lunch, NOT shopping (her words). But it’s a lovely — sorta retro/​modern combo — space, and I was delighted.
Nutshell update: not a big menu but plenty of good choices like the pasta e fagioli soup that I got (it’s always on the menu, but they also have a daily special). Delicious and quite filling because there are lots of beans and veggies in it to enhance a light amount of macaroni noodles.
And. .. they list the nutrition content of every item on the menu. Whaaat?! Venerable your-grandmother’s-kinda-schmancy luncheon place joins the new millennium, y’all (ok, nothing has kale in it but this is a v modern thing for an old school spot).
Almost too many options to pick from — I got the chicken paillard which is a lightly battered breast with couscous, mushrooms, carrots, arugula, marinara and olive oil. For…410 cal (and other healthy «numbers»), and if you leave out the couscous and olive oil like I did, even lighter. For all y’all who think about that kinda stuff. But, yeah, next time I’m getting the steak frites (which is still only 880 cal so less if you take out the burgundy sauce).
Yep, they are still proud of themselves, as my Dad says about over-​priced places and their dishes (my soup was $ 7 for a cup and the chicken was $ 20, so …). You pay for ambience and lady lunchi-​ness. Note that they close daily at 3:30.
The star ding is for the service. Gloria was nice enough… whennnn she came by. She annoyingly launched into the day’s specials within 0.0005 seconds of noticing that I’d sat down (ahem) as if she might forget one unless she gotitalloutfast. Water went un-​refilled, that kind of thing. And the manager made the rounds but I noticed he didn’t swing by many tables (mine, plus others) and it’s really a small little place.
All in all — classy, good food, and you can pay with your store card. Rock on NM, if it’s polite to say about such a laydish nod to lunchtime foodiness.
Oh! PS — I don’t care how anti-​carb whatever diet, blah blah blah, you’re doing: you are missing a great bready pleasure if you do not try the amazing popovers. Just sayin.’

I went to NM with my mom this Holiday season as we needed a little nosh before spending ungodly amounts of money in the mall.
I opted for a mimosa (of course) and mom joined me. We started with the delicious puffy bread they serve with strawberry butter and chicken broth.
Truly what I always loved about this place when I was younger, before all the renovations, modern décor and green water glasses. It’s funny what you remember and what you do not.
We ordered the 5 star mushroom soup with truffle oil which was absolutely divine. It was a special and I don’t believe it’s on the actual menu. But if you come across it…
Then, we split the Asian Chicken Salad for lunch. They give you a spoon of this tasty red chili sauce for the chicken and the salad is already dressed. The crunch of cashews was a cool touch and made the salad unique. So fresh!
Enjoyed the NM Café, and I will be back!

Had a wonderful lunch there. Great service. Basically served a choice of salad and a roll. A little pricey but food was good and worth the visit.

A little over priced for what is really glamorous basement diner, but sometimes you really just want to be a ‘lady who lunches”, and this is the place to go for that! Ice Tea is served with an Ice Tea Spoon so it must be a classy place right!
The She Crab soup is excellent and worth the extra calorie or two you have to spend to eat it! You can just walk around the mall a few laps after lunch to take the extra calories off…
The Chicken Salad is a signature dish and if you are only going to eat her once that is the dish you should try.
The service is good, and since it is one of the few full service restaurants in Lenox Mall it can be a little crowded — especially on weekends, but overall a good meal.

NM café has always been one of the best kept secrets in Atlanta. Is it girly? — Yes. Do they only take AMEX or Neiman Marcus credit cards? — Yes. So get yourself a damn NM credit card! Is everything they serve perfect? — Yes. The tiny cup of broth at the beginning is an inspiration. The popovers are always sublime. And their grilled chicken sandwich is the best in town. Top all of this off with the fact that you can put it on your Neiman’s card, and it doesn’t feel like you’re actually paying for it!

Definitely not a men’s restaurant! My
Sister took me here and the menu was light.
The food was good and the service was too but just not made for men. Haha I’m leaving hungry…

Until recently I didn’t even realize that Neiman Marcus even had a café. I took the opportunity to try the place. Upon arrival I was promptly seated and a server came out a few moments later. He made sure I was properly situated and allowed me to take the time with my order while offering some recommendations. Based on the recommendations I had the Grilled Shrimp Salad along with a nice glass of Champagne. The shrimp was large, juicy and succulent, something I don’t always associate with large shrimp. Excellent choices that I highly recommend.
Everyone was very attentive but never made me feel rushed. I highly recommend this to anyone who wishes for a pleasant dining experience while shopping at Lenox Mall or, like I did, a special trip.

I’m a bit disappointed with my first visit to this café. The only positive thing about this café is that their «she crab» soup was better than I expected and their service was decent.
I rarely order «chicken or tuna salad» sandwiches but thought I’d give it a try here. Unfortunately, it was was so salty that I could barely finish my first half (of the sandwich.)
I really hate wasting food but I could not bring myself to take another bite of the chicken salad sandwich that I had ordered that day. Luckily, the soup was filling enough that my stomach was somewhat satisfied.
I should’ve checked the Unilocal reviews and ordered something else on the menu.

NM Café isn’t what it used to be. It used to be cozy and comfortable. Now the garish plastic dominated décor reminds me of a fast food joint. My friend and I managed to draw a forgetful waiter so our lunch went on a good 30 minuted longer than we expected.
For the prices here one might as well lunch at nearby Buckhead Diner or Houston’s. The salads are huge but uninteresting and the sandwiches are understuffed. The drinks are overpriced.
IMHO, NM Café needs new management and an overhaul of the décor and menu. Among the specials on the day we dined was a jerk chicken salad. It was blah! How about offering a menu which reflects something of Atlanta???

Eating at the Neiman Marcus café feels a lot like eating at an airport lounge with garishly dated décor and equally sky high prices. But is the food worth it? Enh.
I did love the impressively structural complimentary pop-​overs (5 stars!). You also get a complimenaty teacup of consommé. It’s so incredibly Southern that it’s kinda cute.
However, after 2 visits, I’m feeling pretty lukewarm on the food. I’ve had the she-​crab soup (good, reason being the cream probably), the shrimp salad (not bad but average), and some really horrific «healthy» salmon entrée (gross).
I looked enviously at people who had ordered burgers with tasty-​looking shoe string fries so you may have better luck with that choice. Not sure if I’ll find out personally.
Service is ok but just weird – not quite restaurant quality but trying to be restaurant quality? Lunch can get pretty packed and you could have a 10 – 15 wait. If you can, call ahead and reserve a table.

I like this place, been going for years. The new restaurant (renovated couple years ago?) is so much better than the old one. This one is open the other one felt like a cave. I go periodicaly when I’m hungry and already in the mall. It’s quiet and civilized lunching.
I love their chicken salad and popovers (ask for a hot one). The espresso size cup of broth they serve initially is OK if you have a sore throat. Otherwise it’s way too salty. Chicken salad w/​orange soufflé is my standard.
The service is adequate, nothing over the top. You can sit at the bar or a table. Oddly they serve wine and alcohol. Often on Saturdays they have models floating through with latest fashions.

It’s just okay. I ordered a salad but can’t really remember it. The food obviously isn’t memorable. I do remember thinking that I could have made it at home. It’s more fun to watch the rich old ladies with their diamonds than to actually eat. My boss treated me to a frozen hot chocolate drink the waiter kept talking about. That was alright but it was really expensive so whatever to that! I don’t even care enough to finnish this review.

I went here for a surrealistic lunch with a guy that I had met a few times and then decided to get to know him better (both for work reasons as well as just getting-​to-​know-​you-​better reasons).
He suggested this place, which I thought was odd, but agreed. He told me that the brioche («It’s an eggy-​like bread, Juan M. — you’ll enjoy it») was something special.
Now my curiosity was really piqued.
So I went.
We ate at the bar; he suggested we have drinks which (on a Tuesday afternoon) I politely declined as I am less effective in business mode when I am sloshed.
We then had a good (though it needed salt) split pea soup and then I had a turkey wrap. I had their special tea.
All in all, It was okay. I think I like the Nordstrom Café more.
This guy was just… odd. Nice guy — I don’t think I was being hit on for a variety of reasons — but weird.

I would offer a 2.5 but alas no half stars…
The food is pretty good… service is usually awful. I’ve eaten here about 8 times since the old restaurant became NM Café (maybe 2 years ago?).
I’d give the onion rings 5 stars — the burger 3 — the BLT (with no T for me) a 4 — the fries a 5 — the croque monsuier 3 — turkey sandwich 2
Their popovers (free) are super yum if they are fresh which is about 70% of the time… I’d pass on the strawberry butter that comes with them though.
House lemonade def worth a mention…
But don’t get me started on the service. OMG from seating to serving it is ALL awful. Takes way too long, often forgotten… Very much that way today… PLUS I had to send the avacado from my BLT (no T) back because 80% of it was BLACK. Eww.
It is enjoyable and would be even more so if they had real booze… beer & wine just don’t cut it for «drinking & shopping» excursions… man I miss TomTom.
And I will always now include a review as pertains to kidlets as my little nugget (3.5 yrs) is with us… My kid behaves better @ NM Café than anywhere else. Maybe it is because it is small and somewhat sterile? I dunno… they have a good kids selection and the popovers and butter and poncy drinks are pretty good distraction until food comes. She dug on her jelly sammie/​fries/​fruit… 3 stars there.

I have not eaten a full meal here yet, but I did stop in for a drink and a cookie today. The mint julep iced tea was wonderfully refreshing and the cookie was delicious. I’d say this is a much better option than the food court when you hit the mall. Just make sure you bring cash or an AMEX card to avoid a potentially embarassing situation. They don’t accept Visa or MC.