Grille 29

Very good food. The gumbo was a chef special– it needs to be permanently added to the menu. The steak 29 was amazing. The fish was very good. The deserts was succulent. We tried 3 of them. I loved the fact they pick a bottle of wine they usually sell by the bottle and uncork it and sell by the glass. Great service too.

Very average.
For the price, I was very disappointed in the Grille 29 experience.
First of all, the food was unremarkable. I had a filet that was the «house specialty». It came wrapped in under-​cooked bacon, and with way too much gorgonzola on top. The steak itself was very average… not good, not bad, just average. We had a small raspberry cheesecake for dessert, which tasted a lot like it came frozen from Publix.
Also, the service was not great. For the prices in the Grille 29 menu, I expected the service to be over the top. This was not the case. There was no one bussing tables. My salad plate sat on the table while I was eating my entrée. Again, if you’re going to charge 5-​star prices, it should come with 5-​star service.
Overall I was disappointed in my experience.

Terrible! The steak was overcooked, then was sent back and was dark red. Service was okay. Never again. Stay away

Went there on Feb12, was great. The service is super, & the food was amazing. Seriously ;)

Had dinner at Grille 29 last night. The place is an attractive location for a romantic dinner… really a beautiful building, especially the high glass ceiling and the aquarium in the center. The noise level was a bit high last night because of a large party at the bar, but this calmed down fairly soon after our arrival.
We started with a shrimp and pesto flatbread that had too much olive oil on it and was a bit messy to eat (the shrimp was falling off constantly… had to chase it around). The friseed green stuff on top of the flatbread was reportedly basil but was bland and tasted more like Italian parsley. The mozzarella was good. There was plenty of shrimp on board. Overall, a good but not great appetizer. The breadbasket served at the start contained only a loaf of sourdough… my wife’s least favorite. I liked it though.
I continued with the Grouper Oscar (one of the 100 dishes to eat in Alabama before you die). This was very good. No complaints here. The grouper was a thick cut, cooked perfectly (and moist), and there was plenty of lump crabmeat. The hollandaise sauce was a little heavy, but I enjoyed it. The wild rice it was served on was also nice. The small amount of underlying grilled asparagus was OK. My wife had the Tuscan Chicken (very large portion… three pieces of breaded chicken breast) served on a succotash that included corn, cherry tomatoes, and edamame instead of lima beans, (I believe), and garlic mashed potatoes. She really liked this entrée. I liked my taste of the succotash quite a bit.
We had a nice bottle of White Oak Chardonnay which was good and reasonably priced. The prices here were overall a nice surprise.
For dessert I had the white chocolate bread pudding… pretty average and unexciting (I still dream of the white chocolate bread pudding at the now-​defunct Prairie Fire Grille… still Bham’s best WCBP, IMO). The best WCBP in the world is in Macon at Natalia’s, though. Just in case you were looking… My wife had the chocolate soufflé’ which was nice but nothing to write home about.
Service was only OK. I filled our wine glasses every… single… time… after the initial pour. To be fair, though, the service was not terrible. I’ve experienced both better and worse in restaurants of this caliber.
So…no knockouts here, but the entrees were solid and the location is a nice place to dine. We’d definitely go back to try some of the other dishes.

We have been wanting to try this restaurant given the high praise of its sister restaurant in Huntsville. Unfortunately we were very disappointed. First know this the crowd on the night we were there, a Friday night, had an average age of 70 at best. It was almost strange. Now I am in my fifties but I honestly felt like a kid here.
My main issue is that this restaurant tries to come across as fine dining. The prices are on the higher end of Birmingham. However the menu has no creativity and the quality of the food does not justify the price. Wife and I both had the filet which literally had no flavor. It went with the vegetable sides we had of roasted asparagus and green beans. They literally had no flavor except oil. The asparagus were wilted and shriveled and waaay overcooked. The green beams were just greasy and bland. How about some salt guys. Did they not teach you that in cooking 101???
Bottom line is when many of your entrees are priced over $ 25 and some are over $ 30 you should have top quality food properly cooked and this restaurant had neither. But I will say apparently the seniors love it. Too many interesting restaurants these days in Birmingham to waste time and MONEY on a restaurant with food which is barely passable as edible.

I went for my birthday a few weeks ago. The food was good but the Firecracker shrimp were amazing. I can’t wait to go back to have it again.

My wife & I dined at this place in November, the service was great. We had a great waitress & the atmosphere was just right. We enjoyed our salad & entrees! We also enjoyed the interior of the restaurant & they have a nice patio with a great view of the stream that flows through mountain brook. It’s a great date night spot! We enjoyed everything about this place.

The appetizers we had were the Gorgonzola fondue and the grilled artichoke. The artichoke was good with a nice smokey flavor, but the fondue was too low on Gorgonzola flavor. The bread sticks for the fondue were also bland and rather cold. We had the Grouper Oscar and the potato crusted cod. They both had too much sauce and the sides on both were cold and bland. We got the lemon lava cake as well. It was bad. The outside was kind of warm, but the «lava» was cold and tasted like cheap doughnut filling. Overall the food was mediocre to bad. The service wasn’t great. Our waitress didn’t really know the answers to our questions about the food and would have to go back and check with the kitchen for each question. Most of the wait staff seemed confused, hurried, and not particularly friendly or well informed. We might give this place another chance, but only for appetizers and a seat at the bar.

Editing this because I’m more disappointed: I was contacted on here by one of their managers who told me she wanted to try and help me. I responded to her… No further answer. If you can’t be bothered to follow up with unhappy customers, maybe you shouldn’t be in the hospitality industry. Definitely do not recommend wasting money here.
Really underwhelming. Food was okay, but not worth the almost $ 60 bill — $ 3 for some brown water with a tiny bit of sugar called «sweet tea». Service was actually really great, which is the only reason this isn’t a 1 star review. Unless you wanna eat bland food and pay a fortune, I would suggest eating somewhere else.

Went on a Sunday night and was greeted by general manager and our hostess greeted us right away for our drink ordered. I ordered the beef short ribs and my wife got the grouper Oscar. Both the presentation and service was very good. Food was hot and ample portion. Will make another trip back. Their only shortfall was not bringing water to the table. We had to request.

I was pretty impressed with this place. The Mr. and I went in over Thanksgiving weekend and I was surprised that the place was not crowded at all. maybe because everyone was still full from all the turkey? The interior is quite large, including a good bar set-​up and patio seating. We sat the bar and experienced incredibly great service!
The vibe of the restaurant is pleasant, I would imagine it would feel more lively if the restaurant was crowded with people. The attire was all over the map as well — some men wearing sport coats, while others wearing more casual shirts. Same for women, some in dresses, others dressed more casually. The bar is offering lots of wine selection and a variety of mixed cocktails. We started with the truffle deviled eggs — I didn’t think they tasted of truffle, but husband enjoyed them. I chose the filet as my entrée; it was cooked perfectly and just delicious — I ate every last bite. My husband chose the Grouper Oscar and he loved it… its noted as «something to try before you die» on the menu. He loved it, the grouper was cooked perfectly and the hollandaise was delicious. Two solid entrée choices!
I think the price point on this place is fair for what you get, so I don’t know that we’d make this our regular «go-​to» place, but I definitely wouldn’t hesitate to return if we wanted to spend a little more on a meal.

Decided to try Grille 29 on a slow week night. I have always been impressed with this building and it’s beautiful ceiling inside. Then I am reminded of how terribly bad the acoustics are while dining. Sounds are so amplified, it is almost as if they are piping in voices and laughing to give you the impression the restaurant is packed when in reality it is almost empty.
We sat at the bar which is ample size and well appointed with a solid wine list. Plenty of bartender coverage for the 4 or so dining.
Nice looking dishes on the menu. We started with the Gorgonzola fondue, delicious but super filling. I then had the wedge salad. Just ok, frankly. The iceberg lettuce was bitter. My husband had the lobster bisque which he resoundingly dismissed as mediocre. I tasted it and thought the flavor was good. Finally the seared tuna for me and escargot for hubby. Tuna was very good, not anything to call home about, but good. Escargot was not good, not good! Final bill was around $ 70 with two glasses of wine and a mixed drink, fairly good value.
My recommendation is to give this place a try. I fear the location is perhaps jinxed or it is just the fact the building is simply not designed right for sound. But the place offers an original menu worthy of sustaining in a vigorous market where great restaurant choices abound.

Delicious food and EXCELLENT service! We ordered short ribs, filet mignon and chocolate lava cake. The steak was so tender that I cut it with my fork. Probably the best steak I’ve even eaten. Short ribs were wonderful and the lava cake was scrumptious. Nice clean restrooms and beautiful bar. A creek runs outside the restaurant beside the patio. I highly recommend this restaurant and will definitely be back soon.

Grouper Oscar was disappointing, along with the asparagus. Defiantly not worth the $ 31. Tuscan chicken was bland. Probably won’t be returning.

Everything was excellent from beginning to end (service, food, and service). My two girlfriends and I were torn between getting the shrimp and grits and the chicken and waffles… so 2 of us ordered the shrimp and grits and 2 of us ordered the chicken and waffles! No, your math is not off. Two of us split the chicken and waffles in addition to the shrimp and grits. We were not disappointed AT ALL!
Top off the great food with the mimosas and I am an instant fan! We will be back!

We went on a Monday and it wasn’t busy at all. There were a lot of servers just standing around. We went as a group of three people and shared everything we ordered. Upon entering the restaurant we were greeted promptly and seated right away. The server came instantly and took our drink orders. For appetizer we ordered the Lobster Quesadilla and it was absolutely delicious. For entrees we ordered Spicy Cajun Pasta and Grouper Oscar. The shrimp in the pasta was succulent and cooked just right. The pasta needed more seasoning and they were quick to correct that. The Grouper was great. The mash potatoes not too good. For dessert we ordered chocolate soufflé and that was absolutely delicious. We ordered that when we ordered our entrees as it takes 25 minutes to prep. The service was outstanding and the food was good. We’ll definitely go back and try a fee more things.

A great addition to the restaurant community in Birmingham! I will definitely be here ever week!!!

I’m all for new restaurants in Birmingham and this one is a great new addition. I’m so glad they did something with the old McCormick and Schmicks building.
It reminds me a lot of Seasons 52 even down to the wine glasses, but Alabama style with more gulf coast seafood.
The restaurant has a fun, copper infused interior with a large bar surrounded by a fish tank. They have a lot of great little touches layered throughout the restaurant playing on variations of the number 29.
We had a wonderful meal and great service, especially given it was their second night officially open. The food and wine was delicious and there is something for everyone. It’s definitely more of a splurge and indulgent type of place. The bread was right out of the oven and still steaming when it arrived on the table.
We sat inside, but they also have a fun patio space with heaters as well.
I’ll definitely be back for more at some point. It’s a great addition to Birmingham’s food scene.

I went to this restaurant for lunch on its hard opening day, October 6. I got there at 2:30 PM, and, it was so lacking in customers that I thought maybe it was not open. My server said I could have gotten in without a wait around noon.
I ordered one of their specialties, the Grouper Oscar. It took 30 minutes to arrive at the table. There were only 3 other tables with customers in the whole place.
It was worth the wait, though. The grouper was fresh and was blackened to a crispness on the edges. The accompanying hollandaise sauce was creamy and fresh with no egg smell. I thought the seasoning on the dish was perfect. It came with asparagus and a side of grits. I enjoyed the grits, although it had a few small lumps. The asparagus was grilled. When I use asparagus, I use smaller shoots. This had turned a bit fibrous. Still, it was a proper accompaniment with the hollandaise.
For lunch it is a really good value at $ 18.00 because just the fresh grouper would have cost $ 12.00 at a seafood market. Plus, this dish is hard to get together with everything ready and hot at the same time. It is labor intensive and time consuming for me. This is a good dish to eat at a restaurant. Now, the $ 31.00 for the same thing at dinner, I would have to think about.
The dish was more than enough food for lunch. I really liked the chef’s execution.
Lets give this place some business so we can keep it.