Bistro La Bon

The brunch lives up to the hype. The french toast is the best Ive ever had, and the buffet items were delicious. The buffet had a good mix of breakfast, lunch and dessert items. Chic atmosphere, friendly and attentive servers, and did I mention the french toast? I had multiple servings. Well worth the very reasonable $ 22 each. Cant wait to go back.

First time trying, Service adequate & friendly.
Mussels sauce amazing… Made up for the 4 – 5 empty shells and very small but tender mussels.
Misto Frito– good breading, sauce to salty (maybe the olives) and quickly turned to mushy food in the sauce.
Jamon & truffle grilled cheese had a great crunchy (non greasy) bread. But was lacking jamon flavor, it comes from the the thinly sliced shank. They need to add another slice to the sandwich.
Everything was good, but the mussels sauce was the bomb diggity! 2 best I’ve ever had!
Can’t wait to try the Sunday Brunch! I’m sure the quality of food will be good for a buffet.

This is seriously my favorite Sunday Brunch in the Queen City. The buffet has literally everything and there are many made-​to-​order items included like eggs, sausage, bacon, French toast and the amazingly delicious chocolate waffles. The mimosas are $ 3 and a good balance of champagne and oj. Despite large crowds, the service is good and the flow is great.

I am pleasantly surprised by the brunch menu at Bistro La Bön. I have been to a few other places with a similar brunch concept, but most places have been a disappointment. This place was unlike any other.
Try the beef brisket, cheese grits, and farmers cheese from the buffet and the Egg Benedict from the waiter/​waitress. The house cured salmon was great too.
I think Bistro La Bön could do a better job on their assortment of pastries, the few pastries that they had tasted great though.
I will be going back!

I wish I could give this place 5 stars but I cannot. I have been a customer for years and have eaten here for Sunday brunch as well as dinner. The vibe here is very cool, the staff, mainly attractive men in their 20’s are all dressed in all black, the lighting is very dim and the décor is very chic with a coffee house style couch seating and table in the center for waiting.
Back in the day the chef and the owner would come to your table to ask how things were, this has not happened for some time. This used to be my regular Sunday brunch place, however, after trying to make reservations online several times and seeing them full, I experimented by changing the number in my party, trying different Sundays, over a month out to no avail. I called and was told they no longer take reservations for Sunday brunch. Well, I will no longer dine here for Sunday brunch. This place is PACKED! There are many large groups and if you are sitting near one, it is like trying to have a conversation in a night club. Without a reservation, you have an hour or so to wait. Even with a reservation, I always had to wait 15 minutes. They serve breakfast on Saturday and will take reservations then, but the buffet is not served, only items off the menu.
I always took out of town guests here and they enjoyed it. Reservation frustration aside, the quality has gone down significantly. My family members who come once or twice a year noticed it also and asked me to find another place for brunch. I guess this is what happens when the word about a hidden gem reaches the masses.
For Sunday brunch they bring scrambled eggs, bacon, and french toast for the table to share. The last two times I was there I had to ask for the Belgium chocolate waffles, apparently they are not just brought to you anymore unless you request them. They are very rich and almost like a dessert item so if you have 4 people it is not necessary to ask for 4 of these. For a table of 4, we had one slice of french toast, a half of one small waffle, 4 slices of bacon and a couple tablespoons of eggs. The portions have shrunk, as previously they really would give you enough for 4 people, for example 4 slices of french toast. Speaking of the french toast the the french toast is the BEST ever! At least that has not changed. But they have hardly any syrup on them so you need to ask for more. I think this could be part of the problem, having to ask for all these things at what is almost a buffet, slows things down causing significant delays for a table. The buffet is wonderful, delicious pastries, Swedish meatballs, potatoes Au gratin, grits, fruit, brisket, a variable selection of items. These are mostly lunch items since the breakfast items are served at the table.
Dinner here is fairly expensive. A great place to try for restaurant week. The conversation is not as loud here as during brunch but for some reason they were playing this loud music which made it difficult to talk. The menu changes so it is hard to comment on entrees but the desserts have been pretty consistent. I highly recommend the flourless chocolate cake which is sinfully rich and the bread pudding which is made from the same to-​die-​for bread that they use on their french toast. Parking has become increasingly difficult in one of those horrible zig zag parking lots, but at least there are places to park unlike Zada Janes across the street.

So we don’t get to Charlotte often, and I asked a few friends what they would recommend as a restaurant there, since we were going to IKEA and wanted to have something nice before heading home. I looked around on Unilocal as well, and found that there was one place that everyone seemed to agree was good. We found the place, a little off the beaten track in an area that seems to be undergoing some, gentrification, let’s say. In a grocery store parking lot next to a 5 Guys burgers. Once inside, this place immediately transported us to Paris. A rustic chic, comfortable and quiet, with little nooks for the individual sections. Our waiter, Trip (he asked that we mention him by name, and I’m more than willing to do so, because he rocked ;)) seated us by the window, and immediately made us feel comfortable and welcome. We decided to make the best of the menu and worked our way through the small plates, sharing each one. We started off with what would turn out to be the best plate of the evening, a warm and delightful Frito Misto, with a combination of perfectly deep fried calamari and shrimp, tossed in a savoury tapenade of nicoise olives, tomatoes and banana peppers, simply heavenly. We continued on our culinary journey with a wonderful bite of Lavender Chicken, then on to the Seared Scallops. Delightful, the hazelnut crumb was the perfect bit of texture for the sweet bits of seafood. The next item on the seafood side of this was the Shrimp and Chorizo. I don’t like chorizo, well, I didn’t like chorizo. What I was expecting, when I ordered it more to please my spouse, who enjoys the spicy, greasy stuff, was exactly that. What I got instead, was delicately sliced and just enough to send a spicy flair through the creamy sauce that provided the base for beautifully prepared shrimp. Melt in the mouth. as Manu would say. (You’d have to be a fan of Aussie TV to get that one) By the time the Pan Seared Gnocchi arrived, I was already getting a bit full to appreciate the rather heavy dish, but the flavours were spot on, and the hubby certainly dug in. The only dish that I regret ordering, was the Butternut Squash Lasagna, it lacked salt and the love in preparation that was evident in the rest of the savoury dishes. Now, we couldn’t very well leave without dessert, so we chose what our waiter, the ever attentive and knowledgeable Trip, suggested, the Brioche Bourbon Bread Pudding. Bread pudding, in my experience is often the result of leftovers from last week’s table bread. Bread pudding in this instance, was light, creamy and a joy to taste, the homemade vanilla ice cream (complete with little black flecks of vanilla bean) the bourbon soaked raisins, and ooooh yes, that completely heavenly caramel sauce, liftingt to heights never before reached by the simple bread pudding.
So, all in all, a big high 5 and thumbs up to both Bistro La Bön, and the awesome Trip! We’ll be back the next time we want to spend money at IKEA.soon.yup ;)

Really great small plate options and delicious food. On the heavy side, but so worth it!
We had the saffron rice (superb! And favorite of the night), the octopus (not chewy at all and had a great sauce), the gnocchi (really delicious although heavy but I couldn’t stop eating!), beer tartare (light and nice to have some veggies), and the mussels (had a slight corn reduction but was very good. It’s also accompanied with bread so you can have more of that sauce).
I highly recommend this place! Right next to Yama!

This is easily the best food in Plaza Midwood. I’ve always been a fan of the brunch, best in the neighborhood since we lost Lulu’s, but I wasn’t sold on dinner here until this past weekend. The food here has always been excellent (please bring back the steak tartare!) but I couldn’t understand the hype about the mussels. The sauce was great but I thought the mussels were pretty meh. But my mind has changed. I decided to give them another go and I’m glad that I did because they were delicious. As was the fried avocado, goat cheese stuffed peppadew peppers, kale salad (a star!) and the brie brûlée (always a favorite). The mussels are more than enough for one person.
Im sure everyone had as least heard of the brunch here if they haven’t been before. The items on the buffets are well sustained and things that are usually a bad idea on a buffet, i. e bacon, french toast, eggs, are all made to order. Keep in mind this is brUNCH, NOT breakfast, so don’t be surprised like one reviewer to find (gasp!) lunch items on there. The brisket is awesome and so are the swedish meatballs (don’t forget the lingonberry jam and cucumbers), and of course the in house made mozzarella.
As for the service aspect, there is a waiter guy here that is a bit off, but everyone else is great. Need a drink? Try the cucumber gimlet. Delish. Unlike a lot of the other restaurants in the neighborhood this is actually a great place to go with friends that you actually would like to talk to and HEAR what they are saying on a weekend.

I’ve been here three times and I cannot complain. The cocktails are really good and the brunch is top notch in Charlotte.
Finally had a chance to go for dinner and the presentation and staff service and timeliness was definitely spot on. Simply put this is a good place to hang out have a good meal with friends and not feel overwhelmed or like somebody’s pushing you out the door.
Definitely will be back

So after reading many stellar reviews about the Bistro La Bön brunch, my husband and I decided to check it out this past Sunday. Unfortunately, we didn’t seem to get the hype on this occasion.
Bistro La Bön is located in a shopping center in Plaza Midwood. It’s the corner spot and easily visible from the street. Ample parking since the place is in a strip small. Fairly small inside but I loved that they had couches in order to make the wake a bit comfier. The décor inside was very cute! I also liked the outdoor seating that they had.
We arrived around noon on Sunday and were quoted a 45 minute wait. Grabbed a mimosa and took a seat on one of the comfy couches! $ 3 Mimosas for the win! After about an hour and fifteen, we were finally seated. Totally don’t mind waiting at restaurants… though, patience is definitely one of my personal weaknesses. However, I totally appreciate when places over estimate the wait, so then I get excited when it is under time. Going 30 minutes over the quoted time when I was hunger games level of hungry was not the best start.
Anyways, our waiter came and explained that the buffet contains many items and that we could also order more. We ordered the eggs, bacon, french toast, and the chocolate waffle and then hit the buffet. The buffet contained a large assortment of items from fruit to pastries to potatoes to brisket. I would probably have to say that my favorite item was the biscuits and gravy or the briskett. My least favorite was the jalapeño mac n cheese (I love love mac n cheese and the strong jalapeño flavor was just not my cup of tea!). As for the food that came to the table, the french toast was the winner. As in, we definitely ordered a second order of the french toast! The bacon was overly greasy and not that great. The chocolate waffles were pretty good though to make up for the bacon.
While everything we ate was tasty, I just don’t think I can justify the $ 22 buffet charge (fairly steep in comparison to other Charlotte brunch spots) when nothing that we ate was absolutely amazing. Service was not great (I believe we saw our waiter like 3 times, if that), a long wait for a table, and good (not great) food, made me land at a solid 3 stars for this experience. With all this being said, I do want to check out Bistro La Bön for dinner!

Meh. I don’t see what the hype is. Maybe that’s just me but there were only a few things that stood out to me.
Located in Plaza Midwood– Good
Restaurant décor/​atmosphere — Excellent! I wanted to take pictures and stick them on my Pinterest board!
Mimosas– Great! Only $ 3…I can’t believe I only had two.
The bad:
I am going to keep this short and to the point. The restaurant itself has great potential, but paying $ 22 for poorly selected buffet food was irritating. My eggs Benedict (that you order from the server) was Luke warm and dry, the buffet had lunch food and was less appealing, and the service was slow. I hate buffets. We were there celebrating a birthday so I tried to keep my complaints to myself.
We paid $ 80 for brunch that wasn’t worth it. I can’t believe anyone wanting to drop that kind of money for that. Probably won’t be back. :-(

First timer — Went for a group brunch on a Saturday at noon. The Bloody Mary’s were amazing! Nice kick from the NC mix! And, the eggs Benedict were probably the best I’ve ever had. Can’t wait to go back for their buffet!

Such a shame! The food was delicious but the experience was terrible. Our friends made reservations during restaurant week. The reservations were for 9:00pm and we were sat over 40 minutes after arriving on time for the reservation. Nothing bothers me more than a restaurant not honoring a reservation. I made a commitment to show up on time and I rearranged my schedule so that a table is open when I arrive.
The signs were there and we should have left. The men in the group went to retrieve drinks for us while we waited and those drinks didn’t show up until after we were seated almost a half hour after they were ordered at the bar.
Management quickly apologized for the delay for both our «reserved» table and drinks and putting the first round of drinks on the house would have gone a long way to ease our frustration since we had been at the restaurant for well over an hour and had just gotten our water. But alas after the quick apology we never saw the manager again. The drinks were only so-​so.
The food, when it came, was actually delicious. The tomato bisque was flavorful. The octopus was a touch overdone but the ratatouille it was served with was on point. The steak came with a wonderful demi glaze and the pear was an interesting compliment to the dish. My truffle cake was a small portion which was appropriate considering how rich it was.
Considering they kept the $ 30 restaurant week pricing it is a good deal. Unfortunately by the time our main courses came out (about 11:30pm) I think our whole table was too tired to enjoy it. I doubt we will try them again.

Again a wonderful dining experience at Bistro La Bön, still my favorite Charlotte Restaurant Week spot! Our server, Crystal, was awesome! Very friendly and knowledgable. The only real issue here was the wait time, we waited about 30 extra minutes on top of our reservation time to be seated. Eh, it’s CRW and they were crazy busy, understandable and either way we had nowhere to be. I pretty much stuck to our choices from last year.
Drinks:
Bistro Mule: very refreshing! I loved it! Was a little pricey though, $ 12.
Appetizer:
Beet Salad: was even better than last time! They added pistachios, gave it the crunch it needed.
Tomato Soup: So creamy and flavorful! Everything you are looking for in a tomato soup.
2^nd course:
Prince Edward’s Island Mussels: STILL THE BEST MUSSELS IN CHARLOTTE! YOU MUST TRY THIS! The creamy saffron broth is amazing!!! I was a little sad to see they had reduced the amount of mussels given. Looks like I’ll be returning for a full plate on my own time.
Brie Brulee: Who doesn’t love warm cheese?! It was a little spicy compared to last time.
Entrée:
Mushroom Gnocchi: Soft and scrumptious, again. Best, most fresh gnocchi I’ve every had. The sauce oh so good.
Lavendar Chicken with Curry Sauce: another hit! The chicken was suculant on the inside yet perfectly crunchy on the outside. The all white meat was a plus. The curry sauce was a great compliment to the chicken, surprisingly light for a curry sauce yet gave the earthy, spice the dish required.
Dessert:
2xBread Pudding with Ice Cream: caramel sauce was a tad bit burnt but I get it, its easy to burn caramel, especially during a CRW setting. The bread pudding was extremely dense, but tasty. This will have you waddling back home if you aren’t already in food coma.
Still, my favorite Restaurant Week spot! Love it! No one else does a full, tasty 4 course meal for $ 30 a head.

Bistro la Bön is nothing short of amazing. We finally tried them during Charlotte Restaurant Week, and my first thought upon leaving was, «What took us so long to try this place?!»
We had their kale and beet salads to start. Both were very good. Next, each of us had the octopus. That dish was absolutely outstanding. It was both spicy and slightly sweet – served with ratatouille and a creamy sauce (sour cream based?) – and was unbelievably tender. I’d return to BLB just for THAT dish.
For our entrees, I had the scallops, and my husband had the filet, each a $ 6 upcharge. Mine had four scallops, served with tiny croutons, hazelnuts, sliced fingerling potatoes, and a delicious sauce that tasted mushroom-​based. They were cooked perfectly, and just fantastic. My husband’s filet was also cooked to perfection, served with mashed potatoes and a little gravy.
For dessert I had the brioche bread pudding with vanilla ice cream, and my husband had the maple ice cream. This was the finest bread pudding I’ve ever had — so light and delicious, sitting on top of caramel sauce. As big as the serving was, I cleaned my plate (sharing just a few bites with my hubby).
Definitely try their cocktails. My husband had the Mule, made with their homemade ginger syrup, and I had the Hemingway. Both were amazing.
Our server, Crystal, was friendly and helpful. As busy as they were, our dishes were delivered with perfect efficiency. They were well-​prepared for the crowd, and handled it flawlessly.
I haven’t been this excited about a meal in a long time. This is a MUST visit for locals and travelers alike. We can’t wait to return!

Forget about the brunch menu — everyone is getting the buffet! They provide a wide choice of fruit, meat and pastries. And yes — unlimited chocolate waffle, French toast, bacon, scramble egg and Benedict… Be prepare to wait for a table though — we went on the now day but most of the time you need to wait for a while and they don’t take reservation.

Brioche Banana bread, get it. Seriously, best dessert I’ve tried.
Ambiance is great for a romantic date. Cheese options are great for dessert or appetizers. I’ll def recommend :)

this quirky little restaurant in Plaza Midwood is a great brunch option when with a group or if you’d like a very random hodge-​podge of food items served together.
I’ve only been here for brunch but both times the experiences were similar: an unlikely assortment of items on the brunch buffet and bottomless portions of scrambled eggs, benedict, French toast and bacon fresh from the kitchen which you will need to order through your server.
Don’t get me wrong, the buffet, although haphazard, is quite delicious. It included salad, bread, cheese assortments, undercooked potatoes au gratin, cheesy grits, Swedish meatballs (my favorite item on the line), biscuits with gravy, brisket (which we think was really pot roast), kielbasa, and an assortment of little cakes and desserts.
The Macaroon cookies and Swedish meatballs alone are worth trying this place out.
Our waiter told us they pride themselves on being farm to table and sourcing local ingredients. The food was good but perhaps a little pricey. It was $ 52 for 2 of us drinking tea and ordering the buffet only.
I will say the service was top notch.

Sometimes you just want to grab lunch with a girlfriend — sometimes you find a gem, sometimes a dud. Bistro La Bön was a bit of each. It was dead empty on a weekday afternoon, not a good sign. Our waitress seemed to want to rush us or leave us alone. Kind of awkward. But! The food and the prices made up for the odd service. My friend had a flatbread which was described as a sandwich. If you order the pita with tomato and mozz — you’re getting a flatbread and it’ll have avocado. I picked the rosemary chicken and I wish I’d known it would be thigh. The flavors were good, I really liked the roasted veg and the mushroom gravy. I subbed fries for mashed potatoes. I didn’t eat much of the chicken because I’m not a dark meat fan.
Each of our plates were $ 10. I’d come here again because the food was good!

What a fantastic place to enjoy dinner with friends. Two friends and I went to Bistro La Bön to have some dinner and enjoy each other’s company. The strip mall where the restaurant is located just opened a healthy food market which has caused a parking disaster! It doesn’t help that there is a CVS and tons of other great dinning options within feet of Bistro La Bön. Once parking happened, we went inside. The dimly lit atmosphere provided the perfect mood for enjoying a cozy afternoon. However, I found myself using the flashlight feature on my iPhone to read the menu. The gentlemen at the table across from us did the exact same thing!
The small plates arrived and were made to perfection. They are perfect for the not-​so-​hungry people. The mushroom gnocchi is PHENOMENAL! To wash it down, we enjoyed a mixed drink that tasted like a pineapple upside down cake (NOM NOM).
For the main course, I enjoyed the scallops. Not only were they free of grit and fishy flavor, they were not over cooked! The flavors were like an explosion in my mouth. Wow! I WILL be having those again. For dessert, I enjoyed the bread pudding. There are no words to express my love for this sweet dessert. You must try it.
The waitress was very attentive and made sure our glasses were never empty. I appreciate that!
Bön appetite.