Meritage

It was a great experience. Food, service and ambiance were perfect.

My fiancé brought me here on a surprise date and we loved it! We had such a great, relaxing evening together. We haven’t been in Columbus long and had been looking for a nicer restaurant when he did some research and found Meritage. From the moment we walked in everyone there made us feel welcome. Our server was super sweet and attentive. The cornbread was so comforting with the lavender butter and our drinks were very tasty. We had the dirty martini and Bourbon 75 and both were great. My fiancé ordered the rack of lamb dinner and it was perfectly cooked. I had the ribeye and I loved the pink inside because too often ribeye is overcooked and then I have to think about sending it back. The owner Im guessing was so warm and friendly and came by to talk to each table to make sure we were having a good experience. Overall we were so happy we found this place here in Columbus for when we want special date nights.

I was in Columbus on business on 2 separate occasions. The first time I was tired of fried, heavy food. I Googled a higher end restaurant and ended up choosing Meritage. I was not disappointed. I had the tomato bisque to start. It was excellent. For my entrée I had the pasta primavera. I was craving pasta, and would not normally order this dish because it tends to be bland in most restaurants. Meritage was an exception; the primavera was delicious. The next time I was in town I was excited to return. I ordered the beet salad and duck. Once again, amazing. The prices are VERY reasonable for what you’re getting, the food is extraordinary, and Faye (the owner) is delightful and can point you in the right wine direction.

This review was from approximately 15 months ago, but Unilocal asked me to verify my email address yesterday, which is when the review got posted. I’m not sure what the cause of the delay was.
The owner has reached out to me for more information, clearly showing they care about each customer. She also mentioned adding more options to the menu and better training of the staff. We have moved away from Columbus but if we find ourselves in the area again, I will come back to check it out.

This was the most impressive restaurant we’ve had the pleasure of dining in a very long time. The food is creative and delicious with satisfying but appropriate portion sizes. The setting is relaxed and intimate. Our server was attentive and genuine. The owner took the time at each table to ask if we had questions and check on everyone. She explained the background of the restaurant name as well, which I thought made it all the more authentic to have such an extensive wine list. Pricing was incredibly fair for the amount of food and quality. We were just passing through but will definitely make a point to return if we are back in the area, and will highly recommend it to friends and family. So happy we found this place. Fyi my husband had the Korean duck sliders, I had scallops, and my son had pasta primavera with shrimp. All excellent. For that, side salads, and three desserts it was about 120 bucks.

Nope! Went there twice, and the overall opinion of this place is awful. Apparently they got a new Unilocal page when they moved. It’s the same garbage now as it was then.
The food was pretty good, had some off-​the-​wall flavors, mixing lobster with squash into a bisque. Novel idea but it was just odd and expensive. I had a salad & sandwich on my other visit, with the rest of my party getting like items. It’s like they tried to make the food so unique they ruined it. There were flavors all over the place, almost a cacophony, but the chicken in the sandwich was just too dry and the salad had more dark (heated) lettuce leaves than fresh ones.
The server was also the bartender, running around while the rest of the staff seemed to stand around. I was warned about the menu, that the chef didn’t do any substitutions. That’d be okay elsewhere, but this wasn’t exactly a Ruth’s Chris or Houston’s. If the rest of the servers weren’t so malaise, the bartender may have had time to keep the glasses full. Unfortunately for this place, we decided to give our the rest of our money to another establishment, and never returned.
Beware; they try really hard and do a great job sounding like fine-​dining. But Meritage misses the mark big-​time.

Ate here for lunch on a business meeting. We had to wait for a little while, but that was most likely because we had a large party rather than slow service. The food was defiantly worth the wait. Had a combo on the recommendation of Rebecca, our excellent waitress, of the house salad and the Botticelli sandwich. She also suggested a little side of the tomato soup to dip the sandwich in and that was a spot on recommendation. All in all a delicious lunch.

Everything was delicious! We started with the baked brie, next everyone ordered a salad (mine was the strawberry salad with goat cheese), and everybody loves their meal. I ate New Orleans shrimp over creamy grits. Menu was very expensive but that was expected going into it and it was well worth it. Waitress was very nice and understanding.

While I’ve enjoyed lunch and dinner at Meritage on many occasions, I’m primarily a lunch patron. I love the location in Uptown Columbus, and Faye and her staff are top-​notch. I’ve never ordered anything from the lunch menu that I didn’t like (and the tomato parmesan soup is out-​of-​this-​world good… and so are the homemade chips).
My only warning is that service is slow, so don’t expect to be in and out in under an hour. The restaurant is ideal for a large party, over lunch or dinner, and Meritage takes reservations. Just plan accordingly, especially if you’re on your lunch hour or have theatre tickets after dinner.

Very friendly staff, the manager/​owner came by and offered assistance in selecting a wine. Great ambiance, not crowded, worth every penny. Try the filet mignon!

Had a wonderful night there last night celebrating our anniversary. Faye was wonderful and helped us celebrate with a glass of champagne and made a great recommendation for a bottle of wine with our meals.
We started with the cheese plate which was very good and allowed us to take our time until the salad came. The beet salad was light and tasty and came split for both of us to enjoy.
The entrees (fillet and short ribs) were both cooked to perfection. Both were delicious and just the right size. It would have been nice to have some sort of vegetable with the short ribs but none was served. But the fillet had asparagus which we shared.
We tried the chocolate bread pudding for dessert. It was very good and would have been better had we gotten coffee (we were still drinking our wine).
We will definitely be coming back…

Great fine-​dining! Sad that the new location no longer has a tropical thunderstorm motif fully-​equipped with sound and lights for the men’s bathroom. How do I know this? Wouldn’t you like to know… ;)
But seriously, they moved downtown which in my opinion is the better location rather than being hidden behind Four Locos in Lakebottom. The ambiance is still just as nice and romantic. Faye is still the owner and always friendly and helpful.
The food is always great and the hubs and I were ecstatic to find out they had one bottle left of our favorite wine — a 2005 Cab/​Sangiovese blend that we always ordered when we lived in Columbus. We still have two unopened bottles at home, and are pleased to have got the last one here.
Me — I had the filet, which is always great and cooked perfectly, topped with blue cheese, bacon and caramelized onions. I started with the tomato bisque which was fantastic. And the bread was unbelievably amazing! It was some type of sweet bread served with lavender butter. We all loved it!
The hubs — He had the braised short ribs with stone ground grits. The hubs being a foodie and southern boy will testify and declare that they were the best grits ever, including beating out the Hominy Grill in Charleston, SC. The ribs were great as well.
Our buddy — We were out to dinner with a friend who we jokingly say orders off the kids menu. That’s how refined his palette is. But, we coaxed him away from the grilled cheese and he tried the duck and crab bisque. Both he was extremely pleased with.
Only suggestion: Make a reservation. It seems they might be understaffed or are very conservative when it comes to manning the kitchen and the restaurant. I think the more people they know to expect the more they can staff up in advance.

In Fort Benning for graduation and found this gem on Unilocal!A classy chic restaurant with a fantastic menu and delicious food! We had the fried shrimp to start, the steak and scallops for dinner and a gluten free chocolate cake to end. Would come back!

Terrible. Everything was over cooked and our meal was $ 100 for two people 1 drink each. Definitely not recommended.

We ordered the chefs choice plate $ 9 for appetizer which consists of 4 slices of pâté, fig jam & a basket of small round hard toasted bread (croutons) would have preferred warm fresh baugette & olive oil lightly toasted. Pâté was not special. (Tasted like cheap store bought pâté– like the crutons). I would like to see better appetizer options on the menu– very boring choices for a tapas & wine bar. Entrees we ordered the lamb & the duck– the duck is excellent! Lamb was good as well but the duck was superb! I will definitely be back for the entrees! Skip the apps! They have smaller portions of some of the entrees which could be ordered as an appetizer. For desert we ordered the bête noir– it was good. very rich, glad we shared it. The only negative would be the mash potatoes served with the meal. Mash potatoes for these prices? Y’all can do better than that can’t you?

My boyfriend and I made a reservation and came here on a Friday night. Cathy was our server for the night and we enjoyed her service very much. She answered all of our questions about the menu and the wine selections. They also offered us a sample taste to make sure our wine pairing match our entrees.
We had the duck ($ 28) & filet mignon ($ 32?) for dinner. They both came with a side of creamy mashed potatoes and asparagus. My boyfriend and I both order our meat medium rare and it was cooked to perfection. so juicy!
Before the entrée we ordered the crab en croute to share. it was fairly small, but was worth the price since they offer complimentary bread rolls. For dessert, we had the crème brûlée (coffee flavored).I did expect it to be a bit more filling but I couldn’t really complain since I was already stuffed from all of the food.
the atmosphere is casual dressy (I found that a dressy top, dark denim and heels/​flats worked well for the ladies & a button down with khakis for the gents) and quiet. Definitely known for their awesome wine selection! Can’t wait to return :)

Ate here both at their old and new location in Uptown. The wine and cocktail list here is extensive and the best part about the experience. The food is ok if not a smaller portion for the cost. On our most recent visit, one of our party had an underdone piece of fish, but the soups du jour, meat entrees, and vegetarian dish prepared for my mother in law we’re great. I hope they perfect and expand their fish entrée selection to capitalize on the whole in the market left by the previous occupant of their current location.

Went to celebrate our wedding anniversary on one of the first nights in the new «uptown» location. We were very impressed. Ordered the Crab en Crut (?) appetizer. It was great. We both ordered the dinner filet mignon. Easily could have cut it with the fork.
Wonderful. Great atmosphere, service, and location. We went for the food, not the booze, and we weren’t disappointed.

We came with 9 people — one hungry and cranky diabetic who’s sugars where getting very low and a soldier who needs to get his butt back to base before his drill sergeant made him pay the price for being late.
Beverages were excellent. Two individuals ordered Tom Collins’, and a couple more ordered wine. The Tom Collins’ were divine — very well made with excellent ingredients. It turns out the owner was the bartender!
The chef is the owner’s daughter and is extremely talented. If you can handle the fact that the menu changes due to food availability and that the menu is small, you’ll enjoy your meal. You can tell the ingredients are fresh by the quality of the food.
Two people raved about the risotto but I could do without it. It’s just individual taste/​preference. It was just too rich for me!
When our soldier is back at Ft. Benning and we want a nice family dinner, we’ll be sure to come back to Meritage.
Southern Hospitality was at its best there!!!

Lunch, dinner, and now Saturday brunch are all a treat.
Incredible sandwiches and wraps at lunch. All sides are good, but you will crave the homemade chips once you’ve had them.
The only thing that rivals the filet mignon might be the shrimp and grits. Both are amazing. If you think you’re hungry you can tackle the surf & turf Wellington. You won’t finish it, but you’ll have fun trying. A big filet covered in lobster claws and crab meat, enclosed in a puff pastry, soaked in crab bisque. Wow!
Owner and chef are very hands on. Wonderful atmosphere. Great service.