Hour Time Restaurant

Hour Time is a long-​time icon in the Lafayette fine dining landscape. It’s the go-​to place for special occasions. It features a good wine list and house specialty cocktails. On this visit, my wife and I celebrated our 25^th anniversary. I had flowers delivered to the table beforehand and they were on the table when we were seated. The steaks we had were excellent, and my lobster tail was perhaps the best I’ve had in a long time. The service was above excellent, although it was a slow weekday. The server was very attentive and knowledgeable. The dining area has multiple levels. The concept is that it’s a clock tower, and seating is located in small, intimate levels going up into the tower. There are booths on the main floor near the entrance, but you really want a table upstairs if possible. We had a very nice, intimate dinner and although at a premium price, it’s not overpriced. Make sure you visit this local legend when you’re looking for fine dining in Lafayette.

I’ve read a bunch of the reviews that people posted about Hour Time and have to say that this was not my experience.
Yes, the décor is way outdated. It’s the same it’s been since they opened, since I started coming here back in high school in the 80s.
Yes, the breakfast may be bad… but what hotel buffet breakfast is amazing.
However, my friend and I had dinner there on Saturday night and it was great. We started with crab stuffed mushrooms. Delicious and plenty for two. We both loved the hawaiian dinner rolls that came to the table. Salads were more than ample, with crisp lettuce and plenty of dressing.
Her prime rib, veggies, and potato, she loved it. My filet, veggies and potato, also excellent. With hollandaise sauce to boot. We both requested and got a perfect medium-​rare cut of meat.
Our server was wonderfully kind and efficient without hovering.
We loved sitting up in the treehouse, next to the ficus that has seen better days.
So, it is true. If you are looking for a dining experience on par with something in Chicago or LA, this is not the place. But, if you walk in with an open mind ready to try a classic dinner, this may be the place.
Enjoy!

My daughter go down to the restaurant to get a peace of pound cake they say they do not sell just a slice so she come back up to the room and tells me this now keep in mind I have been here for a week and have spent a lot of money here so I call down and say something to them and the lady says she will take care of it at no charge so see went back down there and the lady charge her five dollars for it now dose this sound like a place you would recommend to someone I will not in my life every spend my money there again

This restaurant is not even to be considered subpar! The host/​hostess said from the start you can have a seat at the bar ! wtf? Who says that !!! The waitress when asked what was good said everything ! Hmmm ok I’ll go for the «Ryan’s cut filet» medium rare please ! Before filet came we had some bread (thawed from a microwave then heated) nasty ! Entrée came filet was cooked just like I asked but what was it that this overpriced cut of meat was lacking was seasoning ! Not even salt or pepper was used, was cooked on a grill and had charcoal taste to it so I had 2 – 3 bites and was done waitress asked need a box, told her no I’m fine ! As a waitress and you saw your customer only eat 3 bites max on a 30.00 piece of filet wouldn’t you ask if something was wrong ?? Nope she sure didn’t so I proceeded to ask what was on the dessert menu she then said the crime brûlée was good so I said lets go with that ! Burnt to a crisp on the top and had nothing but burnt flavor on the first bite so I didn’t eat anymore then that one bite ! You would think she would ask what’s wrong but did she ?? NOPE then when I get up and leave I tell her I’m not going to verbally tell you why there’s no tip but I will tell you to flip the receipt and read the paragraph I left as to why I didn’t leave a tip ! Stay away from this overpriced establishment

Went here for a family dinner, and was very disappointed. The food was bland and overpriced. Atmosphere is outdated. Service was good though. It’s one of those restaraunts that could never stay open if it weren’t in a Midwestern town where folks’ expectations are lower and sentimentality trumps quality.

Stayed at the hotel and only ate here because its free…
Pancakes were about the only item that was decent. Bacon is microwave bacon, hash browns are not good, all of our toast was burnt and eggs undercooked. Amazing this place is still open.

The place is like something out of a John Hughes 80’s movie. I seriously expected John Cusack to come out from behind some of the crazy décor. At least the booths were spacious and the waiter was very polite and friendly. He also called me «Miss,» and we 40+ gals appreciate that gesture. Down with «Ma’am.»

Should be called Hour Old Food. Stayed at the hotel. Breakfast at Hour Time was soggy hash browns, hour-​old scrambled eggs, and bad coffee. Fruit was ok. They were not busy and we waited 10 minutes for anyone to even come greet us at the host stand, mirroring the 20 minutes we waited for anyone to be at the front desk when we tried to check into our room. Service was not customer oriented, just a couple people sparsely «doing their jobs» to collect an income. Don’t waste your Hour, nor your tastebuds.

In all honesty the best part of this meal was that it was free.
Let me explain. I stayed at the hotel it is attached and this is their breakfast option. The bacon was cold and under cooked and the pancakes were mediocre at best. My grandmother who ordered her bacon crispy and her bread lightly toasted got burnt toast and cold soggy bacon.
But hey it was free…

This place is pretty cool! The food I had here was absolutely delicious. I got a BBQ burger that wasn’t too pricey, and had good customer service too! The owners of the restaurant have several historic pieces they’ve brought in from all over the world, which gives the restaurant a ton of charm. There’s even a tree growing in the middle of the restaurant! Very cool. It could use some updating inside as far as décor, chairs, and tables go, but other than that, I’m a definite fan! Good place to meet people and grab a bite to eat. Right off 65.

Hair in food. The place is outdated and doesn’t offer much of an experience. The menu items are fairly mediocre.

This is an older style restaurant — very comfortable and very quiet with private booths so you’re not looking at other diners. The lobster bisque, citrus salmon, stuffed mushrooms and chicken pot pie were all very good. The service was attentive and pleasant. Really nothing to complain about. Would return again when in that neck of the woods.

When you’re in Lafayette, Indiana, there aren’t a whole lot of good restaurants to choose from. Honestly, I doubt Hour Time would still be open if it were in a less rural location.
The food here was actually surprisingly decent. Their menu was extensive, with multiple different steak options and a variety of pastas, sandwiches, fish, and salads. Most entrees came with sides of baked potato, soup, or salad; and some came with a choice of two of the three. But this is where the good ends.
The décor at Hour Time is seriously outdated. From the tables to the napkins, you could tell that nothing had been updated since the 80s. There’s a live tree that reaches all the way up to the second floor, which is pretty cool. However, the rest of the restaurant reminded me of something you’d see on the Food Network’s Restaurant Impossible.
The menu had so many punctuation and spelling mistakes that it was difficult to read. Our waitress was very shy and awkward. She came over to our table way more times than necessary and even dropped a fork on me. Furthermore, the bill came to $ 50 for two people! To me, that’s just not acceptable at a restaurant that ranks well below places like Chili’s or Applebee’s.
If all you care about is food, Hour Time is a good option for food in the Lafayette area. However, if you’re looking for a restaurant that will also give you a nice experience and have a nice atmosphere, don’t go here.

Went here for a nice dinner but was not impressed. The décor is seriously outdated. Prime rib was pretty tasteless, which is sad because they charge so much for it. I don’t know what the hype is about this place, it is mediocre at best. For these prices we will have our «special occasion» dinners elsewhere.

Had great. Meal, copper river salmon with baked new potatoes & sauteed squash w, white wine. Great place to have a meal when in Lafayette IN.

My Husband & I went here for our Wedding Anniversary. When we made reservations they asked if it was for a special occasion. When we arrived they had a balloon at our table & a small cake for dessert. A very nice touch! The appetizer we ordered was delicious «Portabella Rockefeller» & the Lobster Bisque was amazing — a must have! My husband’s food was just okay. He ordered the «Beachcomber Seafood Platter». I had «Coquille St Jocaqu», a delectable concoction of cream sauce & seafood topped with creamy potatoes — YUM YUM! Very rich & creamy! A must have also! The restaurant has a retro 70’s feel atmosphere with an «older» clientele. Overall it was a very nice dining experience (especially if you know what dishes to order) with good service. A Lafayette Classic.

We stayed in the Best Western connected to Hour Time for four days and in that time my parents came here four times, twice for breakfast and twice for lunch. I accompanied them for one of each.
The set up and décor of the restaurant is cute, with multiple levels it makes it fun for families as well. I could not believe the prices they charged for dinner though, I would definitely have expected a more upscale décor for the base prices, but then again I lived in Los Angeles for about 8 years and there might be something in the whole appearance factor. Breakfast and lunch prices though were much more reasonable.
The quality of the food was fairly good and the service was friendly. I don’t think I would have deliberately gone there in any case but I had good dining there and we had a ten percent off coupon from the hotel during our stay.

One of the most vile places ive ever ate.
I really enjoy going to nicer dinners with my girlfriend, id say we probably go to one of Lafayettes finer restaurants once every other week.
We were over by Mountain Jacks, one of my favorite places here, and had just ate there about 3 days prior and so we opted to try this place.
The menu looked good, and surely at the prices they were charging it had to taste great, right? Well you couldnt be more wrong.
The bisque was ok, but as others have pointed out, it was very likely canned.
My soda was disgusting, it tasted like a knock off brand that had been in a 2 liter bottle and left open.
The bread at the table had been heated in the microwave and my butter tasted like fridge… I immediately stopped eating it.
I ordered the stuffed steak on recomendation from waitress, it was ‘her favorite’. I had considered the weekly special of duck but she said it wasnt that good. The only way I could really see the duck being worse than the steak would be that the duck was literally brought alive to my table with a fork and knife and I was told to eat it. My steak was supposed to be a sirloin stuffed with crab, and I ordered it medium. When it arrived it was charred black. It tasted like charcoal in my mouth at first, as that flavor dissipated I was left with the flavor of tough meat… almost like leather.
So I moved on to the filling… there wasnt much crab to it. In fact I think it was their crab cake mix but it had so much dill in it I felt as if I was drinking pickle brine. My ‘rice pilaf’ looked like uncle ben’s boil in a bag brown rice and tasted twice as bad. My asparagus would have been perfect had it been made weeks before, as it had clearly wilted, and I was giving it to a child as the stalks were hair thin.
My recommendation for this restaurant, close your doors. Clearly you lost whatever you had to be a restaurant years ago. This place would be better if it were razed to the ground and they put a stall there where you paid them 30 dollars ‘a plate’ to punch you in the face and take your money, at least then you wouldnt have to put that wretched food in your mouth.

This is probably one of the worst restaurants in Lafayette. I had been a few years back and decided to take my boyfriend for a nice dinner because we are both foodies.
First off the quality of the soda was so low. No carbonation and even after we complained it still tasted like 3 week old opened Coke.
Second came the bread which had obviously been heated up in a microwave because it was so damp. The butter looked appealing, but it had taken on the flavor of old stale fridge from being inside so long.
The salad was nothing special and the ranch tasted like kraft dressing, I like Kraft but not at an exorbitant price. The best part of this meal was my boyfriends lobster bisque, but it was 6 dollars more to get that than the soup of the day.
For my main course I tried the specialty: Coquilles St. Jacques and it was simply awful. My shrimp, scallops, and lobster were drowning in the most insane amount of salty cream sauce and the quality of the seafood was low.
My boyfriends was even worse. He got the crab stuffed sirloin which was actually stuffed with a mostly dill based crab cake. The meat was supposed to be medium, but was more well done and charred to death. The veggies that came with were lifeless and boring and the rice pilaf tasted like boil a bag brown rice.
Needless to say we weren’t happy and we are even less happy that this unfortunate meal cost $ 70. I wish I could rate 0 stars. This place is in desperate need of a makeover, it feels dirty and looks unclean. The wait staff did ask me if I wanted to change my meal, but I just couldn’t stomach even trying something that wasn’t their «specialty» so I said no. We barely ate our food and the waitress didn’t ask us if the food was bad, etc…
The ambiance was bad as well. The whole place needed a good deep cleaning. I would recommend this place try «Restaurant Impossible.»

I stop at this I-​65 exit all the time on road trips, and I always end up eating fast food, but Hour Time always intrigued me and I prefer to eat at non-​chain restaurants. I finally had the time to check it out this Sunday, and I’m glad I did. It was quite an experience.
It reminds me of the sort of place my parents would have taken me in the 70s, sort of a prototype for the Ground-​Round Tudor-​style Olde English kind of vibe. It’s HUGE, two stories with dozens of sections divided by brass and stained glass and mirrrors. It appears to be entirely designed to encompass a living tree in the middle of the restaurant that grows up into the skylights above the second floor. For some reason, I have never seen a building with more electrical outlets. It seems weird to bring that up, but they’re everywhere. If you need to stop and eat while your cell phone or laptop charges, this is the place, for sure.
At noon on a Sunday, there were about eight couples there, eating cottage cheese and fresh fruit, spread out around the vast restaurant, and we were the only people there under 70. Elderly men pored over postage stamps at a convention across the hall in the conference room. Weird British Invasion music filled the air («Windy», «Winchester Cathedral,» etc) Basically, look up the song «Winchester Cathedral» and you’ll understand the whole vibe of this place.
The place was staffed by bored high school kids, and service was spotty and sort of slow, but allright. The food was pretty decent, and not very expensive. I had a pot pie that seemed to be their specialty, it was really fantastic a big oval-​shaped pie with a flaky crust and lots of white meat. Nothing else was that exciting, but everything was good.
It doesn’t sound great, but we had a lot of fun there soaking in the weird atmosphere and it was certainly more exciting than the Dennys and Bob Evans across the street, both of which had long lines snaking out the doors. I’ll never know why people wait in line to eat at chain restaurants when a place like this is nearly empty. It picked up a bit as we were leaving. We missed breakfast but it looked good, and I bet dinner is pretty downright exciting there. It’s a safe bet they have prime rib, french onion soup, and shrimp cocktail, it’s *that* kind of place. They probably even have potato skins!