Billy’s Place at McDonough’s

we are new to savannah — this place is like an episode of the twilight zone. We were expecting more…
the wine list –terrible selection, poured 2 different glasses that had been open way to long — waitress brought a glass from down stair, that was nice for house wine at a karaōke bar.
Pianist was more of a dueling piano style, not jazz as advertises. Some patrons sat around piano and tried to carry the karaōke theme from down stair, very strange.
Food, don’t eat here –overcooked, overpriced, flavorless, very basis.
We actually stopped downstairs for a togo drink and talked to people at the bar (including the bartender) who advised against going upstairs.
Overall, this place has good bones and potential, but needs someone who knows fine dining to go in and sort it out. wouldn’t recommend.

I had a meal here. The server and another person attempted something different. After arriving we sat for 15 minutes, then when we asked about getting beverages were told that yes they were planning to come around, which they did 10 minutes later we then were able to ask for the drink menu, which arrived 10 minutes later, but for 4 people we got 1 menu, the waitress returned 10 minutes later for this order. We asked if we could order our dinner and because we were in a group they were only doing appetizers at this time, my group reluctantly ordered one because we were starving. We received our drinks, one beverage was walked over at a time, drank them, the same appetizer we ordered was also ordered by my 20 – 22 children at the table next to us, before us and somehow they didn’t get theirs till 15 minutes after we did, but in a To Go box??? How Odd? Finally she came for our orders… An hour later the people in our group of 25 started receiving food one menu item at a time, 1^st the casserole, then the crab cakes, then some others, then steaks, pork chops, and finally the dry duck. Each menu selection was served 10 – 15 minutes after the other. We each got to watch each individual at our table eat their meal separately while it was some what hot for them. We were allowed to leave 3 hours later. We could not wait the time it could possibly take to get dessert. What is very sad is the Groom for this dinner was the last entrée served and he and his bride to be should of been the 1^st.

Every other place was full and the menu looked promising, so we went up the elevator and into the dining room. It was maybe 20% full. That should have been our first clue.
«Can I get a mint julep?» ‘Of course you can!” Then it turns out they don’t have any mint. So I order a specialty cocktail. I did not ask for a virgin version, but it mght as well have been. Weak and watery.
Bread and salad were not too bad but the wine by the glass was from a bottle that had been open too long. Sour. Then came the entrees: lobster ravioli.
One poisonous bite and I reached for my wallet. I was going to throw a fistful of 20’s on the table, more than enuf to cover the bill, and bolt out the door. Only to realize we would have to deal with the elevator and hostess.
So we made up a story about our travelling companions just calling us to report that they had been in a horrendous accident and were on the way to the hospital. So we’d need to leave immediately. They said we could come back the next nite and they would comp us a dinner. No way I’d ever go back.

I feel bad giving this bad of a review, as I did get to meet the owner, who was very nice. That being said, I wish he would take a stroll upstairs and see what kind of service his staff is providing on a nightly basis.
This restaurant had the most spectacularly terrible waitstaff of any restaurant I visited in Georgia. Not to mention almost anywhere. Scatter-​brained, forgot most of the orders, would bring plates to half of our party and then simply never return with the rest of them (we saw one waitress ten minutes later having a leisurely chat in the corner while those of us who had our food sat and waited while it got cold.) Had to place post-​it notes on our plates to try to remember who ordered what (why not just ask???). When we’d attempt to flag someone down to remind them that they’d completely forgotten to finish delivering the food, they would immediately get an attitude and snap back something about us «just having to be patient» and them «being a little busy». It was literally unbelievable how this waitstaff acted! Yikes!
The food we had was alright. Their seafood casserole was very tasty. The lobster ravioli was okay. Not very memorable. I would have enjoyed my martini more if I didn’t have to wait thirty-​five minutes for it to be delivered. Regardless, nothing on the menu would ever inspire me to return to this restaurant and spend my hard-​earned money watch the menagerie of this barely-​trained staff. Hopefully the owner reads this and can provide some intensive training.

The crab cakes were great! More lump crab meat then anywhere else in town. The service was excellent.

Have been to Billy’s Place numerous times and the food was good, but now the good is SPECTACULAR! Their new chef is amazing and the food is incredible. Couple that with Mike Sweat and Nancy Witt at the keyboards along with their band and you have the ideal place for dinner, drinks and an evening of fun! Love the décor, love the service, love the food!

The food was awful their selections were awful. I had their water which was overpriced for sparkling water. Suspected ALL their foods are GMOs. Everything about this place and it’s mothers are horrible. I was truly not impressed and it was loud and obnoxious!

Did not get to enjoy the awesome menu since we had already had dinner but went for after dinner drinks. This place is so special! So hospitable and so elegant! Love love love it and will return for dinner next time we are in Savannah. Our neighbors are going to savannah this weekend and we are sending them to Billy’s!

Love the new menu and the atmosphere. If you get a chance try the crab cakes they are amazing. Great jazz on the weekends.

Okay Unilocal!ers, I ventured from the silent Unilocal!er side of life to the active reviewer because Billy’s Place has a new chef… yes, I’ve reviewed hundreds of Unilocal!Reviews and I’ve used Unilocal!to find some great places to eat at. So, at this moment, I feel compelled to give back to those who have given me some wonderful advice and here it is…
Get to Billy’s place. The new menu is amazing! Gone are the half attempts at Tapas and menu items that don’t fit the cozy atmosphere… the entrees that were gained are out if this world excellent.
I’ve tried two thus far… the New Zealand lamb chops and the seafood casserole… both were cooked to perfection. Chef Mike is a humble man from New England and he will not skimp on the lobster in his casserole.
As for the service? …this is Savannah people. Everyone is courteous and caring so let them know if you have a problem, they will fix it.
The entertainment is live from Wed thru Sat… BUT the real treat is late on Friday night when Kim Polote (who headlines the Ruth Chris lounge on Fridays) performs her encore at Billy’s Place. Last Friday she did a duet and the best rendition of Etta Hames’ At Last that I’ve ever heard.
Billy himself is here at the far end of the bar nightly… just look for the guy who looks like the one in the picture to the left of the piano.
It’s the perfect casual place when you want to be fancy…
Enjoy and don’t be shy about telling Billy himself about your experience… he’s never met a stranger.

We went up to Billy’s Place on a Tuesday night for dinner. In fact, we made reservations and they called us an hour before to make sure we were still coming. When we arrived, it was pretty obvious why — there was only one other couple in the place. It came highly recommended by the locals as a place to have great tapas. Unfortunately, tapas nights are Wednesday through Saturday, something we weren’t made aware of. Thus, we received a regular menu of sandwiches, some entrees and salads.
The good: The bar/​restaurant is really nice — lots of wood and a very sharp looking bar. The service was excellent. We had an older waitress and she was wonderful and on the ball.
The bad: The food. My dining partner ordered fried shrimp. You’d think this would be hard to screw up but you’d be wrong. No coating or breading on the shrimp, just plain, small shrimp stuck in a fryer until forever. They came out with a nice looking real baked potato (not cooked in a microwave). However, they tasted like shrimp jerky. I just had a salad which was iceburg lettuce, a tomato and some carrot shreds. My dining partner left about 12 shrimp. When the waitress asked about the meal and saw there was something wrong, we were honest and told her they were overdone. She apologized and said she’d take money off our bill (they were $ 18.00-in retrospect, a travesty). When we got the bill she had removed $ 1.90 off the check. She should have just sent them back and refused to eat them. Lesson learned, so all wasn’t a total loss.

Food was ok. Service was wonderful, but the kitchen is EXTREMELY slow. Won’t bother going back, too many other wonderful restaurants in Savannah.

Nice bar atmosphere with live smooth pop/​jazz entertainment. Kind of place to enjoy an evening with a special friend and enjoy a conversation or not as the mood takes you. Note this bar is offically call «Billy’s Place at McDonough’s» and is upstairs from McDonough’s bar. The downstairs bar is a more of a sports bar.

They were having an off night when it comes to service, but they were appropriately professional about it, and gave us 50% off. The atmosphere was business casual, slightly romantic. Nice piano player/​singer in the room that wasn’t too loud to talk over/​around which really added to the experience. The food was very tasty, lots of flavor. Dissapointed that they don’t advertise that this is a tapas restaurant… or they just have terribly small entrees. Im pretty confident the dishes would fall into the tapas category. Not the best attempt at tuna. The beef, salads, sliders, and southwest egg rolls were very tasty.