Grand Cru Wine Bar & Bistro

This has been a go-to of ours for small group dinners for a while. I have other friends who have complained about the service here, but we didn't experience that at all this last time - our waitress was really on top of things. I did notice the manager walking around a lot and tending to things, so maybe that's the difference now. The burger was fantastic, and the wine selection is superb. Love the fact that you can buy your own bottle on site!

The food and ambiance are consistently MARVELOUS. While the service was a tad slow, the restaurant was packed (and deservedly so), which explained the longer-than-expected absence of the waitstaff. As the hour grew late, and diners left, we received the usual excellent service, along with a complimentary dessert for the birthday lady. Thank you for a WONDERFUL celebration.

This is the third time I have had a business lunch at this restaurant, and never again! The service is consistently bad. Today, I ordered a Caesar salad with shrimp and my guest ordered the salmon salad with olive oil. I asked if they had romaine and the waiter said yes. Then he came back and said no. Then they forgot the shrimp and the olive oil. The coffee comes in a press, and they charge $3 each, and we had 5 presses so $15 for coffee. Then they charged me for the shrimp even though it comes with chicken, and did not give me a credit for the chicken. Ridiculous! We paid $56 for two small salads and coffee. Never again!!!

We are there for Thanksgiving. The food and service was great!

Tasty thanksgiving meal. Turkey was very tender and flavorful. Pumpkin cheesecake really tasted like pumpkin, not too sweet. Wine was reasonably priced, good selection. Want to return.

Had a wonderful Birthday celebration here with family. They saved a quiet spot so my Mom could hear and the food, cocktails and wine were were outstanding. Great service and delightful menu.

We went for a family get together of 4 people. Everything was delicious with the exception of the escargot, which was a bit salty. Highly recommend the lamb meatballs - divine!

The wait staff was great and very attentive. The ambiance was perfect and not too loud (easy to hear everyone). Also, there were several gluten-free (GF) options, which myself and my sister-in-law with celiacs enjoyed! All-in-all a fantastic experience!

Food was really good, cannot say enough about it!! Service was a bit slow, but would still highly recommend.

We were in town for our anniversary and this was within walking distance to our hotel. Glad we checked it out, everything from the cocktails to dessert was amazing. Melvin was our server and we have no complaints whatsoever in the service department. Everything was top notch! Highly recommend the cheese fondue and truffled deviled eggs for starters!

likely to go return, mores for bar and apps. across courtyard from our residence

The food was tasty, but I left with a bad taste for the place when I saw we were charged for a few pieces of bread - at a French restaurant?

Great environment, and noise level, for a business meeting.

Great wine selection. Waiters were very friendly when they came around, but service was slow and the portions were very small.

great location with decor so artistic you could spend your entire dinner talking about it. never mind the added bonus of having great food and a staff that is as personable as it is professional!

We had an awesome dinner. We ordered the red wine flight, the cheese board and I had the steak frites. Excellent meal and service.

Best restaurant in Ballston. Especially nice when the weather is warm to sit outside near the fountain.

Every small plate we had was excellent. Attentive service and comfortable setting. Thanks!

We were seated in a section with only one other table. The service was extremely slow. We ordered apps and our main course. The apps came and then plates came five minutes later after we asked twice. The soup one of the guests ordered never came. Our steaks were over cooked and the potato pie thing was burnt on the bottom. We had to walk out but as a courtesy paid for our wine and apps.

Our server Chris was less than attentive. We had to waive at him to get his attention several times. We ordered 2 starters, 2 salads and 1 entree to split and asked to have the starters first and receive the salads and entree together. Instead we got the starters and salads at the same time and after about half an hour had to ask Chris where our entree was. He said he thought was waiting for me to ask for it. Also there was a rather loud and boisterous group celebrating a birthday next to us that made the experience not as enjoyable as possible. They were drinking shots and carrying on. We were relieved when they finally left and continued to party at the bar.

Jocelyn was one of the best servers I have ever had. Sommelier, read the table, knowledgeable and friendly

We were staying at the Westin and walked into the Gr4and Cru for dinner. It has a wonderful neighborhood feel, with excellent food and service. The wine flights are a great feature on the menu.

I had a reservation, but they didn’t have a table ready. The hostess offered us a high top if we didn’t want to wait for the dining room, which we agreed to, but she must not have heard us because she then had us sit and wait. Like ten mins later she came back and said that she was sorry for the wait but if we wanted a high top, we could sit immediately. (...) we sajd that we had originally said we would do that, so she apologized and we were seated. It was another 10-15 mins for the server to come over. And it was a good 20 mins from when we started to ask for the check and when we got the check. Food was fine. Service was....not fine.

Steak frites was excellent, cooked as requested. The lunch special was reasonably priced. Service was courteous and friendly. Definitely a ‘must’ return for good foods.

Great food, excellent service, and good wine. Would definitely recommend

Always great.

Service, food, and wine selections were excellent. They have a wonderful menu and the staff worked to even get creative on our behalf. The concept of picking your wine from the many shelves surrounding the seating area is an interesting one. The only suggestion we would have for improvement would be to add some padding to the bench seating - we were able to move to a table with all chairs so we were very comfortable. We will definitely be back and will be recommending the restaurant to others.

Some friends and I went, and had great food, good wine in a non-rushed quiet environment. It’s not five starfine dining but very solid and A lot better than most similarly priced options. I wished I live closer, or I would go there frequently. I think it’s good for special occasions too

We had a really positive experience here. We shared a charcuterie plate, my husband had a burger, and I had a couple of small salad dishes. We each tried several kinds of wine, which we loved. Our waitress was knowledgeable and attentive. The reasons I gave less than 5 stars: the burger was quite charred, despite being ordered medium; the patio is so serene except the chairs make a *terrible* noise when dragged across the stone patio; it took us a while to get our check when we wanted to leave.

The outdoor patio really is beautiful and quiet (other than any time someone moves a chair) and the wine selection was fun to try. We will be back.

I have had the 'executive lunch" here in the past and this time, I met an out-of-town friend for dinner for my first time. It was a most pleasant experience. Sitting outside on one of this summer's few inviting days made it clear that having the entrance and patio in a courtyard rather than on the street is a definite plus.

Our server was full of excellent information and positive attitude. We split a delicate brussel sprout salad. I then went with the monkfish medallion and my companion had the steak filet. Both of us were positively impressed. We chose from the house wine list and I found my pinot grigio to be complex and refreshing. Finally, the chocolate desserts were a tad less amazing but more than serviceable.

We were able to sit for a long time and visit without feeling rushed. When dishes were cleared, we were asked if we were ready.
I look forward to returning.

Excellent food and wine, as always. Went twice in one week for two dinners with friends/colleagues. Lamb chops, lamb meatballs, artichoke dip, hummus, and chicken skewers delicious, as were the Brussels sprout salad and spinach salad. Wine flights are a nice way to taste a few and order a full glass of your favorite with your meal after. Desserts also very good. Weather outside was perfect both evenings—shaded courtyard so even in August, it was a nice temperature.

If you like salt this is the place for you!!! Service has really slipped in last few months. I won’t keep trying.

My wife and I were seated outside on a pleasant night. The food was amazing and was delivered to the table in a timely fashion so we never felt rushed or had to wait for the next course to arrive. Our server was knowledgeable and provided impeccable service without hovering over us. The restaurant includes a wine shop with a large selection of good wines which you can purchase and have served with your dinner. Will definitely be back.

Have to give it TWO stars because we had good experience there before with their regular menu. The Restaurant Week menu that we tried was poor, not a lot of choices and boring. The appetizers OK, but pretty simple and limited to 4, The monk fish main course was a bummer - the fish was OK, but just plain fish with not much "French" in it. The sides were plain bad - roasted vegetables barely edible and the "lobster infused pasta" looked like porridge and tasted even worse. Looked like the entire dinner was a line cooked product, just to "participate" in the Restaurant Week with not much thoughts for quality. The regular menu items we had last time was a lot better. The restaurant week $35 dinner was, in my opinion, not worth even half that price.

Fantastic food, everything was delicious! Plus the service was just as great. We were there for restaurant week so we got a great deal but will definitely be back again.

We were greeted and seated by Jocelene. What a lovely lady! We were there for restaurant week and it did not disappoint.
Jef was our server and was very attentive.
I had mussels first and then steak for my entree. The mussels could have been my whole meal as such a large portion. My mango dessert was to die for. It came with honey basil sorbet on mango custard with raspberries. WOW!
This was my first time at Grand Cru and I will be back.
Thanks for such an enjoyable evening.
Sandi

The food was undercooked and when I sent it back I was given french fries and no real apology... The server was very inexperienced.

We celebrated our mom’s birthday and found everything to be excellent as usual and better than before. The crab cakes and roast chicken were excellent and the desserts, including the standard creme brûlée trio were superb. If you’re in Ballston, Grand Cru is your best choice and you can even select your own wine from their wine cellar.

Wonderful casual restaurant with excellent food. Wine list is great and waiters know how to help.

We ate outside, as it was a nice evening. The outdoor seating is very nice in a large courtyard with a nice fountain. Waitress was excellent and the food was delicious.

Great perfect bourbon Manhattan, best we have had in several months. Sunday evening is a quiet time for the restaurant where many guests are from a nearby retirement community. Wait staff is top notch, attentive and helpful. Food is, as always, well prepared and tasty. Definitely a must stop. Only negative, they charge for bread. Why?