Reviews for Michael's Genuine in Shaker Heights, OH

Michael’s is one of mine and my husband’s favorite restaurants in town. We’ve been here +5 times and every time the food,... service, and atmosphere are outstanding. I would highly recommend this restaurant! Read more

It was our first time at Michael's on a Friday night. We got in easily via a reservation. It was a warm evening so the... garage-type doors were open to the night air. We skipped appetizers and went straight to dinner. I had the mushroom pizza and hehad a burger. He had a beer, I had red wine. Both dinners were okay, I declined my leftovers as I didn't feel they would keepwell. But I could see one person eating a whole pizza themselves as an entree. The ambience was great for Van Aken. Server wasa bit distracted and was not as attentive as we would have liked. The wine was very pricey. We will try again, maybe we justhit an off night. Read more

I’ve eaten here a lot. It has a high ceiling but a very low floor. The food, atmosphere, and drinks are great. But, several... times when I’ve been, especially during brunch, the restaurant has experienced severe operational difficulties. These includefailing to get food out at an acceptable time (1 hour), bringing the wrong food, not having a manager on duty, etc. It’s ashame because the food is good. And there are really not any other legitimate sit down competitors at the Van Akendistrict. Menu is a bit small too. Read more

Beautiful establishment and wonderful atmosphere! I would love for the menu to highlight that 'happy hour' prices are available... only at the bar. Many restaurants offer 'happy hour' regardless of there you sit. This was not specified in the menu nor bythe waiter, and there were no additional seats at the bar. Read more

4 stars overall and 5 stars for the drinks. We had 4 cocktails total and every one was excellent. Drinks were definitely the... highlight. Food was wonderfully cooked to perfection, but some flavors were muted, especially the polenta fries. Polenta frieslooked delicious but were missing even the most basic seasoning like some salt. There's a million herbs and spices that couldhave matched looks and flavor. The spicy ketchup was considered bland by my wife, who generally runs scared within 100' of a hotpepper. Falafel was much improved, and the potato chips were cooked well but could have used some salt. Focaccia bread wasgreat with the herb butter. The flavors of the focaccia completely contrast the polenta. Read more

Asked if I was interested in trying this place for fathers day. Checked out the menu and said yes. Arrived for a 10 am... reservation, the time they open, on time. We were promptly seated and asked about beverages. The server was very polite andbrought out coffee and took our orders very quickly. After finishing my coffee I waited patiently to catch a server, ourserver, to get a refill. The restaurant at this point was starting to fill up. The server finally appeared and while refillingcoffee he apologized for having to give newer employees a tutorial on using the espresso machine. (don't care, but can beunderstanding). It is now 10:30 - no food and coffee is empty again. A table served after us has already received their meals. Wave down a server for a refill. Food arrives by about 11:40. Frittata order was cold and my wife's pancake entree was burnedon one side. We alert the server and show him the burnt side and he asked if he could take a piece to show the chef. At thispoint, we are done. Get bill - nothing was removed and no mention of the burnt served food was made. This restaurant is what Iwould call middle to high-priced. Everything described should not have occurred. - DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY - STAY AWAY. Read more

first time coming and i experienced brunch. my waitress was very nice, she helped me to narrow down my food choices. i had a... cocktail and the orange juice is freshly squeezed which is great. i had the lump crab deviled eggs and sorry to say i wasn’timpressed, i don’t know if lump crab was mix in the egg mixture or what. i didn’t have a lump of crab in my mixture if it issupposed to have it mixed in. my duck hash was delicious and i was upset at myself because i forgot to tell my waiteress iwanted scrambled egg with cheese but she also didn’t ask me either. only reason i wasn’t upset really because my potatoeswere good and that is the key component in my meal plus brussel sprouts were oh sooooo good, it was like they were fried. i hadduck confit before so this my first time having duck served to me like this but it was good! i will come back to thisestablishment to try lunch and dinner. Read more

Finally a place close to home with really good food!!! We had the acorn squash appetizer- who knew squash could taste SO... good!!! Then the polenta fries - also yummy. We shared the truffle pizza - did I mention they have a pizza oven??? The winelist was nice. The restaurant is not big,, so it’s quiet enough to talk but also big enough to have an energy to it. Decor ismodern and upscale. Service was very good - the waiters are attentive without hovering. It was a nice night out! We will beback soon! Read more