The West End Grill

Pretty cool place!  Kind and informative servers.  Unique menu items. Pretty solid food.  Would recommend.

Don't get me wrong. There is lots to love about the West End Grill. It's small, the service is attentive without being overly pushy, and the ambience is casual and friendly. I have had stellar meals there before, but this particular experience with friends left out one key component: the food.

For starters, we had small salads or the French onion soup. Normally french onion soup is heavy on the cheese, as it should be. But our friend's bowl was filled with croutons the size of Miami. This dish would have been better served with a fork. A bit overdone. The salad with lemon-basil dressing was good, the greens fresh.

Entrees are scribed on a chalk board, and our waiter Kevin did a great job making them all sound tasty. I was tempted by the filet with Maytag blue cheese, but ultimately went for the Sable fish, as recommended by our friends, who had liked it there before. Our table also tried the scallops, the short rib and the salmon.

My sable came from the kitchen as a small filet, very flat, not unlike a slab of perch. It was cooked so thoroughly that it had the consistency of mashed potatoes. There was no texture to the fish, although the flavor was indeed buttery, as this is a high-fat content fish. Our friend's plate of sable, in contrast, had a firm consistency to it, and looked quite a bit different. Served over a seaweed salad that gave this dish most of its texture. I normally don't send food back to the kitchen, so I suffered through this one politely. I should've sent it back.

My wife's scallops were a bit underdone in the center. Scallops when overcooked can be horrendous, but undercooking them is just as much of a sin. I tested a bit of one. Yep. Just a little too pink on the inside. Edible, but inexcusable for a restaurant of this caliber.

That said, the restaurant continues to be a favorite spot of ours, for its casual atmosphere and convivial service.

I can't believe this place is still in business! The décor is so 1980's and the staff obviously hate their jobs. We were seated at our table on which there was a small chalkboard with the appetizers (10) and entrees (10).  At first it seemed charming and we waited for something in print that described the selections. This was not the case. The waitress came to our table and spent 10 minutes to read every appetizer and every entrée with the most annoying voice.  I couldn't believe it!  God forbid I ask her to repeat an item.  

I asked what starch came with the entrées and the response was always "rice pilaf " which looked at tasted like it came off of a steam table - very tacky. None of our meals were good especially not for the price.

1/2 way through our meal the waiter told us that the 10:00 reservation had cancelled so we could stay at our table as long as we wanted. What kind of place is this?

I ate here once before 2.5 years ago when I was recruited by the University. At the time, I thought the food was OK and the décor terrible. It's even worse.

Don't waste your time and money here. There are several other restaurants in the vicinity with much better ambience, service and food.

This place is a gem.   We have been here a couple times over the years and were back in April for a little celebration of sorts.   I can't think of a better place for a special occasion dinner in Ann Arbor.  

I have a thing for restaurants that just buzz.  I have a thing for excellent service, a good wine list, and outstanding food.  I like to be able to take my time and really enjoy my food.   Yep, West End Grill has all of these and more.

I usually get some form of a steak and I've never been disappointed.  They do this "winter" version of a Caprese salad that I could eat forever.  It is amazing.   Appetizers, desserts, all exceptionally yummy.

It is Ann Arbor, so you need to park and walk.  We usually use the garage on Ann and Ashley.  Who doesn't love walking around Ann Arbor, though?  I do recommend reservations.  We've had one every time we've been here and the restaurant is usually full.

Overpriced, not wheelchair accessible, soup over cooked and over spiced, entree undercooked, tired decor, loud, service friendly but slow

Food was ok, but not great
Decor was pretty dated
Service was outstanding...we were a big group with an automatic gratuity, and she was still outstanding, which is rare in those circumstances

Ultimately, service was the only element that met the expectations created by $35-45 entrees.  Menu was a little monotonous, ingredients weren't top grade (wilty greens, not fresh shrimp/prawns, strange bits of lobster in the stuffed filet), and some dishes were a little ambitious--miso-glazed grouper was really more like teryaki sauce.  Turtle dessert was clearly microwaved and probably was purchased from GFS or something, too.

Love this place! Every time we come here it's been amazing! We usually order: the crab cakes, artichoke, mussels, short ribs, lamb, mushroom gnocchi, and sea bass. All excellent!!

Fabulous! Amazing! Pure perfection! Roland and his team are great! I have NEVER had a bad meal or experience here.

We have tried virtually all of the Ann Arbor restaurants numerous times, however this one we have missed, for one reason or another.  Our experience was very good, but I would not put it at the top in Ann Arbor.  

The food was completely excellent, however the menu is rather plain and traditional, nothing too contemporary, which would be a nice addition.  We had 4 people total at our table, and favorites were the tuna appetizer, and sea bass entree.  Only complaint was from the Halibut entree, which we all agreed was rather dry.  

I personally ordered a specialty cocktail, the same I order everywhere, and of course there are variations, but here it was virtually undrinkable.  It did not really resemble what it was supposed to be.

Service was excellent, atmosphere was just okay.  I was glad we tried it, but would definitely select Pacific Rim or Logan over West End Grill.

Superb dining experience. We usually go for my birthday and have never been disappointed. Great selection of appetizers and entrées. This time we started with the shrimp wrapped in Applewood smoked bacon.  I had the sea bass and Honey had the scallops with coconut risotto.  The host always makes you feel welcome and our waiter Mike was very charming.  Found a sweet little Fume Blanc to complement our dinner.  Complimentary dessert was an excellent Key lime pie. We could go back every night and enjoy something different as there are so many great choices.