Chez Philippe

We came to Memphis to experience the Peabody hotel. Chez Phillipe was fantastic. First the atmosphere was serene and elegant. Evan, the waiter was kind, professional and ‘on the ball’. The food was fantastic, b in its pacing, presentation and taste. The pheasant was perfect. The filet was exquisite, as was the French onion soup and lobster potato. A memorable experience. Thanks to Evan for making it fun.

Good restaurant overall. The place is kind of cramped but it wasn’t a huge problem. The selection is not too bad either. Check the hours of operation before planning a visit because they aren’t that normal. Can’t remember exactly what I had but I believe it was a duck dish. It was so so for the amount you pay.

Regarding the main dining room and dinner–
Excellent. Food is wonderful, server is knowledgable but not pushy… very pleasant. Atmosphere is great… very quiet and relaxing. Dinner can easily be 90 – 120 minutes as they will not rush you at all.
My wife and I really enjoy going there and getting away. You can sit there and really talk and reflect privately. The presentation, service, and cuisine is simply top notch.

This review is specifically for Chez Phillipe’s «Peabody Afternoon Tea.»
At some point in your Memphis life, I implore you to take a load off to point your pinky high in the air and sip tea like a civilized Southerner.
Chez Philippe has a traditional English afternoon tea between 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m., Wednesdays through Saturdays.
You get a three-​course menu that begins with your choice of tea. The choices are two pages long. I got the Green Tea: Organic Dancing Leaves. The tea is followed by tiny tea sandwiches. Those options include chicken salad in croissants, prosciutto, salmon and cucumber/​tomato sandwiches.
The staff then brings out warm scones with butter and jelly, followed by a wide range of desserts.
These are all finger-​sized foods, minus the scones. I suggest you don’t eat any carbs before this debaucherous deliciousness.
I went with a group of 20 girls, but you can go with your favorite pal or a couple of friends.
It’s $ 30 without champagne, $ 40 with champagne and $ 24 for children, plus tax.
One cool perk is you can validate your valet ticket for free.
To reserve seats, call the main hotel number (901−529−4000).
Happy sipping!

I know this statement is going to be off-​putting to some people, but here’s the deal with Chez Philippe at dinner– if you have experienced very high end restaurants in other cities, you will not be impressed at all. If fine dining is a rare treat, you will likely enjoy Chez Philippe.
Food and service were very good but in my opinion below par for a $ 100 per person meal. There were small details in service that were missed– such as water glasses sitting unfilled for too long, dishes not cleared quite as quickly as they should be, waiters very unfamiliar with the wine they were serving, etc. We ordered from the standard 3-​course menu, and all of the food was good… but there just wasn’t anything super special. Lobster bisque was delicious– but not any more so than most prime steakhouses in town. Filet was very good but the dish was served lukewarm when it should have been hot. Desserts were excellent, but I believe you can get many of the same desserts in the hotel lobby. Wine pairings are a decent value, but given the size of the restaurant and low table turnover, it seemed like a couple of the bottles had been open for more than a day.
The experience is, overall, a high end one and does feel special and romantic if that’s what you’re going for. Foodies just won’t find anything remarkable here.

As I walked through the grand lobby of the Peabody, I was taken aback by the splendor. Once inside Chez Philippe, I knew I was in for a treat, as usual. They definitely pay attention to the details of setting a beautiful table. They also understand service at its highest level.
High tea is quite the production of three courses with multiple teas to choose from as well as champagne. First up is a savory course, served on silver tiered tray. You have one of each nibble for the number of people in your party. Next up is a scone with Devonshire cream and jam. Yesterday’s version was blueberry, still warm from the oven. Finally, another three tiered silver server appears with the dessert course. We were so full that most of that went home with us.
Dinner is equally splendid. Service is impeccable and the food is always divine. Well worth the trip downtown. A nice lagniappe is that valet parking is comped. You just need to remember to get your ticket stamped.

This is a WONDERFUL restaurant and a true dining experience. Definitely get dressed up because it is a nice place. The food was outstanding — we had the Seabass and lamb. You won’t regret the food and service here!

The Peabody is legend. Chez Philippe is wonderful. It suits a special occasion so very well. The service is great. Everyone there wants you to enjoy everything about their restaurant.

First, this restaurant is small but yet exquisite and beautiful. I felt like I stepped back in time when opulence and tradition were highly regarded. The staff is very knowledgable and their service is well coordinated. In regards to their food, beautifully presented and was flavorful and delicious. However, the only reason why I gave them three stars is because their food wasn’t hot … hot as in temperature wise.
The food was luke warm. I expected my food to be pipping hot … straight off the stove hot.

If I could give this wonderful place 10 stars I would. I am going to try very hard to keep this as unbiased as possible, but it is going to be very difficult.
My now wife and I were lucky enough to have Chez Philippe as the restaurant were we had our first official first date. (I know, I may have set the bar high but I thought what the heck) As a retired Enlisted Soldier I have never had the opportunity or funds to be able to experience this nice of a restaurant. It was time.
The restaurant was very nice and everyone we encountered treated us as if we were the most important customers there. Our head waiter, Patrick, was absolutely perfect for us. I politely explained to him that I may need a little help as I had never been in such a nice establishment and wanted to make sure I displayed all the proper etiquette, he was very helpful. We were lucky enough that on our return visit Patrick was our waiter again.
The food was wonderful, all of it cooked and seasoned to perfection. All plates and the desert were beautiful. The food and ambiance were perfect for such a nice evening. Even though my now wife and I had known each other and been best friends for over 30 years, this was our first official date and it could not have been better.
Thank you Chez Philippe for two perfect evenings, we will be back.

First time trying this place. Thanks to Unilocal,I found this gem. I took my now fiancée there for dinner, and I was not disappointed. The food was great. Service was great. Atmosphere was out of this world. How can you go wrong with the Peabody anyway? Even had chauffeur service from the parking garage to the Peabody itself. I rate this place 5 stars. It is a little pricey, but well worth it! A++++++

I have been told that you should drink tea for these 7 reasons:
1. It has antioxidants
2. Zero calories
3. It speeds up your metabolism
4. It calms you
5. Great for your skin
6. Boosts your immune system
7. It helps you sleep
Plus, I love tea. Throw a dash of old school romance and pretentious grandeur (you know I LOVE that stuff) and you get High Tea. And what better place to have High Tea than Chez Philippe? Hint: There isn’t a better place because Chez Philippe is the only place in Memphis that is truly regal.
The restaurant is seriously stunning and I love that it is in the historic Peabody Hotel. This is the only spot in Memphis where you can feel fancy or get a hint of the good old days when people actually dressed up and gave a **** about how they looked and acted in public.
But I’ll get off my soap box now. Their high tea is a lovely experience (three courses with a champagne option) and your mom would love it if you took her there.
And the dinner. Oh, honey, the dinner. It. is. special. Seriously special. Feel free to wear your tux gents, and ladies? Break out those furs and diamonds.

My wife and I are both Memphis natives and had never eaten at Chez Philippe. That is now rectified. For the most part what’s kept me from going is having to get dressed all fancy (I don’t like to wear pants if I’m not at work). Turns out a collared shirt is all that is required, but I could have worn my tuxedo and not felt out of place.
We had the five course dinner. 2 appetizers, 2 entrees, 1 dessert. Each. Oh, and wine paired with it.
The dining room is beautiful and service very attentive.
The only negative thing about the entire service was I asked for my wife’s 5 courses to have 1 entrée and 2 deserts. The server shot me down. Didn’t even ask. Argued with me that it wasn’t designed that way. OK. I’m spending $ 400 on dinner, if I want all five of them bitches to be dessert, you say YES, SIR!
As soon as the first appetizer came out, I was over the service lapse.
All of the dishes were thoughtfully prepared. They were beautiful and complex when they needed to be without being pretentious. Some of the dishes had many ingredients, but not so much the flavors were confusing or muddled. Everything on the plate had a purpose in the flavor, not just the aesthetics.
At the end of the meal the manager came by and bought us a glass (or three) or champagne when he found out it was our wedding anniversary. A class act.
If you’re looking to have a fancy-​ass dinner and aren’t worried about the price, this is your spot. There’s better food in Memphis, but probably not a better food experience.

Chez Philippe has the best food I’ve experienced in Memphis. It also has fantastic service and the perfect quiet atmosphere for going out on a date or to celebrate a special occasion.
We had the seven course tasting menu and each plate they brought was fantastic. The wait staff was super attentive (but not interruptive) and professional (but not uptight).
Given the quality of the experience, the menu prices are also super reasonable.

This is a review for Afternoon Tea & Duck March:
If you’re new in town, Peabody Afternoon Tea is something that should not be missed. It has been a long tradition here in the famous hotel. Tea time reservation starts at 1pm and goes until 3:15pm in restaurant Chez Philippe. And afterwards, you can hang around the lobby to see the duck march at 5pm, then take the elevator up to the S (roof) floor to enjoy additional cocktails (not free), the view, and to see the duck palace. Note, people start arriving around 4pm for the duck march.
Once you’re seated, you choose your choice of water (extra charge for specialty water of course), 1 type of tea of your choice, champagne or no champagne and the course starts. The courses are listed at $ 30 for no champagne and $ 40 with champagne. Additional glass of champagne is $ 10 each. Also, there was a kid’s tea course price listed as well.
I chose the raspberry quince tea (a recommendation from a previous reviewer) and my date chose the darjeeling tea. My tea had a beautiful rose color, complex, with a variety of fruitiness without the tang you get from most herbal fruit teas, a southern classic. Darjeeling had more astringent, tannic characteristics that carried on a musky spice vibe.
They bring you a beautiful tier of tea sandwiches. Chicken salad in mini croissant, smoked salmon on pumpernickel, crab salad on toast, tomato & cucumber, and prosciutto & melon. Then perhaps a refill of your tea kettle followed by a warm scone with soft whipped butter & strawberry jam. Then the course finishes off with another beautiful tier of mini pastries consisting of strawberry shortcake, white chocolate in dark chocolate cup, hazelnut mousse on a crisp, berry tart, and peach preserve in puff pastry.
The whole experience was well worth the money and the service was exceptional. All the china is from Villeroy & Boch and they were quite charming. Definitely recommend it to everybody who is visiting Memphis! It was a very pleasant experience and a nice way to spend the afternoon.
If I had to comment on one thing, I hope they invest in fresh new table linens. The fabric definitely has aged over the years and it’s quite noticeable to the guest.

I don’t think I have enough nice things to say about Chez Philippe. I have been here several times for afternoon tea with the girlfriend, and also came here for downtown dining week. Every time we have been here, the service has been beyond friendly and attentive, the ambiance is simply gorgeous, and the tea and food is absolutely delicious. I am personally an avid fan of the Raspberry Quince tea, simply… amazing. The tea sandwiches, scones, and desserts are simply out of this world as well. This is probably the best value tea you’ll find in the area. Note that I’m not saying least expensive, but best value; you cannot beat the intimate environment and superior service and product and a relatively reasonable price. This is great for a group of friends, a date, or to bring family!
And if it’s Downtown Dining Week and you’re looking for a place to go, look no further than here; you get amazing service (other places are hit and miss) and it’ll likely be the best meal you get during the week.
I personally look forward to the occasion that I can come here to enjoy one of their seven course dinners; I can only imagine what a wonderful experience that is! Chez Philippe is highly recommended!

My first visit during Downtown Dining Week this year will be my last. To summarize: crummy service from top to bottom with the exception of the woman who served our bread and replaced the fun duck shaped butter.
When a person from our table spoke with management she was called a liar, «Oh, I find that very hard to believe.» which is management speak for ‘Yeah, whatever liar. What’s your angle? ‘. She was also told that on an average night CP turns over about 30 tables but just the night before they turned over 100. Not… our…problem. Your restaurant participated in DDW so any belly aching falls on deaf ears, mec.
I *had* some small sympathy for our server, Matthew… or was it Patrick? His name tag said Patrick but both he and the bread server said Mathew. At any rate, I had some small sympathy for Matt-​rick as I imagined he must have been exhausted. It’s not really an excuse but if the table turning excuse from the manager was true I could only imagine how tiring… until I saw him chat and laugh and linger at a table just over my left shoulder.
In closing, feck off Chez Phillipe. I have eaten and will continue to eat Downtown just not at Chez Phillipe.

Review is for tea and 3 course dinner.
My boyfirend and I went for afternoon tea and had the most delightful time. Matt was our server and he was very attentitive and was kind enought to answer our many questions and indulge us as we requested pictures to enjoy the experience. I won’t go into too many details as others have reviewed the experience but tea is served in three courses of savories, scones and sweets. For me it is enough to skip lunch but still want a dinner, for the bf he was not full when we skipped lucn hfor tea. With my aunt coming to town to visit me grandmother I recommend tea as a family afternoon event and again Matt was our server and treated us well, the entire family enjoyed the experience.
Since tea had peaked our interest in dinner but we’re not the type to spend $ 175 per person on a meal we decided to go during downtown dining week. Wow, what a night! The room was dimly lit and had candels on each table — there was enough lighting to see across the room but was dim enough to create a romantic tone, soft music was playing but I cannot recall specifically what typle of classical. Matt placed us in his section and was wonderful to us. Since we asked, he did share a few things as to how the DDW experience was different from the traditional dinner. Typically, they do not turn over a table during the night, you are the only one to sit there for the evening — no rushing. The 7 course meal takes 3 hours! For DDW we were still there for and hour and a half. Also, they typically only have 20 people a night, so don’t be alarmed when you go and there are not a lot of people there. Not only was the food an amazing price but the wine list was deeply discounted — we were also told if the cork was pulled out slightly we could buy wine to take home — they must use DDW to clear our wine invetory as the seasons change. Our bottle was $ 19 and is ually $ 65 (retails for $ 25). It was very good, an excellent recomendation by Matt. Were we brought out amuse bouche (an appitizer served complimentary to prepare the guest for the meal and give a glimpse into the chef’s culinary approach — so basically the food version of taking a sip of wine to try it before it it served) and then placed our orders. I had the salad which had a very light but sweet vinagrette and the bf had the soup, he let me try a few spoonfuls and it was wonderful. For dinner I got a seafood croquette and he got te entrecôte (steak) both were very good — we each like the other one’s better but still liked what we had ordered. For dessert was a espresso opera cake and ice cream — yum! I also ordered coffee with was served in a silver french press and came with rock candy as the sugar — the french press had two cups worth so it is desigend for sharing. With our check came two muffins to take home and enjoy the next morning, a sweet touch. we could have used valet parking but did not, our self parking was validated — which was good for 2 hours of parking time.
At no point in time did I ever feel treated like a 2^nd class diner or that I was given subpar food altohugh I understand that fancier ingredients are used during regular dinner. The expereince was a great showcase as to what the dining expererience is a Chez Philippe and was enough to convince me this is worthy of visiting for a special ocassion.
For the regular menu a couple could get the 3 course meal and spend $ 207 with tax and tip, no wine or $ 452 for the 7 course menu with wine parings including tax and tip — quite the range of expereinces.

I was looking for a nice weekend activity to end my summer’s stay in Memphis. My two girlfriends and I booked a 1:30 reservation for afternoon tea. I’d been to the Peabody before, and even into the atrium where the ducks swim in the central fountain, but I hadn’t noticed Chez Philippe’s inconspicuous entrance before.
Once you enter, you’re submerged in absolute elegance. The low ceiling in the front room and chandeliers make it a cozy dining experience. The tableware is polished and set perfectly. The chairs are cushy and velvety. The maitre d’ and the rest of the wait staff were impeccable. They were jovial and never let a water glass or tea cup run low. Our server was kind enough to show me around the upper level of the restaurant, where a mural is painted on all 4 walls depicting the family of the man who established Chez Philippe in a semi-​French portrait style. His descriptions of the mural’s meanings were highly entertaining.
I ordered the blackberry sage tea, at our server’s suggestion. It was fantastic! Our first course consisted of traditional tea sandwiches — cucumber and tomato, prosciutto and melon, salmon, chicken salad croissant. Everyone at the table agreed that the chicken salad croissant was the stand-​out by far. The second course was a cinnamon apricot scone with devonshire cream and cranberry jam. The third course was a helping of tiny desserts — so many that we couldn’t finish them all. There were strawberry cream puffs, carrot cake, cheesecake, and my personal favorite, the mango purée in a chocolate cup.
If you’re in town and looking for something special, book the afternoon tea here!

My wife and I come from the school that says if you’re going to spend $ 400 on dinner for two, then the restaurant either deserves five stars, or you’re a fool. Call us fools.
If the room per se were the sole criteria for review, it would earn 5 stars. Two massive «Corinthian Plus» columns dominate the center of the room and bookend the stairs which lead from lower to upper level. Six huge mirrors with chandelier-​like sconces give the room an expansive air, and the murals in between the mirrors depict scenes from a masqued ball reminiscent of one or another of the French Kings Louis-​the-​Teens.
If the plating of each course to artistic perfection were the sole criteria, again 5 stars. We ordered the seven course wine pairing dinner and each course LOOKED so beautiful, we were pained to destroy the art by eating it.
If the service alone were the sole criteria, then 4 stars. Our assigned server Tevin — a young man with an excellent manner and eyes on a prize greater than schlepping plates at Chez Phillipe — worked exceedingly hard to see that we were well taken care of. However, we give only four stars for service because it appeared some of the other, older, perhaps more senior-​in-​the-​workplace wait staff who supported Tevin were occasionally undermining him with little acts and omissions designed to trip him up. And one of the others, who asked if we needed more water, made a point of sneering when he asked, «And will that be more of our FINE Memphis tap water?» This is allegedly a French restaurant, so perhaps it was that man’s job to impersonate the rude French waiter. Tevin got a full tip for the evening, but his campadres, if you can call them that, deserved less.
So how did such a nice LOOKING place get knocked down to two stars? The food, and the wine. Overall, the food looked great, but with some exceptions, had little flavor. And the wines — the pours were short by a third, and the flavors were just plain disappointing.
We’re well aware that French cuisine comes in small portions, and that’s fine, but I’ve seen a bigger slices of salmon on a clump of sushi rice at a bad Japanese restaurant than the one slice we got as the first appetizer here. And uncooked salmon is supposed to be one of the boldest tastes of all raw fish, but this had very little flavor at all.
The pheasant appetizer was much the same — a tiny piece of meat partially obscured by some garnish, undercooked (was it supposed to be raw?) and with little flavor. In retrospect I can’t say whether or not the wines served with these first two courses were the same as those on the menu (because we are certain that some later wines were substitutions), but both were unremarkable.
Fortunately the lobster course provided a pleasant reprieve from its predecessors, with some very flavorful ingredients including a small red sweet pepper which neither of us had seen anywhere before. The wine with this course was again unremarkable.
The meat course, four slices of ribeye with small vegetable accompaniments and a bourdelaise sauce, was nearly tasteless. I don’t mean to be rude to the chef, but I found myself taking inventory of my senses — were my nasal passages clogged? Was my tongue covered with motor oil? — but no, all senses were operating normally and I could not taste what is usually one of the most succulent cuts of meat found anywhere on the cow. The wine with this course was not just unremarkable, but disappointing, a Bordeaux with some strange metallic aftertaste. My wife, who normally loves most red wines, refused to finish hers. Of course my palate has no such pride, so I helped her out with that.
Then came the second high point of the meal (the lobster was the first): the cheese course. It included a Roquefort/​Bleu that was so strong it could power manned space flight, and that’s wonderful in my book. Unfortunately, the wine again was unremarkable, but we were both excited because we KNEW from the menu which wine was coming up with the last course.
We even transferred some of that good Roquefort to our bread plates so we could enjoy it and the dessert course with an excellent Sauternes, one of the sweetest and most wonderful wines there is, thanks to this thing called «Noble Rot.» The stuff is very expensive because its quality is entirely dependent on a fungus which varies greatly from year to year.
So out comes the fruity dessert course and with it…
…a bottle of some crappy sparkling Rose’!!!
WHERE IS MY SAUTERNES, DAMN YOU!!!
Without exaggeration I say that this just completely took the wind out of an otherwise mostly unremarkable meal. But by golly, after giving our server Tevin a well deserved tip, I spent $ 400 in this place!
And I do wonder how many of the four– and five-​star reviews of Chez Phillipe came about because their authors didn’t want to look like fools for spending so much money on so little substance. Call me Fool.