Le Chardonnay Wine Bar & Bistro

I think every smoker in Memphis dines here. Not going back.

Food is pretty good. Service is very slow. Would only recommend this place if you’re planning on sitting around for a while. Took a good 45 minutes from ordering for our entrees to come out. And another 20 minutes after finishing our meals to get a check. But would be a nice place to sit back and relax with a glass of wine!

What is Le Chardonnay? I’m not sure. My girlfriend and I were searching for a new spot to eat and have a nice wine list and this place seemed to fit the bill. However, when we got there, we found a dark uninviting atmosphere with no one to greet us at the door and a strong smell of cigarettes. We were immediately turned off and left to go somewhere else.
I’m sure there are people who enjoy that kind of atmosphere, I just wish I knew that before I made reservations.

We visited recently with friends from Atlanta and they never disappoint. It was cozy with the fireplace going. It has a really intimate vibe and we were able to carry on a conversation. I love the pizza’s especially the «white hot» just the right amount of kick. The prime rib is also very good. Oh and let’s not forget the Wine list, one of the best and reasonable in the City

Excellent place for an intimate night out. The fire place has comfy couches. Perfect place for a date or even just a quick White Russian!

This place has been in Overton Square for a while. I like the location. I love seeing the brick oven for pizza. I love that there is a fireplace. Where else in Memphis can you be at a restaurant and sit by the fire? The drink prices are reasonable. They have a variety of food. Today (Sunday), we wanted to eat somewhere late that offered more than just typical bar food, so we ended up here. I had the prime rib salad. It was good. G had the grouper sandwich and enjoyed it. He loved his wine, and I loved my cocktail. Service was friendly.
My only reason for not giving it 5 stars is the smoke. I knew it was a smoking bar, but I wish it werent.

I like it! The staff is really nice & it is pretty quaint. It is better than Bayou which is next door! Good area.

I think there’s a major identity crisis going on here. At one point in time this was considered one of the more romantic restaurants in Memphis. Today the table cloths, candles and attentive service have been ditched in favor of a more casual vibe. I don’t understand, if I wanted casual why wouldn’t I go to bayou next door?
The sign by the front door to seat ourselves should have been a sign to turn around and leave but instead we found a booth and began debating food selections. Although I didn’t see anyone smoking the place smelled pretty smokey and by the time our food came the table next to us had lit up and we were very eager to pay and leave, I won’t return because of the smoking alone.
To start we got the baked Brie with honey and almonds, the bread that came with it seemed more stale than toasted and the honey overwhelmed the plate. For the entrée I had the gnoochi and added chicken, it was good but not great. Neither of these things are typical smokey bar food items and there’s probably a reason for that.
I actually find the interior lovely — plenty of wood featured, a fireplace, beautiful stained glass in the ceiling and dim lighting. There are other things on the menu that sounded good as well but with the smoking the food would have had to really sell me to entice a return visit and it just didnt do that. Almost all the tables were full so obviously plenty of people dig the new vibe.

I go here often. This place is super laid back. Service is down to earth, honest, and super sweet. I don’t think they remember my name, but they do say «welcome back» with a smile. The pizza here is killer. The White Hot pizza is heaven with a bottle of Pinot Grigio.
The wine list, like everything else, is so reasonable that I get like two bottles (don’t judge).
Some of the entrées can be hit or miss, but the tuna and the Sunnyside burger would be my last meal in prison… should I make it to that point.
This place just feels homey. I have to give it five stars just based on the experience. I have never been let down, but that could be do to the company I keep when I go there.
Lovely, just lovely.

The best thing about Le Chardonnay was the service. Besides the service, this entire place from menu to furniture needs a makeover so that the restaurant can match the class of what the name is trying to portray. Everything about Le Chardonnay is low class smoky pub. The food tasted average and the wine needed to be decanted. The place has been in business since the 80’s, but it has a 70’s look. Someone from this restaurant should take a trip to Napa and remodel the restaurant along the lines of the tasting rooms there.

This was my favorite restaurant 6 years ago when I lived in Memphis. I came back for nostalgic reasons and was very dissapointed. Average bar food.

I’m a wine bar kinda girl so of course I loved this place right away. I came here with my gf for a GNO, shared a bottle of Malbec and a smoked pesto brie cheese app that was amazing. Didn’t love the sliders, but I didn’t hate ‘em, probably my fault for ordering a burger at a wine bar. Anywho, walked right across the street to my fav store The Attic and then to the movies at Studio on the Square so def a conveniently located spot to hop around and do a little bit of everything. I will be back Le Chardonnay!

Cozy dim lighted place with a fire place, feels like you in a frenchman living room waiting to get seduced by a french handsome man Oui, Oui! Great for a date a little awkward with a friend girl its waay to romantic. I advise you girls to sit at the bar and enjoy some spinach dip, salmon or duck sliders yum! Pick a glass of wine or a bottle from they huge list of wines! Enjoy!

While this was not my first time eating at Le Chardonnay, it was the most disappointing trip. For our appetizers we ordered calamari and spinach dip. The calamari had no flavor and the dip was watery. Neither were very fresh. For our pizzas we ordered the White Hot and the Shrimp Portifino. We were disappointed by both.
Having visited this establishment since it was at its old location, it was sad to see the place mostly empty on a Saturday night. The servers were even sitting at a table eating themselves.
While I may be back for a drink, I will not order food. There are too many other delicious places to eat in Overton Square to have a disappointing meal.

I’m a plain Jane, a cheese pizza kinda girl. And boy, do I love pizza. LeChardonnay has many special pizza options to choose from, as well as other non-​pizza menu items. The pizza is consistently delicious, and you have a good selection of wines to drink with your pizza. Heavenly, right?
To an extent, anyway. Service is hit-​or-​miss; next time I visit, I plan to sit at the bar to see if the service is more attentive there. Also, one time I tried the fried chicken sliders. The chicken was chewy and inedible. As a foodservice employee, I’m pretty lenient and understanding when it comes to things like that, so if I think something is inedible, it’s pretty bad.
Pizza and wine? Good. Service? Meh. Non-​pizza menu items? Proceed with caution.

You know how you feel like a back stabbing bitch when you talk bad about someone who did you a cool favor? Yeah, so I don’t really want to bust out on LeChardonnay like that because this restaurant was the site of a somewhat recent first date that went really quite well.
So, what can I say about LeChardonnay. Things are generally satisfactory. The food is satisfactory. The wine is satisfactory. The bar can get a little smokey, but it has never been overwhelming. The patio is a nice alternative in warm weather. I’ve probably dined in here about 6 times in the last year, and I’ll commonly recommend it when looking for a place to go out to in the area because there is almost always guaranteed seating without a wait.
However, LeChardonnay seems to be going through an identity crisis as of late. As a wine bar, I feel like I should be able to sip my satisfactory wine in a laid back environment that allows me to relax and have conversations with the other people in my party. My last two visits to this restaurant have left me bewildered. There was karaōke on the Saturday night of the first date, which I could deal with because the volume was low and the singers were mostly sprawled out on the couch crooning songs at whisper level to themselves as if no one else could see them. I found this incredibly amusing. When I went back this past Saturday, the karaōke had been replaced by a band that might’ve been okay if they had been turned down to background-​music volume. Instead, I was forced to listen to them play and while occasionally shouting across the table to my friends.

So, I guess what I’m saying is that LeChardonnay has become a little bit like that bipolar girl you know who sometimes does you cool favors, but you just generally don’t know what to expect. No one wants to deal with that. I’d prefer it go back to being a somewhat boring, yet satisfactory, chill place that I can rely upon for seating and casual conversation… or, at least bring back the socially awkward karaōke singers.

My wife and I have been going to Bayou for years, but never tried Le Chardonnay at either location. Now we’re wishing we would have!
The stuffed mushrooms with duck confit are pretty amazing. The pizza was pretty good, as was the duck slider. The wine pours are heavy and the they have a large, moderately priced wine list.
BUT, the best part, is the ambiance. We could have stayed here all night. Like the good ol’ days, there’s smoking allowed. They still have smoking and non-​smoking and neither seemed to be overly smokey. It’s a grown-​up place, quiet, dark (but not too dark), fireplacey. It’s just comfortable.
Definitely on our no-​kid-​weekend night rotation.

It is kinda smokey but I think I have found my new go-​to place! I loved the vibe, staff, and especially the pesto brie — it was delightfully delicious and I foresee myself gaining 10 pounds because I will repeatedly come back to get it.
Plus Overton Square is hopping these days! I couldn’t believe how many times I had to circle before I found a parking spot. Definitely better than Boscos and reasonably priced.

Stopped in here this past weekend for an after dinner drink. Not realizing, A) smoking allowed and B) karaōke on Saturday nights! Mind you, I can bust a tune with the best of ‘em when it comes to some karaōke but not something I expected to see here. It was just a bit strange and uncomfortable.

Not only does the kitchen from Bayou cook the food, the whole concept is off. They don’t even have decent wine considering they tout themselves as a «wine bar.»
Give me a break. The food is just as pitiful as the restaurant adjacent. A cute name for a restaurant seems to try disguise the dreadful experience.

Nostalgia is a powerful thing, I suppose. Le Chardonnay has always held a special place in my heart — I’ve come here many times over the years with the bf. It has been a while, though, so the last visit was like cold water in my face.
The menu has changed — again. They still had the baked brie, which was a favorite, but it’s different — and not in a good way. The entrees… not as good as they used to be either… but the real disappointment was the service.
I swear on everything that our waitress was stoned or on some other kind of illegal substance. We were forgotten about for HUGE chunks of time — once, after a drink order was placed, we waited for 15 minutes or so until she came back to verify what kind of wine I’d ordered. Really? Is this a sequel to «Half Baked» or are you working? (The place wasn’t busy) She was totally spacey — it became comical, only we were paying around $ 20/​entrée plus drinks… so not so funny then. It will be a long, LONG time before I even think about wanting to return.