My Florist Cafe

The last two times I’ve ate here it was NOT good. It took 45 minutes for my friend and I to get salads (and no, they were not busy). The most recent time the service was poor. Took awhile to get refills. Maybe our waiter was new… Either way I don’t recommend this place. After talking with friends, they all had similar stories. I like Zoe’s way better (it’s across the street).

very airy-​feeling restaurant — windows everywhere — the tables are a little crowded in though, so i was glad we got seated in the back, which was unfortunately by the back door (people going in and out), but it seemed better than rubbing elbows with the table next door.
they had a baby grand on one side and apparently they have music in the evenings — not sure if that ends up being overwhelming given the size of the restaurant or if it gives it that little something extra
i got the spiced butternut squash soup and the baja salad — my dining companions got the turkey & brie sandwich as recommended by the server and they raved about it
spiced butternut squash soup (i would give this soup a 5) — it comes with a bruleed ginger marshmallow, which is what really intrigued me — it was SO very yummy! the marshmallow gave it that caramel-​y flavor, but not overwhelming. it was a nice dense soup, very good for dipping bread — i like the bread it came with — nice and crunchy on the inside, soft in the middle
baja salad (3) — got this one for the roasted red peppers and caramelized onions, they did not skimp on either! the chicken was cold and i ended up leaving most of it on the plate — the salad overall was yummy

–Fancy salad place.
–Salads are very yummy.
–Parking is a pain in the butt.
–Pricey for lunch.

Very cute place. The predominantly female clientele seemed quite happy. I was not terribly impressed.
I had the $ 10 chicken club which was a small sandwich on an enormous plate with a teensy weensy fruit cup. The sandwich was good enough although a bit heavy on the fat but it really wasn’t enough food and it looked very forlorn sitting there on the plate with the tiny plastic ramekin with a few grapes and slices of cantaloupe.
My friend had an enormous salad. My sandwich was gone in about 3 minutes and the server promptly took my plate away leaving me to watch my friend eat for the next 15 minutes and wishing I’d ordered something else.
The ambiance was quite pleasant and the service was okay, but I was underwhelmed by the food. Perhaps a nice place to have a drink or cup of coffee though.

Loved it here for lunch. Must come back for dinner.
Ordered the Café Clubhouse Sandwich for lunch (sliced ham and turkey breast, bacon, provolone, swiss, and mayonnaise on a ciabatta square) served with fresh seasonal fruit. The first bite into the sandwich was AWESOME! The combination of the meats, cheese, and bread was SO good. The bacon crunch put it over the top. The fruit was delicious. For those that know me, I ATE fruit and I like it! So sweet and fresh. WOW!
The service was great. She was quick to refill on drinks. She even got splitting the checks correct.
Once one mini con, the parking. But for this place, I will park anywhere!

It is interesting to read previous reviews of My Florist, as it seems most people are either ambivalent towards the place, or they didn’t have a very good experience. I don’t seem to fit into either category. Over the years and several visits to My Florist, I’ve had all great experiences. Never bad service, bad food or bad parking. In fact, I think the food is pretty good. I’ve always enjoyed their sandwiches and salads, and their breakfast offerings.
My most recent experience was a few months ago with my Mom. It was a Saturday and it was fairly busy for an early lunch. My mom had the brie salad and she loved it, especially the raspberry vinaigrette. I too had the brie salad and also their mushroom and brie soup. Yes, a bit of a brie overload, but definitely delicious in my book.
And, I’ll even say I like the look of the place. It is open and airy, and I love the front wall of windows facing McDowell Rd. Yeah, it isn’t an upscale, Gen Y hipster place, but it fits into my late Gen X lifestyle just fine. (And, just to note, I don’t wear florals, drive a Lexus, have an above average occupation — what ever that means — or live in the ‘burbs.)

We (party of 3) went on a Thursday night about 7pm. Upon arrival, it was not incredibly packed, but in about 30 minutes, it was.
The pianist was delightful and kind. Very talented and plays for long periods of time, without break.
Nonetheless, the place got very packed very quickly. Out waiter was incredibly kind, but obviously very overwhelmed. He had 5 tables, including a 12 top. Needless to say, because of this, we ended up being there for 2 hours and we were on a bit on a time crunch. I knocked it one star because of this. My aunt even hesitated getting coffee because she was afraid the order would take to long to get.
The food was absolutely delightful though. Very good, rich in flavor and adaptable to people with numerous food allergies. Everything tasted unique to the dish and were hot upon delivery.
But as someone else said, the waiters really do seem overwhelmed. 2 hours for a 2 course meal seems a bit overwhelming (dinner + dessert). For the price of their menu items, it would seem that service would be a tad more prompt. We waited at length for all our items to be served, even from the initial drink order.

We came here earlier this year for a friend’s birthday — what a pleasant find.
Not only were they queer friendly (which seems to be a difficult find here in AZ), but the pianist was really amazing, the atmosphere was classy yet relaxed, and the service was impeccable.
I’d brought my friend a bottle of her favorite wine as part of her present, to save for later. The server saw it under the table, and asked if we’d like to have it chilled for dessert; no corkage fee! I was very impressed with him being so kind and helpful.
It was pretty vegetarian friendly; I wound up with an AMAZING bowl of mushroom-​brie soup. Just to die for. My partner started with a different soup, which she liked, but was a little spicy for me. For my entrée, I got the bruscetta, which were good; about on par, or a little less awesome then Postino’s. My partner got the turkey sandwich and devoured it. Our friends both got wraps; one said hers was a little try, so the server brought her some mayo, and she said it really made it excellent.
We’re bringing some out of town friends here this weekend — I can’t wait to try something new.

We came here for breakfast and I liked this place. I ordered the eggs Benedict and it was perfect. The taste was great and the size was good (maybe too small for others). The bread was absolutely fantastic– I ordered a side since it was THAT good. My wife had an omelette, which was good but nothing extraordinary.
The atmosphere was a bit too big and open for me. For breakfast, I tend to like more quaint, homey-​feeling places. This atmosphere was a bit ‘cold’ for me but the food distracted me enough to where it wasn’t an issue.
I haven’t been here for other meals but I’d recommend it for breakfast!

Yummy food, open till midnight, walking distance from Sidebar, fantastic pianist… HOW HAVE I NEVER BEEN HERE BEFORE?!?
We walked in at 1045 on a Saturday night, ever-​so-​slightly depressed, sober (hence the depression); the three of us. We were seated right away, and the kind host offered us a lunch menu in addition to the three dinner menus, which I thought a bit odd, the only snafu, if you can call it that, of the evening.
I ate the cup of squash soup ($ 5, including a brulee’d ginger marshmallow that will blow your mind) and split the bruschetta plate ($ 12) and tasted the crème brûlée ($ 7?) and thought everything was delicious. The bruschetta, in particular, was standout and made for a great snack. The kitchen, according to our accommodating server, closed at 1130, so I’ll bear that in mind when i next get the late-​night munchies. The pianist shut down at about five, maybe ten till midnight. We didn’t leave till about 10 after midnight, quite satisfied and with spirits much lifted. I suppose that last part may have had a little something to do with the fact the two TVs over the bar were playing Spaceballs, but also the food was delectable, so who knows. i’ll be back, and i might just bring a fifth star with me.

I really want to LOVE My Florist. But it’s like one of the really cute boys who you hope and pray will be Mr. Right … then he opens his mouth.
My Florist is cool. Cool vibe. Cool décor. Cool patrons. Cool piano player.
But really poor food, really poor menu selections and drinks that are way overpriced.
Please, cute boy, go to college and become well-​rounded. I really want to love you.

So has this restaurant ever seen better days?
I came here Friday night with my guy looking to enjoy a semi-​romantic meal before heading over to the subtle sexiness that is SideBar. I looked over the Unilocal reviews, decided to give this place a try because the main complaints were about service, which I can deal with.
So we walked into a mostly empty restaurant at 6:30 on a Friday, not the most comforting sign of a business. It takes our waitress a little while to stop by our table… so we peruse the drink menu… finally she stops by and we get the Ginger Girl and the Me So Thorny.
I took one sip of the Ginger Girl and my throat was immediately burning. I like strong drinks, but this was pure gasoline. My guy’s drink wasn’t any better. Definitely stick with beer or wine at this place.
After 15 minutes our waitress decides to stop by and take our order. Apparently one can only order one course at a time. So we order the appetizers, which was the main attraction. Postino’s bruschetta in downtown. But it’s not even close to Postino’s. The bread isn’t toasted, you only get two awkward pieces of each, the toppings aren’t fresh, and they definitely don’t give you enough toppings!
The cheese plate was alright, two really small pieces of cheese in my opinion. They do give you a lot of bread, because that’s what you’re really paying for.
The entrees were okay. My crab cakes were cold, which means they weren’t even close to being prepared fresh. My guy’s shrimp looked pretty good, but just tasted okay.
The only saving grace of this place is the lobster bisque. Of course it was the soup of the day, so I doubt many people will get to enjoy it.
Sad place, I can see why the reviews are just average or worse.

My family went here on Sunday morning for some breakfast before spending a day at the zoo. It was just okay — the food was good but I’ve had better service at soup kitchens.
I believe everyone’s order was satisfactory. No home runs but maybe a ground-​rule double. The omelet was good and tasted fresh. Everything was hot and/​or cold as appropriate. Everyone got white toast despite requests on the contrary. The iced tea was nice but tasted like the pot hadn’t been cleaned in some time.
The service was plain awful. I knew it was going to be trouble when the server asked us if she was going to need a piece of paper to write down our order. It doesn’t exactly instill one with confidence. What kind of question is that? Is that a way of asking us if our order is going to be complicated? For Pete’s sake, lady, show some professionalism. Either you need to write it down or you don’t — that isn’t our question to answer. She appeared to commit the order to memory, but see note above about the toast.
The food was sllloooooww to come out. Thirty minutes from walking in the front door, we did not have food. I’m not the sort of person that minds waiting for good food, but I at least appreciate status updates and attention from the wait staff in the mean time. No such luck. Glasses sat empty. Once the food came out, we had to ask for a place setting. And then salt and pepper. And then butter and jam for the toast. The glasses were still empty despite refill promises from two different servers. Finally I walked up to the bar and stepped behind it to fill our iced tea glasses. A server who was standing there monkeying around with the computer turned around with a pretentious, «Can I HELP you?» Hilarity ensued as this man tried grasping what was going down — a customer dared sticking it to the man and getting his own drink refill lest he whither away from dehydration. We were going to the zoo, you see. The funny thing about this maneuv is that it never fails to get the attention of server…
She emerged very apologetic (and so did the other server who promised us refills) and even brought us a pitcher of tea with to-​go cups so we could take some with us. So, all’s well that ends well. I felt a bit sorry for this server, who was obviously repentant but still lacking the basic attention to detail and customer focus that should be a base requirement for anyone working in the service industry.
Although I’m tempted to see what this place is like at dinner, with the live music, we won’t be back.

Okay… I feel bad b/​c I see a lot of great reviews for this place but honestly, I had the worst experience ever here, so I’m giving this a straight up 1 star.
Let me make a few things clear before I get started:
1. I arrived before the lunch rush… way before the lunch rush, I was like the 1^st person in the restaurant
2. I was meeting friends there for a brunch/​networking thing, it was four of us all together
3. The bad experience started after I tipped… as most bad experience do
The food was okay, I had an omelet which was decent. but it’s hard to beat Fez’s egg white omelets in my heart. But the omelet was okay, the atmosphere and décor was amazing, the service was exactly what you expect as a customer…
Then right when I put in my mental to-​do list to give this place 4 to 5 stars on Unilocal the waiter comes and tells us, after we tipped, that the table we had was for «someone special» (who by the way didn’t have a reservation) and we had to leave… wtf?
How do you tell paying customers and good tippers that they need to leave before the ink even dries on the receipts? We were pretty upset and asked to speak to the manager, who wasn’t present, but the acting manager basically gave us the boot as well.
First time ever I was asked to leave a restaurant…

Tonia and Tony… two Unilocalers on a mission… attempting to answer the question…
‘Why has My Florist received mediocre reviews on Unilocal??‘
Tonia and Tony decided to see for themselves and try My Florist once again. The results?
Tonia giggled in delight over her delicious salad…
Tony practically dove in head first into his bowl of tiger prawns.
And beware — the frosting on the carrot cake is like crack.
I gave My Florist four stars the last visit… but now I see it deserves five stars for quality food, great service, a super cool space, and for being totally light rail convenient.

I have to admit that reading the vast range of reviews for My Florist made me debate giving them a 3 for inconsistency, but I decided to give them the benefit of the doubt and rounded my 3.5 up to a 4. It’s almost hard to believe we all ate at the same establishment.
I made my first visit to My Florist for a fabulous #smunch breakfast with friends. I had never been but had looked at their website and just loved the story of the restaurant. Someplace with character, that’s more than a building definitely gets my attention. The photos on the website also do not do this place justice. Every time my gaze wandered around various parts of My Florist I was continually floored. It’s so beautiful and such a great conversation piece. When our huge group was seated we lucked out and got what I like to refer to as the king’s table. The chairs were so exquisite to look at and even more comfortable than they appeared. I just sank into them and hit an instant pre food happy coma. Everyone seems to have issues with the piano, but I kinda wished they were playing. I almost went and started playing myself.
As far as the food, I have mixed feelings. I started off with a mimosa which was excellent and very reasonably priced. I then had wanted the frittata but they were pre-​made and I was unable to have it without tomato. I am not a fan of pre-​made… or tomato. Having to make a last minute decision I went with my staple, an omelet. I had Gruyère, chicken, and mushroom and a side of Nutella for my toast. I also ordered a limosa.
The omelet was okay but not outstanding and a little pricey. However, I immensely enjoyed the toast. Non ordinary toast makes me happy. The side of Nutella was a little pricey in my opinion, but was huge. I was able to use gobs for both my pieces of toast and someone else’s. I think the eggs benedict that a few got looked tasty and I’d go again to try that. The salad menu also looked delightful. The limosa? Delicious.
As far as service goes, I didn’t have any issues. Our waitress was knowledgeable and friendly and didn’t mind our crazy large party of nearly 12. Our food all arrived at nearly the same time and within a reasonable amount of time. She also was nice enough to split our checks the exact way we wished. Can’t beat that.

The first time I heard about MFC was when I was invited into a book club by a bunch of women at my new job about a year and a half ago. That about sums it up — women love this place, and go there to drink wine and be silly and talk about books from oprah’s book club.
I get it — there’s a pianist, and fresh cut flowers and «florist» and «café» are right in the name. it’s got «silly wine women» painted all over it. When my friend picked this spot as the place for our regular hh get-​together for some late 20’s 9−5ers it made sense. I went to the web site to check on pricing. I was annoyed to see salads for $ 15, sandwiches for not much less. No happy hour specials? Now I’m downright pissed. Then I went to check out some reviews and was surprised that so many Unilocalers had given it poor reviews for service and food quality. How do they justify the prices? And what’s this about _​microwaving_​the food?!
But, my friend had been looking forward to trying MFC, so I zipped my lip and showed up. I like the space — the long, floor-​to-​ceiling storefront style windows let light stream in and the décor is simple and airy. I was the first to arrive and told the host who was at the front (I guessed a manager as he had an air of importance and hurriedness about him and wore a different colored shirt than the rest of the staff) there would be five of us. His response: «ooooooooooo-​kaaaay.» Nice attitude. Then, «Do you not have a reservation?» um, for five people at 5 o’clock? No, of course not. It was not busy at all, but he made a big show of wandering around the restaurant, finger to mouth and looking perplexed about my request.
Finally I offered to sit at the bar until the rest arrived and continued to go «WTF?» when discovering there wasn’t a glass under $ 12 or a bottle under $ 50. Again, how is this justified?
When two other girls arrived about 10 min later, I flagged him down and said «we’re ready for a table,» and he again seemed noticeably annoyed (so much so that the other girls commented on it). I had envisioned MFC was hh hot spot, especially on a Friday, and kept waiting for it to fill up, but it never did and I still don’t understand the issue.
OK– one good, important point to note, our actual server was awesome. She was friendly, helpful and attentive. Gave informed suggestions/​opinions when asked, etc. Then I found out that bottles were half off: ok, that’s a little better. (Then one of the girls mentioned that bottles are half off all day, every day… Then why not put that price on the menu? To uphold some image of pretention? I don’t get it and I’m back to annoyed).
We got the Willow bread basket to share. The herbed butter overpowered the taste of the fresh breads and I had maybe half a piece (I’m a bread addict and surprised I didn’t devour all of it — just wasn’t that good. The best one was the cranberry). I ordered the «nachos» app for $ 8 and it was ok (one-​inch bread slices smothered in jalapeño-​cheese with avocado and salsa on the side). One girl got a wrap and loved it. Another got lobster bisque and said it was just ok. After everyone was done and had formed their own opinions on their meals, I shared my findings on no stove/​microwave situation. They were all pretty shocked, especially in light of the prices.
I was disappointed that the live music I had heard so much about didn’t start up until 7, right when we were getting ready to leave. I really don’t think any of us had an experience that would draw us back.
(sorry this is so long. i try to edit myself, i really do)

The atmosphere is spot-​on, but where was the service? (12÷7÷08)
The place has a great feeling from the moment you walk up and see a grand piano on the front stage, a full bar, and flower centerpieces on the tables. Very pleasant.
I loved to little Sunday Brunch Menus, simple and sweet. Great Mimosas, and want to go back to try out their Sangeria.
The service was a little slow all around. Felt like was being avoided, plus the servicer did not speak mucho englas, so there was no way to get some of my questions answered.
Although the food sounded appealing, was disappointed when the it came out cold and soggy. Hoping this was just an off day, but want to still see how it works next time.

They used to offer half price bottles of wine, however it is now half off your first bottle and full price on the rest. I was sorry to see that special go.
Nicole is a genuinely nice person and an amazing pianist. Request the classics or Top 40. She knows them all. And you can actually chat with her as she plays. The staff is usually fun, beautiful, young and professional.
I recommend the Caprese Salad (watch out for the whole garlic cloves) or the Cheese Plate and a table full of your best friends. Skip the Cosmos and share a bottle of the Crios Syrah. Save room for dessert.

I remember when I used to sit with proprietor David L. at Biltmore C.P. (not CPK, you freak) and listen to him get passionate about this modular bakery concept thing where he could use the best ingredients and still make it inexpensively. Willo Bread was born.
I also remember when I was little going to My Florist for FLOWERS. Over the years, the strip mall saw many tenants come and go and seemingly at just the right moment, David picked up one of the suites and began his bakery project. After its extreme success with local AJ’s and «fine» restaurants around town, he expanded to the old flower shop (converting it to a restaurant), its loft overhead and the adjoining suite for the grocery.
Perhaps it was my third visit that was the one I shan’t forget. I am a pianist and have played professionally here and there over the years. After hearing just one selection by SAVANT [Nicole?] I was so discouraged I resolved never to play again. I hate her (not really) for being so good. Try going up to talk to her and you’ll see what I mean. She’s clearly multi-​tasking on 7 or 8 different threads, one of which is to talk with you. I’ve seen her on the phone while playing with one hand, reaching out to the nearby table while playing with one hand, totally looking the opposite direction for minutes at a time, and more. Total Savant.
She easily has the entire repertory of all music in her head, but for her it is not the music itself, but the concepts of the music from which she plays. She can play the entire soundtrack from Nintendo’s Super Mario Bros. It’s uncanny. Ask her to play a classical piece, and only because you know the exact note order, phrases and timings do you realize that she’s pretty close, but not exact. Who cares? She could play against Mozart in dueling pianos and he’d end up on the floor gasping in and out of a paper bag.
At some point David bought her a concert Steinway, well deserved.
Other than the place where [name?] played during her lifetime, My Florist will have no other mark on the history of Phoenix. To those of us still alive wishing we could add our own marks on history, our screaming and YELLING about the poor service, useless bartenders and ridiculous menu will be but whispers against her virtuosity. But let me make my attempt.
Seeing my favorite bottle of gin on the shelf, I ordered my martini: «Sapphire martini, straight up, stirred (!!!) with a twist». What came back was a brown thing that looked like chocolate milk. «Oh, I thought you ordered an espresso martini.» Tell me, does Sapphire sound like «espresso» to you? My answer is… only to someone who has NO CLUE about what a real martini is. Do me a favor and don’t insult the reputation of Bombay Sapphire: please instead display and serve Gordon’s.
After a recent performance of the Arizona Broadway Theater, we joined the cast as they gathered for a late dinner and drinks. After the 25 of us ate and drank, we spent the next 55 minutes (no joke) figuring out the bill because they couldn’t split the check, not even in half. forGET it! (don’t you forget CASH — in small denominations — if you’re going with a group).
If from the limited menu you think you can picture the four tubs of ingredients and sauces in the kitchen, mixed in all the possible 10 ways on the menu, it’s because you can: the Dole European Lettuces variety salad mix is the same on every single plate, the same olives and olive oil or orange and apple wedges garnish every dish, and the same bread (yes, it can be good if you buy it first thing in the morning), is sliced and toasted to make you think it isn’t as old and hard as it actually is.
Not to say that the bread isn’t good. Just know that when bread is made this way (without all the nasty chemicals and preservatives), and then is exposed to AIR, it gets hard. Eat it within a few hours of being baked. My advice is to go to the grocery first thing when it opens and try to get one of the 4 willowich sandwiches available daily (scrumptious ham, cheese, basil and add vinaigrette) before they go. You’ll have to beat me, so get up early.