Café Muse

Their short rib 3-​cheese sandwich was amazing. Atmosphere was a tad on the classier side, but service was excellent and food came out in reasonable portions. Not too expensive, and definitely worth it for the quality you get.

A friend made a reservation after one of them suggested we should try this place. It was Saturday and it was very busy. All of us ordered different meals and mine was the «Wholewheat Pancakes with Braised Apples and topped with our Homemade Granola» and fresh orange juice. I would say because it was very busy, the order took a little bit longer to come– The waiter even mentioned the orders were a little bit delayed and apologized. We understood. The pancakes itself were fine, yes, tasty. Yet the flavors were very strong. I personally have to say that I have mixed feelings about my experience. An hour after I started feeling sick: fever, stomach cramps, muscle and joint pains, nausea. I thought I was getting the flu. The nausea and vomiting stopped but the fever kept going up and the stomach pains would never cease. Short story, my husband took me to ER. They did not find anything and sent me home. My health did not improve either so the next morning I went to the my PCP office. Per her opinion, mine was a case of food poisoning. I never had this before and so if it was, then it is the worse thing I have had. Fortunately, nobody else got sick because they ordered different meals. I was the only one sick after I had the pancakes. However, I don’t want to discourage anyone else from going to this place because of my case.
Suggestion: More options in the salad menu

I’ve been to Café Muse many many times! It is one of my favorite brunch places in Michigan. They have dinner as well, which is very tasty. I go here for brunch more often because I feel that is what they are known for.
I always get the exotic mushroom scramble for brunch. It’s delicious! This is definitely the place to go for amazing omelettes, pancakes, and overall a great breakfast/​lunch. They have many options both sweet and savory. It gives you a tough decision on what to order! I don’t think you could go wrong ordering anything on that menu.
I have been there for dinner as well, but just not as often as I do brunch. The most recent time I ordered the pesto risotto. It had asparagus, crispy kale, and leeks on it. It was fabulous! They also have a great short rib dish there.
Friendly staff, great food and environment! We love it!

Dined at café muse on Sunday morning while at the pottery show and was very disappointed. The waiter brought the wrong food to both of us. He was very sorry and went to reorder food but informed us that it would be a while because the restaurant was now busy. After a 20 minute wait our food came out but it was given to the table next to us not us. Thank goodness they just looked at the food and didn’t touch it. When we finally claimed our food the waiter came back and apologized again. This time the meal didn’t have the ingredients in it that were stated on the menu. Flank steak was totally missing. We gave up and ate what we got but to say that we were pleased with our experience at café muse! Well that’s just not possible.

I decided to try this place out after finding it on a list of «best breakfast places in Michigan» — it did not disappoint!
My boyfriend and I started off with a Bloody Mary (him) and a Mimosa (me). As a Mary lover, I was impressed with the fact that they offer two styles (tried to get him to go with the Mclure’s, cause it’s my favorite mix, but he went with the house) and the garnish that was served with it when it came out. Served spicy, the drink was delicious. On my end, I’m not a Mimosa connoisseur, but it was refreshing and sweet, so good enough for me.
My boyfriend had decided on the Smoked Salmon Scrambler with Gruyère Cheese and Chives before we even got there, but I hard a hard time making a decision between all the specialty French toast and pancake options, they all sounded great. I eventually decided on the Banana Pancakes with a peanut butter marscapone, bacon bits, and salted caramel because my boyfriend said he loves banana pancakes and I figured I would give him a bite. Instead, they were so good I inhaled them before he could take a bite; the peanut butter brought most of the flavor for me, with the bacon adding a little salt, but the star was how moist and fluffy the pancakes were, very soft and perfectly done.
Thankfully although I didn’t get to share my pancakes, I saved my side, the Seafood Cheddar Grits for last and he did snag a few bites of those. Not my favorite grits in the world, but he loved them and the bits of crab in them did make those bites the best. Both of us also loved his dish.
All in all, can’t wait to go back, and I can’t decide if I want their seasonal/​weekly menu to have worse options on it so I’m not tempted to try something there again, rather than the stuffed French Toast I was originally eyeing from their permanent menu. I guess it’s a good problem to have.

By far the best place to have Brunch… And im hard to please. Always fresh and worth the wait…

We arrived arrived 1pm and there was no wait. The food was FANTASTIC! We ordered as few menu items including
Salmon and eggs = Yummy
Steak and eggs = Yummy Yummy
Cinnamon Radio French Toast = Really Yummy Yummy
Seafood Grits= Super Yummy Yummy Yummy
Our waiter was great, the food was hot when it arrived and I will definitely visit again whenever I’m in Detroit.

This is a staple in Royal Oak, and now I know why. I was here on Sunday for Brunch with a couple of friends. To start, I love older buildings. This building looked circa 1920/​1930-​ish, and the owners kept it looking that way (aside from the seating). It add a nice ambiance to the dining experience.
The Build-​Out — As I already stated, clean and classic with a slightly modern twist. I felt like I was eating in a small-​town mom and pop diner but a little more elegant. The seating was a little tight, but I made some friends. I consider that a win.
The Service — I sat with my friends for a little over an hour, and I arrived 45 min late! There was absolutely no rush. None whatsoever. Our waitress was so friendly and attentive, and again, did not rush us. Turnaround was not her concern, our experience was, and I sincerely appreciated that. If I remembered her name I would give her a shout out.
The Food — For brunch, I ordered the Exotic Mushroom Scrambler. It was absolutely delicious. The eggs were cooked just a little wet, which is how it should be done. The fingerling potatoes were a little over roasted IMHO, but I like them that way. The bread for my toast was fresh and clearly artisan, it was very tasty, along with the home made marmalade I got to spread on it. The Mimosa was prepared properly with the right amount of fizz. It was very refreshing.
If I lived closer I would definitely break the bank at this place. For $ 25 it was an amazing experience, and I am considering visiting again VERY soon.

We were very impressed by the level of service we received. I was able to make a reservation a week in advance, and they were very nice each time I called (4 different times) to update the party size. We went for dinner on a Thursday night, and we had a whole half of the restaurant to ourselves. They asked on the phone if I wanted a special menu or if there was a special occasion to make our visit more enjoyable. When we were seated, we got to pick the background music, and they obliged with my wife’s request for summer hits from the 90’s. The local beer selection was nice, and service was prompt and very helpful.
My wife enjoyed a wonderful grilled cheese, and I had their risotto with asparagus and kale. Risotto was made very well, and it seemed like everyone’s meals were well received. Overall, Café Muse went above and beyond to exceed my expectations, and I appreciate how well they treated our group.

Beautiful vanilla bean pancakes with caramel, bananas & salted caramel, at that! Nice quiet, cheerful space to enjoy many a meal! This place is going to be a constant for mornings & lunch.

We went here during the busiest time of the lunch hour on a Friday. We had the Spinach Salad with walnuts and gorgonzola and the Salmon sandwich. Both were very good. My husband and I were sharing and the split the salad and sandwich in the kitchen which I always appreciate.
They were busy and service was a bit slow. If I were on my lunch hour from work, I would have been a bit nervous and rushed to eat.

I went there today and ordered a double espresso with a bit of steamed milk. I got served espresso with grounds in my cup and cold milk. I brushed it off and thought there was just someone new working the espresso machine.
But the kicker is the lunch I ordered. I ordered a salad with chicken added to it. The chicken looked old and unappetizing. While raking through the chicken slices I find a DEAD SPIDER! Yep, DEAD SPIDER! I didn’t want to cause a scene but I politely alerted the waiter. But to only take off the salad was poor judgement to on his part! I shouldn’t have paid for anything. My fiancé still had to pay for his meal. I will not be going back and I hope this doesn’t happen to anyone else! EW!! n

It took at least an hour for my hubby to figure out where he wanted to eat this day! We love to eat at new restaurants so we decided to check out Café Muse. It had pretty good reviews so we thru caution to the wind and stopped in.
No one was at the hostess stand but I figured that was because it was not too busy. There’s a bar area to the right and the dining room is to the left. We were seated immediately. Now as I stated before my hubby took an hour to decide where we were going to eat so we pretty much knew what we wanted. He ordered the short rib sandwich and I ordered the the steak and eggs with a side of thick cut bacon with some shrimp and grits based on previous reviews.
When our meals arrived we were pleasantly surprised. My steak was med rare just as I ordered it. My hubbies sandwich was absolutely delicious. The meat was tender and the cheese was like a winter coat. We almost forgot about the bacon until I bit into a piece. It was the one of best pieces of bacon I had ever had in a restaurant. We never received the shrimp and grits but it was ok because the food we had sampled was delicious enough.
We will definitely will be back!!!

Must try the gluten-​free pancakes! They’re super airy and fluffy — one of the best I’ve tried. The only reason I’m giving this place 4 stars instead of 5 is because one of the pancakes was undercooked. The center was just runny batter, but the other two were fine. I tried the apple pear compote pancakes which tasted like apple pie :)
I also had the Plain Jane scramble and Thick Cut Bacon. Both were really good, and the prices are all reasonable! Very filling breakfast for two people. I would definitely come back. I’d recommend coming earlier than later though. We arrived around 10am, and there was no wait, but as we were leaving, there was many people waiting for a table.

The original café muse was amazing, 5 stars. But since they expanded, the quality has gone down a bit. We were once a week regulars and now we are once every few months.
Servers used to be friendly but now most of them have attitudes and don’t seem happy at all in their work environment.
Food is still good by all means, just not as good as it used to be.
If the service got better, they would earn 4 stars from me and if the food and service both got better, then it would be a 5 star place like it used to be.

So I will keep this short and sweet sitting at the bar right now for Sunday Brunch. The Ricotta and Lemon pancakes were awesomely fluffy, piping hot and paired perfectly with the LL and B cocktail!
Yep, Liquor with pancakes cause that’s how I roll!
We also had the amazing Short Rib Grilled Cheese sandwich. Tender beef with ammoglio tomato jam that was the bomb!
But the show stealer and the reason we came back here after 2 years of living in Phoenix was the Seafood Grits!
As my wife said…
«God is back there making grits!»
These grits were the creamiest, cheesiest, most heavenly thing you have put in your mouth!

Great spot in ROyal Oak. They have a good selection of various eats. The wait staff was great. They are only open til 3 pm so it’s more of a brunch and lunch venue… didn’t know that at first when I went. Nonetheless I would definitely go there again.

The grilled cheese lives up to the hype. SO good. My boyfriend got the BLT with extra bacon and it was delicious. Service was excellent as well. We will definitely be back!

Been trying to come to Café Muse for well over a year now and finally got to come.
Parking is easy on the street or side streets.
Went for Sunday brunch and ordered their mimosa and grilled cheese. Most unique grilled cheese I’ve ever had. Different kinds of cheese that I’ve never had in a grilled cheese plus honey. It was delicious but everything on their menu sounded fantastic.
My sister ordered the seafood grits and next time I go I will be getting that. So good.
Can’t wait to return and try something new.

This was a great find. I had the stuffed French toast (yum!) and my husband had a Mexican style scrambled egg dish. Needless to say, we thoroughly enjoyed the food. According to the menu, which had a very large selection, products are locally grown and bought. The food tasted homemade and I appreciated the selection of coffee and teas.
The only negative was service. They weren’t very busy for a Saturday, yet it took a while for or food/​waitress to come. That won’t stop us from coming back to enjoy another brunch!

I’ve been here a few times. One of the owners or managers lurks, making laps around the front of the house with a stern face, stopping to briefly stare at customers without ever engaging them. It’s quite unsettling, and it makes the staff and patrons uncomfortable.
The food was quite good and worth a short wait. The shrimp sandwich was unfortunately very lacking in shrimp and difficult to eat. The toasted cheddar bread it’s served on is delicious, but I wash it had been served in a roll (like a lobster roll) instead of between two pieces of toast. The contents don’t stay in the sandwich. Otherwise, the meal was perfectly delicious.

Great place love it if you in Royal oak and ready for good food, even if you’re a healthy person they have spelt hint for you too… Simply love this place for breakfast or lunch!

Went on a Tuesday night at 6 pm and we were the only customers. We left at 9 pm and still no other customers. The place was cold and the service very slow. Had a cheese burger that was ok. The homemade chips were way too thick and had way too much vinegar. I think this is more of a breakfast place. Don’t plan on going back for dinner again. Finding a parking space in Royal Oak too hard so we will head over to sweet Loraine’s or Beverly Hills grill for better food and easy parking.

Great food and specialty coffee! The prices were average but their portions were on the smaller side… But I’ll definitely be back!

Been here for both dinner & brunch. Both times it was a great experience! I would highly recommend. The menu is wonderful as well as the cocktail menu!

What a nice little place. I’ve only ever been for brunch but each time was great. Even though they are always packed every time I visit, service has been fine and food comes out fast. The menu is a good eclectic mix of brunchy items. They have quite a few delicious cocktails too!

It’s a comfortable place to have brunch and grab a cup of coffee with your friends. But this place doesn’t offer anything special.
Food: I tried their omelet and toast and it was okay.
Service: also average.
Atmosphere: I don’t think they have a particular theme going on. It’s just comfortable.

I love café muse! I live a few blocks away so I come here a lot for brunch. The menu is small but every time I come they have new features which are always delicious. Today I was eating light so I ordered a poached pear and goat cheese salad, lemon poppyseed muffin, and a side of chicken and Gouda sausage. I also ordered a peanut butter latte.
The latte I had tasted slightly burnt, but it was still delicious. I worked at a restaurant where we had to make cappuccinos and lattes and I was horrible at it so I understand the struggle.
Everything I ordered was delicious my only complaint was that the warm salad was a little mushy. With the soft pears and creamy goat cheese I felt it needed some texture. I ended up putting some of my friends bacon on it though.
Anyways, service was great, food was great, I’ll definitely be back.

Woot!!! I love going out for breakfast and this place hits the spot! I’ve been here for dinner before but it was a couple years ago, so this review is for the breakfast.
I had the poached eggs with the sweet potatoes and they were delicious. The menu offers variety without being overwhelming. I like the refreshing take on classic breakfasts. Went on a weekeday late morning and there was no wait at all.

Atmosphere: nicely decorated, clean, chill ambiance.
Service: friendly staff. We got seated quickly, but waited a little while for our drinks. Our waitress checked on us frequently enough and was ready to help.
Drinks: great hot chocolate! The iced chai latte was probably one of the best I’ve had. Perfect amount of chai and milk.
Food: we ordered the scrambled eggs with steak bites and the stuffed French toast. Everything tastes fine, but it was nothing special. The fingerling potatoes were good. The eggs were fine too. The mascarpone filled French toast was ok too. The food did look really good.
Nice enough place but probably won’t go back for brunch.

I like the service in this restaurant. They always have great brunch and breakfast. their food is healthy and tasty.

I come here for breakfast all the time. Super great business breakfast place. And the food alone gets 5 stars. Service, on the other hand, gets a steady 1 star, hence the average of 3 stars. I will not review the breakfast food, because it is stellar. Everything. Try the oatmeal, seriously.
Service: not sure why they can’t get their act together. Slow service, not pleasant, will bring coffee to the table next to you but completely ignore your empty coffee cup, good luck getting no lemon in your water, both of us order oatmeal — they come out 5 minutes apart, ask for skim milk for your oatmeal — it may come out or not, etc.
BTW: I drink decaf and their decaf coffee is really good. Did I mention their steel cut oatmeal is stellar? Boiled on apple juice. Seriously.
Been here for lunch once-​food, eh. Service– dismal.
Been here for dinner– food stellar. Service– dismal.
Notice a pattern?

Went for brunch and was all around disappointed. I heard really good things about this place so I went in thinking it was going to be great. The hostess was really rude and seemed annoyed that I wanted to eat there. The waitress didnt once come by after taking our order, we had to wave someone down to get our bill and then take it up to the bar to get them to take my payment. The owner or manager (not sure) was a really nice guy.
As for food. The seafood cheese grits were freaking amazing. Pancakes were ok and my wife’s egg things was on par with Dennys. So, they had awesome grits.
I may go again and give it another chance for lunch.

I finally made it for dinner and it was about what I expected with the bonus of fantastic service. On that note, I felt as though our group wanted for nothing while we were dining. Plates were brought and removed almost immediately, water glasses filled, silverware replaced… it was solid service. That aside, the food ran the gamut from great to not as great. For starters their bread was phenomenal… almost like an English Muffin bread in flavor but less nooks and crannies. We couldn’t stop eating it.
For the apps we tried the mushroom & toast, which was superb. The olive plate was about as exciting as it sounds while the Mahi tacos were legit for sure. I ordered some tomato, corn, coconut milk curried soup. I expected something less rustic and brothy but it was really really good. For the entrée I had the short ribs in a tomato base. It was ok but I felt as though I’d had something similar elsewhere before. The spaetzle that came with it was deep fried, maybe, and herbaceous with sage possibly… it was green, it was crunchy and it was just ok. The veggies, whatever they were, were not good. They had way too much sage in them and overpowered the plate. I didn’t finish them.
For my soup and my entrée it was about $ 33…I didn’t feel as though it was worth it.
I’ve seen enough of Muse now to know that it’s not my kind of spot but I’m sure you’ll love it.
On a completely unrelated note… why can’t Unilocal ever give you the actual current menu for a restaurant. I looked over the menu posted for Muse and it had me drooling. Then I arrive and the menu is cut down to a few basic entrees none of which sounded very enticing. What gives? I’ve heard that it’s the restaurant’s job to update it on Unilocal… if that’s the case, get on the ball.

What a find. Great service and an eclectic menu.
The soup we had was amazing and I cannot say enough about the meal we had there. Everyone at the table ordered something different and no one was disappointed.
I marked this as a favorite to come back to.
NOTE: Save some time to shop around the very nice downtown area.

My, oh my, how I love brunch! And boy, does Café Muse do brunch well! My girls and I decided to do a summer’s end brunch here. I had never been before but it came highly recommended by my brother. He told me the berry French toast was a must to try.
It’s a cute restaurant with an intimate feel. We made reservations and were seated right away upon our arrival. The menu is not too large to feel overwhelmed but large enough to give you options (and oh, how I love options). Everything sounded good so it took me some time to decide what I wanted. I didn’t find the berry French toast so I asked the waitress about it. It turns out that they didn’t have it anymore. Maybe the menu is seasonal. In any event, they worked with me so I could kind of create my own berry French toast. I ended up going with the French toast stuffed with marscapone cheese and instead of the spice pear compote it came with, I elected a fresh berry medley. I also got the nitrate-​free turkey bacon, a scrambled egg white, and the seafood grits. Oh, the seafood grits! They were UH-​MAZING! So rich, so creamy, so flavorful! They were thicker than the usual consistency of grits I’m used to but they were so good, I almost got another order to go.
My friends enjoyed their meals as well. They got the cinnamon raisin French toast and the carrot cake pancakes (both of which were tasty as I tasted a couple of bites). Café Muse is a solid brunch spot and I will definitely be making my way back (for the seafood grits at the very least).

Great eggs!
The atmosphere is a little more upscale for your typical breakfast place. The first time we came here, we weren’t sure what to order. The lemon ricotta pancakes for me were just ok and I wouldn’t order them again. You could taste the vanilla bean in the waffle and it was fluffy and covered in berries. Even the jam they serve with the toast was memorable.
Now let’s talk about those eggs.
The scrambled eggs here are heavenly. The plane Jane eggs were packed with cheese and the chives were a nice touch. For the steak and eggs, I’ve got to say that the steak was not the best, but that doesn’t matter because the cheese in the eggs was GREAT! I could eat the eggs alone and be happy.
Overall, a great place for brunch. If you love cheesy scrambled eggs, you will love these!

After hearing and reading about the hype I decided I was long overdue to give this place a shot. I strolled in during their brunch to find the place packed with a long wait. Luckily I was by myself so I snatched a seat at the bar and ordered up a bloody mary.
Perfection. They had the McClures bloody mary mix as an option (my fave) AND the skewer had salami and cheese on it (sink your claws into me a little deeper, café muse). I ordered the egg scramble with steak and white toast. The plating was a bit lacking but the taste was on point. They obviously use cream instead of milk to scramble their eggs, they were fluffy and decadent.
The staff were really nice. The bartender kept apologizing for the wait, even though I didn’t think I had been waiting long at all! She was very kind. As Gary B. mentioned in a review earlier, «the customer base trends towards people who are impressed with themselves» rang pretty true. I think I received a few odd looks being there in jeans and a bandana but I guess that’s what happens when great food at a high price becomes a sensation.
All in all I really enjoyed the place and would say the food is worth the price.

I had a very nice server who offered me what he called his «100% money back guarantee where anything I don’t like goes back.» Tough to argue with that sales pitch.
Muse has good menu options, well thought out plates and cool location. I ordered the salmon scramble (which isnt actually scrambled, but laid on top of a mound of fluffy, scrambled eggs), with fingerling potatoes and a side order of seafood grits. The grits were rich and cheesy with a nice, subtle seafood flavor. I saw no crab or lobster meat, but could definitely taste the flavor. The salmon is salty, but I love salty foods. So if you have salt restrictions, this won’t be one for you. They paired it with fingerling potatoes, which I didn’t care for. They were bland. You also have a choice of mashed sweet potatoes. Should have gotten those.
As far as atmosphere, it’s slightly trendy and rather quaint, but has more than enough space without feeling crowded. There is indoor seating and outdoor seating. I see children here but probably wouldn’t recommend this place for the kids. There are two large groups here too, and they sorta have their own section. The tables are small and easily combined, but this seems ideal for dates, girlfriends and small brunch outings.

I am so glad I was able to discover this place. I am an Atlanta native, so we definitely know how to do breakfast. This place is actually better than some of the breakfast places there. First, let me tell you how much I love the way they prepare your eggs. It is so creamy, soft, and delicate. A taste of heaven in your mouth. I have been here twice so far and I plan on coming back many more times. On my first visit we got:
Mimosa– Tasted more like wine than orange juice. Not sure if they use fresh OJ, but it does not taste like it.
Steak & Eggs — So good! This was what really made me fall in love with this place. The eggs were creamy, soft, and delicate. It also had cheese. The steak was not over cooked and the portions were huge! This is my favorite entrée.
Stuffed French Toast W/​mascarpone and a 5 spice pear nage — It was bit too sweet for me. One of the better french toast I’ve tried in my life, but I am more of a savory breakfast type of girl.
Seafood Cheddar Grits made with crabmeat and scented with lobster — This is to die for! I am not a big fan of grits, but this was just delicious! Must try!
Second Visit:
Pear Bellini — Similar to the mimosa, but a little more fruity.
Curried Tomato And Coconut Milk With Corn — This was pretty addicting. The curry was not empowering, but just the right amount. This was gone pretty fast.
Steak & Eggs — This time the steak was so well done and portions were smaller than the first time. However, the eggs were still delicious!
Exotic Mushroom Scramble w/​boursin cheese & truffle oil — These are not your normal mushrooms, which makes this entrée so good. It just melts in your mouth!
Their dinner menu also looks delicious. I will probably try that next.

The first thing you notice walking into Café Muse is the 18 foot ceilings and the gold-​leaf framed paintings and mirrors laid out tastefully on the walls. Of course I also immediately picked up on the music… a little Tupelo Honey by Van the Man followed by CCR’s Who’ll Stop the Rain… great atmosphere for sure.
I chose the Cheeseburger Scramble with plenty of carmalized onions and topped with a special ketchup, fingerling papas and a toasted slice of their rye with their house-​made blackberry preserves. Wow… Bravo…what a great breakfast experience. Highly recommended. FIVE all day long.