Loved the food, drinks, service, the experience. Food was remarkable: unique combinations of ingredients, appealingly presented, textures, flavors, all outstanding. We especially enjoyed the corn ribs, brussels, corn mash, and pork belly. Meat options plentiful but a vegetarian could be very happy here. Also the cocktails. I always want to enjoy a restaurant’s unique cocktails but usually end up disappointed. We loved Thoughts of Mary Jane (tequila base), Walk on By (a couple of tequilas and yellow chartreuse as primary notes), and a black Manhattan type concoction (name forgotten), with navy strength rum, rye, and other warm notes. Our server was great with the recommendations and keeping our time frame, needing to be put in time for a grizzlies game. All in all, a revelation. Hope this place stands the test of time. Only minor beef: so many ingredients I couldn’t identify. Makes you feel a little foolish when you need to ask about one or more ingredients from every dish or cocktail. Hopefully I learned a thing or two. Oh and remember, eat the corn but not the corn ribs. lol
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
harry etters
Great food and service. Wonderful experience. Our server, Shannon, was excellent and attentive.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Angela Pacheco
Sit at the bar, enjoy the hand spun cocktails and friendly service! Brilliant dishes that stood out in our weekend visit to Memphis. Perfect spot for a date night or before a show downtown.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Vaishnavi Arni
Went here on an extremely cold December evening. We were seated in the cozy patio and our server went through the menu with us with great detail given our dietary preferences. The vegetable section of the menu was incredible, every dish was better than the other although the golden beets were my favorite. For our entree we had the fennel seed bucatini, and simply put, one of the best dishes I’ve had all year.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Charred Okra, Panna Cotta, Papadum
Stacey Harris
We had a reservation for a dinner party at 8:30. Waited 30 minutes for our table. When we sat down at 9:05 was told the kitchen was closing at 9:30.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 2
Maxwell McDougall
Easily one of the best restaurants in Memphis. The food was amazing and I will definitely be going again.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Priscilla Tsai
The food was really really good and unique.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Tara Samples
Excellent meal. Excellent service. A perfect date spot for the Orpheum
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Bobby Turner
The food and service was amazing!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Cuba Pete Thomas
Service was impeccable... I give the Lobbyist my top rating... rated real high ,the award winning restaurant...lived up to its rep... the food was excellent the mussels over the top...atmosphere was great... met some people that were from Lori's hometown .. loved everything about it .... my #1 downtown Memphis pick.... five 🌟 Located on south main... block from the orpheum
Great atmosphere, the menu was outstanding, the food was incredible, the service was impeccable. Had a beautiful dinner there with business colleagues and will be coming back as soon as I can.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Rachel Mazza
Love the vibe and we had a great experience and wonderful cocktails at the bar before dinner. Bartenders were so friendly and helpful and clearly love their craft.
But we were disappointed with the food once we sat down to dinner, and the waiter was pretty standoffish.
The mussels were great! Loved the corn mash, although the others at my table said it was bland. The Brussels were crispy and tasty if you love heat (spicy!)
Where we felt disappointed was when the pasta and proteins came - which you’d think would be the highlight.
The teres major was cooked perfectly, but it was cold and so were the whipped potatoes it was served on. Because of that it was all quite flavorless.
The pork chop was also cold when it got to us and a bit bland - like someone forgot a finishing salt or sauce/drizzle to finish it.
I think I was most disappointed with the bucatini. The pasta noodles themselves were lovely. But the sauce was too sweet and too sour at same time. Had no salt. And was missing all the umami you expect in a pasta dish (traditional or not). For me not to eat a pasta of ANY kind is pretty rare.
Plus we were surprised at the end to see gratifying already added and a 3% credit card fee. For elevated fare??? For fine dining??? It cheapened the experience and we’re already really trying to rally enthusiasm after the coldness from our waiter and the mixed reviews on the meal.
Plus we left a note on the reservation about it being a big special event and they didn’t even ask about it.
Overall I get what they’re trying to do and I think the chef has some great ideas.
But overall it felt like they were trying to do too much of everything and the menu was confused and conflicted.
Maybe need to pick a region at a time to influence each seasonal menu rather than take ingredients from everywhere and try to mix them all up?
Went in excited to taste our way through the menu with high hopes but left wanting not to go back.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Papadum, Cornbread
Kriangsiri Malasri
Amazingly good food and very filling portions, with service to match. We had the corn mash, corn ribs, yams, charred okra, brussels, broccolini, and teres major. The steak was solid but paled in comparison to the vegetable dishes, which completely recalibrated my feelings on how vegetables can taste. Our server Melissa made excellent menu and cocktail recommendations. We will definitely be back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Tia Weinstein
Booked a reservation here last minute and boy are we glad we did! If you are a foodie and love inventive dishes with bold flavors, we highly recommend. Byrum was our server and took time to explain each dish. Service was impeccable and the food was equally impressive with artistic plating and international flavor combinations. Your taste buds will be doing a happy dance!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Valeria Cambron
The Lobbyist is a go-to. This restaurant is one of my favorites, the food is remarkably delicious! They know how to make vegetables so well. Service is always great and enjoyable. It’s just always a good time here! If you have a chance to stop by here, I definitely would!!
Loved the food, drinks, service, the experience. Food was remarkable: unique combinations of ingredients, appealingly presented, textures, flavors, all outstanding. We especially enjoyed the corn ribs, brussels, corn mash, and pork belly. Meat options plentiful but a vegetarian could be very happy here. Also the cocktails. I always want to enjoy a restaurant’s unique cocktails but usually end up disappointed. We loved Thoughts of Mary Jane (tequila base), Walk on By (a couple of tequilas and yellow chartreuse as primary notes), and a black Manhattan type concoction (name forgotten), with navy strength rum, rye, and other warm notes. Our server was great with the recommendations and keeping our time frame, needing to be put in time for a grizzlies game. All in all, a revelation. Hope this place stands the test of time. Only minor beef: so many ingredients I couldn’t identify. Makes you feel a little foolish when you need to ask about one or more ingredients from every dish or cocktail. Hopefully I learned a thing or two. Oh and remember, eat the corn but not the corn ribs. lol
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Great food and service. Wonderful experience. Our server, Shannon, was excellent and attentive.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sit at the bar, enjoy the hand spun cocktails and friendly service! Brilliant dishes that stood out in our weekend visit to Memphis. Perfect spot for a date night or before a show downtown.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Went here on an extremely cold December evening. We were seated in the cozy patio and our server went through the menu with us with great detail given our dietary preferences. The vegetable section of the menu was incredible, every dish was better than the other although the golden beets were my favorite. For our entree we had the fennel seed bucatini, and simply put, one of the best dishes I’ve had all year.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Charred Okra, Panna Cotta, Papadum
We had a reservation for a dinner party at 8:30. Waited 30 minutes for our table. When we sat down at 9:05 was told the kitchen was closing at 9:30.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 2
Easily one of the best restaurants in Memphis. The food was amazing and I will definitely be going again.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The food was really really good and unique.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Excellent meal. Excellent service. A perfect date spot for the Orpheum
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The food and service was amazing!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Service was impeccable...
I give the Lobbyist my top rating... rated real high ,the award winning restaurant...lived up to its rep... the food was excellent the mussels over the top...atmosphere was great... met some people that were from Lori's hometown
.. loved everything about it .... my #1 downtown Memphis pick.... five 🌟
Located on south main... block from the orpheum
Restaurantji Recommends
Great atmosphere, the menu was outstanding, the food was incredible, the service was impeccable. Had a beautiful dinner there with business colleagues and will be coming back as soon as I can.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Love the vibe and we had a great experience and wonderful cocktails at the bar before dinner. Bartenders were so friendly and helpful and clearly love their craft.
But we were disappointed with the food once we sat down to dinner, and the waiter was pretty standoffish.
The mussels were great! Loved the corn mash, although the others at my table said it was bland. The Brussels were crispy and tasty if you love heat (spicy!)
Where we felt disappointed was when the pasta and proteins came - which you’d think would be the highlight.
The teres major was cooked perfectly, but it was cold and so were the whipped potatoes it was served on. Because of that it was all quite flavorless.
The pork chop was also cold when it got to us and a bit bland - like someone forgot a finishing salt or sauce/drizzle to finish it.
I think I was most disappointed with the bucatini. The pasta noodles themselves were lovely. But the sauce was too sweet and too sour at same time. Had no salt. And was missing all the umami you expect in a pasta dish (traditional or not). For me not to eat a pasta of ANY kind is pretty rare.
Plus we were surprised at the end to see gratifying already added and a 3% credit card fee. For elevated fare??? For fine dining??? It cheapened the experience and we’re already really trying to rally enthusiasm after the coldness from our waiter and the mixed reviews on the meal.
Plus we left a note on the reservation about it being a big special event and they didn’t even ask about it.
Overall I get what they’re trying to do and I think the chef has some great ideas.
But overall it felt like they were trying to do too much of everything and the menu was confused and conflicted.
Maybe need to pick a region at a time to influence each seasonal menu rather than take ingredients from everywhere and try to mix them all up?
Went in excited to taste our way through the menu with high hopes but left wanting not to go back.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Papadum, Cornbread
Amazingly good food and very filling portions, with service to match. We had the corn mash, corn ribs, yams, charred okra, brussels, broccolini, and teres major. The steak was solid but paled in comparison to the vegetable dishes, which completely recalibrated my feelings on how vegetables can taste. Our server Melissa made excellent menu and cocktail recommendations. We will definitely be back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Booked a reservation here last minute and boy are we glad we did! If you are a foodie and love inventive dishes with bold flavors, we highly recommend. Byrum was our server and took time to explain each dish. Service was impeccable and the food was equally impressive with artistic plating and international flavor combinations. Your taste buds will be doing a happy dance!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The Lobbyist is a go-to. This restaurant is one of my favorites, the food is remarkably delicious! They know how to make vegetables so well. Service is always great and enjoyable. It’s just always a good time here! If you have a chance to stop by here, I definitely would!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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