I'd give this place a 3.5 out of 5. The food is worth the trip.
I'd read about Michael's on several lists online as a place to go. I'd also read about how they are often severely overcrowded, have no reservation or beeper system and the waiting people flood into and around the diners.
So, last Saturday before we went to see "The Phantom of the Opera" at the Fox, we headed to Maplewood much earlier than normal for dinner. We arrived at 4:50 and the place was packed and we had about a 10 minute wait! I guess you need to arrive around 4:00 for no wait! But, boy, am I glad we got there early. The reviews online were correct. The wait gets long and on a cold, windy night like last Saturday, the people try not to wait outside in line. They crowd everywhere they can inside...to the detriment of the servers and diners.
Mike was planning on getting prime rib, as that is always his favorite. But when we sat down he didn't see one person eating that. There weren't even any people eating steak, even though there were several steaks on the menu.
So, we both started with their famous French onion soup. It is really good. It is a pretty big bown and it could practically be an entree. I had read online that people say it takes an extra 15 minutes to wait for it to be done. Our waitress didn't say that and I didn't notice any longer than normal wait.
For dinner I just ordered their hot wings. They were good. I liked their hot sauce. It was hot but flavorful. The wings were kind of small and their were only 8 of them.
Mike decided to go with their burger. Instead of cheese it comes with a cheese spread. I don't know if that is something Greek, since this place is actually a Greek restaurant. I asked Mike if he liked it as much as traditional cheese and he said no. The burger was big and thick and perfectly prepared. Mike said it was a really good burger. The fries were good (I ate 1/2 of them!).
For dessert we split a piece of their tiramisu. It was good, but the liquid their pour over to soften the lady fingers was strong and there was too much of it, so the bottom layer was just soggy and strong.
This place had good food but it was cramped and loud.
We left at about 6:00 and the waiting people were CRAZY. They were all over in the restaurant and all over sitting at the outdoor patio furniture (in the freezing cold).
I would say...if you can go sometime (like for lunch or a weekday) when this place isn't loud and crazy...I'd go for the food.
