2 /5 Cole: Delilah Miami in a small part of the best, but mainly the worst of the city. The ambiance is incredible but the operational side of the business feels like a trap that wont last.
The valet "service" here is predatory. Regular valet is $60, yet the attendant simply drove my car to a garage 100 feet away and handed me the keys so I could walk across the street and retrieve it myself after dinner. Paying a premium for the privilege of self-parking is an "all show, no substance" approach that sets a terrible tone. "Well do it because we can" type of feeling to start the evening.
Lets move on to the reservation. I had a table booked multiple weeks in advance. That doesnt mean a thing here. We arrived on time and had to sit at the bar while they prepped the table which took almost 30 minutes. Another one of those moments that makes you wonder if they are consistently that unorganized or just trying to squeeze more money out of you while you wait. After almost 30 minutes I got up to check on what was happening and magically the table was ready 1 minute after I asked.
The ambiance is elite. We had great seats inside with a clear view of the stage. The woman singing was great, the band was great, the dancers were great. The restaurant itself is beautiful. Credit where its due.
You come to a restaurant for the food and it was date night so we wanted to get the full experience. The food was good for the most part. Chicken tenders, crab cake, steak, and macaroni were all enjoyable. The asparagus and brownie werent. The asparagus was terrible and the brownie was dry like it might have been 2+ days old.
The pricing for food is egregious. Even the items we liked were in no way close to being reasonably priced for the quality. You could have probably guessed that off of the $60 self retrieval valet or the fact that the menu offers a $7000 drink that comes with a tennis bracelet.
Service during the meal was good. Transactional but prompt and courteous. It took a very unprofessional turn at the end. After I placed my card in the check presenter, a random staff member that had not helped us all night took it. I got the check presenter back without my card. By the time I realized, the guy who had taken it was also gone. Our waitress had been missing for 15 minutes at this point and I had to get up and explain the issue to another employee. She said she would figure it out and returned with our waitress and the card in hand a few minutes later, but the damage was done.
I have zero inclination to return. Delilah is a beautiful establishment, but until they prioritize operational integrity over predatory pricing, I recommend taking an Uber for a drink during golden hour and heading elsewhere for a meal that actually respects your time and wallet.
