Very nice atmosphere, GREAT food. If you like fancy, but not *too* fancy, you'll love this place.

We came in tonight with a party of 10 with a reservation. 50 minutes to get a drink, 90 minutes for an appetizer, and 3 hours for food. We kept going downstairs to get drinks. This was the most disappointing experience ever. We came last year and were treated with respect. We were charged 18% gratuity. The waitress kept saying she was having a "mom fog". We were not locals and the place was packed. They treated us poorly. Numerous tables were already served hours before us. The lady in charge was awful. Never again! read more

It was embarrassingly horrible. I ordered the rack of lamb which turned out to be six of the thinnest lamb chops I've ever seen, not the advertised rack. This tells me they sliced out the meat between the ribs to use in a different dish which I'm sure they named lamb medallions. It was savagely overpriced at $28 for about 3 ounces of lamb. It was also stone cold, as were the flavorless veggies that were raw enough to use in a salad. It was not rack of lamb as stated on the menu, it was lamb chops and pitiful ones at that. There was no discernible seasoning on the lamb and the "rosemary demi-glace" had no rosemary flavor whatsoever. It tasted more like packaged brown gravy. The under cooked vegetables served under the rack of lamb (that wasn't rack of lamb), were completely flavorless. I've had some pretty bad meals in my life but this has to have been one of the worst. If I had been paying the bill I would've sent those lamb chops back in a heartbeat because they weren't rack of lamb. Attention to the chef: rack of lamb is one piece of meat not scrawny chops. I realize you stole the meat in between the ribs for somebody else's dish of lamb medallions and left me with about a quarter inch thick half-dollar in diameter piece of meat on each of the bones. There is no universe in which this was rack of lamb. It was a disgrace to the lamb that died for this meal. The salad with the house dressing was passable but the shrimp in Buffalo sauce sucked, it tasted like commercially battered/breaded shrimp tossed in pre-fabricated buffalo sauce, and they were awful. I've never had something so flavorless in my life. A two-year-old could've made these and they would've been better. It wasn't cheap either, for the four of us the bill was $200 before tip. I would never eat here again; it's one thing to be served a bad meal, but to be served a bad meal and then robbed on top of it is beyond the pale. This has to be the worst restaurant in Decatur. That's just the food, the service was awful as well. We were seated at 6:15 but we didn't get our food until nearly 730 and it was painfully slow coming out. If I'd known it was going to be this horrible we would've gone somewhere else!! Anywhere else. McDonald's has better food and better service than this overpriced piece of crap restaurant. Chick-fil-A would wipe the floor with them. Do yourself a huge favor and do not eat here. The nice surroundings don't make up for the shitty food and worse service. If they had put in half the effort of making the food and getting it to our table that they did in apologizing to us, they'd have been a lot better off. Never again. I would give them negative stars if I could, because one star is a massively better rating than they deserve. I strongly recommend that you read the "not recommended" reviews because they have a much better picture of what this place is really like, if I had to bet any serious money I'd say they paid for the good reviews. read more

Left Decatur Sat, 8/19/23, headed home to Huntsville planning return. Absolutely fabulous meal (steak, shrimp, snapper), service (Amber), and drinks from a friendly, helpful bartender. Window view was the topper. One of the best meals since I returned to Alabama. We'll be back and bring others--and soon. Mitzi's & Jeff read more

Outstanding food and atmosphere. I've traveled extensively and this is one of my favorite restaurants including any I've tried in New Orleans. It is a bit off the beaten path but I hope to return there soon. read more

Went to Simp McGee's last night. Food was good. Unfortunately got up this morning and not only was my daughter's credit card charged for the bill, but also her debit card. How that can happen, we gave no idea. The amount charged was more than the total plus tip that she wrote on receipt. I suggest anyone going there needs to either pay by cash or if they used a credit card. Watch your bank information, on line, the next day or a few days afterwards. Make sure only the credit card you used was charged and the correct amount. Getting only 1 star after what happened. Won't ever go back, no matter how good the food was. read more

Ok Martinis are on the small side. Prime rib was over cooked and tough maybe old. Pork chop Delano was excellent nice sauce grit cake was spicy Very good. Would come again but be careful what you order. Needs to be something you know has to be cooked fresh. read more

Great food and atmosphere. Friendly waitresses, good drinks and very clean place...Filet Mignon and bam bam shrimp

One of the better restaurants in a city not really known for its food. However, this one has atmosphere, a good menu that is well-executed, a nice bar, and it provides consistent quality and service. If you are looking for a good local place, give this one a try. read more

Great food - always excellent service - fabulous bartender!!! Highly recommend - located in historic building wonderful ambiance

I love this gem in the middle of the historic district. We took my daughter and her family here, including my almost 2 year old granddaughter, and it was great. Our server, Andrew, was very knowledgeable, professional and friendly. As a seasoned server, he was intimately aware of the menu, made great recommendations and answered questions honestly and thoughtfully. We had a gluten free guest in our group and they were very accommodating. We ordered a variety of appetizers and entrees, including the fish tacos, the oven roasted duck, the pasta Alfredo and my personal favorite of the evening, the bone in pork chop. All were prepared perfectly, not an easy feat for the duck and pork chop, and served promptly and hot. I will continue to visit this great restaurant, a former brothel, back in the day, every time I'm in town and I highly suggest you do, as well. read more

Simp McGhee's - Bone in Pork Chop - New American Near Me - Decatur, Alabama

See all

My wife and I went here for a graduation party. It was both of our first times here and we had high expectations for the food. However we were severely let down.. The food was mediocre at best and the service was extremely poor! read more

We were promptly and warmly greeted. Some of the service staff was attentive. Another dish was left off our dinner order. When we inquired, the waitress offered to help fix the order. My food was luke warm but tasty. Quiet and quaint little area. Closes earlier than most restaurants. read more

Great food and great owners. We were driving through town and this place looked delicious. We both had the chartrain which was great. If you don't like salt make sure to ask them to go light on it, but we liked it. read more

My first experience at Simp Mcghees was during third Friday downtown. The atmosphere there is great with the location inside of an old downtown building and a big beautiful bar downstairs. They have outdoor seating as well as two stories of seating indoors. We ate inside on the second story with a view of Bank Street down below. The only thing I think that could make the décor better would be if they removed the white paper that they use over the top of the tablecloths. I understand it makes cleanup simple and practical, but it really cheapens the look of the table setting. I started with the drink special for the night- Peach Bourbon Sweet Tea. It was so good! It was just the right amount of peach flavored and not overly sweet. My husband, Cody, and I shared the crawfish egg roll appetizer and I had a house salad while he had a bowl of gumbo. The crawfish egg rolls were fantastic and came with a sweet Asian dipping sauce. They were crispy and had that traditional egg roll taste with the surprise flavor of crawfish. I was very impressed with this creative dish. The house salad was good, but Cody's gumbo left a little to be desired. It wasn't very flavorful and just didn't have the punch that good traditional gumbo has. Even our waitress admitted that true gumbo lovers find the dish a little bland. The menu had a lot of great choices for the main course, but Cody and I both settled on shrimp pasta dishes. I had the "Shrimp Garcia" which the menu describes as "gulf shrimp in roasted garlic cream sauce with fresh tomato and basil over penne pasta." This was the perfect creamy pasta dish. The pasta was cooked perfectly, not too firm, and that cream sauce was to die for! I was really impressed with this dish and its fantastic flavor! Cody got the "Shrimp Ridgeway" which is "gulf shrimp, smoked sausage, caramelized onions in four cheese cream sauce over penne pasta." Cody really enjoyed it and loved the Cajun-style pasta flavor. I had a bite and the sauce had a little too much of the sausage flavor for me, but I'm not a big smoked sausage eater to begin with. After those filling pasta dishes, Cody and I were STUFFED! But of course there is always room for dessert. :) We decided to share the derby pie and I'm so glad we did. I have never had derby pie before and it was amazing! This traditional dessert is a chocolate walnut pie that has a consistency similar to a brownie. It was perfectly crispy and went great with the vanilla ice cream drizzled with caramel and chocolate sauce. This dessert is truly heavenly and I can't wait to go back and have it again!! read more

See all

The food was delicious, the atmosphere and vibe were great. The owner was very friendly.

I was very disappointed in my meal. I had a filet mignon that was way over cooked, very tough with no seasoning or flavor. I saw the online menu before we arrived and it had brown rice listed as a side. The rice was white, over cooked, had no seasoning or taste and it was cold. The bill for my husband and myself was over $100 and we will not be back. read more

I've had better. I was in town for business and it was recommended that I try Simp McGhee's. Nice place, well decorated and seemingly one of the nicest places around. Service was good, no complaints. Food? Meh. I orders the "Grilled Prime Rib", Salad and new potatoes. The prime rib is a staple at most restaurants and I've grown to expect it fixed a certain way. Simps grills the prime rib in what I think is a pan because it comes out charred with that charred flavor?? I guess they're trying to put their own spin on it....but it wasn't good. I don't like my meat "Kansas City" Style. They had this "gravy" on the side that was like a brown peppered gravy....ugh. Potatoes on the side? No "baked" potato just new potatoes which is fine. Not a drop of sour cream in the house.....just pats of butter. If you're serving potatoes, have some Daisy brand in the back! I was in Decatur for business, when I return I'll find somewhere else to eat. read more

Let's start with the food. Everything I've had there, from the pasta to the grits has been wonderful. I love the way they serve several seafood dishes with a special seafood of the day. I recently had a steak and it was great too. Salads are always fresh and delicious. The staff is friendly, professional, and very attentive. Ok, here is the interesting part. I've been a ghost hunter for several years and this place is seriously haunted. I recently ate dinner with three operating pieces of ghost hunting equipment, and detected activity after about 15 minutes. It was getting late and much of the staff accompanied me upstairs where the activity was extremely high. If you want to enjoy a great meal with great service, and maybe meet up with some of the past residents of Decatur, come hang out with owner Christy and her husband John. If you have an EMF meter, bring it along. I doubt you'll be disappointed. read more

Was so excited to eat here because it was our prom dinner. Took us 2 hours to get food, got refills once after having to flag her down for them, saw our waitress maybe 3 times the whole meal, and the food was lukewarm and not very good at all, especially for the price. read more

The food and service are great. The rack of lamb was expertly done. Lamb is my favorite so finding a place that does it well is a treat. The prices were typical of a good restaurant. read more

Had the crawfish étouffée with grilled rockfish, unimpressive a best, 2 stars at best (bland, crawfish pieces, never saw one).. Tried the cream brûlée cheese cake, very good. Waitress and staff very friendly (though manager or who appeared to be, sat at back bar in her phone the entire time). I would go back for cheesecake, coffee and staff, otherwise you can find just as good at any chain restaurant. read more

Simp McGhee's - New American Near Me - Decatur, Alabama

See all

Wednesday Night!! And incredibly good food and service. From cocktails too the nightly special. Awesome!!!! Thanks

This is a great place for a special occasion. I always enjoy the shrimp, however, done. The Old downtown feel spills into the restaurant. Definitely a city icon. read more

Menu has not changed inn25 years. It has a large late night bar crowd but it can be loud There is outdoor seating in nice weather

Went here on a recommendation from a colleague at work. Old bldg charm. Bar downstairs with dining upstairs also. We chose to eat upstairs. Service was friendly and very attentive. Ordered a wedge salad with the house dressing on recommendation from the waitress. Did not disappoint! Loved the dressing. Salad was great too! I had the medallions au poivre with mustard sauce and new potatoes. Husband ordered Ribeye with mashed potatoes. Two bites into mine .... I was done. A tad too spicy hot for me. Traded my husband ( bless him). The Ribeye was delicious!!! Husband enjoyed the medallions. Not too hot for him. Derby pie for dessert and we thoroughly enjoyed it!!! read more

Menu had a great selection and the cocktails are good. The food for our large party was good. The wedge salad with homemade dressing is excellent. The room upstairs was a bit loud to try and talk with guests. read more

Simp's is our go-to place for delicious meals that are creative and well priced. We live in Madison and I drive 30 minutes each way just to get Pat's crab cakes ('Crystal'). These are juicy flavorful crab cakes perfectly prepared, laid over a bed of braised greens and andouille sausage, then drizzled with hollandaise. The combination is unusual but memorable, incredibly delicious, and always worth the drive. The history and ambiance is great. It has the scent of history - old wood and good Khama, like a museum or a library. Keep doing what you're doing - love it! read more

I visited this restaurant while traveling through Decatur. It is simply amazing. The service was impeccable and the food was superb ! The ambience is fun but sophisticated. Santa even made a surprise visit. I highly recommend this restaurant! read more

Dined here twice while in town for 4 nights. Super friendly bartender and was recognized and welcomed back by the hostess two nights later. Very welcoming to the solo traveler and to our duo two nights later. Thankful to the bartender for steering me towards the mushroom caps, awesome appetizer that was repeated on my second visit. The 'Crystal Shrimp' dish was fantastic. read more

What a wonderful little find this place was!! The menu had a great select and all the food looked great. I chose the ribeye and it was excellent . It came with a ton of broccoli that was fresh and not over cooked like you find it so often. I also had a house salad and I highly recommend the blue cheese dressing it was interestingly good! I could have just had that salad and been happy with it. The staff was very friendly and quick. It had a pleasant home town feel without being country... fancy and fresh to sum it up! I will be back the next time I'm through town! read more

Simp McGhee's - Ribeye medium rare! Perfect! :) - New American Near Me - Decatur, Alabama

Service was fantastic and the waiter was extremely polite. What missed the mark for me was the crab cakes. They were heavily breaded, almost more breading than crab, AND they were cold in the center. I would come back but would order something different next time. read more

Great food, Great customer service! Awesome menu selection. Love the low dim light and soft music atmosphere. Will definitely come back. read more

I think we probably found one of the most expensive restaurants in Decatur for this dinner outing! But after a $14 fillet most places would seem expensive. Simp McGhee's is in the Old Decatur downtown area along a pretty quiet street lined with brick buildings. The restaurant itself was two stories; the first floor was warm and inviting, with big bay windows on either side of the door and a well-stocked bar along half of the room. The second floor was a bit dressier, with hanging soft lights and white linens. There were lots of old pictures decorating the walls. A group of 6 of us came in without reservations - not a problem - and were seated immediately in one of the tables framed by a bay window. The waiter was very friendly, coming over to take our drink order and asking straight off if we wanted to get separate checks. I really appreciate this more and more as I travel for business and am always impressed when servers consider it before anyone in our party asks about it. The menu is full of seafood and meat selections, so I wouldn't recommend it for a vegetarian, and they have a fresh fish daily. The evening we went it was an amber-jack (a type of yellow tail I think). I was stuck trying to decide between the Shrimp Garcia, a jumbo shrimp dish in garlic cream sauce with rigatoni pasta, and the Roasted Salmon, s plate of spinach, Alabama goat cheese, cranberries and salmon. I ended up getting the shrimp, which was quite rich and creamy. A a couple of our party got the roasted salmon and it looked delicious. Definitely what I'm getting next time! All of the dinners came with a field greens salad and the waiter recommended the house salad dressing -- a buttermilk ranch base (I think) with feta cheese. I am so glad that I took his suggestion! The dressing was AMAZING and one of the best I've ever had. A great alternative to the chain restaurants in Decatur and a place I'm sure I'll visit again when I'm back. read more

If by some crazy coincidence one ends up in Decatur, AL it would be unforgivable to miss the splendor of Southern hospitality at Simp McGee's. Chef Dean is a trooper, whipping up delightful treats such as fried green beans with horseradish dipping sauce. Don't miss the gumbo, shrimp martini (over grits), stuffed mushrooms, or prime rib. The owner was more than helpful with a small catering order we had for our business meeting the next day. She showed up bright and early at 9:00AM, enlisting her team to fill our every request with a smile, in spite of the fact they are not open for business until 5:30 PM. Simp McGee's is a culinary shining star....go!!! read more

The food was good... not great. The pie was amazing. The ambience is awesome, beautiful building, great details, wonderful music. The service was aweful. We were seated promptly by the host but it took over 5 mins for our drink orders to be taken (close to 10 minutes). The host chatted at the bar the whole time. At a minimum, he could have taken our drink order. TEAM!!! However the delay in service did not resolved once we were waited on. Decent food. Poor service. Great atmosphere. Would I eat here again? Probably not. read more

Went a while ago and everything was horrible. We had to climb some stairs similar to a ladder. Sevice was lacking- guessing they were short-handed. I know how working for the public can be, BUT you can make it up i other ways. My husband's meal was steak. He wanted a steak med-well. He got a steak with the cowbell still on it. My meal was fish- it was cold. To get drinks, we had to go downstairs. I told them just to cancel my meal. I think I had 3 bites. My husband wanted them to bring him a new steak- not microwaved cooked. He was told he would have to pay for 2 steaks. We were not rude, like I said, I've worked for the food industry. We were with another couple. The total for our tab was about $110. I hate the fact that our friends ate the tab. My husband choked his down. I did not even eat. Filled up on crackers while we waited and waited. I figured that our salads would be there soon. WRONG.I had to ask for bread or crackers to munch on while we waited. The manager herself would not give my husband a new steak!. So, yeah, we had crackers and beer- that we had to ask for. Ended up going to The Brick for supper. Now THAT'S the place to be for excellent food and epic service. This was a few months ago when COVID was starting to kick in. I posted on their Facebook page the day after we went.. Now that I'm a 'yelper', thought I'd get to more unlucky diners before they wasted their time and money. So, you're welcome and heads up. read more

Ordered based on recommendations and had the fried green beans which were delicious, as a main course I had the roasted salmon, separately the salmon was deliciously prepared and the spinach in a berry vinaigrette was delicious as well, I didn't like the combination but that's just me and individually very good. Service and atmosphere were good, I would highly recommended. read more

Absolutely love this place! The atmosphere was great & the building has the original hard wood floors which makes it even neater. The staff was very pleasant & our waitress was super sweet. We had the cheese plate & the stuffed mushrooms as an appetizer & the surf & turf for our entrée. Everything was made perfectly & succeeded our expectations. We also loved the history behind the name! We will definitely make this place a must visit when we return! read more

See all

In the center of the historic district this restaurant and bar fits right in. The food is a little pricey but the quality and selection are outstanding. The $5 cup of gumbo was worth every penny and the Crystal Shrimp was a gourmet delight. read more