Ordered my "margherita" pizza and it had little to no tomatoes, 0 fresh basil and absolutely no garlic olive oil. -- New review: I called in and management was awesome and super understanding. They apologized and remade a margherita pizza for me on the house read more

We stopped here for lunch on our way through town. Intrigued by the burgers we both ordered different ones. I got the mushroom burger with rhubarb ketchup and pickled onions, and the boyfriend got the lismore with smoked Gouda and bacon. And as always, he got a cup of coffee. They brought the coffee without any sugar or creamer. Not wanting to wait the boyfriend tried it black. Surprisingly the coffee wasn't too harsh black and he could enjoy it black! The two other couples in the restaurant were already eating and their food looked amazing! We we so excited for ours. My mushroom burger was the bomb! It had large chunks of mushroom mixed in with the blackbean burger and held together very well. All aspects went together perfectly, and I ate the entire thing! The lismore burger was good but left a pond on the plate with the amount of liquid that oozed out of it. Trapped between the patties that liquid was very hot and hard to cool down. The only problem we really had was that our fries were burned. I clearly had the bottom of the frier and most my fries were inedible. I ate some of the boyfriends fries which were a little better than mine. Overall a fun concept and delicious entrees. I'd recommend! read more

Eau Claire has stepped up its game with The Informalist! Very impressed with the variety of offerings, portion size, and overall quality. Everything was incredible! Go here! read more

the food maybe be fair the service is horrble never go back again. When asking for entree recommendations the answer shouldn't be "it's not my job. I am a bartender". We finished our meal someplace else. read more

I was a little nervous to eat here, based on the crazy items on the menu! But I'm so glad we decided to anyways! We ordered duck fat fries for our appetizer, and for our main meal we ordered fillet mignon with whipped potatoes and onion cream with a garnish of kimchi Purée! Everything about our appetizer and our main course was absolutely heavenly! The fries came with a wonderful dipping sauces! Three to be exact! The meat for our main dish was done perfectly, it melted in your mouth. I love how this place tries to serve everything that is grown or raised locally! I also love The fact that the animals are all grass fed! I would highly highly recommend this restaurant if you like to be a little outside of the box! Surprisingly we got our check we also got a after dinner mint macaroon. Of course it was homemade as well, and it was so so so good! I'm glad Eau Claire has finally gotten a restaurant that isn't like every other restaurant in the area! read more

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Very interesting place. I immediately noticed how great it smelled inside. Most items were completely different than anything I've eaten before. I ended up going with a vegetable burger that was very tasty and fulfilling. They use local ingredients and they continually change the menu to roll with what's available. I've been wanting to try different things and it's always nice to step away from processed crap. This place fit the bill and they try to cater to different tastes. read more

Visited here on a food tour (Chippewa Valley Tours). We had a single dish, and things were ready when the tour arrived. I can't judge the menu, service, etc. But our pork belly "BLT" was out of this world! Very tasty and perfectly cooked pork belly, on toast with a tasty aioli, topped with small tomatoes and greens. This was really outstanding, a gourmet-level dish. The chef talked to the group about the restaurant and his goals. A big focus on local ingredients (he told us about each one). While I can't judge on the basis of a full meal experience, I have to say that our one dish was quite good. read more

This is one of my favorite places in Eau Claire. The atmosphere is so minimalistic and I love that. I've never had anything bad from here. The staff is very well trained and always kind and professional. read more

We stopped in while our stay in town. I was pleasantly surprised by the decor and friendly service. We had a few cocktails and the Brian's salad with the beets. The beets were very good. Defiantly small plates but I get there were appetizers. The presentation was excellent. We would come back. read more

Exceptional service! Everyone was friendly and very attentive. Food was pretty good as well. I was not expecting to have such a great dining experience here in a hotel restaurant! Check it out when visiting Eau Claire. read more

First time eating here and very glad that we did! Food was delicious (we tried the fries with three different unique sauces, delicious!), the cheese board, also a treat, and a margarita pizza-- fresh basil and tomatoes. Wonderful wait staff, attentive and friendly, very warm and welcoming! We definitely look forward to dining here again. (we were treated to a fresh loaf of sourdough bread with beet salt-- I wanted to take a jar home!, and macarons at the end). Excellent experience! read more

Food is expensive. I expected excellent taste and preparation. I ordered the elk with char. The elk was good slightly sweet. The char or rainbow swiss char was covered with a sweet sauce that masked the flavor. Sweet and sweet on the same plate. There needs to be balance. My wife had garlic chicken with wild rice. The chicken breast was well cooked but lacked any garlic flavor. The wild rice was sweet with overpowering rosemary flavor. Left us feeling if they even taste what they're cooking. My son had the bison ribs over noodles. The ribs were over sauced and the noodles were undercooked. The deserts were excellent. Dinner, drinks, and deserts ran $145.00 plus tip. We had a less then stellar dinner for a premium price. I can say that the wait staff was excellent. read more

This is one of my favorite restaurants to go for a nice meal in Eau Claire! Menu changes often enough and the atmosphere is just right-modern and clean, not stuffy. On the pricier side, but they use local and fresh ingredients that are high quality. Best for dinner, but brunch never disappoints as well. Super nice drinks to go along with your meal and they grab the coffee from next door at ecdc. Great spot to grab a nice dinner anytime! read more

Great food but little expensive that is why it is rare that my husband and I go there

I could be biased, but either way...I hope the community will support us as we are always busting our butts to make things better. It takes time and effort to build a great restaurant. read more

Been there several times with my hubby....will return ....very comfortable atmosphere....God is good to let us enjoy it. Beth Stanley, Realtor, 7152253111 read more

Great menu partnering with farms across Wisconsin. Perfect Bloody Mary, pairs well with their outstanding burger. Happened to visit on Mother's Day and the menu was amazing- pork belly Benedict?! Yes please. Also so pleased they brought more patio space to beautiful downtown Eau Claire! read more

Wow !!!! Fantastic food and atmosphere! As a hotel guest it was nice to have a great restaurant downstairs! Definitely would recommend. A guest discount would have been nice but not needed. read more

Great place, Great food. Excellent Farm to table local Wisconsin. Clean, Creative, and Satisfying.

Clean & comfy..love that it is a very nice place with friendly service and an interesting menu ! read more

The Informalist - Wine Bars Near Me - Eau Claire, Wisconsin

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Unique and delicious food. The gourmet grilled cheese sandwich and tomato bisque was a favorite of mine. The food is definitely a 5 out of 5 however, the bartenders were lacking. It took me about 10 minutes sitting at the bar for anyone to nothing EC I was there read more

Our food was exceptional. Our wait staff was cordial, knowledgeable, attentive, and friendly. We fully enjoyed our experience. Jaye and Kay Franklin read more

Stopped for lunch today. I had The Lake Michigan Fist Burger, my Wife had the Lismore Burger, both excellent. Would have to say it was the best lunch I have ever had in Eau Claire! Server was very attentive We will be back. I think Eau Claire is finally on a roll! read more

A unique restaurant with upscale food and a zesty flair. The ambience was friendly, artistic and modern and the service was impeccable. As for the food, we had two of the artisan pizzas which were a fair price and delicious. Best pizza I have ever had. The poutine was divine but could have used a few more cheese curds to be perfect. Our specialty drinks were perfect though as their bartender definitely knows how to mix them. We also had the Lismore Burger which had great flavor but needed to be cooked more for my liking. I forgot to ask to have it cooked well done. Will definitely go again when we visit family up there in a few weeks. It's our favorite restaurant in the Eau Claire, WI area and we have been to over thirty in the four years our daughter has attended college up there. For being only open 2.5 weeks, they are doing exceptionally well. Tips for the staff to make everything perfect: 1. Ask the patrons who order the Lismore Burger how they want it done. I myself will only eat a burger if it is cooked at least medium well. Sometimes the patrons forget to tell the server how they want their burger done. 2. Maybe add footnotes to the menu explaining certain entrees and appetizers as many of the ingredients to a meal that were listed, I had to look up on my phone to know what it was. I do not often eat at upscale restaurants such as yours so I am not familiar with some of the foods. 3. We tried two of the artisan pizzas and loved them both so I believe if you add a couple more unique pizzas to your list, you will have market cornered on 'za ! I especially liked that the two pizzas we tried were meatless!!! That being said, my husbands and mine experience there was fantastic and we will definitely be back to try more of your entrees the next time we visit Eau Claire. Keep up the excellent work. You are off to a great start. Loved it!!! Thank you for making us feel so welcome there. :) read more

Great service and food. My only complaint is that the fries tasted like they emptied the entire salt shaker on them.

Beautiful space, great service, enjoyable atmosphere however the food was quite disappointing. I ordered the garlic pesto pizza with extra mushrooms and ended up with mostly raw mushrooms on top (I have a feeling this was a late addition after the cook realized the order called for extra mushrooms) and a blob of cheap mozzarella (less on cheese or better quality and/or blue cheese would have complimented the bacon and leeks better) My date ordered the pork belly dish which ended up as charred meat (tough and black on the outside) which was not edible. This place has great potential if they improve their food quality. read more

Great pizza, eggs Benedict and yummy strong cocktails. Will come again. My favorite is the Manhattan.

We just had my daughter's small wedding luncheon in the semi-private room at The Informalist -- from beginning to end, it was a very positive experience. From the attentive, friendly waitstaff to the wonderful food (and the fantastic Tiramisu!) to the beautiful way they decorated the room for the event, it was simply perfection for my daughter and my new son-in-law, who wanted a very small, relaxing reception with close family and friends. I couldn't recommend The Informalist more. And Thank You, to them, for making the new couple's day so special! Kudos! read more

Although my "rare" burger came closer to medium, it was juicy with sweet sauteed onions and yummy fries. The Piatelli malbec was excellent. My husband's classic Benny was superb and the cottage potatoes even better than the fries. The high rating is because the management differed to redo my burger or give a dessert. I declined both, and they have a small discount on the bill. Kudos for good customer service! We will be back! read more

Had a very nice meal the the service was as expected. I liked the variety I was able to get and happy to see this place in Eau Claire. We will go back from time to time. read more

A new place here in Eau Claire that opened with The Lismore. Very very good place it starts with the ambience of the place where it strikes that balance of being hip, modern, and traditional. The staff is incredibly friendly and can answer any question you throw there way. The menu is uncluttered but what it lacks in quantity it more than makes up for in clarity. The drink choices are top notch. Once you get your food it is simply amazing and stays that way all the through desert. Definitely worth going to and then going back too. read more

We were here during a girls getaway and had a lovely evening on the patio! Our waitress was outstanding...attentive, but not intrusive. Very knowledgeable and found the answer if she didn't know. The food was excellent on top of it. I've already been recommending it to friends, who have also been quite impressed with the place. Love it! read more

The confit pheasant was to die for. I was also surprised by how flavorful their vegetarian tomato pizza was. Our waitress was a little frazzled and short with us, but the service was all around great and we will be returning! read more

Best service all waitress are very friendly and service mind. Love the nice and clean atmosphere. Open cooking area is interesting. Hotel and restaurant interior is minimalist style which is I like. If you looking for a little bit upscale restaurant this place is the answer. read more

It's about time we get a modern upscale restaurant in downtown Eau Claire and the new Lismore hotel is just the place. It sure is modern looking inside--a very minimalistic approach to the decor...lots of windows, straight lines, white spaces--not very warm. The cobalt blue tile accents on the chest high wall surrounding the open kitchen broke things up a little bit and the diffused lighting was effective. But we came for the food, a Sunday lunch time treat out. We could choose from the brunch menu or the lunch menu so we took an entrée from each at 1 PM. My wife chose the Crab Cakes Benedict which was delicious. Although it wasn't served very hot and the thin hollandaise sauce was much too light, the crabcakes were hearty, delicious and obviously hand formed just for us. The poached eggs were done perfectly medium and the biscuit was soft and tender. The accompanying hashbrowns were nice and hot--probably the last thing plated. I chose the Lismore burger which is TWO quarter pound patties of fresh ground beef (hand formed again), covered with white cheddar cheese and sautéed onions or leeks and two big slabs of tomato (no lettuce). The hand cut fries were excellent and could've been served hotter. You want salt on your fries?--you can pinch it on from a little bowl they'll provide... Spoon on your in-house-made ketchup from a small custard dish of it provided upon request. The artisan bread hamburger bun was almost too much, so my wife peeled out her burger patty, and I used the bun for the full hamburger effect. She said it would be nice to have a lettuce wrap as an option instead of the bun. Sharing the fries and her potatoes and splitting the crabcakes left us both full. She had the iced tea which was fine, and I opted for just water. But that turned out to be room temperature tap water poured out of a reusable glass bottle--no ice? C'mon! We had plenty of sweets at home, so no dessert here...but Abigail did bring us the dessert tray and explained some future possibilities. This bill came to right at $30...next time we'd probably add the onion soup or maybe one of the two salad choices (House or Caesar). Some of the other menu items seem rather odd or overpriced. Like three different kinds of Ramen noodle dishes? Or a chicken breast meal for $24? Overall I thought the menu was pretty thin and not very deep--minimalistic? Certainly leaves room for expansion and improvement over time. We noticed the lunch menu and dinner menu are 85% identical and the pricing is exactly the same. I think this requires further exploration at a later date. When you're done with your meal stroll through the Lismore lobby or the adjacent EC DC coffeeshop...lots of millennials sitting around...and interesting minimalistic decor, using a mix of media and textures. It's hip! read more

We had a really good experience here! Our servers name was Stephanie and she was wonderful! We both got pizza and they were bigger than expected and very flavorful. Will be back read more

What a pleasant experience to find a variety of different and original dishes for veggie lovers like us on our way back from camping in Minnesota! I loved the vibe and the elegant but cozy atmosphere too. I ordered the New Potatoes dish that had fennel, radish, and some herbs as appetizer and ended up sharing with my dining partner who first didn't think they would like it. We loved it. Then he ordered the lamb burger and I ordered the carrot agnolotti. Both were tasty and my agnolotti is perfect for vegans: home-made pasta filled with a stunning walnut and tofu paste. We finished with the flourless chocolate cake and ordered white wine. If you think the prices are in the high end is because this business treats their employees the way every restaurant should: the tip is included in the price of the dishes and everyone seems to have a sense of purpose and willingness to be at your service. I will be back! read more

Now, I know on my website it says that I write five star reviews the same hours the Informalist serves their menu, 6am to 11pm. But what you don't know, and you have no way of knowing, is that from 3pm to dinner, I only write two star reviews, sort of like how the Informalist only serves pizzas from 3pm to dinner. Even if you drove twenty minutes out of your way for it. read more

I've already written on Trip Advisor and because my review was not good, no one from the Informalist responded or replied! The sad piece about this is that our meal was not good and the manager's response was "I guarantee you a good experience the next time you come in." How sappy is that? After the conversation, he left to bartend. tend. The staff seems inexperienced all around. read more

Waited for 15 minutes and was never greeted or offered water. The place wasn't even half busy but there were waiters everywhere. Walked out and the hostess was talking to another waitress and didn't say anything as we left. As of out of towner, I wouldn't recommend this place unless there are no other options. read more