We are local, Wholesome Gourmet Cuisine with made from scratch favorites. We offer a fine dining restaurant experience with hometown comfort. We are located in the Historic Cobalt Manor in Downtown Smyrna DE. We invite you to sit down, relax and enjoy the atmosphere and the company.
Hours
| Friday | 9 AM–8 PM |
| Saturday | 11 AM–8 PM |
| Sunday | 10 AM–2 PM |
| Monday | Closed |
| Tuesday | 9 AM–8 PM |
| Wednesday | 9 AM–8 PM |
| Thursday | 9 AM–8 PM |
Address and Contact Information
Address: 47 E Commerce St, Smyrna, DE 19977
Phone: (302) 508-5832
Website: https://www.cobaltmanor.com/eecafe
Menu Photos
Order and Reservations
Reservations: tableagent.com
Order: Order online
Photo Gallery
Related Web Results
Elizabeth Esther Cafe’ | Cobalt Manor
Elizabeth Esther Cafe’ | Smyrna DE – Facebook
Elizabeth Esther Cafè – Visit Central Delaware
Reviews
We arrived around 6:30 and were promptly seated in the room with the bar. There were 2 other tables in that room and 1 table in the blue room. 4 tables total. Really neat building and atmosphere.
Within the time we were there our server, who was the only server there. Forgot what drink one of the other tables ordered, forgot if we had ordered or not, forgot to bring another table a steak knife with their stake (to which they said that they always forget to bring a steak knife) forgot to put my appetizer order in, and forgot my steal knife (and then joked with me about how they always forget the steak knife and asked if I had heard them say that to the other table). My girlfriend avoids dairy whenever possible as any more than a little bit will cause her to be ill. When she asked the server if her appetizer could be come without the cheese on top the server replied with something along the lines of “sure, if you want it to be boring.” We were both surprised as that is the sort of comment that is rude and unnecessary.
My girlfriends appetizer came out within a few minutes of ordering. I figured since everything is made to order that my crab dip was just taking a little longer. At 7:30 when our food came out, I asked about my appetizer and was told it was forgotten about.
My girlfriends main dish was pasta with a white wine based sauce. She said the noodles seemed to be made in house and were good but that the sauce was very watery. I had the steak with smashed potatoes and broccoli. 1/3 of the steak was inedible fat (see photo) which, for a 36 dollar dish, was very disappointing. The stake was juicey and cooked well but had no flavor or hint of seasoning. The potatoes and broccoli were well seasoned and delicious.
My appetizer was brought to me as a to go order. The crab dip was by far the most tasty thing ordered but it filled about half of the 8oz deli cup it came in, so about 4oz of dip for 16$ which was again disappointing.
To be honest we were both dumbfounded by the quality of the service. I have worked in customer facing positions and my girlfriend is herself a chef so we both tend to be pretty understanding but joking with your customers about how you always forget something and then forgetting it for another customer 20 mins later, forgetting to put entire parts of the meal order in (a recurring problem, based on other reviews), forgetting a drink order you just took and not even remembering if you took the order of a table you sat 5 minutes ago is just unprofessional.
I didn’t even get a chance to ask for a steak knife for 10-15 minutes after my order came out because the server disappeared into the back. Honestly do not understand why the server is not writing orders down if they can’t remember anything??
Food is overpriced. Both in my opinion as the one paying and my girlfriends opinion as a chef. It is disappointing to try to take your significant other out on a nice dinner date only to be out 100$ that could have been spent getting more food and better service.
When that couple went to leave, the wife loudly announced, “Sorry we stayed so late past closing time,” clearly directed at us. It was extremely uncomfortable and felt intentional. They appeared to be close friends with the bartender, and it came across as though they were used to indirectly get us to leave instead of staff addressing us directly.
If we were past closing time, the staff could have simply come over and politely let us know. That would have been professional and respectful. Having another customer call us out in a passive aggressive way was awkward and unnecessary.
It is unfortunate, because what had been a pleasant experience up until that moment ended on a really sour note and left a bad taste in our mouths at the very end of our service. I definitely won’t be returning.
That said, the saled and desert were wonderful. Once again, our Server Izzy was amazing. We didn’t share our disappointment until after the meal. Why because In addition to Izzy waiting tables, she was also tending the bar, as well as being the hosting.
In addition, we were the first reservations of the night. I’ve read so many great reviews of this place. Maybe the kitchen staff was just having an off night. We will give them another try.