Melba's Restaurant

In Short – With its black-and-white checkerboard seat covers, brick and painted wood walls, and plentiful windows, this soul food spot mixes homey elegance with sunshine-flooded family-friendliness. Southern comfort food like braised short ribs, BBQ turkey meat loaf and fried catfish comprise the menu, with a few nods to new-school cuisine, including shoestring zucchini, mini burgers, and spring rolls filled with black-eyed peas and collard greens. Desserts include a homemade green apple sorbet and Grandma's Sweet Potato Pie.

Editor's Tips

The Extras:: Melba's books private parties. Call for details.
When to Go:: Live music entertains diners on Tuesday nights.

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User Reviews (31)

ambiance	95.0% positive	“The decor is amazing!” “highly recommend Melba's, whether it's for a romantic evening, or a group of friends.” “If you want good food, good drinks and a nice ambience, then Melba's is where you need to be.” “The service is slow but pleasant - the ambience is so nice you won't mind the wait.” “Great food, great ambience, great price!” “This is a chic, cozy restaurant.” “The space is a little small with a lot of tables, making moving in the restaurant a little hard but the decor is so great that the this issue is secondary.” “The only comfort i enjoyed at Melba's was the decor; a wonderful pulse in the heart of Harlem.” “The decor is perfect.” “Great decor.”
dessert	75.0% positive	“Get the sweet potato pie, it's perfect, but the pound cake was dry.” “The sweet potato pie was excellent.”
drinks	100.0% positive	“If you want good food, good drinks and a nice ambience, then Melba's is where you need to be.” “The food and drinks are very good.” “EVERY Chef has a bad day, but I have been to Melba's MANY times, and the food and drinks were excellent.” “The bar is excellent, the food is divine and the look is very Soho comes to Harlem.”
food quality	75.92999935150146% positive	“Great food, great ambience, great price!” “The beauty of the surroundings, the delicious food especially the pecan crusted talipia.” “The food was horrible, horrible, horrible and the wait was forever.” “and the food delicious.” “The service was awful - our server brought us water at the very end of the meal!” “The sweet potato pie was excellent.” “arrived in New York City in September and we have been eating the delicious short ribs ever since, every other day.” “after a full HOUR & A HALF they still had no food!” “The food is DELICIOUS, AFFORDABLE, and did I say DELICIOUS?” “And oh, if you love ketchup, the buffalo wings are to die for.” “Get the sweet potato pie, it's perfect, but the pound cake was dry.” “went with a party of 6 and everyone was disappointed with their dinner; everything down to the chicken and waffles was horrible (waffles had lemons in it).” “wanted more of the chicken and waffles (although the chicken was a LITTLE bit dry) and the braised beef short ribs fell off the bone.” “In a restaurant you have the duty to make sure the diner has a pleasant experience & eats a good meal ?” “The vegetarian dish is ironically the best dish on the menu.” “Perfect for friends, dates (and first dates), or just having a good meal!” “went to Melba's with great expectations, I was in the mood for good food and I really wanted this to be a good restaurant.” “EVERY Chef has a bad day, but I have been to Melba's MANY times, and the food and drinks were excellent.” “Nice Decor, great food.” “We started our meal with their delicious sangria, then moved on to the best fried catfish we've ever had.” “Once we finished with the meal, we were very happy and were ready to recommend this place to all our friends.” “There service was great, including Melba who is a kind hearted breath of fresh air.” “If you want good food, good drinks and a nice ambience, then Melba's is where you need to be.” “The bar is excellent, the food is divine and the look is very Soho comes to Harlem.” “The food at Melbas is NOT southern, NOT soul, NOT american and definitely NOT good.” “The food and drinks are very good.” “The votive candles and fresh poinsettias were also a beautiful touch.”
menu variety	100.0% positive	“The vegetarian dish is ironically the best dish on the menu.” “happen to like the menu and have tried lots of stuff.”
overall	100.0% positive	“went to Melba's with great expectations, I was in the mood for good food and I really wanted this to be a good restaurant.” “Such a great place to eat and enjoy.”
service	31.81999921798706% positive	“Everything was enjoyable including our waiter.” “Poor, slow service & a general lack of concern for the comfort of the diner.” “start-up curve is one thing, but you can't continually use that as an excuse for horrible service” “We chatted with her and the staff was extremely friendly and helpful.” “The service was awful - our server brought us water at the very end of the meal!” “The service is slow but pleasant - the ambience is so nice you won't mind the wait.” “would have happily left a tip but to be forced at the end without notification really left me with a bad taste in my mouth and caused me to lower my ranking of the service and value.” “Expect a wait & horrible service.” “There service was great, including Melba who is a kind hearted breath of fresh air.” “Even though the restaurant was completely full, the waitress did a great job of getting everything to us quickly.” “The service was slow and unattentive.”
value	75.0% positive	“would have happily left a tip but to be forced at the end without notification really left me with a bad taste in my mouth and caused me to lower my ranking of the service and value.” “Great food, great ambience, great price!” “When we got there, there was a huge crowd, so it's best to make reservations.” “Both plates had generous portions that were arranged with great care to detail and design.”
wait time	12.5% positive	“Poor, slow service & a general lack of concern for the comfort of the diner.” “Chuck full of mint leaves (best I've had in a long time).” “The service was slow and unattentive.” “The service is slow but pleasant - the ambience is so nice you won't mind the wait.”

01/16/12

Great Experience! Felt just like family!

by brittney01

First let me start off by saying driving in and finding parking was DREADFUL so make sure you have patience. So upon walking into the establishment I noticed that they recieved a "B" review from the Board of Health. That made me a little skeptical but i proceeded on. The place is EXTREMELY small. Only a bar and a few tables. I made reservations for 6pm and had to wait 45mins for my table! The host could see that I was visibly upset because whats the point of making reservations if you still have to wait! there wasnt even a decent waiting area. So to make things better we were given free drinks and appetizers for the wait . After that little issue the night went quite well . Food was amazing. Service was quick and friendly. A little bit expensive and they only give a small amount of food. Collard Greens were my favorite! I would go to Melbas again but i would probably chose Amy Ruth's to get more food for my buck! But if you want to take someone on a date there its a nice atmosphere with dim lights and light music playing.

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03/04/11

un-healthy

by kraut

There are too many good restaurants popping up in this area to waste my money on Melbas with it's hit or miss dishes, BAD service and less than hygienic kitchen. 32 violation points makes it one of the top 3 dirtiest restaurants in the area.

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04/20/09

SLOW SLOW SLOW

Contributor

You can have all the friends and employees write all the fake reviews that you want. It will not change the fact that the place is the size of a sardine tin but the service is slower than ever. It isn't even the fact of food prep time. The waiters are forgetful and remiss in their performance. I can howver compliment the cleanliness of the bathrooms. Squeaky clean!

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05/21/08

Great customer service, and food

by candysweet27

Took my family for dinner. Made reservations when we arrived our table was waiting, waiter took our order, when food arrived, not one complaint.

My 5 year old spilled her drink, before I could turn around the manager was right there cleaning it up.

Food was very good. Entertain was also a plus

Would go back again.

Pros: Thumbs up
Cons: None

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04/13/08

Best meal we had in new york!

by fatties

Of all the amazing meals we had during our trip, this was the best! We started our meal with their delicious sangria, then moved on to the best fried catfish we've ever had. The seasoning was great and it was cooked perfectly! I wanted more of the chicken and waffles (although the chicken was a LITTLE bit dry) and the braised beef short ribs fell off the bone. GET THE MAC AND CHEESE, it's guaranteed to please (and clog your arteries). The onion rings practically melted in your mouth. Get the sweet potato pie, it's perfect, but the pound cake was dry. When we got there, there was a huge crowd, so it's best to make reservations. Even if you don't, it's worth the wait. A little tip would also be to dress well, everyone seemed pretty swanky, but there was a very relaxed vibe. Even though the restaurant was completely full, the waitress did a great job of getting everything to us quickly. The trip to Harlem is worth it, and it's only two blocks from the subway station. Hopefully we get back to NYC soon and make reservations this time!

Melba's Restaurant

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What People Are Saying About Melba's Restaurant

Justin Hartung

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Editor's Tips

01/16/12

Great Experience! Felt just like family!

by brittney01

03/04/11

un-healthy

by kraut

04/20/09

SLOW SLOW SLOW

Contributor

05/21/08

Great customer service, and food

by candysweet27

04/13/08

Best meal we had in new york!

by fatties

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