BARDA Detroit

What a great restaurant with a beautiful patio for the Summer! We ate inside, but it looked lovely out there. Service was excellent, food was delicious, ambiance was chic and lively. We had dinner on a Saturday evening, and I love being able to see and taste the flames from the kitchen.

The dishes I loved most were the zucchini ceviche and the Michigan trout. For a vegetarian dish to stand out so much on an Argentinian, meat-centric menu, it has to be great, and it really was. Tangy and herby with basil, olive oil and lemon. The toasted hazelnuts really sent it over the top. Delicious. and the trout was just so juicy and perfectly cooked with crispy skin and a crisp, fresh fennel salad over top; so good. We also enjoyed the octopus appetizer, the strip steak, and the potatoes. Everything was perfectly cooked and well-seasoned. Though I drank sparkling water, my friends enjoyed their cocktails and wine; they even made something special for one of my friends, and she loved it.

The steaks are especially spendy, but it's nice to go with a group and share - the bill didn't seem too extravagant at the end of the night, and we were all satisfied. The 4 of us ordered 2 apps, 2 entrees and a side. All in all, a lovely experience I wish to repeat.

BARDA is very much part of the New Detroit-- aggressively flashy, unapologetically spendy, and thoroughly inventive. The vibe of exclusivity was communicated when I went to book a reservation and found that there were only a few seats available at the bar, but when we arrived, a good number of tables were available as well for the first hour or so. (We declined a table because you get a better view at the bar). The reservation system is also pushy and demands that you text back to confirm or your reservation will be cancelled. I found this annoying and let them know this politely and they were like "yeah, it is what it is." Not a dealbreaker but it just felt kinda weird, especially as colored by local real estate development discourse and controversies!

We opted for a mix of the bar menu and the regular menu (the bar menu is not available all the time). The bar menu included a burger-- recommended "medium," but I would have classified it as extremely rare- which I thought was good, but nothing absolutely stellar, and definitely fairly aggressive on the bread-meat element with no accoutrements. Burgers lacking the conventional LTO and pickle, or something more adventurous like pickled onions, arugula, or what have you, often fail to excite me. If I wanted bread-meat-bread, I would probably be more excited about, I don't know, Telway or Motz or something. The star of the bar menu, though, was the boquerones-- a Spanish sardine configuration, but served very much NOT in the style of tapas but rather on a stately presentation on top of a thinly sliced piece of bread. It was excellent-- a lavish (but not excessive) setup with dill.

Otherwise we had a beet starter (para comenzar) that had a sort of labneh kind of pairing that was really quite inventive, and a garnish of "raspberry dust"-- I assume this is something from that distant realm of molecular gastronomy into which I don't typically delve- and the flavors and textures were next level. The main dish of black rice and Peruvian bay scallops was aiming for the moon but crashing into the Atlantic kind of a thing. It was palatable, but it wasn't great. Scallops are best pan-seared with butter-- or, barring the use of butter, at least pan-fried, preferably with at least a bit of some sort of Maillard thang going on (maybe a bit of flour). These were tender-- but in a more smooshy way rather than the kind of tender with a not-quite-crunch from pan-searing with flour and butter. And this is not, in my humble opinion, the ideal scallop. The black rice featured a balanced collection of flavors. My wife thought it was too salty-- I thought it was perhaps not salty enough, so perhaps there was something as far as acidity that wasn't quite lining up, but we both felt like it was somehow a bit off.

Overall, menu-wise, I'd say it was a great setup. The boquerones with dill were fabulous, and the beet concoction was quite singular. I would not order the burger or the scallops again, I don't think-- the setup felt a little heavy on the White Carbs And Fatty Meat, but then again, what isn't in this day and age?

Cocktails were great, walking that tricky line of innovative but not too weird, and we also celebrated with a lovely Argentine brut. And service was great! This is not going to become my main spot for any number of reasons, perhaps the leading one being that it's pretty spendy, but I did find the overall presentation, offering, and atmosphere to be quite enjoyable.

My friends and I visited Barda over the weekend for a girls night out dinner.

The service was fantastic. Our waiter was very attentive and explained every question we had. He made recommendations and they were all on point.

The food was delicious. The best thing on the menu was the black rice and scallops. The flavor was divine. My friends one complaint is that there wasn't bread to order, because we honestly wanted to lick the plate clean. I loved the fennel salad. The Caesar salad was the best Caesar I've ever had.

It was a very expensive dinner but the variety of food and the quality was amazing. I haven't had a dining experience like it!

The drinks were great to start. Had the expresso Martini and another.
Followed by the Caesar salad which i give a f*ckin 20/10 best I've ever had. We then had the mustard chicken, Peruvian potatoes, trout and romanesco. Barda is one of my favorite spots based on consistency, service, ambiance and all the flavors provided. 10/10!!

I went this place for my anniversary. The service and the ambiance were awesome. Every dish I had met above and beyond my expectations. The ribs and all of the grilled vegetables were very tasty. Their signature dessert Burnt Alaska is must try. I would love to come back here for any occasions.

My husband and I came here for our anniversary dinner. We made reservations in advance, which I highly recommend. It's a small space and it's packed! The people behind us didn't have reservations and waited about 1 hour to get a spot.

I mentioned to the host that it was our anniversary and there was a congratulations card! So sweet!

We did ask about parking since we were on the street. There is a lot behind the restaurant. I recommend using that lot since you can get a ticket on the Main Street.

We were seat at a table near the kitchen. My husband could see the kitchen, which was really enjoy for him. The process of cooking is something we love. It's truly an art.

After being seated, our waitress greeted us and we ordered a few cocktails. We ordered a lot of food since we were newbies. We look trying everything.

The beets - beautifully plated, but tastes like beets.
Bone marrow - I love bone marrow. This was a combo of beef tartare, bone marrow, and toast. We were able to take the bone home for our dog - these type of bones don't splinter and are okay for pups.
Burrata - made with butternut squash, burrata, and seeds. This was one of our favorite dishes.
Chicken - made me a mustard sauce. So juicy. Happy tastebuds
Trout - made with crispy skin, fresh dill, cucumbers, and more.

Did I want dessert, absolutely. The baked Alaska is on fire! Since we had a chocolate pistachio cake waiting for us at home, we had to pass.

When dinner was finished and didn't order a dessert, there was a little pressure to wrap up and leave. Overall, dinner was great! Leaving allows us to check out another local bar.

We ordered pretty much the whole menu to share and it was a fantastic experience. The appetizers are the stars here. The best cauliflower I have ever tried. Top rated beet with a tangy garlic yogurt sauce, the flavor mesh is explosive. Burrata was tasty. The bone marrow tartar dish is a must. Potatoes are the bomb.

I was disappointed with the porterhouse steak that was on special. We ordered medium and it came almost rare. They were very nice about putting it back on the grill. The cut was very fatty. I like the regular beef that is on the menu much more.

Not impressed with any of the desserts and disappointed that they don't serve coffee or tea.

Service at every point is top notch. We felt welcome and always taken care of.

The vibe is hipster and the lighting makes it hard to take a good picture.

Came here for a night out with the girls. We ordered most of the appetizers and they were all fantastic. The beets and beef tartare were highlights. The cauliflower is amazing! The steak was good but they served it almost rare when we requested medium and it was a bit chewy. I was told the regular steak is much better but we opted for the porterhouse special that night. I would stick with apps in the future.

Drinks were delicious and service was great. The place has a great vibe but it's super dark inside. I recommend making a reservation because it was packed on a Saturday night. The parking situation can be tough since they did not have valet.

Would come back here in the future for sure!

4.7 stars overall.

We had reservations for 7:15 on a Saturday night. We arrived about 20 mins before our time and were able to get seated immediately. We got lucky and got a parking spot behind the restaurant (very limited with only a few spots, maybe about 8).

Appetizers/small plates - Glazed beets (beautifully presented but our least favorite), Peruvian potatoes, roasted cauliflower. The potatoes and cauliflower pair well with the main entrees which are entirely protein.

Mains - Lamb Loin and Trout. The lamb was delectable and melted in your mouth. Ever so slight gamey taste initially that dissipates quickly. The Trout was just okay, not the best fish I've had.

Dessert - Broken Pavlova. AMAZING! It's sweet, tangy, with a hint of savory from the salmon roe. Very unique. We were stuffed and almost didn't get desert but this was a great choice since it wasn't too heavy. Perfect way to end the meal.

The red and dim lighting provides a cool ambience. Music is somewhat loud but you can still hear each other without having to yell.

Listen!!!!!!!!!!! LISTEN!! Fat-er and Happy! This was our first time and it did NOT disappoint. I wish I remembered our servers name cuz BABY!!! The sweetest! Only male server I believe. From the drinks to the appetizers, the main course to the dessert! I feel like slappin'' somebody! I had him pick a drink for me and he said he would have them "tweak" it for me. Now I'm crosseye'd and walkin' sideways! Fire!!!!!! 10/10 Octopus, 15oz strip loin w black rice and Burnt Alaska ooooohweeee. And the music!!! Maaaaaan!!!!