Piper Palm House – For Those Who Want to Get Fat Outside!

Date Dined: July 20, 2014

Overall Rating: 3.5 Stars

Ever since Jess went to Piper Palm House, in our very own Tower Grove Park, for a brunch buffet I’ve wanted to follow suit. We were invited out by our wonderful neighbors so I immediately seized the opportunity. Having an alternative to Three Monkeys brunch is nice too.

Décor Rating: 4.5 Stars

Cute outdoor seating, a wonderful air conditioned green house for inside seating, you couldn’t ask for more. There’s not that much to say about it, just check out the pictures above.

Service Rating: 3.5 Stars

Nice for a buffet. Our dirty plates were always off the table by the time we got back, and our waters were filled a few times. Our server even came by to take our drink over every twenty minutes or so. No complaints!

Price Rating: 3 Stars

A little on the pricey side for what it was, but not bad for a buffet in general. Adults were $23.75 with drinks ranging around $7.00 a pop. With tax and tip you could easily spend $40.00 a head here. Definitely not an every Sunday lunch. But the spread was decent and it’s a nice place to take out of towners.

Food Rating: 3.5

In general everything was above average, especially considering it was sitting in chafing dishes, but again this place is more about the ambience.

There are four general stations. The first is the hot station. You’ve got your sausage, beef tenderloin, omelet, pork cutlets, and pasta. Again, none of it outstanding, but still pretty tasty. If you had to fill up on a few things I’d choose the sausage and the beef. The omelet had obviously been made using powdered eggs, the pasta was a little bland, and the pork was good when it was fresh, but when it started cooling it got a little tough.

Next up, the cold station. Less impressive here. You had a ton of salads, some fancy macaroni salad, camrelized yams, smoked salmon, and some fruit. Really nothing wowed here. The salads were all very pretty, but not very tasty, a lack of dressing I think. The fruit was cut up grocery store fair. The smoked salmon was pretty tasty, but again the same quality you could find in a grocery store.

The omelet station was one of the highlights, I think. Usually I’m not a huge fan of made to order omelets, the insides are too uncooked for me. This guy actually followed my request that he cook it a little more thoroughly. They also served fresh made Belgium waffles, and biscuits and gravy. The bacon was a let-down, super soggy, and a little undercooked.

The dessert station was fine, but average in general, mostly store bough pasteries with your usual assortment of cookies, cupcakes, and brownies. The one highlight was a pumpkin cake topped with mousse. It was refreshing to find something unique and delicious among the generic other things.

In Conclusion

I’d go back to Piper Palm House, but only on that rare occasion a group, a date, or some out-of-towners want to go. It’s just a little too pricey otherwise. Don’t get me wrong, I actually really enjoyed it, it’s just a little too hard on my wallet at this juncture.