mary mahoney's old french house

mary mahoney's is arestaurantwith a lot of history behind it. the place sits on a corner near the casinos and is conjoined by clothing stores within a quaint square place. you can see the ambience from the start, the building brandishing an antique look with a white color to give it that old louisiana vibe.

apparently a "biloxi jewel" and crowd favorite, this restaurant, according to it's website, has been visited by "presidents, dignitaries, celebrities." yet, i've never been left with more to desire.

the atmosphere is extremely dated. the dining room coukd use a remodel, or even some new carpet. the quality of the dining area alone is a shock. the chairs were uncomfortable, the furniture was not good quality at all and the whole thing just looked extremely old -- in a bad way.

the service was okay. honestly i would expect to be treated much better based on the price point. i was extremely disappointed to see another waiter gazing at our table and snicker with his customers. of course we didn't think much of it, three lonely women and a waiter dressed in a cheap green button down laughing at us means very little. still, disgusting behavior.

our waitress was somewhat attentive. though we could tell we were not prioritized at all. and she seemed very impatient with us. she even told one of us "please" when they asked for another drink. excuse us for asking you for a drink? our salads and food took questionably long to reach our table. we were here for nearly three hours while others were receiving their items quicker.

the food was the shocking part, though i expected it. it was so far off the price it was worth that i will never return to this place solely based off of this reason. while it was not the worst food we have experience it was no where near 28 dollars for pasta or 68 dollars for a steak.

i ordered to seafood pasta and asked for "queen mary" sauce. the dish was ok. i was not astonished by it, which i wanted to be for thirty dollar pasta. my husband made the grave mistake of ordering the surf and turf ( which i contested to). the dish looked so sad. the steak did not look seasoned and the lobster was obviously tough and not hot at all.

many people at our table ordered steak and i could see how hard it was for them to cut into. one person got a wagyu steak, which is famous for being tender and slices like butter. this steak was so laughably hard to cut that i genuinely chuckled. these steaks also sat in a bath of their own juices, looking boiled and unseasoned. nothing you can't make better at home for way less.

overall this is one of the most unimpressive restaurants i have ever been to. this place is a crowd favorite, probably for the older people who grew up on it. the website says the food is upscale and elegant. nay. this food is dated, messy and boring. the service is bleak and underwhelming. the atmosphere is shabby.

this place screams desperate.

sometimes you simply forget how magnificent the hometown classics are.  mary mahoney's has been a focal point of every special event in my life, every relative who has come to visit, but i guess i get caught up in the new stuff and forget about my old favorites.  well, not this time.  a couple weeks ago, we had a friend in town and i could think of no better place to take her.  it was a wednesday night at 6:30, a day we had had some pretty horrific weather.  i never expected a reservation would be required.  but when we got there, they were slammed!  luckily, longtime friend bobby mahoney was manning the maître d desk and managed to squeeze us in.  there's just something about old southern charm and service that is so welcoming.  as soon as you walk in, you feel taken care of, at home, like all is well and a good time is ahead.  the service is always perfect, and it was on this very busy night.  it was impossible to tell that anyone else was in the place.  our every need was taken care of.  their gumbo is the only gumbo, as far as i am concerned.  the sautéed crab claws are the best in the land.  the speckled trout i ordered with a meuniere (brown butter) sauce, topped with lumb crabmeat, simply out of this world.  ladies and gentlemen, this family can cook, and they know how to lay on the charm and the service at the same time.  best part about therestaurantis that bobby mahoney always has a great joke and a smile.  great job, sir.  sorry it has taken me so long to review your very special piece of gulf coast paradise.

i have heard that this was the bestrestaurantin the area and compares with all the top restaurants in new orleans. i was not impressed with mary mahoneys at all. the salad was a small dish of iceberg lettuce with a tiny slice of tomato. the bread was a piece of french bread like you buy at kroger. their main signature dish had so much worcestershire sauce in it i could barely taste the overcooked shrimp. extremely overpriced as far as the food goes. i guess your paying for the atmosphere of a 300 year old landmark. staff was friendly. have drinks at the bar, read about the history but pass on the food

over-rated. my husband and i tried thisrestaurantseveral times over the years. we have yet to enjoy a meal there. we go to biloxi once a year and will not eat there. we learned our lesson several years ago after giving them the benefit of the doubt.

great food and service. i've dined here at least 10 times and have never been disappointed,the stuffed red snapper is my all time favoriterestaurantmeal l!!!!,don't believe all those negative reviews,the place is always busy and that says a lot,so if you've never dined here give it a try,lunch prices are very reasonable

don't waste your time or money. the worst meal i have had in years. we had heard glowing reviews from the visitors center in biloxi about this established restaurant. we were quite anxious to enjoy our meal at this historic venue. thankfully we only were there for lunch so didn't get gouged for the overpriced dinner menu. we were seated in the rear glass enclosed room which was very bright and light. sadly the chairs were metal frame and extremely uncomfortable. the salad was mostly iceberg lettuce swimming in the most rancid tasting house vinegarette dressing. it was garnished with a tomato that was hard to distinguish as it was so unripe it was almost white in color. when i sent it back the waiter said he didn't like the dressing either. the snapper had some type of cream and shrimp stuffing. tasteless. the broccoli was completely limp and so overlooked it was almost yellow in color. most of the fish dishes are served with crawfish étouffée over pasta. it wasn't too bad, but the spiciness of the dish is a terrible combination with a delicate shrimp dish. my husband had the gumbo which he liked and it had plenty of shrimp in it. the bread was the best part of the meal. fresly baked and still warm. thisrestaurantis sadly in need of a total makeover. the menu is from the 70s. the service is very poor and slow. the prices are outrageous for such poor quality food and service.

one of my favoriterestaurantexperiences ever, anywhere. from food to service to atmosphere--wonderfully memorable.

my wife and dined here on a thursday night. the staff was attentive and service was swift.
we both had the stuffed snapper. it was outstanding. the fish is served with a side order of crayfish étouffée over pasta. it was good but a bit unusual. it was more of a red gravy rather than a roux.
this came with a dinner salad with homemade dressings. blue cheeses and thousand island were very good. we also received warm bread and a side vegetable. price $36 each entree. total bill, 2 entrees, 2 glasses of wine, 1 mixed drink,1 dessert, 1 coffee, tax=$110.
tip: walk around the building to get the feel of the building and the court yard. you are walking back in time. as you open the door to therestaurantlook over your right shoulder. read the small white sign attached the second story floor.
enjoy;-)

pay attention to the mid to low reviews. sadly, this is not a very goodrestaurantanymore. no axes to grind, but if you appreciate well prepared food at any price you will be disappointed. case in point: the "famous" bread pudding is mush. i wish they could recover from decades of undeserved accolades but the tourists will probably keep them going until competition just wipes them out. don't believe me? then just go there. only good thing to say is that waiter "greg" is excellent.

never again1. i am from new orleans so i have to disagree with the billing this place likes to give itself as "new orleans style" and "french". the poodle i bought in covington is more french than the cuisine at this restaurant. having just wasted $120 of my hard earned money at mary mahoney's friday night - i feel compelled to warn off as many people as possible..... my husband and i went there to celebrate our anniversary on friday night. i made the mistake of getting their "famous" gumbo. it tasted like nothing but file', it was served to me lukewarm and it was terrible. it is obvious to me that whoever made that gumbo had no idea how to make a roux. to make things worse, i just found their gumbo recipe in a cookbook that we just bought while we were on the coast - it had no file in it - called for okra (there was none in mine) and looked a whole lot better in the cookbook that it did on my plate!!! my husband and i also had broiled fish, served with some burnt sauce that purported to be etouffe' and was served over angel hair pasta along with some broccoli that looked like it came out of the freezer first. again, these were $36 dollar entrees, people - it was an absolute insult! staff was decent, but thisrestauranthas not evolved since the eighties - they are living off of their former reputation - you want new orleans food? put in the extra mileage and drive to new orleans. you want a decent meal at a fair price - don't go here! thisrestauranthas deteriorated into tourist trap.... very disappointed - this used to be a great place.....

never disappoints us. bar is small but well-stocked, has superb bartender (lunch). we both had shrimp/crabmeat au gratin (w/small salad, $16.95): very fresh seafood and cheese/cream sauce as usual. big plus: entrees arrived hot and stayed that way throughout the meal.
service can be a little spotty at times.
thisrestaurantis historic and popular, so make reservations for dinner.

just another cajun restaurant. hmmmm...if the gulf coast ever got a "real" french restuarant - no one would go. i guess the locals think it's good because it tastes like and costs like all the other overpriced dumps in ms and la. we went 4 weeks ago at the recommendation of friends we were staying with on our vacation. the salad was small and dressing out of a bottle or packet. hidden vally makes better dressing. the lobster was rubbery and my wife's filet was chewy and tasteless. this is just another tourist trap calling itself a french restuarant. tastes like all the other "cajun" french restuarants. my wife and i have dined in paris as well as the french riviera and never saw a crappy menu or food like this. next time, it's off to ruth's chris or lb's or a similar typerestaurantat one of the casinos. if i'm gonna spend big bucks...it ain't gonna be at mary mahoney's!!!!

good food, but....... the food here is consistently good. i recommend starting with the presidental platter off of the appetizer menu. follow that up with a cup of gumbo and a warm piece of buttered bread. once you have completed the first two circuits it's time to have either the fried redfish topped with lumped crabmeat or the veal antonio. either way you are a winner. request the homemade blue cheese or thousand island dressing with your salad.

now comes the problem, dessert, or lack there of. for arestaurantof this caliber you would think they would have a full time pastry chef. nope, i have been told on multiple occaisions that the majority of their desserts are not made on site, but are shipped in. this area is severly lacking and is unacceptable. it does not compliment the enitire experience very well.

i still highly recommend this establishment if you want traditional biloxi cooking, but bring your pocket book and leave your sweet tooth at home!

historic. honest opinion. this is a historic building. as for a restaurant, go once for the experience. the food is good, but expensive. maybe best classyrestaurantoutside of the casinos. if you're from out of town, try some smaller local digs elsewhere. biloxi just isn't there yet in world class dining. that's ok with me. you might like the casino restaurants if you want classy. they used to have a sandwichrestaurantelsewhere in the building with great poboys, beignets, and such at much better prices. this was in addition to the french restaurant. it was much better ( another casualty of katrina).

good place. place has nice cahracter to it, however, it is quiet noisy. accoustics is bad. food is good but and service as well. food priced moderately. my experinced was ok in thisrestaurantbut will let you decided for youreself