La Campagne

Apparently there has been a new chef/owner for a few years now. We had avoided it because we thought it was the guy from 2003 still. We were wrong. We had a great time and will be back again - wish we had known sooner. We were here this week for italian week and the food was fantastic. Loved the bruschetta and gnocchis. The homemade gelato was better than italy. Great server at our table and the chef came out to talk to us, making the experience even better. more

My wife and I had our anniversary dinner there last month. I am a retired French Chef. This was the best meal I ever ate in all my 50 years. On a quiet Wednesday May night we were seated outside on the patio. Our daughter played on the bocce ball court. We ate melt-in-your mouth foie gras done perfectly with a light Sauterne glaze, escargot with a mild Dijon sauce, and a cheese platter. Chef Benussi selected a French cheese, a Dutch chese, a Pennsylvania sheep's milk cheese and a NJ cheese that were distinctly different served with homemade fruit jams and toast points. A tartufo of king crab and mussels complemented each opther perfectly. My lamb was dead on medium rare, my wife's salmon appropriately just barely medium. Service was perfectly attentive without being obtrusive. We were greeted and seated immediately. If you want perectly prepared food with matching service and appropriately priced for its genre, I would urge you to go here. The Chef actually came out and answered our questions - a friendly but low key man, pointing out their own fresh herb garden as we spoke. Don't miss this excellent restaurant!!!\r My training was classic French so my wife and I don't eat out much, but when we do this is where we go. La Campagne's chef's over the past 20 years are a veritable who's who of the best chefs in the area, and Chef Richard Benussi is another in a long line, and luckily for my family, he is the owner, so we'll be going back to eat his handiwork hopefully for many more years. Pros: Hi quality food and service. Beautiful atmosphere Cons: I can't afford to eat here once a week, (but once a month yes!) but when we do its great more

I can't believe this is supposed to be a really fine restaurant. It was just barely run of the mill ordinary. Which is a real problem because the prices are extremely high--$30 brunch and $40 prix fixe Easter menu. Not run of the mill for the area. The best word I can use to describe this place is lazy, from the decor to the food. The whole restaurant is painted bright kitchen yellow, with tacky fake French impressionist prints in the entrance dining room and not particularly interesting modern art elsewhere. The color has no relation to the lovely plank floors and brick fireplace. The overall impression is of a 1970s kitchen (especially with the 1970s-style brick tile entrance). Nothing French or tasteful about it. The table settings are cheap and tacky when they are desperately needed to create some kind of atmosphere. \r The dinner menu was astonishing for any place that calls itself a fine restaurant. EVERY single prix fixe dinner entree from salmon to lamb to ham came with the same sides: whipped potatoes and sauteed escarole with no particular taste. That is just lazy. I cannot believe any well-trained chef even wants to serve the same bland sides for salmon as for lamb. But he obviously couldn't be bothered to come up with flavors for side dishes that enhanced the different entrees---Isn't that the very point of fine dining? The bread slices had no taste and mine was actually stale on one side (at first I thought it was toasted). They were served with rock hard flavored butter. The mushroom soup was overwhelmed with pepper and could have come from a can for all its subtlety. The set dessert was a chocolate mousse cake served cold--which meant your mouth tasted mostly the cold and then some chocolate. I think the new owner is banking on the restaurant's previous reputation, the wood floors and the fireplace to somehow do the cooking and create character all at the same time. It isn't working. At this price point, it's actually arrogant. Pros: The server was nice. Cons: The experience is nowhere near the price level. more

I grew up in the area and had always wanted to go here, but never really got the chance. I went here on Valentine's Day and loved the whole experience. The place has apparently come under new ownership (the chef took over) and it really shows. I would recommend for a date or a special night of going out with friends. I had thought that it was mainly an older crowd, but noticed that a lot of younger people were there. It made me wish I had gone in sooner. Pros: Innovative food, friendly service, relaxed Cons: Almost drove by it more

I have to disagree with the last two negative reviews. \r But, first, allow me to say that as a worker in the service industry, I would never visit a restaurant during one of those horrid promotional weeks. Establishments are compelled to participate in these promotions to maintain membership in various regional organizations and put out scaled down versions of their menus to appeal to the most possible people, many of whom do not regularly dine out save for these 'restaurant weeks'.\r That said, La Campagne is one of the only places in South Jersey that is worth leaving Philly for. The normal a la carte menu is full of refined french classics with tons of local ingredients. On my last visit there was foie gras three ways. We had the osso buco, which was a cool take on surf and turf and the duck with serrano ham. Both were amazing. the duck was perfectly medium rare and succulent. \r The service was unobtrusive and friendly. We were sat promptly. The dining room is homey and has a country flair, without being tacky.\r Overall, I would raid my wine cellar or stop at Moore Bros. and grab a great white Burgundy or a big Bordeaux and have a dinner there any night of the week. A great place for dates or a special occasion. Pros: Food, Service, Parking Cons: Get directions! more

After hearing some good reviews, we had dinner at La Campagne last night during restaurant week. We were not impressed. I had a reservation for two and gave my name to the host upon entrance. He peered at his tiny written list asking if we had originally made our reservation for three, I responded no and we were finally seated. Needless to say there was nothing warm or inviting about this man. We started with the amuse, which was decent but nothing great, followed by a salad which again was pretty uneventful. Our entree was a Salmon Coulibiac, which was a huge letdown. It was clearly a large filet that was pre-made and sliced up in advance. The puff pastry was greasy and heavy, nothing light or airy about it. The salmon was dry and way over cooked, the eggs were also dry and terribly overcooked, in fact, it took us a minute to recognize they were even eggs. This dish was served with mashed potatoes that were again simply uneventful. Dessert consisted of two chocolate items and a cherry clafoutis, the clafoutis was decent; however, the chocolate items were not very memorable and as a chocolate lover I cannot believe I felt that way. I again got the impression that these things were made way in advance and sat around for quite a bit. I also heard that this place was very romantic, which I don't agree with. The tables were pretty close together and when the restaurant filled up, not only was it cramped, with the waiter having to squeeze uncomfortably between the tables, but it was loud, making it very hard to converse with someone. I'm left wondering if the regular menu is better and we just encountered this problem due to restaurant week, which should be no excuse, quite honestly I'm in no rush to go back. more

My husband and I decided to dine at this restaurant on his birthday (7/29/06) because of the good rating we read about this restaurant online. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a total disaster! it may have been very good in the past but it certainly is not when we were there. First we didn't feel as welcome by the host the minute we walked in. Then the food was awful. We were expecting delicate flavors as anyone would expect for a French cuisine. However, all we can taste in both our dishes were just saltiness and nothing else. My husband had the roasted lamb chop and I had the sea bass. Both turned out to be very dissapointing. The dessert was another big dissapointment. Being a dessert lover, I usually don't leave anything on the plate when it comes to dessert. Guess what?! I left more than half the desser untouched. We ordered the chocolate banana creme burlee and it came cold! We can still see the sugar crystals on the top that is suppose to be turned into delicious caramel crust. It ruined our celebration and my husband even made a comment that my home-cook Valentine dinner was much better than this $100 dollars meal!!! Don't go there unless you are looking for dissapointment! more

La Campagne is a superb restaurant hidden away in an old farmhouse in Cherry Hill. The food is always amazing. The service is excellent. The atmosphere is completely charming. There is little else to be said. Pros: great service, good parking Cons: its French more

I went last night for restaurant week. They sat us in the corner. The bread was delicious. The first course had 3 tiny appetisers. They were delicious but too small. The salad had very little dressing. We had to wait a long time for our entree. The food was over cooked and had little taste. The sauce on my chicken was scarce and the chicken itself was very dry and tatsed like it sat out under a heating lamp for a while. My boyfriends porkloin was the same. The dessert was probably the best part of the night. The chocolate cake was very rich. I had heard so many great things about this place but it just wasn't worth it for me. Maybe their regular menu is better. I think they premade a lot of the dishes for rest. week which is a disgrace for an upscale pricey french restaraunt. Pros: dessert, appetisers, bread Cons: seating, overcooked, small portions more

I took my entire adult family here for a get together dinner, and the food, ambiance, and service was absolutely wonderful. Our server's name was Chris I think. I'll ask for him when i return. My steak was cooked to perfection, my son had the duck triage and he's still talking about it. Everyone in my party was impresed with this place. We even got a visit from one of the chefs, and her warm personality just seemed to capture everyone at the table. (she's cute too!) If this place had a liquor license it would be perfect. Pros: food quality, presentation, service Cons: BYOB more

This once fine establishment appears to be taking short cuts. We ordered the tasting menu, which allows you to choose an appetizer, a fish entre, a meat entre and dessert. Although the appetizers were superb, the fish entres were not as described in the menu. The scallops were the same as the appetizer, the Sea Bass, which was to be served with a Safron tomatoe sauce and candied fennel on a bed of safron risotto arrived without the risotto and no fennel to be found. When we questioned this, the response was"" the tasting portions are always different than the menu desription"", which in the past was never the case. Their solution to the problem was to bring us a side of risotto with our meat entres. Having eaten here in the past, I had always viewed this restaurant as World Class, now it is Average at best. Cons: Quality of Food more

Extraordinary. Some of the most marveloous food I have ever had, in a wonderful, quaint environment. And for the quality, the price isn't terrible. Try the Valentine's Day dinner, but make reservations and don't forget it's BYOB. Pros: Food, Ambience Cons: Service, BYOB, No smoking more

This is a nice little french restaurant hidden in Cherry Hill. Only problem is it's byob Cons: byob more