Absolutely the best foodie destination in all of CNY. It's very clear this is a passion project by two very skilled chefs and their staff. Cutting edge food without being obnoxious or pretentious (though it could appear to be if you've not been exposed to this kind of dining).
The menu looks great but we went with the tasting course. They take a lot of time to chat with you about your interests, dislikes, and general adventurousness and then craft a very throughtful experience.
Super friendly staff without lingering over you while you eat. Happy to talk to us about the retro buffalo chopper that caught our eye and even chat a bit about their calendar and other ventures.
You've got to go and see for yourself.
High-quality food that is local, made with hours of care and attention, and served to you with just the right amount fun conversation. Considering all that, the chef's tasting menu was a great deal (6 courses for $60) for all that we got. They even cleverly worked around dietary restrictions (pescatarian, vegetarian). For fellow vegetarians, Chef makes a meat substitute corndog thing that is really the tops. It's always nice to see people doing what they love and it showing in their work, and that was certainly the case here. One of the best meals I've ever had.
Not for the weak minded or boring! If you succumb to Jedi Mind tricks or decide to spend your valuable Saturday evening at Golden Corral or the Olive Garden, you may not like Défi. The menu we choose was the four course chefs choice with wine and cocktail pairings. The chef does a consultation to make sure how best to cater your preferences. How refreshing to be surprised with every course! The cuisine was absolutely delicious, and the open kitchen sang a song of devotion to the art. The cocktail and wine pairings were a perfect lead-in to each course. My only regret is that after the dinner was over, I had to watch a patron's pasta dish being plated. I will definitely be returning to sample more off the menu.
Oh my! What a find!!
We had a evening meeting downtown and were looking for a place to grab a bite. I remembered driving by this place awhile back and thought it looked interesting with glass walls bookending it and the kitchen out in the open, so why not check it out.
Everything was off the charts. Food, patrons, staff all fun and fantastic.
We started with cocktails hand crafted by a good soul called Gus and we loved them.
We tried salad made of various greens drizzled with some soft cheese mixed with greens puree was intriguingly delish and it even got better from there.
That porcelet app is a gift from the gods.. The duck and scallops were perfect and surrounded with flavors that multiplied the entree's superb taste.
It was a great meal and night. The staff was so relaxed, fun and helpful we were simple blown away with everything. See you again soon, Defi.
We enjoyed the Defi experience where they choose a menu for you based on how adventurous an eater you are. We chose the four course option with wine pairing (one of the chefs is also a sommelier). Each of the four courses was unusual, interesting and delicious, and included ingredients such as truffle, dehydrated vegetables, sun choke and trumpet mushrooms. The main course was a delicious fish with micro-greens, mushrooms, arancini and dehydrated sweet potato. The service was fantastic and the ambience is great.
I would absolutely recommend Defi whether you order off of the menu or try the Defi experience.
Make a reservation
Order online
Find the best restaurant in Syracuse
An error has occurred! Please try again in a few minutes