Me and my husband love coming here for special occasions and just for date nights. We have gotten something different each time we've visited and everything has been great - cannot recommend enough ! Waitresses are always so sweet and accommodating and food is always great. Def a spot I love to bring people to who haven't found out about it yet read more

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I was finally able to try Aaktun today, and had a great experience! My husband has been hyping this place up for awhile, as when I work during the week him & our daughter have had a few adventures here. I will say, it did not disappoint! Nestled in downtown Clayton (there is another location in Durham, as well), the spot is conveniently located and cozy. The decor is incredibly pleasing and lovely. We sat at a table which resembles a "cave." So unique and fun. The bar area is also really neat, if we were to go back for a date night, we'd sit there. We made a reservation one day prior for a 12:30 lunch reservation for the three of us on a Saturday and were seated right away. The staff is very friendly, and our server was stellar. The lunch menu is extensive: delicious dishes, fun cocktails and coffee drinks, and a decent wine list. We were provided waters to start and I opted for a glass of the Napa Cabernet. I really wanted to try their iced banana latte for a to-go drink after, but I surely will next time! We started with the appetizer of Brussels Sprouts. We were hoping the Coconut Shrimp was on the lunch menu, but unfortunately, it was not. Hopefully we will get that for a dinner appetizer next time. We are a huge fan of trying Brussels Sprouts at new restaurants and these were great! Served charred with tropical chili crisp, pickled pineapple, and a coconut salsa. They were a little bit sweeter than my liking, but still delicious and we both enjoyed them! For our entrées we went with the Lomo Saltado and Jerked Half Chicken. Both of these dishes were incredible. I ordered the Lomo Saltado and it was delicious, and recommended by my husband. Perfectly cooked steak atop rice and served with grilled tomatoes and Yuka sticks, which were amazing. Although this dish was delicious, I loved my husband's even more. The Jerk Half Chicken was perfectly cooked and flavored, and had the perfect amount of kick! UPDATE: We ended up stopping by the next day to pick up a breakfast sandwich & my Banana Pudding Latte! OH SO GOOD. We got the Bella mushroom and egg breakfast sandwich, so delicious, so flavorful, and huge. Hands down would order again. The Iced Banana Pudding Latte with Oat Milk was stellar: 10/10! I can't wait to have it again! I can't wait to go back to Aaktun to try more dishes and see what the dinner menu offers! Great experience and highly recommend. read more

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This place was great! The service was friendly, with workers consistently checking in on you. A wide variety of menu options and drink options as well. I enjoyed my Jerked half chicken and recommend it! The place is also visually appealing! Beautiful decorations and ambient lighting make for a nice atmosphere. read more

Aaktun - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Clayton, North Carolina

Food is delicious, staff is great. Drinks were so good. It's a bit pricy but worth it for a special occasion or nice dinner.

The decor and staff are very nice! Food was delicious and served very quickly. Coffee drink also delicious. I had asked for no cheese on my sandwich (intolerance) and realized after eating the whole thing that there was still cheese on it. Sandwich was still delish and definitely will be going back. read more

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We dined in at Aaktun's Clayton location and had a good experience. It was the passion fruit/mango juice then the island getaway mocktail (this drink is served in a cute seahorse glass) for me and the cafe de olla latte for my husband for drinks. The rolls (pan y butter) are a must order, they are so delicious topped with the sweet chili butter. For our meals it was the vegetarian totchos for me and the B.E.C. breky sando for him. We enjoyed the drinks and food. I can't wait to try their Durham location. *This location was not serving alcoholic beverages yet when we visited and a reservation is recommended. read more

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The wifey and I tried out a new-to-us place last night, the Aaktun restaurant in Clayton NC. We had talked about it for a while but last night went for it. It was not disappointing. Her papaya salad was delicious, although spicy so if you're not into that you might want to try something else. The calamari was a tiny bit chewy but combining it with the chili aioli and a bit of their red spicy sauce made it quite a treat. And the burger? Great, but it comes with tater tots which makes everything even better, and we split it so we got an extra side of tots since we both love them. Great food, great drinks (I loved my Rebook With The Straps cocktail) and great atmosphere. And we got a curbside parking spot right in front of the place, which told us right off the bat that it was meant to be! read more

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Aaktun is a Clayton gem! We went with some friends for Sunday brunch. We really enjoyed their menu and the beautiful ambiance. It's a very modern, colorful space with cozy alcoves and lots of live plants. I got the vegetarian totchos (tater tots covered with a delicious white sauce, scrambled eggs, avocado, and sauteed mushrooms) and the Mami Kiss Latte (strawberry rose, oat milk, and espresso). My husband got the Chorizo Papi breakfast sandwich (chorizo, eggs, escabeche carrots) and the Cafe de Olla latte (traditional Mexican latte). Everything was tasty and beautifully presented and the drinks were both next-level. We felt that it was really good value as everything was reasonably priced and decently portioned. There's something for everyone on the menu! Really glad they opened up in Clayton and we can't wait to go back for another brunch or to try out the dinner menu! read more

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The service was not the best - slow even though the establishment was not busy at all. The food was subpar and could've used more seasoning and flavor (had the tempura fish tacos - the fish was cooked well and good but the tacos as a whole lacked flavor overall). The ambience was nice. Glad to say I've tried it but have no plans of returning. read more

Had lunch her today and our meal was delicious again. We went with the waiters recommendations and they were excellent. I had a great chicken sandwich with collards, pickled pineapple and spicy drizzled dressing on it. OMG it was good. My friend got the steak over rice dish and it had amazing flavor. Aaktun is quickly becoming one of my favorite Clayton restaurants. I love the atmosphere also. read more

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We dined with six family members the other evening. The restaurant was quiet. Most of us had never been there before. The "cave" settings were interesting, but we did not sit there. We ordered the rolls (incorrectly translated as "pan"), grilled romaine, and charred brussel sprouts (abbreviated strangely as just "brussels"), which the table enjoyed as appetizers. The portions for 'din-din' (guess they get a lot of two-year-old customers?) were very generous. I ordered the 'jerked' half chicken, a Jamaican dish, although I was not impressed. It was basically some very minimal sauce, rice, and a small piece or two of plantain. They could definitely work on this dish, considering the limited menu. Another person enjoyed the fish tacos very much, and the alcoholic drinks were also appreciated, not at all surprising in this crowd. Glasses of water were served in interesting pineapple resembling glasses. Service was good, although the constant upselling wears me out. Our tattoo artist waitress was very attentive, although she volunteered that everything on the menu was really good, as each item came up when ordering. Price-wise, it is definitely on the higher end, but when prices inevitably double in two months as they often do in restaurants these days, I'll be eating my words. read more

Had a lovely dinner at Aaktun with some girlfriends! We loved the interior decorating which made for really cool ambiance. The food was amazing and although our server was very kind and helpful, our drinks and food took a really long time to arrive. It didn't greatly affect our experience; however, seems to be a trend per other reviews. I definitely would like to go back for brunch and see how that menu tastes! read more

Aaktun - Cocktails - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Clayton, North Carolina

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Immaculate Vibes. Starting off, the location on main street is great, it's super close to the free parking. You walk in, and the host stand is kind of on top of you. I really loved the décor. The little alcoves were so cool. The bar with the starry lights overhead are fantastic. I loved the almost art deco meets desert style. It looks like just a very cool place to hang, to get brunch, to go on dates, or to get drinks after work. I love that Clayton is finally getting a space like this. My only hang up about Aaktun was how cramped it was. I felt like the people seated at either side of us were right on top of us. The couple directly to my right kept making very rude comments about us that we just ignored as best as we could, but at one point the man was belching very loudly and pretty much doing it right into my food. That's more bad manners from a guest though, so I can't take points away from the restaurant. I do wish they gave guests a little more room. Service wise, our server was a very nice young woman. She was hard to get over to our table, but that was mostly because she was very busy. If you're that packed on a Tuesday night, you must be doing something right. When she was at our table, she was a sweetheart who seemed to know a good deal about the menu. I will say that my husband did order his burger without the house sauce and it still came with it. My husband hates mayo, and apparently the sauce was primarily mayo. Our server said she specified not to include it, and he ate it anyway, but that was a bit of a missed opportunity I think. For the food... My mother and I split the tostones cups with the crab salad. My mom got the fish tacos, I had the adobo pork belly, and my husband got the burger. I also got a mocktail that I can't recall the name of but it had watermelon in it as a base. Anyhow, the food was spectacular, at least mine was, and I know my mother was very happy with hers as well. Being Puerto Rican, I was expecting a different flavour profile when I read "adobo" on the menu, but I was not in the slightest bit disappointed. The pork was incredibly tender, the fat was rendered perfectly so it melted into the rest of the plate. The sauce was so incredibly fragrant. My dish was rich and decadent. My drink was as well. You can tell that an artist had hands on every minute aspect of Aaktun in Clayton. When I saw "sancocho" on the menu, my standards shot through the roof, and the chef delivered like a master of his craft. I sincerely hope that Aaktun survives the curse of this location on Main Street, because their menu is the sort of thing an up and coming city like Clayton needs. The mix of island cultures was done very respectfully, and I appreciate the hell out of that because I don't see it very often. Beautifully done. Thank you for the experience. I will be back. read more

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The food here was really good! I just moved to Clayton and my fiancé saw this place ok TikTok. The food is delicious and fresh. I tried the Mexican Hot Chocolate and it was soooo good. The only downside side is the flies. I believe the door was open but there has to be a way together keep the flies away. Other than that it was a great time! read more

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Food: got the fish tacos and had very little flavor. The burger side was tots and they were hard as a rock. Server was PAINFUL slow and seemed confused. Asked 2 people to talk to a manager and no one came. Ordered drinks as soon as we saw our waiter and they never came- even after asking him for them twice. The ambiance is stellar but everything else left MUCH to be desired. read more

wow what a beautiful surprise! let me preface this i tried to get a reservation at restoration hardware rooftop restaurant in raleigh they were booked the entire weekend i couldnt have found a better place to have my birthday dinner the best hidden gem in clayton such a gorgeous ambiance played all of the music me and my loved ones listen to which was c r a z y ! everything was superb the service was not disappointing whatsoever the food was so delicious all of us had no words every single dish was so flavorful the pork belly (not pictured) was a little salty but thats it i cannot wait to go again read more

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Server was lovely. But the drink was like syrup. She brought me club soda to cut it. The fried Brussels were salty - almost inedible. And the were burnt to a crisp. I asked to switch to the tostones and crab salad. It was meh. I mean this is fusion - I guess..:: but eh. A tostone cup with crab salad? Shame. I'm so glad I didn't get a main. What a shame that Crawford Cookhouse left. Aaktun is a total miss. Will not be back. $9 for a mock cocktail and $15 for an appetizer. I'm just glad I decided to skip a $30 main for the abysmal miss on the small plate. The tostones were better. They could have done without the hot sauce but it got with the vibe. I only ate one tostone and actually tossed the other when I got home. My appetite was ruined and I genuinely could not eat anything for the rest of the night. read more

Aaktun - Burnt - not charred Brussels and horribly salty - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Clayton, North Carolina

Great lunch spot today. Lovely outdoor seating with nice mellow atmosphere. Aniya was very attentive and friendly. Order was accurate. Started off with coffee and then entrees. read more

Aaktun - Huli Huli Chicken Skewers - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Clayton, North Carolina

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Just amazing, food was delicious, we were a group of 5 so we tried several dishes, I can't pick a favorite, everything was fabulous. The ambience and service equally great. read more

My wife and I tried Aaktun tonight in Clayton, NC, and although the music was too loud and it was noisy inside, the food was incredible. Like out-of-this-world amazing. Our waiter, Sebastian, was fantastic, friendly, welcoming, and on top of things. Seriously, this is the BEST place for a meal out in Clayton, NC. It beats Mannings by a mile, and Mannings isn't bad at all. We got the three course special with both of us choosing the different options and sharing, and everything ... I mean absolutely everything was superlative. Do not miss out on this place. I hope it is a harbinger of things to come to Clayton when 540 finally connects and people realize we are only 13 - 15 miles outside of Downton Raleigh to the Southeast, like Wake Forest is only 13 - 16 miles outside of Downtown Raleigh to the Northeast! Tonight was the best dining experience in recent memory, and thanks to Sebastian and the Chef as well as the staff for an outstanding, memorable evening. We will be back! Super duper highly recommended! read more

Aaktun - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Clayton, North Carolina

A customer turned me onto Aaktun for a breakfast meeting and it was an excellent experience. I started off with a cappuccino and then had the A-bocadito toast. I highly recommend this little hidden gem if you are in the Clayton area. read more

Aaktun - A-bocadito toast. - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Clayton, North Carolina

We went back for breakfast and man oh man are they doing some good stuff here. We ordered the Horchata Latte, the Banana Pudding Latte and Pantera latte. My goodness were these amazing. My mom who is a picky eater DOWNED her Horchata Latte. It was incredible. We also got some of their breakfast sandwiches and the totchos. SOOOOO GOOOOD! The challah bread was soft, the eggs were fluffy. The totchos were flavorful and PACKED with all sorts of goodness. Honestly truly we'll be regulars here. It's that good! read more

We have visited Aaktun three times since May 1 and each time something has gone awry. It was advertised that the Clayton location was open on May 1, which was my birthday. My husband and I decided to visit Aaktun for brunch and made a reservation. When we arrived we were sat outside and waited about 15 minutes before someone arrived at the table to give us water and ask what we'd like to drink. We requested the pitcher of sangria, to which we were told they weren't selling alcohol yet because they didn't have their ABC license. We understood, but were disappointed and wished this had been advertised somewhere so we could have planned accordingly. We stuck with water, placed our order, and enjoyed the food. My husband was able to order a breakfast burrito **this time** We decided to go back to Aaktun for brunch in late May and were pleased to find they were serving alcohol. We did not have a reservation and were told because of this we would have to sit outside. This was fine with us, so we followed the hostess to a table outside and were told our server would be right over. Thirty minutes passed and no one came to our table. At this time, another couple was sat near us and within five to ten minutes, someone came to their table to take their order. My husband tried to flag her down, but she kept walking. He went inside to the hostess to share we hadn't been helped yet. I stopped another server and asked her if we could have some of her water since we had not yet been served and she said she'd be back with some because she'd run out. A server came out to help us and shared she wasn't who was supposed to help us but she'd take our order. My husband **TRIED** to order the breakfast burrito and she told us they never had a breakfast burrito on the menu. Very confusing since he'd just had it and we had a picture of it, but all good. We ordered with her, got the drinks we wanted, and they gave us a free French toast appetizer. It was tasty and a nice gesture, but we aren't super big sweet-eaters so we just ate the fruit off of it. No manager ever came to apologize, nothing was ever mentioned as to what happened at the beginning, and that was that. The third time we visited Aaktun for brunch was on a Saturday in early June. I ensured we had reservations so we could sit inside and we arrived about 5-10 minutes ahead of time. Two parties of three checked in after us and shared they did not have reservations. Each of those groups was sat in the small cut out booths before we were sat. We saw that there was still one of these booths available, but that the hostess was cleaning one of the tiny 2-top tables squished between families with kids climbing all over the shared booth side of the tables for us. We immediately knew that's not where we wanted to sit, so when the man who we assume is the manager came over and asked had we been helped, my husband said we had but could we please sit in the booth instead of the small table the hostess was cleaning. The man shared the booths are for parties of 5 or more, which lord knows how they're fitting 5 grown adults in that little space comfortably, so we opted to again eat outside. Dylan was our server. He came over promptly and we each ordered one of the mixed drinks that he suggested. He said he was going to put the drinks in and be back for our order. About 10 minutes later he returned and we placed our food order. He said he'd put that in and check on our drinks. Forty five minutes passed and no one brought us our drinks. Dylan would speed by the table and all but avoid us each time he passed to serve another table. We even ran out of water. When the food runner brought us our food and we still hadn't received our drinks, I mentioned that to her. She asked who our server was, and Dylan happened to be standing right next to us talking to another table so I told her it was him. She looked his way and he motioned for her to follow him and they both walked away and into the restaurant. No one said anything to us. We had already gotten our food and waited quite some time for it. We wanted to cancel the $17 a piece drinks. Ten minutes later, Dylan shows up with the drinks. He didn't apologize and didn't say anything about what had happened. When we checked out, nothing was discounted or taken off of our bill, no manager ever came over to speak, and nothing was offered as an attempt to mend the situation. The food is delicious, but the service and communication among the servers thoroughly lacks. read more

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Defiantly will be back. It was a nice surprise once we walked around the corner from the coffee shop. Our meal was delicious, along with the drinks. Service was prompt and very friendly. read more

Aaktun - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Clayton, North Carolina

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quick service and the latte is so delicious, i got it with oat milk, $6.40 for a 16oz is not bad at all and i enjoyed the strong espresso taste w/ the delicious homemade white chocolate and pistachio syrups! so good! read more

Aaktun - pistachio blanc iced latte - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Clayton, North Carolina

The food was delicious. The Brussel Sprouts were probably the best I've ever had. The service and the drinks were also good.

This is a tasty place for breakfast or lunch. The Sandos sandwiches are very good, and the bread they are served on is wonderful our server was very helpful and explained the menus and dishes. But dinner is a mixed bag. First off, it seems pretty expensive. I was tempted on the short rib sandwhich, but passed on the fact it was $39. I opted for the grilled Romain salad and added shrimp. The flavors were good, but the Romain had gotten too cooked and had the consistency of slime. Although the shrimp added were delicious. And while the mixed drinks are tasty, they cost at least $17 apiece. Probably won't go back for dinner, but it's a solid place earlier in the day. read more

Great food and service. Loved the charred Brussels appetizer and main courses. Ate outside.

Incredible food, awesome interior design and ambiance, service was great as well. Lots of seafood options and several Thai infused dishes. We will be back! read more

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A gem in Clayton, the Food is delicious. We had the most amazing server ( Ficole) He was very helpful and knowledgeable. read more

The food was delicious! We ordered a few things and shared, and portions were a good size -- even the small plates. I look forward to returning to try even more on the menu. read more

Aaktun - PASSION FRUIT TIRADITO - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Clayton, North Carolina

We had dinner here a few nights ago & it was delicious! The service was great & so was the ambiance. We started with the Brussels sprout small plate, which was delicious. Then for large plates, my husband ordered the short rib entree & I ordered the tempura fish tacos. Both entrees were delicious & the drinks we ordered were festive & tasty too (they have their liquor license now). Would definitely recommend & will be returning to this new spot in Clayton. read more

Aaktun - Festive drinks & brussel sprout small plate - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Clayton, North Carolina

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Food is decent but very overpriced especially for the Clayton demographic. Very new age, millennial vibe. The ambience is nice but lord do not order the burger. It's indistinguishable from Wendy's. I don't mean to be scornful but I can definitely say I will not be back. Unless you are all about ambience, I'd pass on this one. read more

We came with a large group of about 25 people, so 11 or 12 checks. Excellent service, and excellent food. Price is high for my budget, personally, but for a special occasion it was spot-on. read more

Finally made it in for lunch. I have been a big fan of Chef Diaz for years. Iced horchata coffee was amazing. Brussels and totchos were delicious. My husband was able to get his beloved smashed burger again. Will be back in the future. read more

Aaktun - Brussel sprouts and Horchata iced coffee. - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Clayton, North Carolina

Food was good, we ordered the Brussel sprouts, bavette saltado, and the short rib dish. I think the short rib could have a little more flavor. But overall good. We did wait a little too long for the main meals to arrive, but they just started dinner service so maybe just some opening pains. We will be back! read more

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Good service, excellent food and good atmosphere. I wish it was open for dinner. Highly recommend this place. read more

Aaktun - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Clayton, North Carolina

Aaktun is THEE BEST Latin American food I've had I think my life! My wife and I have been going to restuarants monthly across the US, and we were blown away by ambiance and quality of food and drinks. We recently Moved to Raleigh area and plan to make this our go to spot! read more

Horrible service and deceitful practices by restaurant. My parents have dined here 2-3 times before and said they enjoyed it. So we brought our family here for Mother's Day. We really wish we hadn't. My water glass had pink lipstick on it. I brought this up to the server and requested a new glass. After ordering, he had to be reminded twice to please switch out my glass. No sense of urgency to switch out my soiled glass. We each ordered a latte. 4 horchata lattes and a Mexican latte. All were weak and my father even told the barista that dropped the drinks that they tasted weaker than before. None of them had the cinnamon stick garnish. Barista said they were out. Yet I saw other tables after us receiving the cinnamon sticks in their lattes. My sister's Mexican latte was not flavorful at all. After taking our order, which included lattes for the whole table, two appetizers and 5 entrees, Hiram then asked " would you like bread and butter for the table while you wait?" We said yes plz. The server failed to mention, The bread is 7.00 for four small Hawaiian rolls. 5 guest and 4 Hawaiian rolls.... Fine if they were complimentary. They are not. And the way Hiram asked if we would like them for the table is a quick, shady way of sneaking a food item onto the bill. After 30 plus minutes waiting for our 2 simple appetizers, I brought it up to our server, Hiram G. (Who we never saw...) I asked how much longer for the apps. He gave that look of "oh oops I forgot to put those in" ten plus more minutes go by, he said the apps will be out shortly. The apps came out at the same time as our food. So we then had a table full of plates and food. No room to enjoy our food and no time to enjoy the apps first. No apology that he forgot to put the apps in or an apology for whatever caused this delay. We never saw our server after food was dropped until the meal was more than half gone. I asked for butter and syrup for my French toast. It took so long for Hiram to bring that, I had to get up and once again hunt him down. After waiting again 10 minutes for something I asked for, he brought me butter. Unbeknownst to me, the butter had either garlic in it or food particles from a utensil in it. I covered two of the pieces of French toast in the butter, causing the food to taste like garlic/savory spices. I was so over the lack of attentive service and just pushed the plate to the side. We then waited and waited and waited yet again for Hiram to come over so we could just get the check and get out. We brought the garlic-butter mishap up to Hiram and he just kind of said "oh". No apology no anything. As he saw nearly half of the French toast not consumed because of the butter he brought me. We asked if we could have that entree taken off the bill. He said "ahh yes I will have him do that." He then took forever to drop the bill. When he did. We noticed that he charged me 1.50 for the garlic butter that ruined my French toast. And he hadn't removed the French toast from the bill. And had the restaurant had tacked on a "large party" 20% gratuity for our party of 5. I had to again go find Hiram and inquire about the charging of butter and not removing the French toast and now this auto gratuity. Hiram did not deserve a 20% tip. Period. He was slow, inattentive and was never around when you needed him. Yes it was Mother's Day, but at the time of our reso, 1:15pm, the restaurant was not that busy. So there was no excuse for the lack of service. We asked for a manager so we could either have French toast or the auto gratuity removed from the bill. Once the manager slowly strolled over to our table he tried to gaslight us like what happened to the French toast was not a big deal. I explained I was given garlic butter or butter with food/spices in it and it ruined my entree. He says "oh no problem I can make you a new one. Do you want it to go?" Our family had long been done eating and my parents left the restaurant long ago as this fiasco dragged on so long. The manager never once apologized and was condescending. For a restaurant chain to allow this stuff to happen on their first Mother's Day being open.... Inexcusable. You need to be upfront with what you are charging. And upfront about tacking on auto gratuity (which would be acceptable if the service matched that charge). Not everyone is meant to work in the service industry and not all restaurants are ready to be open. read more

I really enjoyed the Huli Huli chicken and the smash burger. The ambiance of the restaurant is really nice but the fungus gnats coming from the real plants and flying around your food made it hard to enjoy my meal read more