Went near the end of lunch service. We both had salads and they were huge! Perfect proportions of greens to extras. Bread pudding for desert hit the spot. Great staff, kept an eye on us and was really pleasant. read more

Lovely place to have a date night. The food was full of flavor. The presentation was beautiful and the service was great. They have indoor and outdoor seating available. read more

See all

Murphys is a very charming little town with incredible restaurants & very friendly people. Downtown is this gem of a restaurant & it did not disappoint. Our server was so helpful with ideas for our our visit & explanation of menu. We had the Burrata with marinara sauce, fresh basil, oven dried olives and served with pasta chips for appetizer and it was delicious! We shared the Golden Beet salad that included honey roasted carrots, goat cheese, candied pecans & vanilla vinaigrette ~ great flavor combinations. Dinner entrees we chose were Salmon over creamy Parmesan risotto (absolutely amazing!!) & asparagus. The Pan Seared Scallops over crispy couscous cakes, greens, butternut squash purée ~ wonderful, scallops were cooked to perfection. Also shared a delicious bowl of butternut squash curry soup. This place is knocking it out of the park on every level! We'll be back for sure. read more

See all

Had dinner here with my wife. Enjoyed the gold nugget bread and crab arancini for appetizer, korean short rib special and scallops for main, and white chocolate raspberry cheesecake. All of it was delicious!!! My only complaint was the food all came out so fast I felt like i had to eat faster to make room on the table hahaha! Service was great, drinks were refilled often and waitress was very attentive. Had a great time, would recommend it! read more

See all

Came here for dinner our last night in murphys. Great service, great food, and beautiful outdoor seating area. Our server was attentive and quick. Drinks were delicious, the calamari was nice and spicy, scallops were cooked to perfection, and overall great meal. Will definitely be back! read more

See all

We came here for our anniversary, with our big dog during a warm spring evening just before the state reopened from COVID. Overall, our experience was mixed. The ambiance is romantic. We sat outside where our dog was warmly welcomed. The service was efficient and friendly, despite being short staffed. I don't know how the servers did it but they managed to be timely with everything. My husband and I marveled at the well orchestrated and well oiled machine they provided in the exceptional service. I ordered dealer's choice for my drink where the bartender chose for me, which is a fun mini adventure. They asked if I had anything that was off limits to which I replied no strawberries. It was some sort of delicious refreshing vodka concoction called the ice queen. Then I switched to a dry white wine and was pleased with the choice. My husband drank the mountain goat which is like a Moscow mule but with bourbon. My husband actually hates bourbon but decided to try it anyway. He said it was the best mule he's ever had. He had three. Our appetizer was the elote bites. We weren't expecting them to be deep fried so we were a little dismayed when they came but we were happily surprised by their deliciousness. My entree was the fried chicken which was smothered in a sweet glaze that was overpowering and unpleasant. I should have had the sauce on the side. My husband had the meatloaf which was dry and tasteless. Our tab with generous tip was $144. Overall there were so many delightful components to our experience we forgive the mediocre entrees and will return. read more

See all

If I could give it a zero I would... Just came from there for lunch. Because of the good reviews and had friends in town, I thought I'd try it. I live locally and wanted to try out some new restaurants. First of all, the waitress did not seem like she enjoyed her job or answering questions about the menu. She said the fish fryer was not working so nothing involving fish on the menu was available (which eliminated at least 1/3 of the menu). THEN when we received the food, the Asian chicken salad was not as described on the menu. The dressing was very spicy (not Asian at all) and had no cashews or toppings. My "grilled" chicken pesto sandwich looked like it was from a frozen already grilled and scoured piece, warm , but not cooked in the middle, rubbery. Server said the cook was no longer there. It seemed the server was more focused, on us providing compassion towards her situation, rather than her providing understanding toward our concerns and restaurant experience. My suggestion, get the owner in there to cook, or shut down until you get it together...don't penalize your customers. BTW, no comp or apologies on any of the items served. read more

The food was phenomenal, service impeccable and the wine was tasty. We will return ASAP.

Ehhh .. server was nice. Food wasn't. Went for Mother's Day brunch, had nothing brunch like, just a regular lunch menu. hey I'm sure it's better. Just not today. read more

We finally were able to come back again to Alchemy. Service was very attentive with water refills and the food we ordered were all very well seasoned and cooked. There's two dining areas and some outdoor seating with heaters. We opted to sit inside which was dimly lit, warm, and the fireplace added a nice ambiance. Their side of French fries with the Alchemy burger were crispy and they don't charge extra to make it garlic fries instead of plain. The ribeye steak was cooked perfectly medium rare, and my husband seemed to enjoy his fried chicken. read more

See all

We had the A burger and crab arincici . Everything was delicious. There is only one hostess Nondi and she is seating people making drinks and serving the food all by herself. I have to say she is doing a wonderful job. She definitely deserves a raise. It's very busy the patio is full of people and she guest seated inside and at the bar. read more

See all

We had a 7pm reservation. Showed up at 630 and was told that we absolutely couldn't be seated until 7 because they were short staffed. The place was pretty empty. It's understandable, but still not a great start to the experience. We ordered the calamari, baked brie, and golden nuggets bread for apps. For mains we got the meatloaf, fried chicken (thai chili), and scallop risotto. I ordered two mocktails. Despite there being a fulltime bartender, and the restaurant only being 1/3 full, we didn't get our drinks even after being seated for 40 mins, and even then I had to ask the waitress to check on them for us after about 30 mins. The golden nuggets bread was pretty flavorless (I was looking forward to it because it seems to be popular). The baked brie was fine, but really it's just heating up a brie in (what tasted like a pre-made puff pastry) with apricot jam on top. The calamari was pretty solid, it was a massive plate. The meatloaf sauce was too salty. The pieces of zucchini under it was the best part of the dish. The fried chicken was a large piece of breast meat, and the outside tasted like a thai-chili flavored friend chicken wing. Except it's just one giant piece of (dry) chicken breast. The scallop was fine, the risotto was overcooked and the pesto didn't taste very good. I try to base my reviews mainly on the food, and I usually discount service. So in this one, figure -0.5 stars for the late drink, and -1.5 stars for the really uninspired food. read more

Wow! Just wow! I chose this restaurant to celebrate my birthday on a weekend getaway. Started with a glass of Prosecco. Husband and I shared the baked brie, which was very good. We split the beet salad, which was Fantastic! and literally at that point I was full! But we had ordered dinner entrees. Has Ben actually ordered the calamari entrée appetizer as his entrée. It was ridiculously huge. There is no way anyone, two or even three people could've finished that as an appetizer. I had the scallop dish with risotto. It was fantastic! We were so so full. We couldn't even consider dessert.! Darling waitress. As the evenings are getting cooler, we chose to eat inside and it was very pleasant. read more

See all

My first time here was so fantastic! Absolutely loved the food as well as the atmosphere. Fried chicken, elote corn bites and meatloaf were all delicious. The dolce de leche cheesecake and peanut butter chocolate cake were the perfect way to end a meal. The best thing we could have done to finish up our wine tasting trip! read more

See all

This was a nice place to celebrate a birthday dinner. Food was good - the one complaint was the seats were uncomfortable outside. But would come back here again! read more

This place is just delicious! Ordered the gold nugget bread as an appetizer and it is unlike anything we have ever tasted - so much goodness and amazingness in a bread (and I love my carbs!). We had the cesar salad and wagyu steak and they were both splendid. The steak was perfectly cooked and the sides went so well with the steak. This place has a nice little bar with some TVs in case you want to watch a game and additional seating, along with a fireplace. We love Murphys and have a cabin in the area, and were so excited when we tried this place. You do not want to miss out - Alchemy is such a gem! read more

See all

Excellent service!! Wonderful air conditioning and nice and clean. Bathrooms were stocked and clean. Food was very good and they gave good portions!! Max and cheese appetizer was like a full meal. Calamari was awesome with a nice light batter. Hubby had the fried chicken and I had steak. We were too full for desert. Definitely returning!!! read more

Alchemy - Chicken - New American Near Me - Murphys, California

See all

Alchemy was an excellent choice for a delicious outdoor dinner. The hostess and server provided first class service from greeting to timing of food courses. The food was made with fresh ingredients and tasted marvelous. We had the fried chicken and Mac-n-cheese. I highly recommend Alchemy for a couple. It appeared kid friendly too. read more

See all

This is my new go to restaurant now when we go up the the quaint mining town of Murphys in the Sierra foothills. Service was friendly and prompt as soon as you arrive. It was an early dinner or a really late lunch at 4pm on a Sunday after spending a few hours at my favorite winery in Murphy's Val Du Vino. I can't speak on how good the service is on a crowded Saturday night until my next visit. We had my wife's best friend from college in town for a few days and we decided to take a side trip to Murphy's to pick up a case of wine and do a little tasting. We got the munchies and I wanted to try a different place. I saw this place and wanted to give them a try. I typically don't like to share, but I got talked into sharing. Everything on the menu looked great. We started with a beet salad that I would highly recommend. We then shared the fried chicken on a creamy and tasty risotto with Bok Choi. We also had the scallops on a risotto patty, and our last dish was a crab Mac n Cheese. Everyone got to have a good amount of food. All three portions were large enough to share and we were comfortably full after the meal. The price for the total meal was around $40 each, not including alcohol or dessert. We will be definitely returning to this place next time we are in town. read more

See all

We had a perfect start to our long weekend with a lunch here. We ordered the clams and elotes fritters to start with. The fritters were so delicious. The clams were great too but more of an entree size and quite filling for an appetizer. We split a blue cheese burger which was so great we forgot to photograph it. I really appreciate that when we told the waitress we were splitting everything she brought the burger already split on two plates... it's the little things. Our little one enjoyed her chicken fingers. My husband was also very happy they had Chimay on tap, as we're fond of Belgian beers. I couldn't pass up a mango cocktail on the menu though. read more

See all

My wife and I brought my in-laws out to the area around Murphys for a special occasion. We figured we'd just wing it on Friday, but made reservations based on poking around at reviews for Saturday at Alchemy. When we arrived, it was really quiet. A few tables were occupied, and when we came in, they offered us basically our pick of where we wanted to sit, explaining that it was a pretty quiet evening. We picked a nice table by the window, ordered some drinks, and went over the menu. Shortly thereafter, a bunch more people showed up and it was pretty clear that the staff started getting in the weeds pretty fast. That said, our server was unfailingly nice and helpful and gracious. I wish I'd caught her name to call her out here, she was great. Three of us ended up ordering the wagyu flatiron steak while I ordered the fried chicken. I'll start with the positive - the chicken was great. I loved it. It was cooked perfectly, not dry at all, flavor was great, and the kimchi risotto that went with it was spectacular. Bok choy was a little underwhelming (which is surprising, I normally am a sucker for bok choy) but it wasn't bad. Overall, a pretty great dish. I was quite happy. The flatiron was advertised as being sous vide, which I would assume means "get to just shy of the temp you're going for, then sear to finish". I think they did, but my guess is that it just didn't sous vide long enough. If you sous vide too long, meat gets mushy. If you don't sous vide long enough, you don't give the protein enough time to rearrange itself, making the meat more tender than it normally would be at that doneness. The cook *looked* spectacular, a nice sear around the outside while being a solid med-rare in the middle. However, it was horribly tough/chewy. Like, you're going to get jaw muscle gains out of this if you decide to power through it. On the positive side, the veggies and the chimichurri were great, but when the main protein is almost unchewable, well... So, all three of our group that ordered it sent it back. I see other reviews citing the same thing, so I don't think it was just an off night. It might be that flatiron just doesn't suit that sort of cooking - I've done a lot of sous vide with hanger steak which might be a better choice, but I digress. My family ended up ordering different salads, which were pretty okayish. My wife got a caeser with light dressing and shrimp, mother-in-law a caeser with normal dressing, and my father-in-law a wedge salad. Overall fine, except my mother-in-law got the light dressing and my wife got the shrimp, which were almost hatefully overcooked. The staff were, as mentioned, unfailingly great and took the flatirons off our bill, no questions asked. So, if you find yourself here - get the fried chicken. It's great! I was super happy with my choice and if it had just been me ordering it, this'd be a five star review. However, given that this appears to be a pervasive issue with the flatiron and that everyone but me got two dishes that I don't think any of them would return for, my waffling between 3 and 4 stars ends up at 3. The place is nice, the menu looks good, it's just execution issues that need to be worked out. read more

We had a full afternoon of wine tastings, and the people at Alchemy were courteous to deal with our goofy butts for the evening. I was hoping to try the Elote fritters, but there is apparently cilantro in there and since my wife and I were splitting and she absolutely abhors cilantro, we didn't. We had another app and split the mushroom risotto which was absolutely delicious. For desert we have the chocolate/peanut butter cake, and the bread pudding. Between the two, I liked the bread pudding more as it was incredibly tender. Shall we ever visit this place again, we will absolutely be visiting. read more

Alchemy - New American Near Me - Murphys, California

See all

We found Alchemy open today and decided to try again at our old favorite. Should've skipped it. The food is not any better. It is a diner posing as a fancy restaurant. The mussels, that I used to love, tasted less than fresh and, the broth was not very flavorful. The three heart Caesar, that used to be different and delicious, was nothing special, especially for the price! Guess this restaurant is off my list for good. It's a shame they couldn't reimagine this place, it's time!, hire someone that can actually cook and, give locals a place they could gather and enjoy. The service was good despite the fact that there was only one person working. Don't bother spending your money here, there are a lot of great places in town. read more

Went here for our wedding anniversary and it was perfect. Great cocktail, huge beer selection and an interesting menu. Made us get things we wouldn't normally order. We shared the much room polenta dish that was rich and decadent and the meat loaf. Meat loaf was so surprisingly amazing. Flavorful and then they slice it really thin and then make it crispy. Dessert too! A lovely evening read more

Very nice place, friendly and accommodating staff. I ordered the scallop dinner with mixed greens, polenta cakes and butternut squash purée. I'm not a butternut squash person, so the waitress recommended substituting it for the mashed potatoes and it was absolutely delicious! Menu was a little pricy but worth it for a nice dinner with great food. Will definitely go back when I'm in the area again. read more

Alchemy - Scallops - New American Near Me - Murphys, California

Saturday afternoon we were turned away at 2:20pm because the "kitchen staff were getting ready to go to lunch" at 3pm! So apparently they stop seating 40 minutes before they close for lunch service. read more

We popped in last weekend for a meal. $36 for small waygu flat iron steak and small salad and $18 for a dry Bahn MI with fries. (No substitutions). $100 for 4 adults to have lunch. The food was lackluster, in my opinion. The Bahn MI was tofu with zero condiments. I've had worse, but not for $100. Live & learn. read more

Nice patio and weather. But the calamari was drenched in aioli instead of it being served on the side. Have always had dipping sauce on the side. Served nice and hot but couldn't finish with all that sauce. The ahi salad my husband had was huge. Got dressing in the side and it was great. Clams in tomato sauce with basil were plentiful and filling but too salty. Ate the clams, left the "soup" behind. May try this place again sometime. read more

Alchemy - Calamari in aioli - New American Near Me - Murphys, California

It's been a little while since we've been in, but I thought we'd have a great meal. Sadly I was wrong. Very disappointing dinner. We had the meatloaf, split the ribeye, the Caesar and the bistro salad. All ribeyes are fatty but this was predominately fatty, very difficult to find any meat. It was also under-seasoned. The mashed potatoes were not very warm and very gluey. The asparagus was fine. The salads were nothing special, and the meatloaf was smothered in gravy, which was the worst part. I've had several friends share that they've had good meals, but I think I'll pass on a return trip. It's a beautiful restaurant too bad the experience and food didn't match the space. read more

We loved our dinner at Alchemy. The service was outstanding. I had the beet salad and the fried chicken. Both were delicious. My husband had the wedge salad and scallops which were also delicious. We highly recommend! read more

We dined out for the second time with our kids last week for dinner and it was the best experience. We are longtime, loyal customers of Alchemy , (even had our rehearsal dinner there!) We were curious how our experience would be considering not going in so long due to covid though and realizing a lot of restaurants have had to adapt and change. We were extremely satisfied with our meals and service. Not pictured , I also had a yummy salad with candied pecans that was so good and fresh. Husband had a burger that he said was very good. The staff here was so nice and checked in with us more than a few times to make sure we were comfortable and that the kids were okay because they know how kids can sometimes not last as long out at dinner ;) They even let the cook know that we had kids to push our food out a bit faster. All in all we had the best evening at Alchemy and are already looking forward to our next return, along with Nugget bread of course :) read more

See all

The food was delicious and the service was excellent. We enjoyed everything we had, very delicious!

If you've never been to Calaveras County, you are missing out on great small town vibes! Downtown Murphy's is filled with plenty of cute little shops, wineries and a handful of eateries, which led me to lunch at Alchemy! We weren't super hungry, so we decided to raid the appetizer menu. First thing we got was the Little Nugget Bread. It's their version of garlic bread served up on ciabatta, great starter. Next up was the elote bites, deep fried corn nuggets that fans of the Sizzler would appreciate. If you are like me and remember the kids buffet at Sizzler, the corn nuggets were the best! This is just a fancier and equally delicious version. For our 'main' we decided to go with smoked bacon mac n cheese, which was great and filling. Thick sauce, lots of flavor, could've used a bit more salt and pepper though. Their soup de jour was a buffalo chicken soup, which we both got a cups of. They put some big chunks blue cheese, it was hella simple but I really enjoyed it because let's be real I like anything with buffalo chicken in it. We dined outdoors because I'm not comfortable with indoor dining quite yet. Our waitress was super sweet and attentive. So far, out of all the places I've tried here in Downtown Murphy's this has been my favorite food spot so far! read more

Came here for dessert on a Friday evening and it was the best choice we could have made! Sat on the lovely patio in perfect 67 degrees, ordered a beer and browsed the delicious looking dessert menu. Our very kind server helped us narrow down our 3 favs to what we were most craving, and so we ordered the brownie sundae with butter pecan ice cream, caramel, chocolate sauce, and "the works". IT WAS SO GOOD. Absolutely demolished it. We were only there for about 20-30 min start to finish and had a great experience. Will definitely come back again! read more

So the only reason I'm giving them one star is because we got into the restaurant. After that the people were so rude that we could not believe it. We are about as easy going as anybody can be, and we hadn't even ordered a drink and the bartender cut us off. We've had one other drink at another bar before going there. And they didn't let us order any more. The food was so so, we ordered medium rare steaks and came out raw lol. I personally like mine but my friends couldn't even eat dinner. It made them so mad they were screaming at us as we were walking out the door. Couldn't believe it!!!!!!!! read more

Was a loyal customer until the powers to be decided to charge for their cheese bread with dinner. Won't be back.

The restaurant is really conveniently located and the decor is lovely. It felt like an upscale place to eat but not too stuffy. The waitress was very nice and took care of us well. The water was very crisp. The plating was beautiful! My favorite was the dessert- the brownie and ice cream was soooo good! I recommend it! read more

See all

Really enjoyed the food, nice atmosphere, healthy portions, great drinks and great service. We got the spicy calamari as a starter, super fresh and well prepared! For the main course I got the meatloaf it was really flavorful very tasty. My Girlfriend got the Halibut it was fresh, and cooked perfectly. Overall very good experience! I'd recommend Alchemy, it's a little slice of heaven in Murphy's Ca. read more

See all

The good ...great location with in door and out door seating. The food was ok. We had to ask for a children's menu. After not receiving one. Had a party of 6 or more and received horrible service since she was getting a 20% tip regardless which I love to tip but The waitress was not attentive. We had to ask for many things. Never came by after receiving our food to see if we needed anything or additional beverages. She was lazy with her approach especially for the price of the food. Super bummed. Apparently no manager onsite. read more

Let me start by saying I walked in to make a reservation in person. We arrived on time. Chose our table because it was a slow night. Ordered a bottle of wine (takes time to drink), appetizer, salads and meals. All came out quickly due to the slow night. All food was good but the service was curt and rushed. It was evident that we were not wanted there and were in the end, told to leave out right! I have never, I mean never been asked to leave because the staff was done and didn't want us there anymore. Verbatim, " you need to leave now." So disrespectful after spending over $200 at the establishment. You can be guaranteed that we won't be back. Marita ( I believe) , Sorry you wanted to go home, but that's not our fault it was a slow night for you! read more