Went to Caroline's for the first time on Easter. Absolutely wonderful experience. Great atmosphere, great food. Our server, Holly was very attentive and knowledgeable about items on the menu. We felt the serving sizes were generous and reasonably priced. My wife is a steak person so ordered the steak & eggs and said is the one of the best steaks she'd ever had. I'm always looking for something new so tried the shrimp & grits and loved it. Plan to return again and will recommend it others. read more

I had a mixed but overall pleasant experience at Caroline's. The atmosphere is charming--quiet, classy, and located inside the historic Hotel Julien, which adds a nice touch of elegance. Breakfast was good. My husband enjoyed his corned beef hash (he is a connoisseur) and I enjoyed the huevos rancheros. Portions are very generous. Service was lacking, unresponsive and not attentive. All in all, Caroline's is a solid spot for a relaxed meal, especially breakfast or brunch. Just know it can be a bit inconsistent depending on the day or the dish. I'd return, but with slightly adjusted expectations. read more

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Enjoyed a visit to Hotel Julien. We arrived early for dinner and used the time to explore the Hotel including the bar area. It is beautifully resorted - a flashback in time. Our meal was wonderful and the wait staff attentive and helpful. We especially enjoyed our wine, salads, and desserts! Our next visit is already being planned. read more

Really friendly and articulate service, the food is fresh and well prepared, and the space is clean, well designed, full of light, and cheerful. Great experience. I'll be back. read more

This is a great spot in the Hotel Julien that goes way beyond a regular hotel restaurant. We were staying over valentine's weekend and there were a lot of couples coming in for dinner. It was just me and the girls, but we got excellent service anyway. We had two kid pastas, some soup and a seafood risotto. All was very good and it didn't take long for us to get our meals either. The only odd thing are the historical figures like Henry VIi on the wall that are in armour and not tie-in to the name of the place. Definitely would go back! read more

Yow! This was fantastic! I ordered the blackened catfish and crab cakes, my wife had the cod with the tater tots. First, the tots were unbelievably fun. They came with a remoulade sauce that was outstanding, and the tots were some kind of mashed potatoes that were fried and somehow stayed together. An absolute highlight. Catfish was good, and the crab cakes were outstanding. I could have eaten them until I exploded. Rice pilaf was also good, and the restaurant was very date night like. Service was very nice, and the total experience was definitely 5 stars. I would for sure go back. read more

Went there for lunch with my wife. Ordered a simple club sandwich and a French dip and 2 soft drinks (should be simple). Not so. After an hour and ten-minute wait, I finally cancelled. The manager came out and said the kitchen was screwed up and had no excuse. After 75 waisted minutes, the only rectifying offer I received was that they covered the cost of my iced tea and mountain dew. Won't be returning. There are better choices for downtown dining. read more

Wonderful place! Had their turkey panini. Excellent! Service and atmosphere were 1st rate. Can't wait to try this place again! Menu looks intriguing. read more

We stopped for a quick breakfast after checkout and this checked the boxes. The food was good, nothing special or amazing, but certainly edible and filling. They carry the local Verena Street coffee, which was delicious. We actually came back for take out coffee the next day. The wait staff was nice and responsive. We were able to get in and out quickly. read more

Good food and service. Very nice atmosphere, quiet and relaxing. Good location downtown with plenty of parking.

We (hubs and I) went here tonight (Tuesday), at 5:30. It was not busy - we were the second couple there. The ambiance is very nice, classy. The booths are high enough that you cannot see those in other booths. The menu we receive was the takeout menu. It was 2 paged, but had enough options. My husband chose the fish and chips, and I had the white chicken chili. After our orders were placed, bread and butter was brought to the table, along with a pitcher of water (I love that! I may be part camel.). The food came out quickly, both items were very good. The fish was done well, and the fries were thin slice with a nice crunch. My soup bowl was huge (FYI), but quite tasty with a good amount of chicken. Our waitress was nice, and very attentive. Our total before tip was $14.98 - not bad for 2 adult dinners! We may come back another day while we are here. read more

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This was a really nice place for a hotel restaurant. Excellent dirty martinis and strawberry mojitos. We were lead astray by the salmon cakes, though, as the video for the restaurant pictured two, and we only got one...and it was $14. Granted it was a large salmon cake, but still, that's a tad high for less than 4 ounces of salmon. The dinner rolls were not fresh and kind of hard and the attempt at making the butter presented as upscale was a big miss when we tasted the lavender sprinkled on top. Not sure if salted lavender is a thing? The saving grace was the paradise salad. It was enormous for $10, fed both of us plenty with some to take back for lunch the next day. Not sure we'll be back, but our server was quite sweet and did an excellent job. read more

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this is for sunday brunch service and food only: this was a big "yeeeeesh" all around for me. food was so plain, flavourless, and terrible i might as well have been at a middle school cafeteria. the service was confusing (we got randomly mish mashed menus for items not available for sunday brunch, no direction on what menus actually were right or that we should be looking at, waiter didn't seem to know which items were available or not etc.). got my a la carte food after everyone had already finished multiple rounds of the buffet. (i ordered a simple english muffins and a side of bacon -- english muffin was tasteless as was the butter as was the cheap jam) terrible place to have a post-wedding breakfast, wouldn't even recommend for a non-special occasion either tbh. also, the bathrooms smelled like natural gas/gas leak, which is concerning. anyway... enjoy at your own risk. read more

Attended a christmas party this weekend Waitresses were very polite Wait time was ridiculous Waiting for food and drinks really took away from the christmas party atmosphere When they brought out the food. Finally, some people were done eating long before others even got their food.. read more

We met our daughter and her bf here for Thanksgiving dinner. The historic hotel and restaurant were very nice in appearance. Three of us ordered the traditional turkey dinner and one ordered the prime rib dinner.?the turkey seemed like a turkey loaf, they used a cranberry chutney rather than gravy which was to sweet. The smashed potatoes were maybe a tablespoon size and an even smaller size for green beans( canned and bland). The prime rib was far too rare and the horseradish had no bite to it, the smashed potatoes were maybe a tablespoon size and there were TWO skimpy asparagus spears on the plate. There were no rolls served with the dinner. The drinks were weak and you could barely taste the alcohol. The pies were okay, nothing special. The butternut squash soup "opener" was decent but the salads lettuces were limp. read more

The restaurant was in my hotel so I thought that I would stop at the bar and have a leisurely Bloody Mary while catching up on the daily news. My servers were very friendly and probably glad that I was only having a drink because it looked a little crazy busy. The restaurant is nice with a limited menu but I had plans all over the city so I was not going to have the food here today. read more

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Disgusting horrible food and service The food was overcooked overpriced and not prepared according to directions so they must have an illiterate staff with no quality control Would be a great option for aged seniors with no teeth or those that require bland diets. read more

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We were staying at Hotel Julien, so opting for a breakfast here was convenient. Glad we checked it out, as everyone in our four diner party enjoyed the experience. None of us had the delicious looking buffet because we didn't want to pass out of a food coma on our long and foggy drive home. Three of us had the bacon panini, and rated them "A." The fourth had a waffle and also had rave reviews. Great stuff! read more

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Great great anniversary dinner. She had the pretzel crusted chicken, I had the filet. Excellent service, food was fantastic. The garlic mashed potatoes were killer. Highly recommend. I had reservations for the following night but we happened to be walking past so we popped in a day early. Glad we did. Very nice interior too. read more

Lunch menu is simple and refined. A short selection of mostly soup, salads, and sandwiches round out the lunchtime selections. Wait staff were pleasant and tried their best, though obviously understaffed. This is a nice quiet spot for a lunch date before strolling through downtown Dubuque. read more

Caroline's Restaurant - Bar & Dining Area - New American Near Me - Dubuque, Iowa

The ambiance of the atmosphere was nice. We stopped here based off of Yelp reviews being a great experience. First impression, we were welcomed with a little confusion because we requested a booth rather than a table. We ordered a chorizo migas and a cherrywood smoked bacon panini also with a request for pancakes as an appetizer. Drinks were coffee and a mimosa. Took 10 minutes for coffee and 15 minutes for mimosa. The pancakes never came, the panini was sparse like our 5 year old child made it. The Chorizo Migas didn't come with anything it said it did. No tortillas, no corn salsa (just corn) and most of all no Chorizo. It came with bacon and a bunch of lettuce with some weird ingredients. We returned the chorizo migas and they still tried to charge us for it. Overall, we wouldn't return or recommend. Waitress was nice, but obviously very overwhelmed and couldn't answer any of our questions about the food. Please educate your staff on what their customers are eating. read more

Food was ok but took a long time to get it. Waitress was friendly and was doing her best considering the food took so long to get there. The hostess was awful she could use an attitude adjustment. Not friendly at all!!! read more

Caroline's is a gem nestled in the lower level of the Hotel Julien. As a local, I am always trying to visit restaurants seasonally as many of our local (non-chain) options change up their menus with the changing seasons. During the month of May, Caroline's is running a prime rib special. My husband order the special and cleared his plate. I suppose you could say that means the special is worth it for the prime rib lovers. The special is moderately priced. I ordered the Paradise Salad with salmon, a typical order for me. The salmon was cooked nicely. For an appetizer, we tried the Butternut Squash Flatbread. Much to our surprise, we enjoyed this. My husband wasn't a fan of the balsamic, but he also isn't a fan of the vinegar flavor itself. The squash is pureed nicely on the flatbread which is more representative of a 'cracker' thinness and texture. Easily sharable between 2-4 people. I enjoyed the atmosphere of Caroline's though it is more on the quiet end of dining options I frequent in the area. If you are looking for a quiet, romantic environment to enjoy lunch or dinner, Caroline's would be one of the top three restaurants I would recommend as a local. read more

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Not sure why there was bad reviews, this place is a classic. The service was outstanding and the food great as well! Looking forward to coming back. read more

Caroline's Restaurant - Chocolate torte - New American Near Me - Dubuque, Iowa

Love this place... food always really good...love hotel.... but super slow service Beware read more

We wanted to love our breakfast meal more. The chicken and waffles had a lot of potential, but it arrived with the chicken all cut up already. This dried out the chicken quickly and made it cold halfway through the meal. We have never eaten chicken and waffles where the chicken was pre-cut. I had the cherry wood bacon panini, which was pretty tasty. However, the tomato jam was so sweet that it overpowered the saltiness of eggs, cheese, AND bacon. I could use less of that. And my hashbrowns were slightly burned. The tastiest part of our meal was the brown sugar caramel latte. Service was inconsistent. We got our orders in fast as well as the food. But then we also sat around for 20 minutes waiting for our check/to-go box when it was pretty empty inside and it was clear we were ready to leave. read more

Came as a walk in and was told we couldn't have a table due to reservations. Sat by the bar instead. Initial service was slow, but the food came out fast. By the time we finished, more than half of the "reserved" tables had never been used. read more

I travel a lot, and have a ribeye at least twice a week. I ordered the ribeye at Carolines, medium rare, and it was cooked to perfection! Thank you. Also the mashed potatoes were excellant as well as the service and atmosphere. 5 stars plus! read more

I was truly excited to have breakfast here. I visit the area infrequently and this was highly recommended by the locals. The banana French toast was a culinary masterpiece I plan to try to recreate at home. The disappointment was the eggs. They arrived at room temperature. I had to have a busses locate my waitress to tell her. When she brought the eggs back out they didn't look right so I asked what they did. She said the cook put them back in the skillet to heat them. These eggs came from my plate and I had tasted them before sending them back! What I got was hot but chewy, dry and overcooked. During the breakfast our waitress neverc returned to see if it was ok. When she brought the check I did let her know they were inedible. She said she would remove them from the check but then handed the check to my husband. When I said" oh, you already removed them already" she then took the check and fixed it. It wasn't a terrible experience, but having the eggs back in the skillet gives the Willey. read more

Ate here for breakfast. Service was bad, on par with what you would get at Denny's. Food was decent. Needs a decor refresh.

This is the hotel restaurant for the Julien hotel. The breakfast menu is quite varied and was very good. The first day I had the yogurt parfait with fresh fruit and a muffin. It was very good. The second day I had the oven baked cinnamon oats with warm milk and sliced bananas. It was delicious! read more

Always have had excellent service and food every visit over the years. Will be back soon!

The cinnamon bun pancakes were to die for! The breakfast panini was underwhelming and the bread was not sourdough(as described in menu). Potatoes and eggs Benedict were just okay- I'm just not a fan of prosciutto. read more

Caroline's Restaurant - Cinnamon bun pancakes Breakfast sandwhich Eggs Benedict with prosciutto - New American Near Me - Dubuque, Iowa

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My friends and I love to spend time together in good restaurants and we always choose them very carefully. This weekend 10 of us stayed at Julien Dubuque hotel for one night. We had breakfast and dinner at Caroline Restaurant and it was the best choice! First, we are talking about the carefully preserved design and ambience of the early 20th century. But also great coffee, fresh pastries, delicious omelets and scrambled eggs for breakfast. The dinner menu is the same as in high-end restaurants (only one page, but all dishes are exclusive) and the same high quality. Good wine selection. We couldn't stop exclaiming our joy and praising the dishes we ordered and enthusiastically shared with each other. A wonderful experience, we highly recommend this place to anyone visiting Dubuque. read more

Easter Breakfast- One hour fifteen minutes to get food. Food was very good but 1hour 15 minutes to get food is ridiculous!!!

We were visiting family in Galena, and decided to try Caroline's. It was a very strange unpleasant experience. The waitress asked for our drink order, and I ordered sangria. She informed us that there was no bartender and didn't know how to make sangria. Odd that the sangria wasn't already prepared. I ordered the filet medium and it was rare which would have been fine but the quality of meat wasn't up to par. My mom ordered the tomahawk pork and the waitress spilled the hot juice all over her. We couldn't get out of there fast enough and obviously will not be back. read more

Not good service, not a good menu. The location feels sleepy and long in the tooth, it needs some renovation. Are you vegetarian? You're in luck! You can eat... salad. Or spaghetti squash. That's it. Is it 11:00 am on a weekday? There's no way you can get breakfast. So... If you are vegetarian and you've just checked out of the hotel, and are looking for breakfast or even a sandwich, there is nothing for you. We asked the waitress several times if there was anything we could have, at all. She kept saying no, no, no. Even their grilled cheese has meat in it, and she couldn't even offer me a vegetarian grilled cheese! Finally, when the rest of my family was served their meal, we asked if there was any way they could do some toast and maybe a fried egg. "Oh, they could probably do that" she says. Oh great, now that everyone else has been served I can suddenly have breakfast after all? Even though you told me I couldn't the first THREE times I asked? Terrible. I had water. read more

The food was very good and reasonably priced with the exception of the bloody Mary which was just out of a mix bottle and outrageously priced. Our server done her best being under staffed. read more

We went to eat breakfast here. Was told we could sit at the bar to eat by the hostess. Sat down and then the bar manager said we could not eat at the bar with my 2 kids. I said oh the hostess said it was okay. Then I asked if we could eat at the open table next to the bar. The waitress next to the manager said that would be okay and she would take our table. We sat down and waited for 25 mins. Nobody even stopped back to the table. No drink order, no crayons for my kids and nobody to see if were ready to ordered. In my opinion they don't want to serve people. We got up at 30 mins and left. Worse experience of my life. read more

Had dinner 12/10 and breakfast 12/11 both were top notch! They practiced social distancing and employees kept their masks on! Highly recommend. read more