GNO at Barcelona was exactly what we needed!…read more The food was incredible with so many different flavors to try, the ambiance was perfect for catching up with my girls, and our server was absolutely amazing from start to finish. Great service really makes the experience, and they did not disappoint. Already looking forward to our next girls' night!

CRAZY LOUD ...like impossible to hear clients and friends just two seats away…read more Very good interior design aesthetically; high energy vibes; packed to the gills. Food ranged from very good to 'disappointing': Lamb, meatballs, carrots, Brussels sprouts, potatoes, lobster bisque, fish balls, steak, empanadas, mushrooms, sheep cheese, bread, croquetas, pork belly. We would skip the pork belly (flavor was off), carrots (meh), bisque ( very very meh). Drinks were fine. Pours were less than fine on the wine (def NOT 6 ounces). For the Red Sangria be prepared for STRONG elderflower flavor (which I like but family members found off-putting.) Service was Ok.... Friendly, helpful. Add +30-60 minutes to your schedule (or more with a bigger group or on a Saturday night. We were there 2 hours for party of 5). We did not get all of our food but when asked they "re-fired" and brought to us. We asked for pepper which never came. We asked for another round of bread which never came. Not my favorite tapas restaurant in Raleigh but solid nonetheless.

Went here for date night with my wife. Well spaced tables and nice vibes. Staff was super nice and…read morenot overly so. We thought the service was excellent. The Calabrian chicken was one of the best fried chicken I've ever had. Their hot honey sauce is amazing and the drumstick felt like it was double fried and cooked perfectly. I would absolutely come back just for the chicken. The other notable dish was the gnocchi, it was super soft on the inside which I've never had for gnocchi before, I thought it was cooked perfectly as well. The SALCHIPAPAS was basically patatas bravas. It was cooked perfectly crispy and well seasoned. Nothing extraordinary about it, just a delicious dish. I would not get the picanha again, it was ok, but not great. For such a pricy dish, I was expecting melt in your mouth feel. Maybe I had such high expectations because the other dishes were so great. I look forward to returning to try some of the other plates.

Excellent service. Beautiful indoor and outdoor seating. Mediocre food. Our gem salad was…read moreoverdressed and yellow. The Calabrian chicken seemed reheated. The charcuterie was okay but overpriced for what it was. Only the salchipapas were good without a caveat. I would limit Madre visits to coworker happy hours or a quick drink on the go.

Came here for a work dinner, and it was the PERFECT spot. Great ambiance. Not too crowded…read more Excellent service. Upscale spot without being too pricey. It was fun doing shared plates across everyone. I don't think I could recommend a more solid spot for a corporate group dinner in downtown Raleigh. Everyone greatly enjoyed and the food was tasty all around.

We chose this high-end restaurant for a special evening celebrating both an anniversary and a…read morebirthday. There were eight of us, several of whom traveled nearly an hour to be together. Unfortunately, what should have been a memorable evening became one of the most chaotic dining experiences I have ever had. To be very clear: the food was excellent. The appetizers and entrées were delicious. This review is entirely about the service and overall execution, which was extremely disappointing. My sister-in-law and two friends arrived before I did. Approximately 20 minutes after I arrived, my sister-in-law still had not received her glass of wine, while the other two had finally received their drinks. She was then told that the wine she originally ordered was unavailable--approximately 20 minutes after placing the order. She chose another wine and ultimately waited about 45 minutes after arriving to receive her first drink. Our appetizers were also delivered sporadically. The first arrived after about 25 minutes, with the others coming roughly 10 minutes later. Our remaining drinks took another 20-25 minutes, and at one point two guests still hadn't received theirs and had to remind the staff what they had ordered. I spoke directly with a manager at that point because I wanted to make sure he understood how the evening had started. Given the repeated delays, we decided to order bottles of wine rather than continue waiting 20+ minutes for individual drinks. I told the manager exactly which three bottles we wanted and even pointed them out on the menu when he asked. Five minutes later, our waitress came back with a pen and paper and asked us to write down the exact wines we wanted from the cellar. At that point, I was honestly flabbergasted. When the wine finally arrived, one bottle was placed on the table unopened. The waitress attempted to open another, apparently hurt herself, and walked away without explaining what had happened. I later learned she had injured herself and genuinely felt bad about that, but the lack of communication left us very confused. She eventually returned with one opened bottle--but we had no wine glasses. One of our guests had to ask for them. We requested one for everyone, but two were missing. We had to ask again, and the wine still wasn't poured. When I asked about the other two bottles, I was told she couldn't open them and was waiting for someone else to do it. We had ordered three bottles for eight people and could only actually drink from one. Again, the food was fantastic, which made the service issues even more frustrating. At the end of the meal, I asked to have the bill divided into three checks. We were told their policy doesn't allow customized checks for parties larger than seven. Normally, I would have accepted that. However, given everything that had happened, I asked if they could accommodate us. I wasn't asking for eight separate checks--just for the drinks and appetizers to be divided among three checks so my husband and I could cover my sister-in-law, who had only had one drink. They eventually accommodated the request, but not without considerable frustration. They then offered complimentary desserts because of the problems. We declined dessert and asked instead to have two drinks comped, which they did. Unfortunately, there was one final issue. We were given QR codes to pay our checks and added 18-20% tips, despite everything that had happened, because we knew many of the problems weren't necessarily our waitress's fault. When we received the printed checks afterward, we discovered that gratuity had already been added to all three checks. It had not been clearly indicated on the bills we paid, so we had unknowingly tipped twice. We had to get the manager involved yet again to have the duplicate gratuity corrected. To say the evening was a cluster**** would be an understatement. I worked in fine dining in my twenties and frequently dine at high-end establishments. I understand that busy nights happen, mistakes happen, and not every issue is within a server's control. But this was not one isolated mistake--it was a continuous breakdown in communication, timing, coordination, and attention to detail. What makes this particularly disappointing is that eight people made a significant effort to travel to celebrate an anniversary and birthday together. We came expecting a special evening. The food was worthy of the restaurant. The service was not. I sincerely hope this was an unusually bad night, because with food this good, the restaurant has the potential to deliver an exceptional experience. But at this price point and for a high-end establishment, the level of disorganization we experienced was simply unacceptable.

The food was Amazing! Had 1/2 chicken, green beans and rice. It was a little smoky inside overall…read moreperfect place for lunch.

Unfortunately came too late for their special daily but got the quarter chicken combo which came…read morewith a quarter chicken plus two sides. Got rice and beans which were standard and it came with fried plantains. The chicken was juicy and their sauces were good complimenting the flavor of the chicken. Overall, a good experience.

I do not frequent restaurants on Glenwood Ave often, but as a picky pescetarian/vegetarian/vegan…read morereviewer, I had to try this new Vegan spot. You may have been to its sister restaurant, Element Gastropub before. This restaurant is located in the Glenwood south neighborhood. There are several garages nearby and street parking. The decor lends itself to a botanical theme which is on brand for a vegan restaurant with its floral murals and hanging plants. The bar has beautiful emerald green tile and comfortable brown upholstered stools. Brass and bronze accents are appreciated throughout the space also. The owner stated the color palate was inspired by the Wizard of Oz. They have an extensive craft cocktail menu. We ordered the Tropic ozz and Blue dream. Neither disappointed on depth of flavor. For meals, we ordered the Whiskey cola rib plate and the Sriracha hunee chikn. The rib plate did not disappoint. The rib had the texture of a tender steak and the BBQ sauce was just enough to not take over the dish. The squash pickles have a bit of kick, but was not overpowering. The potato salad had a great balance of mustard and vegan mayo. The Sriracha dish was also delicious, but could have used more sauce which the owner happily supplied. Overall, I would definitely recommend this restaurant. The menu offers enough even for indecisive eaters and everything that we ordered was delicious. The food was filling. The only downside was that we came on a Saturday night and there was only one waiter. Despite being the only front house staff, he maintained a positive attitude and gave great service. We were seated and attended to quickly.

I took my family to brunch here on a Sunday morning, I conveniently forgot to mention that…read moreeverything on the menu is plant-based. To my delight (and theirs!), no one was disappointed as the food arrived. The restaurant wasn't overly packed, and the staff was excellent, offering great suggestions. I ended up ordering the chicken and waffles, which were absolutely delicious. I'll definitely be back to try more dishes!

Cute little wine bar downtown that closes on the early side (10pm Tues/Wed/Thurs, 11pm Fri/Sat, 7pm…read moreSun) but nice for an early evening sip. It's got modern, slightly rustic vibes, lit brightly for the art gallery in the back room. There's a good amount of seating and it's not completely filled with the undergrad crowd like other bars in the area. I see they host a book club and if I lived in Raleigh, I'd be all over that-- this is the perfect atmosphere! They have a nice bubbles by the glass selection (4 options, including a Lambrusco), which is really impressive since so many wine bars give you one, two at most. Vegan options on the menu include hummus, olives and pickles. I was planning to eat there, but time got away from me and they do a strict closing time, so maybe next time.

One of my favorite after-work haunts. Very little beats sitting on a swing with a good friend, a…read morebowl of cheese crackers, and a generous pour of wine. I particularly love the work of independent artists hung around the interior! We're having our holiday party here this year and I'm super excited for it - didn't even know this was also an event space.

We were staying at the Hyatt on a Friday night and decided to stop in for dessert and a drink. It…read morewas around 10pm and we wanted to sit outside but there was no one at the hostess stand, inside was relatively empty and a few available tables outside. Asked at bar and they asked if we needed wait-service. We said "no", assuming they were short-staffed or whatever, ordered at the bar and brought our stuff outside ourselves. Bar service was fast, old fashioned was perfectly acceptable, and dessert was ok too. (some key lime pie type thing in a mason jar). Overall, decent and we enjoyed ourselves, but certainly not exceptional service, drinks or food. Nothing memorable there. View is decent from the rooftop of downtown. Definitely check it out if in the area but don't go out of your way. I would give 3.5 stars if I could.....

Pains me to give a less-than-five-star review, but it was unavoidable…read more Stars for the view and quality of the food. Poor marks for service. We stopped in for brunch at 11:15am on a Saturday . Wasn't approached about a drink until 11:25am, and our food didn't come until closer to 11:55am. That would have been okay, but we were one of only 5 tables in the entire place. And when we had to split the bill 3 ways, each of us got different bills ($32, $38, and $40) even though we asked for an even split. Not super attentive here, so if you don't mind waiting around, this might be okay with you?

First time here. Been wanting to come for a while and so glad I did. I arrived and it was already…read morepacked at 530 on Saturday. Outdoor seating looked really nice. Wish it wasn't 100 out. Good reason to come back. Started with prickly pear margarita with mescal. Yum! Had a white wine after. It was ok. My friend and I shared 4 bruschetta's- smoked salmon and pesto, artichoke, caprese, and apple, Brie and fig. Favs were smoked salmon and apple and Brie. The fries were amazing. Salmon board was good too. The bread on the board was much better than the bruschetta. Ambiance is great. Service as well. Will be back!

Absolutely love Postino! This is my go to lunch spot with coworkers. We've been numerous times…read moreand are never disappointed. My go to meal is the half panini and tomato soup. Their roast beef panini is on par with Portillo's a long standing Chicago beef restaurant (IYKYK). I've NEVER had a beef sandwich that was better than Portillo's but Postino you managed to take a hometown classic and elevate it to a point beyond my expectations - if you get this sandwich I recommend getting it on the ciabatta bread versus focaccia. Let's not overlook the tomato soup - it's so rich and flavorful. For a lighter lunch my go to is the tuna panini with broccoli salad. They are known for their boards, I've not had the bruschetta yet but it looks delicious. My favorite board is the hummus. One thing I hate is when a restaurant gives you a big bowl of hummus and not enough pita. That is not the case here, you'll get pita, toasted bread, and a variety of vegetables to scoop up the velvety humus covered in cherry tomatoes, red onion and feta. For date night enjoy a Violet Femme a gin cocktail that tastes as lovely as it looks. The service here is top notch! Everyone is fantastic. I'll have to come back to this review to note the serves names we've had because they have all been exceptional. Now let's talk about the vibe! Postino's nailed the indoor/outdoor feel. Plenty of windows that are open on nice days, plants galore and the decor gives you a cool like rockstar but classy feel. 5 stars doesn't feel like enough.

Drinks cool. Service was weird. One bartender began taking our order and offered a certain variety…read moreof drinks then never came back. Another bartender came over and shared a different list that also included my original drink order the said it was NOT available. Got 1 drink each and left to another bar.

My friends and I came to Wonderland Kitchen & Cocktails on Glenwood to celebrate my birthday, which…read moreI had included in my reservation notes. Unfortunately, the experience started off badly and only got more frustrating. Our reservation was for 7:15 PM, and although we were running a little late because it was pouring rain, we called ahead and were told our reservation would still be held. When we arrived, we were told to wait for a table to become available. This was already a little frustrating because there was an entire row of tables visibly unoccupied. After waiting 30 minutes, we were still sitting at the bar with no updates. At that point, it started feeling really disorganized. As more time passed, my friends went up to the hostess stand multiple times trying to get answers about what was going on, but the hostesses were rude and not helpful at all. By the time we were finally seated, 1 hour and 15 minutes had passed after our reservation time, which is honestly unacceptable when you have a reservation. At that point, we were considering just leaving. The service once seated was also not great. The food was okay, but definitely not enough to make up for the poor experience overall. If a restaurant has such limited space, I don't think they should overbook reservations if they can't actually seat guests close to their reserved time. No one wants to wait over an hour after making a reservation, especially for a special occasion like a birthday. I really hope management sees this and improves their reservation system and customer service, because this was a disappointing way to spend a birthday celebration.

The event food was excellent The service was wonderful…read more The Ambiance was quaint and they have outdoor seating when the weather in NC AGREES I really enjoyed going and experiencing something new. I don't drink but I am always looking for great gift ideas for the people that do. This is a great place to go to fall in love with new and unique wines.

Cute little wine shop with a little area where you can get a glass of wine and/or a tasting. The…read moreservice was really great and they were knowledgeable about the wine. We got a free wine tasting on a Saturday and they gave 3 pours of different wines. The first one a Rose was really great. If I lived here I would frequent this place!