Red Herring was an excellent dining experience from start to finish. The ambiance was warm and inviting perfect for a date night, but also great for a group dinner or business meeting. The menu is simple, thoughtfully curated, and everything we ordered was executed beautifully. I had the steak, served over a bed of perfectly cooked bell peppers and onions. It was flavorful and cooked exactly right. My mom ordered the whole fish and cleaned her plate, which says it all. My son chose the handmade pasta, and it was outstanding. The meat to sauce ratio was spot on, and he finished every bite. We started with the Caesar salad, and it was honestly one of the best I've had. The unique nut mix added an unexpected crunch and took it to another level. We wrapped up the meal with the mousse dessert, and I highly recommend saving room for it. it was the perfect ending. Every plate at our table came back empty. Great food, excellent execution, and a wonderful atmosphere and service. We'll definitely be back. read more

See all

What a great happy hour! I was in town for work and wanted to grab a quick drink before heading out to dinner. I walked over to the Red Herring restaurant and took a seat at the bar where I was greeted by a super friendly bartender. He guided me through the happy hour menu, from which I decided half a dozen oysters. The oysters were fresh, flavorful, and came with all the necessities. The perfect pre-dinner appetizer. The restaurant is beautiful inside and very spacious. It would be a great space if you were looking to host a celebration with a large group. Looking forward to my next trip to Waco, and another stop at the red Herring restaurant. read more

Red Herring Restaurant & Bar - Half dozen oysters - Bars Near Me - Waco, Texas

I think Red Herring is a very pretty restaurant with a very nice ambience. That is where the positive comments end. We had a 6:45 reservation and we arrived an hour early to have a drink in the bar and the hostess told us that she would let us know if a table in the bar became available before our reservation time. I checked with her once because we noticed a few tables had been empty the entire hour we were there and she said that she still did not have anything available because they were reserved for reservations. No one ever showed up and she ended up seating us at one of the tables that had been empty the entire time and she seated us 10 minutes after our reservation time! The food was OK but the portion size for the price was not good. They were out of iced tea and potatoes by 7 o'clock. I ended up sending my gnocchi back because it was absolutely terrible. My husband ordered a martini and was charged 50 cents for an extra olive and, ironically, he only received one olive on the toothpick. The service was terrible and the bartender was very unfriendly, and we would never go back! read more

See all

Made reservations at Red Herring for my birthday. My wife and I were looking forward to a great evening together. Unfortunately, we never even made it to dinner. We arrived, paid $20 to park next door, and were seated quickly at a comfortable corner booth. The restaurant was mostly empty--maybe six or seven tables occupied. A few minutes later, we were asked to get up and move. We were told they hadn't realized it was my birthday and had a "special table" for us. So we got up, only to be taken to a basic row table with a booth on one side and a chair on the other. I said, "No, this isn't going to work." Then the story changed. Suddenly it wasn't a special birthday table--it was a "mix-up." That's what really bothered me. First you tell me you're moving us because you have something special for my birthday, then when I don't like the new table, you tell me there was a mix-up. Which one is it? At that point, I said we'd just leave. Only THEN was I told, "Well, we can move you back." No thanks. The evening was already ruined. Get your crap together. People go out to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, and special moments. They don't want to be shuffled around like cattle. Yes, we're in Texas, but we're not all cattle. There are too many great restaurants around here competing for people's business. Treat the customers who walk through your doors like you actually appreciate them. I spent $20 just to park so I could leave pissed off from what was supposed to be a great birthday dinner with my wife. If it were me, I'd spend my money somewhere that understands hospitality and respects the people keeping its doors open. read more

Food quality and presentation was amazing. I loved the Mediterranean inspired spices and seasonings. I will admit that, for the price it's not entirely worth it. I thought flavor was great. Drinks were good too and going during happy hour made the price worth it. If you're looking for a nice night out with some good and slightly over priced food I'd say it's worth it. Service was good, maybe even a little too good because the SECOND we were done with our food someone would come and take our plate IMMEDIATELY. Ambiance was up scale and nice decor. read more

See all

Stopped by for a drink with my cousin and sat at the bar. A bit early for me to drink so I opted for a coffee which was prepared and delivered promptly. My cousin enjoyed her drinks and I mine so no complaints there. The restaurant itself felt upscale, looks like a cozy place to share a meal. There were some larger booths, so there is space to seat a good group of people. Located in downtown Waco, I believe this place is associated with the hotel right next to it, so be aware of where you can/cannot park. I went during the middle of the day on a sunny Sunday and found parking in the fenced lot next to the building, but also saw tons of parking available along the sides of the street - just pay attention to the signage and you'll be fine ;) read more

See all

For those of you not familiar with the Red Herring, I want to introduce an exceptional restaurant. * A beautiful environment/ambiance with much open space; * Outstanding service by staff well-informed about the menu and food preparation; * The aroma of comfort and pleasure gently floating overhead; * Delicate tastes of food. Each dish had incredible combinations of flavor. It was a wonderful experience. read more

See all

No reservations, but we were able to get a seat as they had just opened. Hostess sat us, very sweet young lady. Disappointed we sat for a while with waiters & waitresses passing us. Not asking had we been helped, not saying "someone will be right with you all" nothing. Before we were about to leave our waiter came over. I will say I hadn't seen him up until that point so he hadn't passed over us like the others, but the delay was noted. Nolan was great, from explaining the menu, to accommodating our little one, menu suggestions, etc. Food- everything was a hit, from the kids spaghetti to our redfish & oysters. Ambiance- It's nice, great open layout. Plenty of seating arrangements to accommodate different group sizes. Noticed the nice bar area when we came in as well. read more

See all

Everything here was excellent!!! Food , Service & Ambiance all AMAZING !! It also helped that me and my wife were literally the first ones there lol I just wish they had the oysters but no biggie . We loved the Experience there !! Would Definitely Recommend!! read more

Red Herring Restaurant & Bar - Amaretto Sour & Espresso Martini - Bars Near Me - Waco, Texas

See all

Wow!! Grabbed brunch while on our way to visit family for the holidays, and was blown away. The ambiance and decor is retro, 20's speakeasy vibe.... On the glam side. The food is amazing! Their crispy potatoes are so flavorful! I got the Dutch baby, it was light and sweet. My husband got the Benedict on sourdough...he was surprised at how much he loved it...the sauce!! The menu has a Mediterranean flare, and it's all done right. If you're in town or passing through, give it a try.. you won't regret it! read more

See all

The most relaxing, tapas style dining experience! Perfect spot for a date, special event, or a time out from life. Come and relax. Ask for Scotty! read more

Red Herring Restaurant & Bar - Original, handcrafted cocktails and mocktails - Bars Near Me - Waco, Texas

Red Herring is such a pleasant surprise! It's located inside a hotel and beautifully decorated -- stylish and inviting. The menu focuses on small plates that are perfect for sharing, and the service was excellent. One of our favorites was the mezze plate, served with warm pita bread and three delicious hummus dips. Great atmosphere, great food -- if I lived here I would visit often! read more

See all

One of the best restaurants I have been to in my life! I stayed in Waco 8 days and dined here 4 times once solo twice with business guests and once with my family. Environment service and food was AMAZING! No doubt a gem of a restaurant. read more

See all

Very eclectic bar and restaurant. I went a couple times while in Waco and service at the bar kind of varied - my drinks tasted better and had better presentation from the bartender working during my first visit. The playlist during my first visit was also great and I ended up staying a while to sip on my drink and enjoy the vibes. The gnocchi was fine. I loved the caesar salad. The sourdough pita was also fluffy and tasty. The hummus was okay. Overall, I enjoyed the drinks, salad, and pita the most. read more

Red Herring Restaurant & Bar - Caesar Salad - Bars Near Me - Waco, Texas

The atmosphere is great, beautifully decorated. Our first impression was that they have a very limited menu for such a large restaurant. Our waiter was friendly and attentive. He told us that all plates come as shareable, but it really comes more as tapas, which right off the bat make everything look expensive. Everything tasted right, but the portions are really small. A few strings of pasta with sauce at $22 and $24 is overpriced. They are not full plates, definitely more tapas sizes. Again, nothing wrong with the taste. The flavors are great. Just really small servings for the amount you pay. Once we received the receipt, we noticed that we were billed on our credit card a different amount than the one on the receipt. Beware, they do have a 3% surcharge if you pay with a credit card. Yes, it was written on the menu but despite the menu being one page only, we haven't noticed. Who comes out to a restaurant with $200 in cash nowadays? In all honesty, if we had seen it before we would have not chosen this restaurant. Many restaurants add fees like this and we deliberately do not frequent them anymore. These fees should not be passed along to the consumers. This is the cost you pay for being in business. Many places don't take cash anymore and they don't pass along the fees to the consumers. This made us think we had even less value for the money we spent. There are plenty of other options in the area that will provide better value for your money. read more

Wacoans!! If you're not going to Red Herring's Happy hour you are missing out! We ordered one of everything on the happy hour menu, including a few drinks each and a pasta off the main menu. We were so delighted by it all! Beautiful presentation, lovely atmosphere and super speedy service. We cannot wait to go back again and more often! read more

See all

Had a great meal here last night. Service was very good. Prompt but not pushy. Makala was very nice and great recommendations. Drinks were good. Food had unique and great flavor. Atmosphere was really nice. Such a great find in Waco. Already made a reservation to come back in August when we drop off our Freshman. read more

Delicious! Creative menu! Very stylish but relaxing atmosphere. Friendly staff. Definitely worth trying.

This is a MUST visit when coming to Waco. The menu is always fresh and if they still have Oysters that day, grab at least half a dozen. Our favorite part of this upscale eatery is the fingerling potatoes! The service is top notch and the ambience transform you from Waco to your favorite romantic big city! read more

Red Herring Restaurant & Bar - Bars Near Me - Waco, Texas

We came here as part of our 18th anniversary restaurant hopping around Waco and so glad we did. The sign up front said to go see the hostess by the chandelier. Good lord what a chandelier it was! This place is a mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and structural wonder of the world. Just check my photos of the look of the place. We got seated and met our server for the evening named Keith. He explained how Red Herring uses fresh ingredients locally sourced when possible. He recommended various dishes just based on our whims. The bacon wrapped shrimp was literally finger licking good and my Gentian Gentleman cocktail was like drinking a botanical garden. Keith made our visit super memorable and we'll certainly return to this wonderful location! read more

See all

I loved the atmosphere and style of the restaurant. Very cool vibe. I was not aware before going that the dishes are served tapas style. We had plenty of small plates but I did not take pictures because they were so good that they just disappeared. The highlights were the crudo, meatballs, and mixed green salad. I did not try everyone's pasta dishes. The cocktails were on point! Their presentation was fantastic. The kiss kiss was delicious. Our waiter was very knowledgeable and had some great recommendations. I would definitely recommend for a date night! read more

See all

Red Herring is one of our favorite restaurants in Waco. However on our recent visit we felt like the service was not very good and the food was average. They do changes to their menu and it may be time to update their selections. read more

I had a delicious meal at the Herring. I started with their awesome humus with a warm pita and then I enjoyed their chicken thigh skewers. Everything was delicious. The staff was super friendly and the ambiance was very cool read more

Delicious! Went for happy hour! Great drinks and bougie but great appetizers - some are $5! Not to miss!

It felt like the dining experience was almost an SNL sketch... From being out of 3/4 the menu items, to our waiter who was half asleep and bumping into our table and talking with his eyes closed, to them setting down the dishes then checking on how the food was before we even tasted it, to setting the check down and 10 seconds later coming back by asking if we put the card in yet to rush us out of the restaurant... maybe we were actually on Punk'd instead of SNL. Our anniversary dinner was ruined. I wish someone would've called before we showed up for our reservation when they knew they were out of so many items and staff exhausted to let us know we should book elsewhere. They told us it was Baylor's graduation that day, so they served more people than normal. But you have to put a credit card in to book a reservation, so they knew exactly how many people they should be having that day. There's no excuse for the lack of food, and exhausted staff. Any good manager knows you order more food for celebratory days, and add additional staff. read more

I loved this restaurant! The duck hummus with sourdough pita bread is insane & is also what prompted me to write a review. I also had the charred cauliflower, which was quite delicious as well. I sat at the bar since I was flying solo & the Sunday night bartender was awesome! Super cool and very knowledgeable about his craft. When I'm back in Waco, I'm making this my go-to spot! Highly recommended read more

Everybody needs to go to Waco, Texas and try this restaurant. I remember the waiter telling us that it's a mix of Mediterranean and South African fare. There's another one in there, but I forget.. Guys, the decor in this place was something that put some of the most expensive restaurants I've been to, to shame. The service was wonderful - we had the most friendly and sincere waiter. The food was to die for- it's small plates with bold flavors. The drinks are delicious. The vibe is intimate and sexy. Just do yourself a favor and go. My husband and I actually said that we would come back to Waco just to have dinner here. read more

See all

Unreal service and ambiance the tapas style is really fun! My wife and I had a long day and this really brightened it! Love this place and the Herringbone Hotel! read more

My husband and I love this restaurant but after tonight's experience we may not return. The service from our server McKayla was horrendous. She couldn't have cared less if she was there and at one point disappeared for 20 mins. When we saw her again, she was coming inside from the front door and did not even come to check on us. She forgot my cocktail and gave no apology at all. She had a very poor attitude, and it will only hurt the rest for the future. read more

Extraordinary restaurant. Without a doubt the most upscale experience in Waco. Gorgeous interior. Some people came in casual clothes but I recommend getting dressy, feels more appropriate. First night (Friday) we didn't have reservations so easily sat at the bar. Managed to make it for happy hour and had some amazing smoked cauliflower for $5. I was shocked, it was literally half a cauliflower head. What a steal. All the cocktails I had were fantastic. The names are misleading, they're all just a twist on a typical bar item (marg, spritz, gimlet, etc.) Impressive bartender, he knows everything about the menu, just ask! We were so impressed we came back the next night (with reservations). Everything we had was extremely delicious, with one exception - the fresh pasta was terrible. I make fresh pasta often and I suspect they didn't let the pasta rest long enough to develop some gluten, or there was too much flour. It was very chewy and fell apart. Atrocious pasta. Everything else was a stunner. Great service. Unpopular opinion but my other gripe is the objectification of women on the walls and menus. The nude female form isnt a "decoration." Let's be better than this. read more

Gorgeous decor. Variety of seating options. Fantastic service. Helpful. Personable. Absolutely delicious food. Small servings with great satisfaction. Great for a date with your honey. read more

See all

We took our daughter for dinner here the evening the Bears won their Homecoming game. The ambiance is fabulous, the service was fantastic and the food was delicious. We ordered the Sourdough focaccia was like heaven with the great whipped butter. The Hamachi Crudo......the truffle sauce was perfection. We had the crispy potatoes, not really crispy, but delicious regardless. The Mezze Board was great. Our daughter had the Mac E Cacio in which she asked for the garlic emulsion that was with the potatoes to give it a stronger flavor she desired. The husband ordered the Short rib. The texture was amazing with some crispy edges, yum! It did need just a tad more flavor to it though. read more

This. Is. Amazing! From the decor, ambience, food .. this place has it all. The food was both visually stunning and other-worldly. The lamb Kafka, crispy potatoes, crab cake, and duck hummus were all amazing. The flavors in each dish worked so well. And the affogato here is the standard by which all affogatos should be judged. Thanks for the excellent service, Nolan! The Red Herring... what a gem of a restaurant! Well done! read more

Love the high quality food and bev. Our server was awesome too! Our party of 6 had a great time. Job well done.

Great restaurant and great service. A little pricey especially for Waco but a nice place. Love the ambiance. But beware out front of the weirdly split side walk. Your can easily trip and fall. I have first hand experience and I am still healing. Very good food. read more

Ambiance out the azz! Food was decent too. If you go with the menu's craft cocktails, the youthful bartenders are skilled...don't take them too far outside their safe space. A nice lunch meeting experience... will recommend setting at the bar- appeared to be better service, better view and can see the street too. read more

We didn't take pictures because we were just overjoyed with everything and everyone here. The service- EXCELLENT The food- so.many.delicious.flavors. The ambiance- very very cool. My creative brain was overjoyed to be dining in such a wonderful place We will DEFINITELY be back. You should go. Get reservations and go. read more

Loved everything. Atmosphere is on par, service was all on point and friendly. Plates are tapas style so order accordingly. The oysters were delicious! Lamb skewers were yummy and the hummus and cucumber salad with it was perfect. Mixed greens salad has a perfect dressing and crispy bacon. Daughters had lumache and it was delish! Smoky flavor to the vodka sauce. I had seared tuna but it wasn't my fave. Not the sweet typical yellow fin flavor and only 4 oz. Otherwise all was perfect. read more

What an amazing restaurant!!! We had an incredible experience and with our party of 6, I think we tried one of everything. The drinks, the food, the desserts, the ambience, all so incredible. Highly recommend going here, love the small plates concept, allowing you to try so many different things. The lighting and decor are so unique and charming. Well done Red Herring! read more

I love the drinks at Red Herring! Jenn is a super sweet and talented bartender- I love when she's working! The vibes in there are super cute and elegant. read more