Wow, this might be one of the best restaurants in Raleigh! I stopped in for a business dinner and…read morewas really excited to finally try one of Ashley Christensen's restaurants. Parking can be a bit challenging as you'll either need to find street parking or in a open lot near by. The restaurant itself is located in a historic building that once was a funeral home and also was also a tax practice in a different chapter. The restaurant feels very upscale but there isn't a strict dress code. The kitchen is open as well if yo prefer to sit along the kitchen and watch the chefs cook. When you order you'll have to place everything at the same time but they'll pace it out to your table. For drinks, I ordered the In Gold Blood (Bourbon, amaro, Fino sherry, banana, golden raisin) and the head in the clouds (Vodka, Falernum, strawberry, pistachio). Both drinks were excellent and extremely easy to drink. You'll definitely want to start with the sourdough bread, NC Oysters (Roasted NC oysters, chili butter, preserved lemon gremolata), and fried NC shrimp (Fried NC shrimp, buried garlic aioli, pickled green tomatoes). All of the appetizers were excellent in their own way. The bread and butter just complemented each other so well, the oysters were well balanced and almost seared where they weren't chargrilled but partially still raw, and the fried nc shrimp has a nice contrast of flavor with the pickled green tomatoes and fried shrimp. For the entree we split the Prime-aged Delmonico (ribeye; and was served in a red wine jus, and topped with sea salt and peppercorn). The steak fell apart as you bit into it. For sides, we ordered the crispy potatoes (Crispy potatoes, Italian chili crisp, piquillo peppers) and Brussel sprouts (Embered Brussels sprouts, apples, lardon vinaigrette, almonds). The steak and potatoes were definitely my favorite. The Brussel sprouts were good but a bit on the salad side where they were still a little hard. For dessert, we ordered the cheesecake (Basque cheesecake, strawberry compote, olive oil shortbread) and the Sticky Toffee Pudding (Sticky toffee pudding, embered vanilla ice cream, benne seed brittle). The sticky toffee pudding was so warm and was excellent. The cheesecake also had a nice balance of flavor and the strawberry compote combination worked perfectly. This is by far one of my favorite meals I've had in Raleigh and you definitely need to go here if you are in the area.

It's not every day you get to dine in a former mortuary. Eating solo, I opted for a seat at the…read morebar, which turned out to be the right decision. While the food left me somewhat underwhelmed, the cocktails were exceptional, among the best I've had in recent memory. The standout was the Over/Under, a beet-infused gin take on a Negroni. Absolutely phenomenal. The earthy beet notes were subtle but present, complementing the bitterness of the Campari, the floral qualities of the gin, and just enough sweetness to tie everything together. Every cocktail I tried was excellent, but this was the clear winner. As for the food, it never quite reached the same heights. The beef tartare was the best dish I had all evening. In fact, I found myself enjoying it more on the accompanying sourdough bread than on the rice crisps it was served with, which ultimately justified ordering the bread. The "pickled egg yolk" was an inventive twist, essentially replacing both the raw egg and cornichons found in a traditional French tartare. Clever in concept, but the pickling process seemed to sacrifice some of the creamy richness that the dish could have benefited from. The rice crisp accompaniment is also part of a trend I've noticed at several restaurants and one I'm not particularly sold on. They're usually too brittle to hold much tartare and often end up scattered across the plate. I find they work better crushed into the tartare itself than as a delivery vehicle. The oysters were the biggest disappointment of the meal. Heavily drenched in butter, they felt one-dimensional, with the lemon zest providing the only real counterbalance. To be fair, this is likely intended as a shared dish, and as a solo diner consuming the entire portion myself, the richness may have become more pronounced than intended. The gnocchi delivered deep, satisfying flavor and were impressively light, though perhaps a touch too soft for my personal preference. As I glanced over at the roast chicken being served to the couple next to me, a sense of ordering regret began to creep in. What ultimately elevates Death & Taxes is its hospitality. The service was genuinely five-star. Every dish was explained thoughtfully as it was delivered, and the bar team struck that perfect balance of attentiveness and conversation, making a solo diner feel completely welcome. Their warmth and professionalism raised this experience from a three-star meal to a four-star evening. And they are all 5 star.

TLDR: Large, tasty, but expensive cookies. Exciting rotating menu. Subpar flavors…read more While in the area and needing a Friday sugar fix, I stopped at Crumbl. To save time I started an online order. It took a while to go through the log in process and a $2 tip was required. This brought the total of one cookie to nearly $7! Then when it said the wait time was 15-20 min, I decided to abandon the online order and order at the counter. There were about 3 employees busy at work and no customers. I was greeted upon arrival and helped right away. I ordered one cookie and the order came to over $9 before tip. I questioned the total and the employee returned to fix it. I like how you can easily see and pay on the screen so I could see the error. When fixed the total was about $5. Pricy for one cookie, but they do look pretty and are packaged well so they make a great gift. The rotating weekly menu is exciting, but the cookies are not very flavorful so they taste similar. Even the guava cookie had a very faint fruity flavor and mainly tasted like sugar. Many times I have noticed that the unique flavors are just in the frosting not the cookie itself. I understand having a weekly changing menu is challenging, but there is room for improvement on their flavors. The cookies are all perfectly baked and decorated beautifully. Overall, good place for the occasional treat or gift.

The cookies here are awesome. This weeks selections are insane. They are huge and taste delicious.read more

Nice stop for a beer! They had several styles, and had the choice of a full pour or a half pour…read more Huge indoor space with plenty of seating. Service was friendly. No food.

Came here recently for some beer and karaoke, and we had a good time!…read more I was happy to see that there was a pretty large, dedicated lot for the brewery, so it was easy to find parking. We started the night off by grabbing a couple of drinks, and they actually just recently starting serving cocktails, which was a big plus for my wife. Of course, they also had a bunch of different beers on draft, which was more my speed. After getting our drinks, we wandered into the next room and were delighted to see a ping pong table waiting for us :) They also had cornhole and a big TV showing the Hurricanes game. There wasn't a huge crowd for the karaoke, but the host was cool and the song selection was pretty large. I was also happy that the karaoke started at an earlier hour (7 PM) than most places. Starting karaoke at 10 PM is kind of brutal when you have kids :) One random aside is that the water fountain near the bathrooms was extremely powerful, so it was honestly a little hard to use. That sounds kind of ridiculous, but it was seriously firing halfway across the room. Overall, we'd definitely come back!