Sullivan's Steakhouse

05/12/2008 Posted by elkaybie

I've been a fan of Sullivan's for years, and I hoped to walk away a fan as well after the Mother's Day brunch they offered...ehhhh, not so much. Luckily mama was happy, but I (footing the $texas bill) was not . I ordered the waffles and was told they were out. Then our server came back and said they did have waffles. Great! But what I got definitely didn't look like the delicious, fluffy, big triangles with deep pockets that this kid seemed to be enjoying when I first walked in. What did I get? Eggos...$14 for 4 eggos with fruit topping. I'll never be attending their Mother's Day brunch again..and probably not for dinner anymore either. This place has certainly gone down the crapper over the years...

05/10/2008 Posted by itb_connoisseur

For the price, go to Fin's downtown and enjoy a much better dinner. It's Prime Only has steak prepared just as nice.

Pros: Food

Cons: morally corrupt management

08/13/2007 Posted by darlla

We had friends in from New York 2 weeks ago, so we brought them to Sullivans for a night out. I wanted them to see that Raleigh is a nice town and make sure they had a good meal. I think we made the right decision. The food was excellent, I had a nice tender filet cooked as I ordered it. We got several vegetable sides and passed them around the table, everything was flavorful and rich, I especially like the horseradish mashed potatoes. We sat at a big round table so we could all see each other and talk. Our server was fine, just a little hard to hear him at times due to the noise level. Big wine list but the prices are jacked up on the bottles. Sullivan's just is what it is, if you go knowing that you are going to spend a lot, and that you have to have a reservation if you want a good table and don't want to wait forever, I think you will not be disappointed.

05/20/2007 Posted by robcitrix

We had reservations for Saturday night @ 7:30 and as soon as 7:30 rolled around we were sat. Had the Kansas City strip which was cooked medium rare and it was exactly what I asked for. I did order the peppercorn sauce but you don't need it as the steaks have tons of pepper on them to begin with. One of the people in our party did not like her steak and she sent it back. They took that steak off of our bill. No problem. Wait staff was attentive and fantastic. In terms of flavor for the steak, not the best I have ever had but the best I have had in Raleigh so far.

05/15/2007 Posted by mcqdogg

If you've got the bank roll to do it, then eat, drink and be rich in their dining area. But if you're just looking to have a quick meal and cocktail, sit at their bar area on Thursdays and get half off the bar menu. Everything on it is good, minus the stuffed mushrooms. i don't know what they were thinking with putting shrimp in those.

04/28/2007 Posted by msland

What am I doing on Sunday Night! Watching my 49ers , having a Martini, and eating from a $5 bar menu that is incredible.. did I mention the quesadilla made with filet mignon! If you dont want your "sports bar" scene.... what a place to watch a game on Sunday Nights.

Pros: Classy, Professional Staff.

Cons: none

04/23/2007 Posted by plinko9999

This is just another chain-version of an "upscale" steakhouse built for people on expense accounts, or those who are not but want to impress their friends with what they consider to be an "upscale" experience. If you are on an expense account, by all means, definitely go and order everything your heart desires just for the sake of someone else paying for a ridiculous display of excess! That is the reason this place exists and is actually fun to go to sometimes. The highlights are the raw tuna appetizer with wasabi mustard extravaganza, with huge bone-in t-bones of inconsistent quality (sometimes delicious, sometimes taste like a rubber chicken). You'll want to avoid the bar, which appears to be a combination of gray-haired 60-something men, a bunch of cigar smoke, and dancers from Thee DollHouse who have the night off.

Pros: fun expense account place

Cons: fun expense account place

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful

04/13/2007 Posted by rickymakers

Horrible service from the hostess. We made a reservation for 8pm. After patiently waiting for an hour (we kept being told it will be a few more minutes), we talked to the hostess. We wanted to know why if you make an 8pm reservation it would take an hour. She said "that's the way it is everywhere" and was not at all nice about it. So my date said, "You're telling me if you make a reservation at 8, you won't get seated for an hour?" And she said yes! Well, than what is a reservation for? I've never made a reservation at 8pm and expected to get seated at 9pm because it just doesn't happen everywhere! I understand things can get backed up, but the snotty attitude ruined the night. We did not feel welcome at all.

03/04/2007 Posted by johndonavan123

This is my first review--after reading the other reviews i just have to comment on Sullivan's. i went with a group of friends on Saturday night for a pre- Billy Joel dinner party. We got exactly what we were looking for. It was very busy so i was a little nervous about time,we were seated after a short wait.(10 minutes or so) After being seated a waitress carrying drinks said hello and that she would be right over.I glanced at my wife and she knewI was getting more nervous. We didn't want to rush, we wanted to drink a big wine and enjoy some good food and get in the mood for a fun night with our friends (and not our kids) After an introduction, our waitress asked if we had any time constraints.We told her YES and when we would like to leave for the show.She seemed to perk up and assured us she would take care of us.That she did..Service was spot on all night. We enjoyed wine, appetizers, steaks and even had time for after dinner drinks because of her timeliness. and yes the food was great. We didnt stop talking about it all night long. We will definitely go back. No i won't take my kids there.No it wouldn't be my first choice for a very quiet spot on a Saturday night...it will be my first choice when i want an upbeat night on the town..the music was loud, it was very busy,people were zippin' all around us.To put it simply the place was buzzing with energy..we talked about it and all agreed Sullivan's feels like a big city..lots of energy, good food and a huge wine list and like i said..that's exactly what we were looking for..FUN!

Pros: SERVICE,WINE LIST,STEAKS

Cons: it was a pro for us but it was loud

02/19/2007 Posted by zrex1102

Unless your girlfriend is a stripper and doesn't mind looking at waitresses wearing fish net stockings I would hardly say this restaurant is a romantic place to take a date. If you are the type that doesn't like to talk during a date this is the place to go, otherwise, bring a megaphone because it is very loud. With these kind of menu prices I would expect impeccable service and superior food quality and during my last visit we received neither. Some suggestions on the wine menu would have been helpful and our server offered none. Our candle was burned out (minor detail but it's all about the little things) and my steak (medium rare) was dry and the sauteed mushrooms were over-salted. If you are entertaining business clients or friends this would be a good place to go since the majority of patrons were in larger groups and generally the ones making the noise. If you are planning on taking a date to Sullivans I would suggest making a pit stop to the bar beforehand and taking a look around so you can see for yourself. There is live music and the bar scene looks pretty good.

Pros: Good bar scene, fast seating with reservation.

Cons: Thumbs down on the romantic scene.