The Angus Barn

07/11/2008 Posted by punkrockfeminist

Well, this place is crazy overpriced, for starters, and as a vegetarian, in my group - I WAS SCREWED! This is definately not the place for me, get with the times, ANGUS BARRRRRRN! -GET SOME VEGGIE OPTIONS!

Pros: NONE!

Cons: EVERYTHING!

06/26/2008 Posted by raleigh2dine

We hadn't been to the Angus Barn for a regular dinner in ten years because we didn't think it was worth the hype, etc. We had been for events, but not to one-on-one dine. Well, I'm now an apologist for that. We've been twice this year, and we'll be back. It's really not all that expensive, especially considering the food and service. Great food. And the staff obviously wants your experience to be grand.

Pros: food, service, charm

Cons: None.

02/16/2008 Posted by crumpler4

I have dined at the Angus Barn at grand total of 4 times; once in 2003, and three times in 2008. The food, service, and atmosphere are all excellent. With several dining rooms (including some private rooms downstairs) and a large rustic bar upstairs, you can have your choice of dining experiences. If a mistake or problem is noted, the staff always makes it right. And, if you ask even on a busy Valentine's Day evening, the staff will gladly take you on a tour of the fine-dining private dining rooms and amazing wine cellar below. On your way, you get a view of a well run kitchen. The bar always offers free snacks; so if you want to order a beer and eat for free, you can. Or, you can order a monster sized steak, salad, soup, potato, bread, desert, etc. I go for the mid-priced; order a steak or combo (my favorite is prime rib and babyback ribs – great stuff) and share it between two; we order an extra sweet potato. A very fine dinner for two will set you back a grand total of $30; not a bad value. Drinks at the bar are reasonably priced A good Irish whiskey starts at about $5.50. The wine selection is huge; bottles start at $20 and up. (Up to $7,000 --- really! :-) I like the food, price, choice, and atmosphere. And I love the fact that I can walk in on Valentine's Day evening, without reservations, walk past the crush of people with and without reservations, and sit in front of a roaring fire and have fine meal. The Angus Barn ranks as one of the best. Now that I live two miles from the Barn, I will be certain to enjoy it more often. The key to enjoying the Angus Barn is to observe, ask questions, and order what you like. And stay for several hours. Americans tend to rush in, fret if the food is not there is 5 minutes, eat fast, and rush out. This is not the experience at the Angus Barn; relax, enjoy, and stay for a while.

02/15/2008 Posted by ntokb3

This was my second time eating at Angus Barn and, frankly, my first time paying. We arrived at the restaurant and valet parked, more on that later. We were about 15 minutes early for our reservation on a Friday night and there were three of us. It took about twenty minutes to seat us but we didn't really notice because it gave us a chance to look around the lobby and the gift shop. There are lounge areas with comfortable couches and chairs around the reception area and an impressive collection of antique firearms (this is the South) in one of the lounges. The hostesses were busy but still very friendly and when asked, checked our coats. Our waiter was very nice but not very knowledgeable about steaks. When asked if their steaks were wet or dry aged he hesitated and said they were wet aged but added that if they were dry aged they would be "beef jerky." While amusing, the comment did show a general lack of knowledge about meat. Our orders took about 30 minutes to arrive. I ordered a New York Strip, medium rare, with a baked sweet potato and French onion soup. The soup was very good, as was the sweet potato. The steak however, left much to be desired. It was the right temperature but the meat was flavorless and apparently unsalted. It also didn't attain a good level of browning on the grill and while it has grill marks I suspect the didn't pat if dry before grilling. All in all, I could have made a better steak at home with a steak from Harris Teeter and saved paying 40 bucks for a ten dollar cut of meat. The other people in my party had the baby back ribs and the fillet mignon. By all accounts they were very good. Dessert for me was the blackberry cobbler which was good except that they placed the vanilla ice cream right on top of the crust inside the ramekin. Basically what I got was pie under melted ice cream. When we left, the waiter went outside to see us off and the valet had brought our car around by the time we got to the door.

Pros: Impressive Service, waiting area, valet parking, appetizers, non-steak entrees

Cons: Steak (for the money they should dry age)

02/04/2008 Posted by pmd25910

Hopefully, it's not a trend, but we went to Angus Barn on this past Saturday night and weren't overly pleased. We had 8:15 reservations and weren't seated until 8:45. I ordered the ribeye, my husband ordered the NY strip. Both were very underwhelming in taste and were on the tough side. The service was okay, not the stellar service we've had in the past. JK's and Ruth's Chris have a much better steak. The crab claw appetizer was excellent, as always. We've always enjoyed Angus Barn--both the service and the food--so we were disappointed. We'll give it another try one day, but it won't be at the top of our list for Saturday nights or celebrations.

Pros: Great Wine list

Cons: Steaks were tough, tasteless

01/28/2008 Posted by euncapher

I've been to Angus Barn 3 times in the 3 years that I've lived in Raleigh. I don't get what the hype is about. I got the filet mignon wrapped in bacon medium rare. I had to send it back because the bacon was not cooked but the steak was well done. Yuck! So I got another steak where the bacon was nice and crispy, but the steak was still not up to par. It was rubbery, chewy, and definitely did not taste fresh. I've had better steaks at Applebees, and definitely paid a lot less! The side items are mediocre. The service was slow. The wait, WITH RESERVATIONS, was still over 30 minutes. Again, I'm not understanding why people think Angus Barn rocks. Save your money and go to Ruth's Chris instead.

Pros: The decor is cute, even though it's just a big barn with checkered table cloths

Cons: The food was terrible! EXTREMELY overpriced!

01/25/2008 Posted by Pennhill

Visited for a birthday celebration after a few years absence. Very disappointed in the visit, food has gone downhill. Our waiter was a novice and she had to be reminded to bring bread, fill water glasses and no condiments. The meat was bland and tasteless. When manager insisted upon returning steak to kitchen for seasoning, he returned with steak soaked in garlic and butter. Potato was cold and not flavorful. Poor quality ingredients at an high price. Iceberg salad was ok as was the appetizer ribs.

01/10/2008 Posted by eff4eye

My girlfriend took me here for my birthday. We had reservations and arrived about 10 minutes early. We were seated immediately and they even brought balloons to the table (though many others appeared to have them as well). This cued the server that we were celebrating something and at the end of the dinner we received a complimentary pound cake dusted with powdered sugar including candles, whip cream, strawberries. It was incredibly large as well. I had a filet, oscar style, and it was cooked perfectly to medium as requested. It was still warm when they brought it out and was excellent. My girlfriend ordered a smaller filet with the soft shelled crab and her meal was perfect as well. Their wine selection is also very impressive. Our waiter brought over the wine steward to help us make a selection. Unfortunately they were out of the bottle we ordered so he brought out another bottle. It was more expensive ($15 more) but he gave it to us for the price of the cheaper bottle we initially ordered. Furthermore it was some of the best wine I have ever tasted! The only negative thing I can think of it is that it is quite noisy, not that it bothered us, but it may be too noisy for some. If you don't care about the noise and just want some delicious food then give this place a shot. You won't be disappointed!

12/16/2007 Posted by mutt929

I decided to take my wife somewhere special for our 25th anniversary. I had moved with my parents to Raleigh from Chattanooga in 1977 and had heard from them what a great place this was and that the food was good. I've lived in the area since 1977 and had never been to the Angus Barn so I thought it would be a good place to go on our 25th. I called ahead for reservations four days in advance and told them it was our 25th anniversary. The person I talked to on the phone was nice and indicated they would mark our table with balloons. Different but a nice touch to inidcate a special evening. We arrived and waited our turn to get a parking place. Looking back now I don't know why. It seems there were more cars than people. Anyway we got there and were handed the usual fast food portable buzzer. We waited 35 minutes to be seated with reservations. I guess we should feel fortunate because there was a couple next to us that had been waiting for over an hour. Our buzzer went off and we were escorted to our table. It did have balloons on the chairs and so did about 50+ other chairs. So much for being special this evening. We were seated so tight we were forced to listen to a party of 8 drunken 20 something self absorbed conversation going on next to us. I ordered the T-bone at 40.00 and my wife ordered the filet. Her's was under cooked and cold and mine would be good if we were in Golden Corral. If you want a good steak and fair atmosphere go to Caraba's and order the Filet Florentino. Heads above anything served at Angus Barn and at half the price!

Pros: Comfortable seating while you wait long periods to be seated

Cons: Price, Seating arrangements, Parking

12/05/2007 Posted by binx007

This place is going to knock your socks off, I eat here once a month... often several times over the holidays. Great food, great atmosphere... unique in so many ways. It isn't just a restaurant, it is an entire experience. The food is above and beyond any other Restaurant in the area. The price is good. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE RESERVATIONS... if you don't you'll be "shooting it out" over tables in the Turkey Lounge with other dedicated eaters. If you haven't been to the Angus Barn make your first trip over the Holidays, it will definately raise your holiday spirit. FIVE STARS!!!!!!! AND HATS OFF TO THE CHEF!!!!!!!

Pros: EVERYTHING

Cons: NONE