Herons

We’ve chosen Umstead Hotel and Spa for a pampering celebration of our anniversary. It was a great experience! Beautiful clean rooms and hotel ambiance, relaxing SPA with all possible amenities, amazing couple massage session and delicious dinner. Hotel stuff made our celebration special with the complementary treats and a champagne in our room. We definitely will be looking forward to come back!

Elite fine dining on par with anything in much bigger cities

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Herons is a real treat and special food experience. The food is amazing and its presentation top notch. The staff is amazing and you are wined and dined like royalty. Cannot say enough about this great experience!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

We did the pre fixe to celebrate our anniversary and this is hands down the best food we’ve had in this area! The atmosphere, service, and experience surpassed our expectations. Every course was delicious and they gave us a special dessert because we were celebrating. Do not skip the oysters!! It was such a delicious and well balanced bite. I’m not usually a big lobster fan but their lobster was so sweet and perfectly cooked!

The menu was well balanced and our server gave great recommendations. If North Carolina had Michelin stars this restaurant would be a contender for sure!

Dietary restrictions: They have a gluten free menu which includes almost everything on the regular menu

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Absolutely beautiful experience! Thank you! 💎

Great food, delicious and great service!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

I wanted to preface this review with the fact that Herons is on par if not better than some of the one and two star Michelin Restaurants around the world. Some of the restaurants that I believe Herons is better than are Baan Tepa (Bangkok Two Star), Cranes (DC One Star), Tenjaku (Kyoto One Star) and Canvas (Bangkok One Star). This is not to take away anything from these other excellent restaurants but merely to illustrate the caliber of restaurant Herons represents. If there is a restaurant in NC that will put NC in the international spotlight for Fine Dining, then it would be Herons unequivocally.

Everything from the service, atmosphere, wine and of course food is exquisitely prepared/presented with unending attention to detail.

Atmosphere - The restaurant is certainy luxury but feels relaxed and casual at the same time. The words i would use to describe the setting would be "quiet luxury". The table cloths are of an exquisite weave but not obtrusive to the eyes. The table flowers are unique but dont crowd the table. The semi open kitchen concept connects diners with the brigade but doesn't distract from the overall aesthetic of the dining area.

Wine - The wine menu is extremely deep and nuanced. It is not filled with non-sense wines. The wine pairings were artfully selected by Hannah Barton. I was impressed with her choice of Vin Santo from Tuscany for the apple dessert. Herons goes above and beyond by having almost a dozen wine professionals on staff to provide diners with the perfect wine for their choice of dish. My only regret is not dining with more friends so we could truly embrace the full potential of Herons wine menu.

Service - The words i would use to describe Herons service would be; 'welcoming', 'attentive' and 'professional'. The service professionals at Herons are not your average waiters from any other restaurant. Most had badges from either WSET or CMS (it was hard to tell from the lighting) indicating that they have a certain level of wine service training and expertise. Napkins were quickly whisked away when diner went to the restrooms with new ones presented via tongs. Crumbs were swept by the elegant crumb knife. Servers were deeply knowledgeable of the menu indicating that they were thoroughly prepared by the chef and director of wine for the courses to come.

Food - The words i would use to describe Herons food would be; 'fun', 'inventive', 'familiar' and 'delectable'. Every dish was pleasing to the eye. Every dish was very fun to dissect and devour. The form factors of the dishes kept me connected to the ingredients and did not overuse modern gastronomy techniques like foams, gelees and spherification. I could distinguish ingredients like honey crisp apples, uni and truffle in the dishes. Each and every dish was complex, layered and displayed mastery of fundamental culinary techniques.

This is a long winded review for a restaurant that deserves high praise. If the Michelin guide or Tabelog (from japan) ever came to Raleigh/Cary, Herons would certainly be on their list.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Everything was absolutely amazing at Herons. I went to celebrate a belated birthday, and the staff were all so attentive and kind. The presentation of the food is absolutely gorgeous, and everything is delicious. Each course is an experience.

I've had delicious meals here for lunch and dinner, but dinner is where the grand performances happen. The food's presentation was always exquisite, a blend of art and nature. Eating here was always a great experience, and it felt like a theatrical experience!

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 4

Service: 5

If NC had a Michelin, Herons would be the resturant to earn it. The experience at Herons is unbeatable compared to any dining establishment in NC (including other cities) and even many out of state as well. Truly it has earned being one of the 5 star restaurants in the world by Forbes. It is a quiet and hidden gem in Cary. The level of attention to detail is superior. Another plus, they had a separate fixed 4 course vegetarian menu. Carlos was our waiter and was fantastic along with the other staff that came to present the dishes. From the warm citrus hand towels, to each course served, the presentation of each dish, the unique silver and dinnerware, the extra delights in between everything was truly wonderful. You could smell the rich flavors from each dish and every bite. Although one dish was salty, without hesitation, Carlos took it back to the kitchen and had it brought out shortly. Dining at Herons is the epitome of being given the royal treatment, that many fine dining establishments lack in NC. To end the night, we were given something sweet to take home. I look forward to coming back to Herons, and recommend it for any special event to celebrate. This is the place you want to bring guests, family, a date to leave a special long lasting impression.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Sorbet

The service and experience were excellent, and the food was artfully prepared to look very nice. The experience fell apart when you actually tasted the food. Most of the dishes were rather bland and uninspired. Tasteless crab, tough lobster, sad peaches. I felt like I was supposed to think it was amazing based on the plating and presentation, but in the end the emperor had no clothes.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 1

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Macaroon

Simply put a magical evening.

My wife and I were sharing our 10th anniversary last night, and to say the evening exceeded our expectations is an understatement.

The entire staff from the start with our hostess Sofia, Manager Lori, servers Carlos, Connor, Julie, Jonathan, wine sommelier Tim, and of course Chef Steven Devereaux Greene understand the importance of service in the restaurant industry.

We were treated like Royalty. I do not know if I have words to express the gratitude I have for the experience brought to us, and for making my wife and I feel so incredibly special.

On top of the flawless service, everything from the gorgeous silverware to fresh flowers and everything in between was beyond compare.

On top of having everything listed above, the dinner was heavenly. Course after course, just explosions of flavor…. Each dish more unique than the previous, paired so beautifully with a different wine each course.

From A to Z was impeccable.

Thank you so much for an evening we will never forget. We look forward to returning, many times over.

Ryan and Desiree

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Quail Eggs, Scallop, Mini Foie Gras Corn Dog, Steak, Duck Breast

Our dinner at Herons was one of the best dining experiences I've ever had. Everything from the ambiance to the presentation of the food (amazing) to the flavors of the meal itself was just fantastic. Hats off to the chef and the entire staff. First class all the way!

We got the art tour tasting menu. Some of the dishes were good while others were bland with little to no flavor. The savory courses in particular were an extreme disappointment. I was able to add the wagyu course at an additional price which was much better than the ones included in the tasting courses. The desserts were also really bad. The cherry macaron was stale and the cherry almond jelly dessert also had little to no flavor. Also the included art seemed like a gimmick. They just put some 8x8 pictures taking table space while loosly explaining whatever the chef saw to tie the dishes together. Cool in theory, but executed poorly or like it needed to be revitalized. The wine and service were exceptional Overall we spent $1100 for bland food and a gimmick. Will not be going back

Best restaurant in the triangle