Review: Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - Cary, NC
We recently had an opportunity to dine at the Scratch Kitchen for lunch with family and the kids and wanted to share a few things about our experience.
It was a Sunday afternoon, and we had options of picking from the Lunch menu and the Brunch menu, which provided a ton of options from breakfast, appetizers, salads, bowls, noodles, burgers, and entrees. The options were a bit overwhelming; at one point, several people at the table had to ask the waiter for recommendations because it was a bit too much. As a food critic, it is always very concerning when a restaurant has a ROBUST menu because it’s hard to be consistent with the food quality with extensive menus.
Entrees
Bibimbap Bowl - Seared Rice Bowl with Shaved and Marinated Ribeye Steak, Fresh Spinach, Carrots, Green Onions, Pickled Red Onions, Cucumbers and Over-Easy Egg. Served with Spicy Bib Sauce.
This dish really had the perfect combination of flavors, blended together with the tenderness of the steak, the array of colors, tastes, and textures of the vegetables, and the rich, creamy egg overlay on top. My only complaint was that the spicy bib sauce was really spicy. Mind you, the waiter did warn us. It was more than expected. I love spicy, but others may find it overwhelming.
Crispy Chicken Sandwich - Waffle-Battered Fried Chicken with Spicy Maple Syrup Aioli, Candied Bacon and House Pimento Cheese with Scratch-Made Pickles. Served on A Locally Made Brioche Bun. This waffle batter chicken was perfectly cooked, crispy, juicy and tender inside, and seasoned to perfection. The maple syrup aioli added an outstanding balance of heat and sweet flavors, adding the smoky sweet candied bacon, with the creamy richness of the pimento cheese and the contrast of flavors with the homemade pickles. The dish was the perfect blend of sweet, savory, and spicy to elevate this sandwich beyond normal expectations.
Chicken Dutch Pancake - Dutch baby pancake baked in cast iron with hand-breaded fried chicken, fresh berries, and rosemary lemon maple syrup. I can’t really explain what this was. The fried chicken was a superior elevation, just like the sandwich, but the pancake was genuinely questionable. I think we were all very disappointed. My biggest challenge was the texture of the pancake; being more like a “flan” texture, I would almost call it a Flan Pancake. The saving grace of the dish was the flavor profile, with the sweetness of the berries mixed with rosemary maple syrup, which provided citrusy, earthy notes. It was a great blend of savory, sweet, and herbal flavors.
OVERALL, it was a great experience. Surprisingly, with all the things on their menu, for the most part, the food was pretty good. I would definitely recommend going. Just dig a little and ask questions before you order.
Coleman Chase
Food is always worth the trip.
Food: 5
Chris Lamb
Food was excellent and so was the custom mixed drinks.
Tad expensive, but worth it.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Ryan Sheffield
Joe was great and the food was really good as well. We really enjoyed our evening out and we definitely would come back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Laura Rodriguez
Shrimp tacos were so good. Food is always good
aiden Sanderson
So good! I got a burger and potato salad which was amazing. I loved it. We also got the pimento wontons, soooooo good. The chicken fried bao buns were a 3/5 would not recommend. Atmosphere is good!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Truffle Mac & Cheese Burger
Lauren Fletcher
Food was amazing
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Emma Orduno
Awful service. Never come back.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
tya
great food great service no complaints
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Truffle Mac & Cheese Burger
Andrew
The food and drinks were good don’t bother with the lobster Mac and cheese. While the dish is good the lobster is not incorporated into the dish and you pay upwards of 10 dollars from the regular Mac for a couple bites of lobster meat. The Philly sandwich is phenomenal.
Original food full of flavor. Deserts are delicious! After eating take a walk to the city park. You will feel better after your high caloric intake.
Vegetarian options: Any dish can add substitutions. Scallops Risotto was substituted with tofu and it was delicious.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Scratch Fries, Pad Thai, Bibimbap Bowl, Coco Seduction, Tuna Poke Bowl, Buddha Bowl
M N
Food was great, service was dismal. I arrived early for lunch, only 3 other tables had people. Told the “hostess” I was eating outside and offered to take my own menu, to save her the trip. She never greeted me, said thank you or was pleasant in any way. Instead, she thrust the silverware at me. Took at least 10 minutes for the waiter, got my glass of wine, then waited another 15 minutes for him to return and take my order. A simple order of 3 shrimp tacos. It took 30 minutes to get them. Waiter never checked on me or refilled water. By the time he finally appeared, I was done eating and handed him my credit card and told him to bring the bill. Another table did the same. Food is great, but the service leaves you in a foul mood.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 1
Dream Chaser92
Very very delicious!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Blake G
The food and drinks were an experience ... atmosphere wasn't bad just nothing special.. but the food and drinks were like willy Wonka chocolate factory and every chew was like a new sensation I wanted more of
Review: Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - Cary, NC We recently had an opportunity to dine at the Scratch Kitchen for lunch with family and the kids and wanted to share a few things about our experience. It was a Sunday afternoon, and we had options of picking from the Lunch menu and the Brunch menu, which provided a ton of options from breakfast, appetizers, salads, bowls, noodles, burgers, and entrees. The options were a bit overwhelming; at one point, several people at the table had to ask the waiter for recommendations because it was a bit too much. As a food critic, it is always very concerning when a restaurant has a ROBUST menu because it’s hard to be consistent with the food quality with extensive menus. Entrees Bibimbap Bowl - Seared Rice Bowl with Shaved and Marinated Ribeye Steak, Fresh Spinach, Carrots, Green Onions, Pickled Red Onions, Cucumbers and Over-Easy Egg. Served with Spicy Bib Sauce. This dish really had the perfect combination of flavors, blended together with the tenderness of the steak, the array of colors, tastes, and textures of the vegetables, and the rich, creamy egg overlay on top. My only complaint was that the spicy bib sauce was really spicy. Mind you, the waiter did warn us. It was more than expected. I love spicy, but others may find it overwhelming. Crispy Chicken Sandwich - Waffle-Battered Fried Chicken with Spicy Maple Syrup Aioli, Candied Bacon and House Pimento Cheese with Scratch-Made Pickles. Served on A Locally Made Brioche Bun. This waffle batter chicken was perfectly cooked, crispy, juicy and tender inside, and seasoned to perfection. The maple syrup aioli added an outstanding balance of heat and sweet flavors, adding the smoky sweet candied bacon, with the creamy richness of the pimento cheese and the contrast of flavors with the homemade pickles. The dish was the perfect blend of sweet, savory, and spicy to elevate this sandwich beyond normal expectations. Chicken Dutch Pancake - Dutch baby pancake baked in cast iron with hand-breaded fried chicken, fresh berries, and rosemary lemon maple syrup. I can’t really explain what this was. The fried chicken was a superior elevation, just like the sandwich, but the pancake was genuinely questionable. I think we were all very disappointed. My biggest challenge was the texture of the pancake; being more like a “flan” texture, I would almost call it a Flan Pancake. The saving grace of the dish was the flavor profile, with the sweetness of the berries mixed with rosemary maple syrup, which provided citrusy, earthy notes. It was a great blend of savory, sweet, and herbal flavors. OVERALL, it was a great experience. Surprisingly, with all the things on their menu, for the most part, the food was pretty good. I would definitely recommend going. Just dig a little and ask questions before you order.
Food is always worth the trip.
Food: 5
Food was excellent and so was the custom mixed drinks.
Tad expensive, but worth it.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Joe was great and the food was really good as well. We really enjoyed our evening out and we definitely would come back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Shrimp tacos were so good. Food is always good
So good! I got a burger and potato salad which was amazing. I loved it. We also got the pimento wontons, soooooo good. The chicken fried bao buns were a 3/5 would not recommend. Atmosphere is good!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Truffle Mac & Cheese Burger
Food was amazing
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Awful service. Never come back.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
great food great service no complaints
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Truffle Mac & Cheese Burger
The food and drinks were good don’t bother with the lobster Mac and cheese. While the dish is good the lobster is not incorporated into the dish and you pay upwards of 10 dollars from the regular Mac for a couple bites of lobster meat. The Philly sandwich is phenomenal.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 4
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
One of our family favorites!! Always good.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Original food full of flavor. Deserts are delicious! After eating take a walk to the city park. You will feel better after your high caloric intake.
Vegetarian options: Any dish can add substitutions. Scallops Risotto was substituted with tofu and it was delicious.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Scratch Fries, Pad Thai, Bibimbap Bowl, Coco Seduction, Tuna Poke Bowl, Buddha Bowl
Food was great, service was dismal. I arrived early for lunch, only 3 other tables had people. Told the “hostess” I was eating outside and offered to take my own menu, to save her the trip. She never greeted me, said thank you or was pleasant in any way. Instead, she thrust the silverware at me. Took at least 10 minutes for the waiter, got my glass of wine, then waited another 15 minutes for him to return and take my order. A simple order of 3 shrimp tacos. It took 30 minutes to get them. Waiter never checked on me or refilled water. By the time he finally appeared, I was done eating and handed him my credit card and told him to bring the bill. Another table did the same. Food is great, but the service leaves you in a foul mood.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 1
Very very delicious!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The food and drinks were an experience ... atmosphere wasn't bad just nothing special.. but the food and drinks were like willy Wonka chocolate factory and every chew was like a new sensation I wanted more of
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 5
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