The sandwiches were okay, the atmosphere was very dark, the drinks were good, but don’t expect friendly service.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 3
Caroline
TRU is a great place to stop for lunch! The outdoor is beautiful and lovely to sit in during spring. The sandwiches/salads are fresh and pretty quick to arrive. I wish there was a better wine selection for being a wine bar, but it was okay. They are not open super late. It seems like a great place to come to work in the afternoon with a laptop.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Turkey
Margaret and Kevin B
Meet a large group of friends t9 celebrate a 21st bday with cocktails and fellowship. Lovely shared table space with a bartending team that attended to all your drink needs. They allowed us to bring in a birthday Cheesecake to share. Fabulous experience.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Snippety NikkiT
Great central location. Historic, charming building. Lovely atmosphere. Comfortable and varied seating. Bartender, Nicco, is warm, intelligent, and engaging. Food is high quality and reasonably priced, but the menu is quite limited.
Ordering is weird. What if my phone is dead? Maybe the bartender should have an iPad to help the fumbling boomers who want a glass of wine. Would gladly pay a little more to speak my order to the lovely Nicco. Would also like to have the option to leave a "custom tip" over $3. Even a slip of paper where the guest checks off ingredients they want on the sandwich (like you order rolls at the sushi bar) would be better. Or, consider this amazing innovation: guests could pay in American dollars, which would entail no credit card fees to anyone!
Why does my food come to me in a paper sack like they want me to leave, even after I told their computer that I was "dine-in"? Saw lots of students studying and heard some of them try to order coffee...but they don't have coffee.
Also, this is a wine bar, why can't I order a charcuterie? They have all the elements on the sandwich menu, so it wouldn't even be a stretch. Is it because they don't have plates and it doesn't fit nicely into a paper bag?
This place has so much wonderful potential to be a comfy hangout for adults who want to relax with a glass of pinot after work or meet a colleague during the day outside of the office. You know, the kind of people with a credit card who live in Chapel Hill all year round. The online only ordering feels alienating to this demographic. It's a bar. Let me lay down a card and open a tab and treat my friends. Let me pore over an actual printed menu with my girlfriend. Instead, I must suspend human connection while I fondle an app on my phone. Again.
I'm starting to wonder if management is a low IQ AI that has only read about what a cozy wine bar is like, but isn't capable of going to one because they are plugged into the wall, controlling the wrong things. The AI is hallucinating about the kind of business this is. A glass of wine is a luxury, a treat, a discretionary expenditure. The clientele is not in a big hurry or avoiding speaking to people. And they will gladly pay 3% more so you can get an actual POS system and they talk with the bartender about their order. The environs are all there, but the business model better suits a take out window.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Lindsey S
So cute! Lauren served us and she was so great! Amazing selection of food and wine. Will definitely be coming back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Sandwich
juan femenia quevedo
Had an amazing time at Tru ! Lauren and Nico were fantastic—super friendly and attentive, making the experience even better. The food was incredible, with each dish packed with flavor. Highly recommend!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Elliott George
I actually liked ordering via my phone because I didn’t have to talk to anyone and could easily customize my order. Nice, big tables, pretty interior, and good sandwiches. Nothing wrong with this place.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Alexander Sanchez-Felix
Probably the worst drink ordering I have ever experienced. 2 servers for the whole bar and had to order via QR code that didn’t work half the time. Orders didn’t go thru on the app and then it took 55 minutes to get a bottle of wine sent to our table. Did not eat food. Atmosphere was decent. Real struggle for a Friday night without being able to order a drink at the bar.
Atmosphere: 3
Service: 1
Louisa Carter Staton
Good lunch spot, somewhat limited selection. Order through app only, but cute place and decor inside. And my turkey sandwich was very good.
Vegetarian options: You can make your own vegetarian options.
Kid-friendliness: Not very kid friendly at all. No high chairs, no changing table in the bathroom, no kids options on the menu.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Turkey, Sandwich
Mark Lombardi
Very relaxing environment with a great menu selection and service. Conveniently located next to UNC.
Parking: Conveniently located within easy walking distance of TRU.
We love this place, the staff, the owners, the vibe, and the drinks. Our new favorite bar in NC!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Tim Macchi
I really enjoy TRU. I went there for a business happy hour and have been back several times since then. The food and people that work there are great!However, and this should come to no surprise if you have read other reviews, the ordering system is horrible. So horrible that when I first worked with it I thought I was being scammed. I'm pretty good with computers and I have struggled to operate it. Once I just gave up and walked out. It's slow, glitchy, and weirdly you sometimes get totally black screens. I see the owner has responded to several reviews about the system with the same response that due to costs they have gone to a "low-labor high-tech model". Low labor sure; high tech? This system looks like it was designed by a 12 year old in the late 90s. You also must use the system. I talked with one of the bartenders and they told me that the owner just simply doesn't care to change to another system or update the one they have now. That staff commonly have to deal with frustrated customers who can't get it to work. I've wanted to go to TRU more frequently (first dates, after work drinks), but have decided not to because the idea of fumbling on my phone for 15 minutes to order a beer isn't appealing. Also you can't start a tab, you have to use the system for each new order. A new POS might increase costs, but I would argue it would also increase revenue as people would simply be ordering more.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Sandwich
Christian Turner
Really great place with relaxing vibes. On a nice day sit upstairs and enjoy a sandwich and a glass of wine!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Sandwich
Emily Cort
I was super impressed with this place! I read the reviews before going, and my expectations were: good food, good service, but annoying and cumbersome online ordering. Honestly, I didn’t find the online ordering to be as bad as many have expressed. Yeah, it would be nice to start a tab, as I had to order each round of drinks separately. However, the food was delish, the service was quick and friendly, and it was truly very easy to order online. This is going to become one of our favorite go-to spots!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Sandwich, Roast Beef
Alicia B
Huge fan of heavily toasting the bread! My mouth becomes a casualty only for the next week or so.Atmosphere is so lovely to chat with friends.
The sandwiches were okay, the atmosphere was very dark, the drinks were good, but don’t expect friendly service.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 3
TRU is a great place to stop for lunch! The outdoor is beautiful and lovely to sit in during spring. The sandwiches/salads are fresh and pretty quick to arrive. I wish there was a better wine selection for being a wine bar, but it was okay. They are not open super late. It seems like a great place to come to work in the afternoon with a laptop.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Turkey
Meet a large group of friends t9 celebrate a 21st bday with cocktails and fellowship. Lovely shared table space with a bartending team that attended to all your drink needs. They allowed us to bring in a birthday Cheesecake to share. Fabulous experience.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Great central location. Historic, charming building. Lovely atmosphere. Comfortable and varied seating. Bartender, Nicco, is warm, intelligent, and engaging. Food is high quality and reasonably priced, but the menu is quite limited.
Ordering is weird. What if my phone is dead? Maybe the bartender should have an iPad to help the fumbling boomers who want a glass of wine. Would gladly pay a little more to speak my order to the lovely Nicco. Would also like to have the option to leave a "custom tip" over $3. Even a slip of paper where the guest checks off ingredients they want on the sandwich (like you order rolls at the sushi bar) would be better. Or, consider this amazing innovation: guests could pay in American dollars, which would entail no credit card fees to anyone!
Why does my food come to me in a paper sack like they want me to leave, even after I told their computer that I was "dine-in"? Saw lots of students studying and heard some of them try to order coffee...but they don't have coffee.
Also, this is a wine bar, why can't I order a charcuterie? They have all the elements on the sandwich menu, so it wouldn't even be a stretch. Is it because they don't have plates and it doesn't fit nicely into a paper bag?
This place has so much wonderful potential to be a comfy hangout for adults who want to relax with a glass of pinot after work or meet a colleague during the day outside of the office. You know, the kind of people with a credit card who live in Chapel Hill all year round. The online only ordering feels alienating to this demographic. It's a bar. Let me lay down a card and open a tab and treat my friends. Let me pore over an actual printed menu with my girlfriend. Instead, I must suspend human connection while I fondle an app on my phone. Again.
I'm starting to wonder if management is a low IQ AI that has only read about what a cozy wine bar is like, but isn't capable of going to one because they are plugged into the wall, controlling the wrong things. The AI is hallucinating about the kind of business this is. A glass of wine is a luxury, a treat, a discretionary expenditure. The clientele is not in a big hurry or avoiding speaking to people. And they will gladly pay 3% more so you can get an actual POS system and they talk with the bartender about their order. The environs are all there, but the business model better suits a take out window.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
So cute! Lauren served us and she was so great! Amazing selection of food and wine. Will definitely be coming back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Sandwich
Had an amazing time at Tru ! Lauren and Nico were fantastic—super friendly and attentive, making the experience even better. The food was incredible, with each dish packed with flavor. Highly recommend!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I actually liked ordering via my phone because I didn’t have to talk to anyone and could easily customize my order. Nice, big tables, pretty interior, and good sandwiches. Nothing wrong with this place.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Probably the worst drink ordering I have ever experienced. 2 servers for the whole bar and had to order via QR code that didn’t work half the time. Orders didn’t go thru on the app and then it took 55 minutes to get a bottle of wine sent to our table. Did not eat food. Atmosphere was decent. Real struggle for a Friday night without being able to order a drink at the bar.
Atmosphere: 3
Service: 1
Good lunch spot, somewhat limited selection. Order through app only, but cute place and decor inside. And my turkey sandwich was very good.
Vegetarian options: You can make your own vegetarian options.
Kid-friendliness: Not very kid friendly at all. No high chairs, no changing table in the bathroom, no kids options on the menu.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Turkey, Sandwich
Very relaxing environment with a great menu selection and service. Conveniently located next to UNC.
Parking: Conveniently located within easy walking distance of TRU.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Pepper Jack, Turkey, Sandwich, Roast Beef
Restaurantji Recommends
We love this place, the staff, the owners, the vibe, and the drinks. Our new favorite bar in NC!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I really enjoy TRU. I went there for a business happy hour and have been back several times since then. The food and people that work there are great!However, and this should come to no surprise if you have read other reviews, the ordering system is horrible. So horrible that when I first worked with it I thought I was being scammed. I'm pretty good with computers and I have struggled to operate it. Once I just gave up and walked out. It's slow, glitchy, and weirdly you sometimes get totally black screens. I see the owner has responded to several reviews about the system with the same response that due to costs they have gone to a "low-labor high-tech model". Low labor sure; high tech? This system looks like it was designed by a 12 year old in the late 90s. You also must use the system. I talked with one of the bartenders and they told me that the owner just simply doesn't care to change to another system or update the one they have now. That staff commonly have to deal with frustrated customers who can't get it to work. I've wanted to go to TRU more frequently (first dates, after work drinks), but have decided not to because the idea of fumbling on my phone for 15 minutes to order a beer isn't appealing. Also you can't start a tab, you have to use the system for each new order. A new POS might increase costs, but I would argue it would also increase revenue as people would simply be ordering more.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Sandwich
Really great place with relaxing vibes. On a nice day sit upstairs and enjoy a sandwich and a glass of wine!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Sandwich
I was super impressed with this place! I read the reviews before going, and my expectations were: good food, good service, but annoying and cumbersome online ordering. Honestly, I didn’t find the online ordering to be as bad as many have expressed. Yeah, it would be nice to start a tab, as I had to order each round of drinks separately. However, the food was delish, the service was quick and friendly, and it was truly very easy to order online. This is going to become one of our favorite go-to spots!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Sandwich, Roast Beef
Huge fan of heavily toasting the bread! My mouth becomes a casualty only for the next week or so.Atmosphere is so lovely to chat with friends.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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