Our first time at Vin Rouge was a wonderful experience for two reasons: excellent food and great staff. We ordered four things from the menu (salmon, a salad, and two appetizers) and all of them were prepared to perfection. If you have a meal at Vin Rouge, we feel confident that the quality of food you experience will confirm our judgment. Our greeting lady was very pleasant. Our waitress, Kate, provided excellent service and handled everything superbly from start to finish. Semih is an outstanding manager, very professional and polite. He took the time to speak with us and impressed us as the exactly right type of person for what he is doing. A big thank-you to Vin Rouge for a great evening!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Gigi Thigpen
Excellent! We were a party of 8 celebrating a birthday. The service was outstanding! First rate all the way. And then there was the food, everyone raved about their entrées. We had lots of appetizers and cocktails. Everything was spot on and so delicious! It’s all about the sauce! They nailed it. I’ll be back for sure. Until next time, cheers!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Snackboy
Always a treat for us when we come to Durham. Loved finding Moondancer oysters from Maine, not often seen in North Carolina. The tilefish special was terrific. Duck confit salad also a winner. Nice to see a French-dominant wine list with more than just the usual suspects.
MarkS
Wonderful, helpful service and polite help from others made for a wonderful evening. The food was excellent and the recommendation for a bottle of wine was absolutely perfect. The fish special was beyond fantastic and the table was comfortable and made for a most enjoyable experience.
Good food and nice decor. Very noisy and crowded. Waitpersons kept bumping into us on the way by. Too much wait between salad and entrees. Pretty expensive for bistro grub, but still a nice evening.
Brachl
Our food was wonderful, and the service excellent. We had the soup of the day (potato with lardons), cheese board, mussels, hanger steak with frites, strip steak, salad nicoise, trout almondine, creme brulee, apple bread pudding, and lemon tart. Everything was delicious. Two of us are eating low-carb and asked for substitutions for potatoes. Our waitress recommended the garlic spinach, which was great. Service was attentive but not over-the-top. We'll be back and will recommend to others.
Really a delightful restaurant and the food is typically excellent. The portion of Halibut was very small tho it was perfectly prepared. I highly recommend this charming spot. It can get very crowded and noisy, even during the week.
MelG
We had a ball, the food was great, but the real win was being so attentively cared for by our server, Faith. She was very knowledgeable about the food and made sure that we felt comfortable and had a lovely experience, without hovering. The rest of the staff also made sure the temperature was right, and our needs were met. Had a lovely time and really enjoyed our first meal at Vin Rouge. High expectations met.
Randy
The feel of Vin Rouge is of an old Parisian bistro, perfectly charming. The service was top-notch! A more than adequate wine list. All the menu items were good. Some outstanding, such as the caramelized onion tart appetizer. Same for the chocolate mousse. The bouillabaisse was good, as was the Halibut special, but neither were five star—I would give them four stars. All in all, a very pleasant evening. I would recommend to folks visiting Durham. The place was busy on a Thursday night—it is popular!
SahnnonPreto
On Valentine's Day, the shrimp sauce didn't quite go when tasted with the salmon. The salmon was cooked perfectly. The sauce was very enjoyable. But together didn't... neither was enhanced. Otherwise it was overall a good experience.
In all of the years I've been dining at Vin Rouge, I have never had one single, less-than-outstanding experience, and this Valentine's Day was no exception. The prix fixe menu choices were awesome, as usual, and our server Roy was excellent. Everything was perfect.
Exemplary
I have waited many years and tried many places looking for the next level dining experience and I am happy to say that Vin Rouge delivered and then some. I have seen the light and it is glorious! The Restaurant itself is laid out beautifully, with several different rooms that have their own distinct flavor and mood. Whatever your desired experience they have the facilities to accommodate for that which you search. We dined in the Red Room and amid lulls in conversation were able to lapse into a happy silence. In these lulls we were able to appreciate the soft susurrus of conversation interplayed with the tasteful jazz played low in the background. The lighting was dim and perfect for an intimate affair. The decor was lovely and nary an inch of the walls in that room were left open from decoration, something too be appreciated when you allow your eyes to drift around your surroundings. Allez, Allez! Onto the food and wine! We had never been to Vin Rouge and aimed to taste our way through their food and wine with gusto, we did that and then some! We sampled the chevre and sweet onion tart, delectable in its own right and it gave the Onion Soup a run for its money as the perfect starter. The Tart was my partners favorite dish of the entire night.. Moving into our Midcourse we tried the Escargot and Frisee and Lardon salad. Both of which were served beautifully. For our main courses I had the Entrecot de Porc and my partner tried the Salmon. The Pork chop was cooked masterfully. Double cut, the chop had attained a crispy char to the outer fat layer that was eye rolling delicious and a perfect accompaniment to the sweet tanginess of the cider braised cabbage. The cabbage must be a play on choucroute and I have to say it was one of my favorite preparations on the dish I have ever tried. Silky pommes puree brought a lovely foil to the rich, smokiness of the pork chop and the bright acidity of the braised cabbage. I'd write more but I've run out of room! 5 out of 5!
Jason Eichenlaub
Went here with some great friends and company. Food was on the more expensive side, but this was expected, and absolutely, 100% worth it. The atmosphere was extremely comfortable, and our waitress was down to earth and helped on any menu choices we couldn't recognize.Ç'était un moment délicieux!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Hermes
It was a great meal. The sparkling wine that was suggested for us was great. Love the appetizers, escargot and shrimp. Plenty of good bread. We both got steak frites. Perfect fries. However my steak was not rare all the way through.
Our first time at Vin Rouge was a wonderful experience for two reasons: excellent food and great staff. We ordered four things from the menu (salmon, a salad, and two appetizers) and all of them were prepared to perfection. If you have a meal at Vin Rouge, we feel confident that the quality of food you experience will confirm our judgment. Our greeting lady was very pleasant. Our waitress, Kate, provided excellent service and handled everything superbly from start to finish. Semih is an outstanding manager, very professional and polite. He took the time to speak with us and impressed us as the exactly right type of person for what he is doing. A big thank-you to Vin Rouge for a great evening!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Excellent! We were a party of 8 celebrating a birthday. The service was outstanding! First rate all the way. And then there was the food, everyone raved about their entrées. We had lots of appetizers and cocktails. Everything was spot on and so delicious! It’s all about the sauce! They nailed it. I’ll be back for sure. Until next time, cheers!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Always a treat for us when we come to Durham. Loved finding Moondancer oysters from Maine, not often seen in North Carolina. The tilefish special was terrific. Duck confit salad also a winner. Nice to see a French-dominant wine list with more than just the usual suspects.
Wonderful, helpful service and polite help from others made for a wonderful evening. The food was excellent and the recommendation for a bottle of wine was absolutely perfect. The fish special was beyond fantastic and the table was comfortable and made for a most enjoyable experience.
Good food and nice decor. Very noisy and crowded. Waitpersons kept bumping into us on the way by. Too much wait between salad and entrees. Pretty expensive for bistro grub, but still a nice evening.
Our food was wonderful, and the service excellent. We had the soup of the day (potato with lardons), cheese board, mussels, hanger steak with frites, strip steak, salad nicoise, trout almondine, creme brulee, apple bread pudding, and lemon tart. Everything was delicious. Two of us are eating low-carb and asked for substitutions for potatoes. Our waitress recommended the garlic spinach, which was great. Service was attentive but not over-the-top. We'll be back and will recommend to others.
Really a delightful restaurant and the food is typically excellent. The portion of Halibut was very small tho it was perfectly prepared. I highly recommend this charming spot. It can get very crowded and noisy, even during the week.
We had a ball, the food was great, but the real win was being so attentively cared for by our server, Faith. She was very knowledgeable about the food and made sure that we felt comfortable and had a lovely experience, without hovering. The rest of the staff also made sure the temperature was right, and our needs were met. Had a lovely time and really enjoyed our first meal at Vin Rouge. High expectations met.
The feel of Vin Rouge is of an old Parisian bistro, perfectly charming. The service was top-notch! A more than adequate wine list. All the menu items were good. Some outstanding, such as the caramelized onion tart appetizer. Same for the chocolate mousse. The bouillabaisse was good, as was the Halibut special, but neither were five star—I would give them four stars. All in all, a very pleasant evening. I would recommend to folks visiting Durham. The place was busy on a Thursday night—it is popular!
On Valentine's Day, the shrimp sauce didn't quite go when tasted with the salmon. The salmon was cooked perfectly. The sauce was very enjoyable. But together didn't... neither was enhanced. Otherwise it was overall a good experience.
Restaurantji Recommends
In all of the years I've been dining at Vin Rouge, I have never had one single, less-than-outstanding experience, and this Valentine's Day was no exception. The prix fixe menu choices were awesome, as usual, and our server Roy was excellent. Everything was perfect.
I have waited many years and tried many places looking for the next level dining experience and I am happy to say that Vin Rouge delivered and then some. I have seen the light and it is glorious! The Restaurant itself is laid out beautifully, with several different rooms that have their own distinct flavor and mood. Whatever your desired experience they have the facilities to accommodate for that which you search. We dined in the Red Room and amid lulls in conversation were able to lapse into a happy silence. In these lulls we were able to appreciate the soft susurrus of conversation interplayed with the tasteful jazz played low in the background. The lighting was dim and perfect for an intimate affair. The decor was lovely and nary an inch of the walls in that room were left open from decoration, something too be appreciated when you allow your eyes to drift around your surroundings. Allez, Allez! Onto the food and wine! We had never been to Vin Rouge and aimed to taste our way through their food and wine with gusto, we did that and then some! We sampled the chevre and sweet onion tart, delectable in its own right and it gave the Onion Soup a run for its money as the perfect starter. The Tart was my partners favorite dish of the entire night.. Moving into our Midcourse we tried the Escargot and Frisee and Lardon salad. Both of which were served beautifully. For our main courses I had the Entrecot de Porc and my partner tried the Salmon. The Pork chop was cooked masterfully. Double cut, the chop had attained a crispy char to the outer fat layer that was eye rolling delicious and a perfect accompaniment to the sweet tanginess of the cider braised cabbage. The cabbage must be a play on choucroute and I have to say it was one of my favorite preparations on the dish I have ever tried. Silky pommes puree brought a lovely foil to the rich, smokiness of the pork chop and the bright acidity of the braised cabbage. I'd write more but I've run out of room! 5 out of 5!
Went here with some great friends and company. Food was on the more expensive side, but this was expected, and absolutely, 100% worth it. The atmosphere was extremely comfortable, and our waitress was down to earth and helped on any menu choices we couldn't recognize.Ç'était un moment délicieux!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
It was a great meal. The sparkling wine that was suggested for us was great. Love the appetizers, escargot and shrimp. Plenty of good bread. We both got steak frites. Perfect fries. However my steak was not rare all the way through.
Great food and service.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Hanger Steak Frites