Elaine’s On Franklin

Best restaurant in the area! The lication, the service, and the food are amazing. Definitely my go to spot when friends and family from out of town come for a visit.

The menu is limited, but spectacular. It is as if they took only the recipes they can blow your mind with, kept those on the menu, and cut the rest. We ordered the Duck Confit and the Filet Mignon. The duck was the best duck dish I’ve had, period. Crispy outside, moist inside, intensely deep flavor, without being gamey. The filet was an incredible aged masterpiece, this is the definition of what steak should taste like. The Fois Gras BLT was a whimsical jewel of an appetizer, too. The waitstaff (Jared) was knowledgeable and friendly, without hovering. Try the strawberry basil martini, and don’t skip the warm chocolate cake with strawberry ice cream, paired with Banyuls (a lighter port style dessert wine). Spectacular. Their wine list is consistently ranked as one of the best by Wine Spectator, but you don’t have to spend a lot to get a great bottle. Cheers!

I love Elaine’s. It’s one of the better restaurants in town and they never fail to provide high quality food. It’s not necessarily a casual restaurant, but you can still show up in jeans and feel right at home. The waitstaff is professional without being stuffy.
I do miss the former bartender, Damon. But, alas, he’s creating cocktails in another city now.

Elaine’s had been on our Triangle list for awhile, so we picked a special occasion and went.
The service was excellent and the interior is welcoming (though a little loud). Further, the wine list did not disappoint, with multiple well-​priced thoughtful bottle selections.
The star of our meal was far and away the foie BLT appetizer. Go, order it, and savor it. Wonderful flavors and finesse. The other food items were decent to good, if a little conventional.

We are regulars at Elaine’s and for very good reason. The food and drinks are just excellent. This is a good place to go whether you are looking for indulgence or a nicely balanced and healthy meal, well-​prepared with the best ingredients. The service is always great; elegant yet warm and friendly at the same time.

My wife took me here for a special evening we do every month. I was very excited because of the buzz that constantly surrounds the restaurant and people rave about it online. We went on a Thursday evening so the seating was not overly crowded and we had a great server that was on top of everything. The noise level is commensurate with a trendy restaurant so do not expect it to be quiet but also don’t expect to be yelling at others in your party.
I must say that while I did enjoy the meal overall, the value was where I found myself scratching my head. For other comparable restaurants in the triangle that we’ve racked up similar bills at I can say that there are other places I would rather dine. The gnocchi small plate I ordered had 5 pieces on it and while delicious did not warrant the 15 dollar price (at least in my opinion); definitely worth ordering but I would have expected a bit more at that price point.
That does not mean that Elaine’s is not good — it is a very good restaurant with a lot of different options and a superb wine list. Everyone in the area should make a visit there at least once — their opinion may differ from mine about the value. The wine list and specialties are done superbly such as the salmon and hot lentils as well as the Sesame Seared Tuna and Moules Frites and come at a very reasonable price point for what you receive. The problem is that there the value is not consistent across all dishes and categories on the menu.
Elaine’s happens to be one of the finest places to dine in Chapel Hill and if you do not mind the price tag associated with it then I would definitely recommend it to anyone — but for those who seek luxury and value this may (or may not) be a good place for you. Regardless, the food and drink at Elaine’s will please even the most discriminating of tastes… the question is will the bill match the experience for you?

we were seated right away. Great food, great service and everything we had heard was true. We’ll definitely be back.

Yummy. From the onion bacon risotto and truffle cauliflower soup to king salmon and white lasagne to chocolate cake and cheese sampler, everything was amazing. Great service. Good drinks

Elaine’s has done it again…
Came here with the boy to celebrate the too-​short life of a furried loved one. Made reservations on a week night for 6:00 when I knew the prix fixe menu was in play.
I personally had the following:
1. Butternut squash soup — such a unique interplay of flavors going on here. As expected, this appetizer was very comforting in a nutty, buttery, warm soup kind of way. But there were some spices and cilantro thrown in to surprise the palate as well. Great opener to the meal.
2. Wild NC speckled trout amandine — Elaine’s really knows how to cook a good fish. Flesh was flakey and tender. The broth and vegetables it was paired with were so light yet flavorful. Definitely not a heavy meal by any means, but it was still satisfying. With a full 3 course menu, I was grateful to have picked a lighter entrée.
3. Impossible cake — what a unique concept, this dessert is pecan pie, dulce de leche, and flan rolled into one. It paired well with the butternut squash soup, because both had some latin flavors going on. This dessert is pretty thick and heavy though — I had to take small bites and paired it with coffee (single serving french press coffee — was divine)! Overall, I do think I like their warm chocolate cake better, but it was a nice change of pace.
I also got a raspberry martini because their strawberry basil martini was out of season (sob). Still tasted great though, just expectedly a bit more tart with the raspberries than its strawberry counterpart.
At $ 35 for 3 courses, this meal was a steal! Loved the experience and can’t wait to come back when they rotate new items on the menu.

Husband and I enjoyed a lovely date night at Elaine’s. We took advantage of the 3 course dinner for $ 35. Wow, what a lot of food. I was surprised by the large portions. Wonderful service. Great food, especially the pork chop. Nice atmosphere. Definitely a new favorite in the area.

Food was fine, service was less than attentive. But when, a month later, we compared the credit card receipt we signed with our bill, $ 85 had been added! The manager determined that the $ 85 automatic tip for our bill had been added twice instead of once. He said he’d refund the overcharge, and suggested we call him back if the credit didn’t show up. No chagrin, no embarrassment, no offer of a bottle of wine the next time. Just that he’d fix it and we could check back if the fix didn’t take. But REALLY, how many people compare their receipts with their bill?!?
Beware of this scam, and check your receipt.

Disappointing! I’ve eaten here several times in the past; and enjoyed wonderful meals in a relaxed atmosphere. Not sure what happened this evening. We arrived at the restaurant which was half full; and were seated immediately. Had a longish wait for our drinks and then ordered our dinner; which ended up being served 10 minutes after we received our cocktails. We were quite taken aback (having hoped that we could enjoy our drinks at a leisurely pace). The waitress came by shortly thereafter and asked if everything was OK — when we mentioned that we were caught off guard on the timing. She told us that we were lucky to have gotten our meals when we did, given that they had some large parties they were serving Elapsed time at the restaurant — 40 minutes.
We have never left a restaurant without leaving a tp — but tonight we did. The saddest thing about this was that the food was delicious.

After years of hearing friends rave about Elaine’s we finally tried it last night. We came specifically for the prix fix menu with wine pairings and were not disappointed! Although the options for each course we’re a little limited (cheese plate should not take up both an appetizer and a dessert spot), the food was excellent! The best part were the wine pairings. Katherine, our waitress, asked us a few questions about our taste in wine before beginning and she nailed each course with her wine pairing. Because she brought my husband and I different reds based on our food choice, we had the opportunity to sample 4 different wines. In some cases the wine my husband had was tasty but not the right wine for my food selection. I find this kind of exploration fun, and exactly what a pairings menu is for. We both chose the chocolate cake for dessert so we both received the port. Delicious!
Other things worth noting… the bar before our reservation was very nice. The bartender was friendly and my strawberry basil martini was yummy!
We enjoyed our meal very much and will be back, however I could not give Elaine’s 5 stars based mostly on the atmosphere. After all the raving from friends over the years, I was expecting a more 5 * type atmosphere, like The Umstead or Second Empire. Elaine’s was very relaxed and a bit small. I was overdressed in a simple cocktail dress. Although this point didn’t deter from the food it did make the overall dining experience less than a 5.

I don’t know what the hype is about.
The food was okay a little on the mediocre side, and service was okay.
The art on the walls, just like the drinks, were horrid.
Many have said it’s the place to go to for a celebration but the noise level is just too much to be celebrating anything special in this place. I don’t even want to remember what the restrooms were like, enough to say don’t use them unless you really have to.
Cross the street to 411 west. much better food, drinks, and a beautiful atmosphere.

Great food! Loved the Salmon, it was cooked perfectly. The service was very slow, but otherwise would recommend!

Went for a work dinner. It was so tasty! I had the Pork Tenderloin, medium, and would definitely have it again! The meat itself was tender and flavorful. The shrimp grits below the pork were amazing! Overall delicious.

What a treat to eat here on Valentine’s Day. I’ve actually never been so this was extra special for me. They had a three course menu for Vday you got a choice of many appetizers, entrée’s, and desserts. The selection was amazing it was so hard to choose what to get.
This place was a little fancier then I anticipated. There was a great mix of folks dining here and I didn’t feel out of place, I would have dressed a little better if I knew it was so nice:) You could also add a wine pairing to your meal for an extra $ 30, I thought that was a little steep but I saw a lot of folks adding it on. I started with the Oysters Rockefeller and they were delicious not to mention a very generous portion. For my entrée I had the monk fish with lobster in a light broth over crispy penne. This dish was a little odd for me it was very light and I liked the taste of the broth and veggies but the fish was not so great. The fish was tough to cut through and had little taste, the crispy penne was unique but didn’t really work with the dish, and I think the fish was overcooked a bit. However winning points for the chocolate cake with dulce de leche ice cream it was incredible.
Even though my entrée wasn’t the best the atmosphere, drinks, and other food was spot on. Elaine’s is definitely a special occasion type of restaurant and I really enjoyed.

Best $ 35 for a meal I have ever spent. If you make reservations between 5:30 and 6:30 you can order from the most delicious menu, Prix Fixe.
The NC Trout was so good and the Pork Chop was cooked with the most remarkable herb, major flavor with each bite.
Salads, sides, cheeses, breads and deserts are unbeatable!
We will be back!

EXCELLENT meal. I had the beef oscar, she had the salmon. They were soooo good. Out waiter, Brian, was attentive, quick, and personable.
We are only here for business, but would absolutely dine here frequently if we could.
Drinks were awesome too.
Didn’t know about the prix fixe menu before ordering, but still have no regrets about tonight.

Four of us went to Elaine’s last night to celebrate my brother’s birthday! He and his gf are regular diners there, but my mom and I had never been there before.
First, bro noticed it was the busiest they had ever seen the restaurant (at 7:30 PM on a Thursday night), so maybe they were understaffed… because while we had a great time, the service was slow.
Our server was really nice the whole time, but she had a lot going on. When she came to take out drink orders, I was started asking the others what they were getting (I couldn’t decide between a glass of the Malbec and a pint of the Dead Guy Ale they just put on tap and wanted to try to talk someone into ordering the DGA so I could have a little bit of both) and she said, «Ooookayyyy,» and just walked away from us. Ha! I actually found this hilarious rather than upsetting, but another person might have been super offended.
The only downside to that is she took a long time to come back. Anywho, when she did come back to take our order, she definitely took the time to answer all of our questions about the dishes, especially since most of us were trying to eat as close to Paleo as possible. The kitchen seems to be very flexible about subbing out parts of a dish (ex: mashed potatoes) for parts of another, so yay for that.
Mom’s soup looked beautiful. I had the soft-​shell crab they had just added to the menu for an appetizer, and it was huge. I kind of wish it was smaller because I feel it may have been more crispy. However, it was delicious, and again, it was a LOT of crab, which is awesome. It was a little spicy with the tabasco, which went well with the cornmeal dusting, and the vinegar «slaw» that came with it was delicious, too.
The three of them all had the tuna with sesame, which I tried of bite of, and it was great. They all cleared their plates. I had the pork with BBQ shrimp hushpuppies. Ohhh man, those shrimp hushpuppies were the highlight of that dish. It comes with three, which is good, because I’d just keep popping those away if I could. Mmmmm.
Even though it was broski’s bday, he didn’t want dessert, so Mom and I took care of that for him. We split Elaine’s warm chocolate cake with strawberry ice cream. It was heavenly. It’s so warm (it is steaming when you take your first bite) and the strawberry ice cream on top is so flavorful. It’s definitely the perfect size to share.
Overall, it was a great meal. It’s pretty pricey, and I feel like I did want a tad bit extra «oomph» with my appetizer and entrée to really make the $ 45 they were together 100% worth it. But… it’s close. I’ll be back to celebrate another occasion here for sure.