Vernon's Speakeasy

As a Vernon's VIP member for the last 7 years I'm a fan. Quality food, excellent customer service and attention to detail unmatched. Santo the VIP manager and José the main bartender nail it every time I come visit. And Jermaine provides door to door pick up service in their beautiful Limo every time. What's not to like. Had my go to Martini to start and a cigar in the patio. Moved inside for an excellent meal. I had the Stuffed Quail served up with a side of green beans and a mushroom risotto. Bam delicious. My son went for the special Pork Loin with a red chile glaze, mushroom risotto and asparagus. Also delicious. Vernon's is a special place here in the North Valley and if you haven't tried it yet you need to. First timers will be amazed at the Speakeasy vibe by knocking on the door and being asked through a sliding window for the 'password'Once inside a gentlemen dressed in a pinstripe suit and spats will give you the 'rules' of the house. Not to be missed. Trust me, the experience sets the stage for a memorable evening of nostalgia (Al Capone photos etc) and delicious food. Fugghedaboutit!

Pretty blown away by the positive reviews after my experience there to be honest. I started by first having probably the most awkward introduction to the restaurant ever. The door man had to "let me know the rules" of the speakeasy and it was honestly just really weird to me. At one point he implied that I should put money in his hat in a very strange way. After that was over, I walked by the empty tables to my table at the back of the restaurant. Our server seemed to only recommend the entree items that were especially high in price and in many circumstances strongly recommended more add ons. Other staff members did not even know the menu. I felt like staff members were constantly coming over and interrupting our conversations, it happened very frequently.Overall, the food was beyond mediocre. The stuffed brie special tasted like something out of the frozen section at Costco, my scallop dish ($20 PER SCALLOP) was just basic, no better than any other scallop dish I've had. The parmesan risotto wasn't the right consistency and tasted purely of onion and white wine. Another person at the table ordered the filet and said it was dry, and the third person got the catch of the day and said it was fine. The desserts were inedible but to the restaurants credit, they did remove it from the bill. Overall, I spent a whole lot of money for very mediocre food and a very awkward experience. Not for me.

Following along with my friends, we stopped here for pre-dinner drinks and had a very nice time. It's definitely styled as a speakeasy complete with the mural of Al Capone and the required password to get in the door (I missed the password since I wasn't in charge tonight). Huge bar of spirits with a bartender who put together all sorts of craft cocktails for our group. I'm not usually a spirits drinker so I stuck to easy stuff like Old Fashioned and it was very tasty. We had dinner reservations for elsewhere so we didn't stay to eat.This is a high class spot for sure.[Review 21075 overall - 122 in New Mexico - 38 of 2024.]

At this point there's over 500 reviews so what more could be said. So I thought I'd look around for some details that others may have missed. When you arrive, the restaurant is not properly named so just look for Al Capone's picture under the Los Ranchos liquor sign. When you finally get past the mafia guy at the door, you're led to a table which has a touch sensitive light for your own mood setting. To be honest, this entire restaurant is basically a collection of generic offices that have been repainted with black paint to be dimly lit carpeted cubicles, as opposed to some historic estate, but they seem to pull it off. We started off with a bottle of Quilt Napa cab and then the bread and oil arrived. The bread was this disappointingly cheap bleached dry white bread which was an unpleasant surprise. The olive oil was great. The wine list for the Cabs was a who's who list of the CA trophy wines, (see photo).Definitely recommend the fried calamari/shrimp appetizer with marinara. We ordered two salads and we wanted to split them so they were kind enough to put them on two plates. We had already killed off the cab, so then we ordered a bottle of Pinot Noir before the main course arrived. The only problem was, there was a wedding party of 50 that was creating a considerable backlog for our meals to arrive, but we got a little sorbet to cut through our wait. Finally, after well over an hour, the main courses came out. We were in no hurry whatsoever, so the slow pace was OK with us. My friend and I both ordered the end cuts of the prime rib and they were 2 inches thick and absolutely perfect. They may not have been hot, but they were good. Problem is that my baked potato had spent its life under a heat lamp thus drying it out with just a smidge of butter to give it life. I left half my baked potato and my wife left behind her fried/burned potato wedges. We finished off with 3 desserts, the bread pudding and creme brulee were the stars. Foodwise, it was 3 1/2-4*'s, but Kristen's attentive service was stellar, thus 4*. As a foot note, when you're ready to leave, there is a gift shop on your way out. Some photos included to go with the review.

Overall I had an amazing experience at Vernon speakeasy, but I can't say that it was because of the food haha. The drinks were fantastic though, maybe the best I've had in all of Albuquerque with the drinks at the ten coming in second place. Don't get me wrong, they're food is definitely above average for Albuquerque. But if we're judging food alone then I would rather find myself at fogo de chao, or scalo, or another good eatery that is centered around the food. There's more to a dining experience than the meal though, at least in my opinion. Unlimited stars for the deliciousness of the drinks and the creativity of the concept! From the moment you make the reservation, you feel like you're about to embark on an upscale mystery, a true speakeasy feel with a flare of bougie added to it. You're told that you need to agree to their dress code and policies. I personally don't mind that because it only adds to the fine dining ambience of being somewhere nice and not having someone in ripped jeans and flip flops next to you. You're also told upfront that the secret password will be sent to you the day of. When you arrive, you're to wait in your car until they text you that you can come in and your table is ready. They made it mysterious so it's not totally obvious how to enter but they also didn't make it impossible, in case you're lost they also have a video that helps you find the place. Props for organization! Once you enter you have an old school Italian gangster that greets you, tells you about the place and opens the secret bookshelf and takes you in. You also get to see all the famous people's pictures who have dined there. The inside of the speakeasy is HUGE, it has so many different dining areas, bars and lounges. There was live entertainment playing, but it wasn't too loud so you can still talk to your table mates. The illicit lemon and pain killer drinks were sooo good we didn't even want to try anything else. 1000% of awesomeness. So here comes the food review... I'll start with the good. Crab cakes were really good. They had a nice crispy crust and soft delicious inside, the aoli on top was delightful. The calamari itself had the perfect texture and you can tell it was freshly breaded by hand, but then they made flavorless marinara that just didn't taste like anything to go with it. We got the most popular item on the menu, the prime rib, and the horseradish sauce it came with was absolutely wonderful. The prime rib itself was decent but nothing to write home about , but I asked for extra sauce and it made the meal good. The filet Oscar style. I would say the filet menon and lobster were what I would expect them to taste like, nothing very memorable, not bad either just not a wow factor. However the yucca fries that it came with. Wow . I wish I could just order them as a separate side they were insanely good. Also the manager showed us their membership options which I believe were around $1,300 per year and included car service to the restaurant. If you're a regular that's a smoking deal. I considered becoming a regular just to take advantage of that perk haha

Our first visit here. You have to get a page that your table is ready and then give the password at the front door to be let in. A little history is shared with you and pictures of celebrities who have dined here. You enter the dining room through a bookcase and are led back In curtained off areas. We were promptly greeted and our orders were taken. We were given fresh bread and seasoned olive oil. We each got a fabulously tasty onion soup with melted Gruyère cheese. I had the marinaded steak wrapped around asparagus with a spicy Sriracha sauce and fried carrot slices. I asked for well done, but they were burned to a crisp. The other got the filet mignon with asparagus and truffle French fries. We shared some yummy marinated sautéed mushrooms and a parmesan risotto. They both were warm and wonderful. The filet was so tender it could be cut with a butter knife. I had some bread pudding with fresh vanilla ice cream. It was heavily flavored with Bourbon. My friend had the crème broulee with fresh berries. The service with Giuseppe was impeccable. We were well attended by others too. Just as we were leaving the jazz band was starting to perform. It sounded good

We celebrated my son's graduation at Vernon's tonight. Oh my gosh, the food was amazing. So good news/ bad news. The food & experience is the best in the city, and the bill is the most we spent as a family. You do get what you paid for. My son and daughter started with the scallops appetizer. It was perfectly seasoned and the right texture. Seared with a nice crunchy outside and tender and moist inside. My husband and I started with the fried calamari and shrimp. It was great by itself or paired with the marinara. My daughter also wanted to try the French onion soup. It was the best I have ever had. Very flavorful!My son had the 6oz wagyu steak. OMG it was amazing. You could cut the steak with the side of your fork. The asparagus was great and the Parmesan risotto was so creamy. My daughter had the fish special with pan seared with a light wine & lemon glaze. It was paired with asparagus and risotto. The fish was seared well and flaky in the middle. I had the chicken. It was tender, moist and full of flavor. It was paired with a spaghetti squash and roasted potatoes. All were great. The spaghetti squash had a wonderful flavor. My husband had the filet and lobster. Both were cooked to perfection. It was paired with mashed Yukon potatoes and asparagus. The mashed potatoes were basic and done right. They were not sophisticated or unique just good. We always share our food when we are at a new place. Everyone loved everything. We finished dinner off with desserts. We had the crème brûlée which had a nice accent flavor. The homemade berry cobbler ice cream was delicious. My son had their special dessert of berry lemon cake. The berry chutney was excellent. And finally we had the cinnamon roll bread pudding. OMG it was amazing. We are not bread pudding fans yet this was just delicious. It was full of cinnamon and a lovely bourbon sauce. It was not too sweet, just good. The server was very knowledgeable. He answered all our questions and offered recommendations. I love the entrance. You have to have a password to enter. They really hold to the speakeasy decor and feel. We also had live soft jazz. It's a very unique experience!

Great place for a fancy date night! The atmosphere was fun, starting with the password to enter and the speech from the doorman when you come in. There was live music and several bars as we walked through the place on the way to our table. It was a bit of a maze, which added to the speakeasy vibe. The drink options were excellent, with a variety of traditional cocktails. We had a smoked old fashioned, a bee's knees, a pain killer, and an espresso martini. We both had steaks for dinner, which were cooked perfectly according to our preferences. I had the truffle mashed potatoes, which were delicious, and my boyfriend had the steak fries, which were a little overdone. The service was very good, and our waitress was knowledgeable on the drinks and specials. Overall a really nice experience.

Such a great experience when you get here. You have to text to let them know you are here and they will send you the pass phrase for the day. The door man gives you rundown and just reminds you of the old movies that showed how it was during the prohibition days! The guy made me laugh. Inside is dark; I guess that is just the ambience. Prefer more light so I can see where I'm walking, but again the ambience.The crab cakes, oh I mean, blue crab cakes.. amazing!!! Yup I would just go here for that, they are that good. Scallops are there also. The prime rib was cooked just the way I like it. It was so juicy and perfect amount of fat.

Food is top quality same with service and ambianceI would definitely go there again.