Second Empire Restaurant And Tavern

The ambiance was beautiful with the setting in what feels like a home. Service was impeccable and our group was attended to with no issues. Food was top tier with unique and flavorful dishes. Highly recommend for a business meal or date night.

1. Food was excellent. Went for a graduation dinner. Each of us had a different dish (lamb tack, pork chop, sea bass, salmon, and roasted chicken) and they were all exceptional. I still think about that meal weeks later. 2. Service: Top tier. The chef even signed a menu for me for my graduation! I've never had anyone do that and it was so special that they thought of me. Our waitress gave us a lovely history on the home the restaurant is in, and knew the menu down to a science. She was fantastic. 3. The ambiance is so classic. I love old homes, and this one still had the historic feel to it. Can't wait to go back for the next special occasion!!

By far the best meal in NC! Chef Daniel and his crew are awesome. I had the black grouper with the morel mushroom app and it was to die for. My wife had lamb and it was cooked to perfection. Great service. No better place to eat and/ or celebrate something special.They have a chefs table too that we have done 4x. It is a wonderful experience as well. It books 6 mo out so you gotta be diligent.

OK, so it was our wedding anniversary. My husband called in to make a reservation. The girl who answered was very giggly kind of unprofessional, but he made the reservation anyways she said that there was no room for five people. Technically would be two adults two children, and one highchair, so she said there was absolutely no room, but there could be room for four which led me to believe that maybe they don't welcome kids too much... But when we got there, there were so many empty tables. This was on a Wednesday at 5 PM the place looked beautiful, lots of paintings good ambience. The staff was very attentive very nice to our face at least but I know they were talking behind the stairs about us bringing our baby . The food was really good we got several items including the arctic salmon . The free bread was not very good . We won't be returning and wish we would have spent that money elsewhere where employees didn't act like by bringing a baby we were scaring off their oh so many customers on a Wednesday evening .

Second Empire is the perfect fine-dining restaurant experience fit for a celebratory dinner! The tavern is beautiful on the inside and out, the flavors of the food were beautifully crafted and made my palate sing, and the menu prices were extremely reasonable for portion size and quality of food. Our waiter was extremely knowledgeable of both the food and the history of the tavern. The timing between the first course, entree, and dessert was perfect. We came to celebrate getting pregnant and the chef printed us out a personalized, signed menu which was such a lovely and thoughtful touch.We started off with complimentary bread that was so soft, perfectly salted, and had great herbaceous rosemary flavor. For first courses, the crabmeat & pineapple salad had such interesting flavors - the roasted poblano coconut dressing was sensational. The braised pork belly was very tender and not too fatty like a lot of pork belly, though it was a bit dry, and I love a good pupusa. The entrees were insanely tasty. All of the meat and seafood were PERFECTLY cooked, and this chef's sauce game is on point. All of the sauces throughout are dishes had so much depth of flavor. We ended our meal with the sweet potato bread pudding - PHENOMENAL! We will be back to eat literally everything on their menu.FIRST COURSES*Jumbo Lump Crabmeat & Roasted Pineapple Salad w/ spicy cucumber carpaccio, sesame seeds, jicama, plantains & celery root, roasted poblano coconut dressing*Crispy "Pepsi Cola" Braised Pork Belly w/ queso blanco cheese & chow chow pupusa, sweet potato puree, black bean & corn ragout, pineapple salsa, mojo verde salsaENTREES*Pan-Roasted Sea Scallop & Braised Short Rib w/ sautéed asian mung beans & red quinoa, baby bok choy, maitake mushroom, sweet potato puree, mandarin salad, ancho chili curry sauce*Pan-Roasted Australian Lamb Rack w/ ricotta cheese & basil pesto polenta, wilted spinach, celery root & haricot verts, dried date salad, grain mustard sauceDESSERT*Sweet Potato Cherry Bread Pudding: NC sweet potato tea bread soaked in spiced cherry custard w/ fresh & dried cherries, topped with streusel crumble and cherry ice cream; serve w/ ginger crème anglaise, blackberry sauce, & ginger snap cookieDRINKS*Hibiscus Spritz mocktail: hibiscus tea, lime juice, club soda*Old Fashioned

Had an amazing experience last night at Second Empire. Gorgeous place, full of character, top notch service from knowledgeable waiters, incredible food and more. Cannot wait to go back there to try other menu items!

The mere fact that it took 2 months to reserve this place due to its popularity increased our anticipation up until entering the restaurant. We arrived on a Wednesday evening around 5:00pm as reservations were set at 5:15pm. Pros: -It's luxurious and historical -Everyone their job really seriously-My husband enjoyed his steak (no pictured) -The bread is good with or without butter -For a restaurant situated downtown, I was happy to find that parking was plentiful in the back of the restaurant -Before we sat down, my husband was gifted with a personalized menu with three Chefs signature Cons:-My chicken taste like chicken- it was difficult to eat, I probably had roughly about 7 small bites to keep the conversation going as my husband ate , I could tell that the actual meat wasn't seasoned. The flavor came from the veggies and sauces. --Many of the sauces are pork basedI would give it another try but would not try the chicken again, maybe try a starter and enjoy the atmosphere.

I went for the first time. We were celebrating my brother's birthday. The staff were extremely friendly. The atmosphere was lovely. The building is beautiful both inside and outside. The food was absolutely amazing. It was seriously the best meal I have had in a while.

What an incredible experience at this restaurant tonight. Even though the hostess almost couldn't find our reservation that had been confirmed two times, the service was exceptional. Our r server Matt was welcoming and informed. We began our meal with the charcuterie board, the French onion soup, the octopus and shrimp salad and the arancini balls. All was very good except we couldn't find any octopus anywhere! For dinner the men ordered the filet, my DIL ordered the duck, and I ordered the scallops. Delicious. For dessert we had the chocolate soufflé, the sweet potato and cherry bread pudding, and the expresso semifredo. It was a lovely experience in a beautiful setting.

My first time dining for my husband 50th birthday. Our waitress Destinee was amazing. She provided us with a detailed history of the house where the restaurant is operating out of built in 1879. Destinee made wonderful food recommendations and made our celebration a memorable one. The food was delicious from first course lump crab salad to quail. Our main course dishes were beautiful plated with French influences. Also I have to add their chef is one of the best in the area. We can't wait until our next special celebration. Thanks again!