Taste Small Plates | Wine Bar

Very good

Service, food, wine, atmosphere… all wonderful! Such a hidden gem!
Arugula salad and shrimp and grits were fantastic! Friendly servers and staff! Ambience was great — small and quaint yet sophisticated!

Love this place! The tapas are delicious and plate presentation is perfect! My favorite is the wine selection though! Highly recommend!

I was here with 7 friends celebrating and we had a great time. Everything we ordered tasted great. I ordered chef special veal cannelloni with ricotta cheese and tomato sauce which was awesome. I wish I can make something that great someday. As it is with a lot of tapas places I’ve been to, the sizes were small and the prices could have been lower but the quality of the food could justify the price somehow. And we did use the check in offer to get 10% discount, yeah! :)

My husband brought me here for my birthday and I absolutely loved it. We sat outside where the view of the neighborhood was nice. We were both impressed with the plating of the food. All the plates were well prepared and delicious. We got four plates and shares them: seared scallops, petit fillet, arugula salad, and the shrimp and grits. We weren’t super full afterwards, but we were content and happy. We were heading to another place for dessert so we were actually glad that we had room for dessert. I definitely want to go back to taste and try their other items. It’s a great date spot or a place to have a girls night out.

I cannot get enough tapas, or small plate, and this restaurant does not disappoint.
The server and assistant? manager were very attentive. Our water glasses were always full. The ambience was perfect, the bathrooms were spotless.
We had 5 different dishes, and all were amazing. I recommend the deconstructed tamales, arugula salad, yellow beets, the sliders, and the pork belly. We ate until we were full, and wanted more. A must have when visiting Raleigh!

The restaurant doesn’t look like much from the outside but don’t let that dissuade you.
Small, intimate restaurant with ~10−15 tables.
We ordered five plates which was more than enough for two people. Everything was good. The best was the filet. Beef was very good and the shallots that came with it were… well let’s just say I may have wet myself they were so good.
Each small plate was $ 10 – 15, so it’ll be a pricey meal, but is a great restaurant for special occasions.

Taste has a wonderful atmosphere. I came here with one of my friends for her birthday and we ordered a bottle of champagne (½ off bottles on Monday) which was wonderful. We were looking for more vegetarian options, which this may not be the best place, however we gave it a shot.
I ordered the daily fresh vegetarian dish which was hummus and according to the waitress, «an array of vegetables and pita chips.» The hummus was delish however, the dish came out with like 5 toasted bread points… that is it. I asked the waitress if there were any vegetables coming, and she said, «oh yea, let me see about that.» She comes back with celery… apparently they were waiting on a produce truck to come in… ok. I’m thinking it’s more like a «whatever we have left in the kitchen special» instead of «daily special.» So, needless to say we were still hungry… we ordered the artichoke cakes… which were AMAZING.
We had a wonderful time and the waitress even made up her own birthday shot for us… some strawberry goodness with homemade whip cream… YES…made our night! Thank you for the great service… we will be back!

Wow excellent food and superb drinks! We ordered the shrimp and grits, fresh beets, pork belly, ahi tuna, and Asian meatballs. Everything was so delicious! I really wanted to lick the grits bowl! We also had cocktails: pomagranet margarita and something with grey goose pear and ginger. All the drinks were delightful. Two things… one make reservations. At 5:30 they were able to work us in… barely. Two, the chairs are ridiculously uncomfortable, but the food is worth the pain.

Taste why do you have to be so tasty?! I have been to Taste a few times now and this is my favorite small plates restaurant in Raleigh at the moment.
For beverages I started off with a Mother Earth Dark Cloud, they only had one beer on tap but I passed on that option. Mom went with a bottle of wine since Monday night’s special was 50% off wine BTB (buy the bottle). Do not worry she did not drink the entire bottle, she took the rest home.
Mom and I were meeting for a celebratory dinner, we decided to go with:
Seared Scallops which were cooked beautifully! Pairing the scallops with butternut squash hummus, pickled shallots, spiced pumpkin seeds and chive oil = delectable
Petit Filet — I am one of those that orders a Filet and asks for ketchup, my reasoning: it is a flavor enhancer. But, this time I enjoyed the truffled cabernet glaze that they served with it instead. Yet another dish cooked to perfection.
Chicken & Waffle — Just a note, this is dark chicken. I thought this dish was sweet and savory but Mom did not enjoy it.
Roasted Vegetable Empanada — I wish I could have eaten more of this but by the time I made it to this dish, I was stuffed. The few bites I did have were great but Boyfriend got to enjoy the leftovers.
Overall, another great experience. I can’t wait to return.
FYI, check-​in on Unilocal for 10% off of food!

There are only a few restaurants that get 5 stars from me! We visited taste for the first time tonight and had an excellent experience. Our bartender, Lamar, was top notch and knowledgeable. Our food was amazing and perfectly cooked!
We ordered the petite filet, and the special of the night which was a pork dish. I’ve told numerous people since our visit and cannot wait to go back.

I had been here once before with girlfriends for drinks, brought my husband for date night tonight. We had the roasted beets, chefs special risotto cakes, tuna with avocado, deconstructed tamale, and chefs special strip steak.
The beets and risotto cakes were great, the risotto cakes had this amazing pesto sauce. The tuna was good. We opted for the avocado on top. Wasn’t sure at first that was necessary. Turns out, the tuna dipped in the wasabi cream sauce works great… then finish it off with the avocado to cool the palate.
By far the stars of the night were our main dishes. The deconstructed tamale and strip steak were AMAZING. I don’t even know how to describe the tamale except to say that our waitress recommended it and I had this picture in my mind… not at all what I had pictured, so much better. I wish I had taken a picture for this review.
I want to thank the restaurant for accommodating us. I thought we could sneak in and have dinner before the hockey game. Turns out almost every table was reserved. We told them we could be out by a certain time and they accommodated us. Lesson learned though, make reservations!

Taste is — indeed — tasteful. The quiet ambiance mixes one part gastropub with one part wine lounge for an intimate, classically cool tapas bar. The small plates are perfect for sharing (or hoarding) depending on your mood (and who you’re with). There’s a little something for everyone on the menu: from exotic flavors such as spicy pork-​belly with stuffed jalapeños, to down home favorites like chicken and waffles or shrimp and grits. This place is a perfect spot for a cozy girls’ night, complete with salacious gossip and maybe one too many glasses of Syrah. Because Taste is tucked into a residential part of town, you almost feel like you’re enjoying an exceptionally nice home cooked meal rather than hitting the town, which completes the intimate, upscale — but not fussy — vibe.

Just enjoyed a delicious array of wonderful small plates, the Feta Bruschetta was perfection with small perfectly chopped tomatoes and balsamic drizzled crostini. The Artichoke vegetarian selection was incredible. My husband orders the cucumber mint martini made with cucumber and a hint of mint loved it ! Cool atmosphere nice décor definitely will return soon.

Taste has some pretty awesome dishes and lots of wine options. If you go there definitely get the Jalapeño popper. You won’t be disappointed. Despite the name, the main focus is on the pork belly with cashew butter that comes with it. By far one of the best dishes I’ve ever had, cooked to perfection!
The staff is extremely friendly and even let us taste some wine options, despite us both getting beer. The location isn’t the best with it being somewhat out of the way and you probably wouldn’t even notice it as you drove past. Besides the poor location, the interior is nice and trendy with patio seating as well. This place is an awesome retreat from downtown raleigh restaurants and is a great place for a date!

Taste was a lovely surprise tucked back in a neighborhood but worth the short drive. The front half of Taste is full of high tops that are first come first serve and a medium size bar. The back area has tables and reservations are accepted.
The bartender was very friendly and did a great job, telling us about the drink specials, recommending wines and menu items. Knowledgeable and friendly staff is a huge plus. As soon as guests left he quickly cleared and cleaned the bar area and welcomed new guests as soon as they were seated. I appreciated his warm welcome, being a business traveler.
We ordered the chicken & waffle, the tuna and the bruschetta to share. The bruschetta was served with very thin crispy bread, which was just right to deliver the yummy tomatoness! I liked the chicken and waffle but it was a bit heavy for me, delicious but it’s very hearty. The tuna was perfect, get it with the avocado!
Taste has a great outdoor area but it was pouring rain, so we didn’t get to enjoy it, but I bet it would be great place to enjoy on a nice night.

I love tapas and this place hit the mark. The chicken waffles were both crunchy and tender, not to mention delicious.
Gastronomy takes center stage with the melon salad and hosradish prosciutto slivers.
The Ahi tuna is as perfect as you can get.
Skip the chips and salsa. It’s chunky and hard to eat.
Service, atmosphere and prices are all what you would expect.
I hope to be able to visit again.

This is a cute little wine bar in Raleigh. It is close to downtown Raleigh. They have different drink specials depending on what day of the week it is. There is indoor and out door seating which is nice depending on what type of day it is. The service overall was good. The place is usually packed inside. The drinks and wine I have had have been very good.
There are several small plates options. The seared pistachio crusted ahi tuna with a wasabi aioli is amazing. I have had it twice and both times it has been fantastic. I have tried a few of the other dishes and they were very good as well. They did add some new plates to the menu which I can’t wait to try. The menu is creative and the ingredients are super fresh.
I do wish they had some more filling veggie options though besides salads. They have a specials board and there a few options including at least one veg. option.

The tapas were excellent! The restaurant was in a nice location. The inside of the restaurant was nice and had a lounge feel to it, trendy. However because the weather was so beautiful, I had to sit outside to dine with my girlfriends! The seating out there was nice as well.
I ordered two rounds of food because everything was so delicious! I had the sliders and the salmon. Definitely worth it! Our waitress was attentive and the owner was pretty cool too! So glad I found this spot and will be returning soon!
You won’t be disappointed!

Delicious small plates and if you catch this place on the right night the drink specials are amazing!
My personal favorites are the Filet and Scallops, both are delicious tapas.