best restaurants for money in raleigh.

[hamptonrealtor]

looking to eat with another couple this weekend.looking for great food at @ 50.00 per person. new to area. willing to driveupwards of 1/2 hour in any direction.this will be fore dinner. pan asian, italian restaurants may'be great soulfood wood be okay.Please help[ i

[klaatu47]

An would be tough to beat for Asian but if your group prefers Italian, I would suggest Vivace....

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Vivace
4209 Lassiter Mill Road, Raleigh, NC 27609

[Suzy Q]

I love Vivace, but I wouldn't put it in the "traditional Italian" category. It's much more nouveau than traditional. Like I said, I do love it, but I'd recommend checking out the menu before going - it's not a pasta-and-sauce joint. Great place for drinks, though - very much a "see and be seen" kind of atmosphere.

[fussycouple]

If you want inexpensive "soulfood" (and by "soulfood" I am going to presume you mean down on the farm southern country cookin'), then I recommend Larry's Southern Kitchen on Tryon Road in Garner, just off South Saunders Street.

All you can eat buffet, and the navy beans have fatback in the pan, the turnip salad was cooked with ham hocks, they have baked chicken, bbq chicken, fried chicken that is "fit to eat", fried chicken in gravy, 2-3 pork and beef dishes, fried catfish, lima beans, green beans (that's haricots verts to some of ya'll) cooked to falling apartness, steamed cabbage, homemade desserts....

They don't got no menus and the people there are busy working, so don't expect a lot of "personal attention", though I found the ladies working the dining room to be great. What you can expect is a line - lots of working people who want decent food now.

[seymourglass]

I have always had great experiences at J. Betski's, so I naturally recommend that restaurant. It's classic German/Polish fare with a gourmet twist and I've never had a bad plate come from their kitchen. Try the pork strudel.

[LBD]

I'm in Durham so I don't have loads of advice for Raleigh but I have eaten at Humble Pie (downtown) a couple of times in the past year and it's been very good. They do small plates so it's fun to share a try a bunch of different things.

[Tehama]

Hi! I noticed a few days ago on restaurant.com they actually had an online coupon for An in Cary. I was really shocked because I've never noticed such an upscale restaurant on there before. If your tastes are leaning towards Asian, I think this would be a lovely choice.

And, I had lunch with my friend today at Vallarta (awesome Mexican, but not what you are looking forward to for this weekend), and she was absolutely gushing about Nina's in north Raleigh (Italian. I've never been, but she couldn't stop raving about the food or the service).

[Suzy Q]

An and Nina's are both great recommendations. I've also heard good things about Jibarra, the upscale Mex resto on Six Forks, but unfortunately I haven't had the opportunity to dine there myself yet.

[rockycat]

Jibarra is a great choice. I would also recommend 18 Seaboard. And although I have heard other people comment favorably on Nina's my entire family put it on the "Why did we ever bother with this place?" list.

[dubedo]

Jibarra is good, but be sure to make a reservation. We showed up without one on Saturday night and waited nearly an hour for a table.

[bbqme]

I've picked up gift certificates through restaurant.com for An, Blu, Bocci, La Rez, Nikos, Papa's Grill, and Another Thyme over the last year. They often have special codes for 60% off so I've gotten the $25 certs for around 4 bucks!