Academy Street Bistro

It’s hard not to give 5 stars. All of the food is local, everything prepared fresh and to perfection. The menu changes with the season, and the chef goes out of his way to put all of his love for food into every creation.
All that being said, we are lunch/​brunch regulars. We are always excited by the daily specials. If you arrive and the fried oysters are available… Get Them! Tender and mouth watering. Popular with the church crowd on Sunday, so you know these folks are friendly and courteous.
Any season you pick to arrive, Academy Street Bistro is a gem in old Cary.

Went with my girlfriend here yesterday. We had the crab cake and lobster bisque. It was delicious! We also met the owner and chef who was very nice! We are planning on returning soon and taking our friends!

Went here for a lunch with coworkers, and we all really enjoyed it. I had the BLT, and it was great. The vinaigrette on the salad is delicious (I believe it was a champagne vinaigrette). Parking was a little challenging, but totally worth it.

This was a great farm to table find. I don’t usually venture out to Cary very often, but on a friend’s recommendation, I checked out Academy Street Bistro. Our server, Kelsey, was brilliant — very friendly, enthusiastic and knowledgeable about the menu. She took time to answer our questions — I eat gluten free and one of my friends is vegetarian. The restaurant was able to accommodate our dietary preferences.
The service was a bit slow tonight, but both Kelsey and the manager apologized for the delays in the kitchen. They even comped our dessert, which wasn’t necessary. We were happy to enjoy our wine and chat on the patio. The wait for the food was well worth it. I had the gluten free version of the pork chop and it was AMAZING.
Loved the atmosphere. Overall, great place. I’m definitely returning and I definitely recommend to folks looking for a great place to eat in downtown Cary, whether you’re out on a date, chilling with friends, or hanging with family. Academy Street Bistro is a must for Cary visitors.

I really wanted to give these guys a better review, but it just did not meet expectations!
I will say their food is very good and has very high quality with fresh ingredients. We got the crab cakes which are by far the best in the area. We also got a house salad which was good but for the price I think we should have gotten more than four cherry tomatoes and three slices of cucumber on the entire salad. We also got the shrimp penne pasta. It was good, but we only got four shrimp on the dish (for $ 23). The sauce on the dish was very runny and more of the consistency of a drink instead of a sauce. For dessert we got the season pecan cheesecake which was very good. Decent wine and beer selection and a good cocktail list. Cocktails will set you back about $ 12, so I opted for a glass of wine. Overall, the prices on the food were a little too high for what they were. Good quality food but smaller portions for sure. I think they could use to lower their prices by 2 – 5 dollars per dish (at least with the items we got off the menu).
They bring you rolls as your dinner arrives. They were not fresh and were very chewy.
Our service was super slow (and there were only three tables there while we were dining). There’s definitely a balance between giving quick and attentive service versus making you feel rushed through the meal, but our server was just plain not attentive. Very disappointing when you are paying high prices for food.
It took our waiter over 12 minutes to bring back our credit card. That’s not a great feeling when you’re not sure who has it and what they are doing with it for that long. We eventually had to remind our waiter that we were waiting on our card. He apologized and said «I saw it on the bar just sitting there and I couldn’t figure out whose it was.» Not ideal.
Also, the women’s bathroom has two stalls and one of them the door is an inch wider than the stall wall, making it impossible to close or lock the door. I brought this to the hostesses attention and she said she knew (and nothing more).
Overall, I had higher hopes for this place and I don’t think we will be back.

We came in on a Saturday night and sat in the bar area. The poor review is mostly reflective of the manager not scheduling the staff properly. The bartender had the bar and the lounge, all of which was completely full on a Saturday night. We waited over an hour for our dinner. While the chicken and pasta with shrimp dishes for our trio were great, my ribeye steak was a disaster, and my baked potato was caramelized. Had my stomach not already been eating my back, I would have sent it back. I heard more than one staff member say the kitchen was in chaos, too. Beware of going here on the weekend.

Our dining experience here is always special. First, the menu choices are all inviting, with sumptuous daily specials, and in the summer there is a prie fixe menu that includes a choice if appetizers, entrees and desserts for $ 30.
Second, the food is always fresh, made to order, a true foodie’s delight. Each choice is beautifully plated, so it looks as good as it tastes. The coq a vin i had last night was in a lovely, sauce of red wine and herbs. My husband had diver scallops over a bed of pureed carrots with spinach. They were Tender and moist, nicely done. Third, the ambiance is terrific. The space is simply decorated with scenes from old downtown Cary, the tables are spaced well so that you are not sitting on top of the people next to you, and the music is soft so that you can actually have a conversation! We love this restaurant! It is our favorite place in Cary.

We ate here for the first time today with friends. We arrived shortly after they opened and our waitress (who never introduced herself) said one of the «specials» was a soft crab sandwich. I was going to order that but was told they already were out of it as everyone had ordered it. No problem, I had the BLT which was delicious and two people ordered the turkey sandwich with fries which they said was very good.
The only problem we had was the waitress Dawn, (found that out as she signed the receipt) she never smiled, never asked us if we wanted something to drink besides the water she served, apparently she was not having a good day. It made a nice lunch out with friends a little awkward to be honest. She never asked if we wanted dessert or even said thank you. Would go back again definitely nice atmosphere, good food (but will make sure we have someone else wait on us).

Had lunch there today. Nice atmosphere and the food was probably the best I have ever tasted. I would have loved to give it 5 stars, but the roasted pear salad, which was a lunch ENTREE, while exceptional, was barely enough to satisfy a mouse. I added shrimp for $ 7.00 and thought it was a joke when I only counted 3 shrimp on the sparse greenery. I had a cup of gazpacho, which was also perfect, but left there $ 23 plus tip lighter and very hungry. Too bad. I really think this restaurant could be a real winner, but most people want to feel satiated and it would cost at least $ 50.00 to eat enough to feel satisfied. A $ 14 hamburger looked to weigh no more than 3 or 4 ounces. I’m sure it was very good, however, REALLY!!! That had to be one very expensive cow!

Absolutely the worst service I’ve ever had in my life. Went with a friend for lunch today and I could see other guests were visibly upset, complaining to management about the service. I figure they were exaggerating. 40 minutes later my very simple turkey sandwich had still not arrived. My friend was frustrated — the servers and owner walked past our empty glasses of water and sweet tea 6 times before he finally just got up, walked to the bar, and poured it himself. Keep in mind that this was at 1:30 PM with only 4 other tables. As a former hostess and server, I understand how frustrating this job could be but simply acknowledging a customer who’s obviously had poor service goes a long way — this wasn’t the case here. The staff, owner included, didn’t even acknowledge us as we got up and left.

So it took us a while to get here because you really need a reservation. The bar area has a lot of seating but due to being 9 months pregnant I wanted a low table instead of high top. We finally remembered to make a reservation and it was worth it. The lamb and salad were great. Bread was good too, lots of drink options and the staff was a very nice. Place is small, but they do have a patio for warmer weather. Look forward to going back. Menu changes frequently.

The menu description was very flowery for what came out as plain flavored, small portion sizes and for way too much money. My pasta dish was very bland and drenched in oil. The atmosphere was nice enough, as were the staff. Place seemed to be aiming for a borderline fine-​dining feel. and charging for it… but dropping the ball on the menu… unless they feel the essence of fine dining is the guest leaving still hungry…

My husband and I went for brunch yesterday. The church across the street was actually getting out when we arrived, but luckily, the bistro was pretty quiet.
I ordered a farmer’s market omelette, with asparagus, cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, and goat cheese. Very good. My hubby had the same, with cheddar instead. We got a side of bacon, which was thick cut and cooked perfectly.
The coffee wasn’t great. Also, our waitress didn’t know anything about the menu, which was disappointing. We had to strain to hear another waitress at a different table– she described things in a way that everything sounded special. (For example, our waitress said there was beef stew– but the other waitress took care to explain that the soup was a large bowl, with potatoes delicately arranged around the top of the bowl, and finished of with horseradish cream. Yeah, I would have ordered that, too!)
I was disappointed after seeing the rating and reading other reviews, to be honest. I so wanted to like it, and it has potential, but I wasn’t blown away.

The food was great here, we were a party of four and we tried a variety of things. The lobster bisque was very nice, however was hardly any lobster meat in the soup for the price ($ 9 per cup). Then we had short ribs with mashed potatoes, hamburger with truffle fries and scallops. All dishes tasted very nice, however I felt that they were way overpriced for the amount of food and the fact that we were in North Carolina. Each main dish ran around $ 25 per person. Wine selection is limited but pretty good, they had a variety of martinis on the menu as well. The service was EXTREMELY slow and for that we were offered a couple of free desserts, which was nice. There are other choices in this area so I am not sure if I will ever go back.

I was EXTREMELY impressed with this restaurant. From walking by the restaurant on the street (by the patio), to walking in the door, I looked forward to what I was about to experience. I perhaps underestimated what lay before me.
The décor is very nice, welcoming and inviting. My lunch partner and I were greeted very quickly by a guy that turned out to be our waiter. His name is Lawrence. If I try pretty hard to find something to complain about; I can only come up with that I don’t think Lawrence ever told us his name. Pretty minor thing to complain about eh? I think so too. So I’m not… I found out his name from my credit card receipt. This guy was, well in one word — AWESOME. If allowed a two word description, it would be INCREDIBLY awesome. He is, or was today… the picture of service. If I were teaching a class on service and Hospitality; he’d be my example of EXACTLY what to do (with the addition of telling the guest (s) his name!) I’ve been in Hospitality for over 30 yrs. and TRULY appreciate the quality level of service Lawrence provided today.
Now, onto the food — I cannot find a fault. I ordered a cup of Gazpacho — VERY tasty — and a BLT. I’ve only had Gazpacho once before, that I thought was a bit better than this one. It was really good! Really! The humble BLT sandwich was one of the best I’ve ever had. The Applewood smoked bacon would send a Catholic to confession — it’s so good — it MUST be a sin… Ha. My friends Angus burger looked really good too — oh, Catholics — stay away from the fries — I KNOW they’re sinfully delicious!
We didn’t get dessert due to time restraints — I WILL return to try some other dish, as well as most definitely a dessert — ’cause I didn’t want my time there to end today — but that just gives me even more reason to go back.
GREAT experience all around. I hope the owners, cooks, waitstaff (especially Lawrence), are proud of what they do everyday. They’re not only serving wonderful food — they serve up a HUGE portion of Southern Hospitality! Thank you!
Jeff

Another great experience at this restaurant. Had reservations for our anniversary and requested a private table, which they had. Waiter was very personable and attentive. The salmon was grilled well and had good flavor. They used fresh dill from their garden and it really tasted fresh! The chef made us complimentary dessert (chocolate mousse in a pastry) with a ‘happy anniversary’ choloclate sign on the plate. It was so flavorful! I ordered the carrot cake cheesecake which was a very moist carrot cake under the cheesecake. Amazing! Romantic setting with wall candles, hardwood floors. $ 5 house wine onThursdays.

I really, really REALLY wanted to love this place. My family and I were walking down the sidewalk headed to another restaurant in the same plaza, but the Frank Sinatra tunes and market umbrellas lured me in. The restaurant itself is beyond adorable and we decided to eat outside to take advantage of the lovely weather.
My first clue this was going to not be a great experience was the amount of time it took to get service. The waitress was pleasant, professional and knowledgeable but she seemed like she was in the weeds.
We ordered a burger, the chicken pasta dish and the lobster salad. And then we waited. And waited. And WAITED. it was a good 25 – 30 minutes before our food arrived, which makes an already hungry crowd Starving.
The food itself was delicious, although the lobster salad was a little bland.
I felt like the waitress or hostess should have offered bread or a drink or dessert as a way of saying «hey, we apologize for the delay… this us on us», which has happened before at other restaurants when the service is so slow.
I honestly don’t know if the service was so slow because of the waitress or the kitchen, but I feel nervous going back at dinnertime if getting food takes so long at lunch.

Overall, I give it a four because the food was very good. Their French fries are divine, the risotto is perfectly cooked and executed, the price points are reasonable, the scallops were yummy.
The problem is the service. Slow, slow, slow. We waited a long time for our bread, we waited a long time for our appetizers, we waited a long time for our entrees.
Will go back for the food and the atmosphere, but if service continues to be a problem, we might have to take it off our go to list.

I had the farmers omelette with tomato, zucchini (The chef happily substituted red onion for zucchini), goat cheese, spinach. Served with morning potatoes. The goat cheese was smooth and creamy, tangy but not overwhelming. The spinach was very fresh whole leaf.
The «morning potatoes» are a wedge of hash browns, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.
My wife had the Brie Camembert salad with strawberries, tomatoes, lettuce, onion dressed with 12 year old balsamic vinegar. She asked if she could have chicken with the salad. She said the chicken was like eating dessert. Moist and juicy. Like a steak. Hard to imagine but it was.
We shared chocolate mousse profiteroles with hazelnut ice cream drizzled with raspberry sauce. Topped with mint leaf and a raspberry. The pasty was topped with chocolate.
I’m not sure if the chef ran out of chocolate mouse, or by design, but one of the profiteroles was filled with an equally delicious Bavarian crème.
Everything was well crafted.
Accompanied by cups my favorite coffee, Illy decaf.

The Fitzgerald family has THE shining star restaurant in Cary. I loved every single bite. I loved the ambiance. I loved the service. I loved that they were able to get us in on a busy Saturday. My friend and I both have difficult schedules, and Saturday seemed to be one of our only options. Alas, he and I realized the Saturday after Valentine’s day may have been a difficult reservation… After striking out with reservations downtown Raleigh, Academy Street Bistro wooed us, and drew us in, not dissimilar from Cupid drawing back his bow and striking us with immediate blissful joy for a (sorry, I mean «THE») most satiating meal.
I had been here briefly on the food tour, but long enough for the crab cake to have had a remarkable impact on my taste buds. Inevitably we started with just that. The jumbo lump crab cake is served with mixed baby field greens, cajun remoulade, and it was SPOT ON. I would be doing the Bistro a disservice if I didn’t credit them for serving up the best crab cake in the triangle.
I had the seared diver sea scallops as my entrée, and my friend had the pork chop as his entrée. We shared both dishes. I loved both of them. Shoot. Maybe Cupid *did* strike me hard here.
We lingered for awhile after we finished dinner and decided we could tackle dessert. (Isn’t there always room?) Crème brûlée au framboise seemed the way to go. We were not disappointed here. Perfect consistency, creamy, flavorful, and once again: the special «crackle» you hear when the spoon meets the torched outer shell. The only thing I love more than that noise is the «pop» of the cork on a champagne bottle.
The *only* thing that I cannot rave about at Academy Street bistro is the bar. We were lucky enough to get two seats while we (briefly) waited for our table. I ordered an old-​fashioned and the bartender was uncertain what that was. They make a specialty cocktail called a «new fashioned», so we explained it was basically the same thing minus one of the ingredients. The bartender seemed puzzled, and more concerned about her weekend plans than making drinks. She wasn’t unpleasant. She was actually pretty nice. Just preoccupied. And perhaps needed some more training. Beyond that, everything was purely amazing here.
I think some of my friends are hesitant to go to Cary for dinner, but I will tell them a million times over to visit Academy Street Bistro. What a gem we’ve found here! Don’t hesitate. Do not pass go. Do not collect $ 200. Go directly to Academy Street Bistro for THE yummiest dinner.