Farmhouse Restaurant

This place is a special place for sure! It’s hidden away in the woods and at first I didn’t think it was actually a restaurant, but when you go inside you feel right at home. The staff there are very laid back and friendly, and the guy who cooks the steaks really wants to make sure you’re happy. He takes pride in his steaks, and it shows. The salads are fresh but I do wish they had real bacon bits and not the fake type. The cheese, crackers, and pickles they bring out are a nice touch. The real star of this place though… delicious, juicy, flavorful, and tender steaks. One of the best I’ve ever had and at a very reasonable price. I highly recommend checking this place out! Great place for a laid back, rustic feeling date night.

This place is like a trip back in time! I think only locals know about it as it is off of the beaten path and I have never seen an advertisement. Rustic is an understatement for the décor. It really is like an old farmhouse. Everything is wooden and they have antiques strewn throughout. Each room has a fireplace and there are oil lamps on the tables. You can tell they have not updated a single thing since opening, which was really cool.
Menu is very small and I am pretty sure that hasn’t changed in a while either. Our waitress was friendly, but put forth minimal effort. We asked for a wine list and she said it probably wasn’t up to date so we asked for a Malbec, she said they did not have but she didn’t know anything about wine. We ordered a cab, which was alright.
They bring out crackers, cheese and pâté before the meal. It was very country cute. I do not eat pâté but my boyfriend liked it. It was a nice snack that wasn’t too filling. I was really surprised that they don’t make their own salad dressings. Just seems like the type of place that they would. They had Ken’s which was fine. It was kind of refreshing to have an old school iceberg lettuce salad with ranch.
The steaks are served on little skillets, which added to the rustic appeal. However, it was definitely not one of the better steaks I have had. I ordered mine medium rare and it was pretty overcooked. Not a big enough deal for me to send back or anything. Baked potato was good, and I liked that they set out butter, sour cream and bacon bits for you to dress your own.
All in all, I would definitely go back for the atmosphere. Great for a date night. I just wouldn’t expect a really good steak.

No frills is right, and I appreciate that they don’t try to be anything they aren’t. I’ve been eating here since my days at Carolina and enjoy taking guests here. Great place for a simple steak and friendly service. Good for groups. Off the beaten path and that is part of the mystique surrounding this place.

Seven of us ate there early on a Saturday evening. Steaks and tunas. I can testify the rib eye was delicious; tender, moist and tasty. Everyone seemed happy with their food. The waitress was friendly and helpful. The room was as others have described it; not especially attractive but not distracting. As long as your esthetic expectations aren’t high I’d think you’d enjoy it. d
We’ll go back. Given the health value of a big steak, not too soon I hope.

I had high expectations for this restaurant. Unfortunately, this was one of my worst meals/​dining experiences since arriving to Raleigh. My wife and I ordered steak (pretty much the only thing on the menu.) Considering that steak is their specialty, you’d think they had mastered the process of cooking steaks. We ordered our steaks medium. Instead, they were WELL-​done and tough as leather. Honestly, I’ve had better steaks at O’Charley’s for $ 9.95. The best thing about the meal was the pre-​packaged club crackers they served as an appetizer. Lastly, our check was well over $ 100.00. I don’t mind paying top dollar for a good meal. However, our meal at Farmhouse was comparable to «Bonanza or Ponderosa». Don’t waste your money. If you want a good steak dinner, go to Ruth’s Chris or Roy’s in Cary.

Awesome setting, very «old country» décor… nothing that will «wow» your palate. If you’re a foodie then this is average at best. Just a simple menu for simple taste buds.

My husband and I ate there last night. He ordered a large rib eye steak. It was cooked as he requested but ¹⁄₃^rd of it was fat and gristly. This is the second time we had steaks that were lacking in quality. Nice place — maybe cutting back on their meat selection to keep prices the same? We won’t be hurrying back there any time soon.

My husband has been here a few times in the past and did some electrical work for them. We decided to go there on a Friday night. I’ve gotta say that I enjoyed it. It was definitely an little 1970 s retro restaurant with the oil lamps and all but the food was pretty good. They started with a «bread» plate that included celery, carrots, pickled peppers, sliced dull pickles, cheese spread, and what appeared to be ground up smoked meat of some type. It reminded me of the 70s fancy restaurants that had pâté as an appetizer
I had the 8 oz ribeye. It was pretty tasty because they put bitter on top. It came with a baked potato and a half slice of Texas toast. I ordered a bud light. I was a little disappointed because it came in a can that I opened… but understood why because the waitress was less than 21 and by law can’t serve open alcohol.
It is pretty dark inside with red walls and dark wood on three bottom and on ceiling. Very rustic. It would have been a little better had the servers wire something other than random shorts and t shirts but then again it has probably been like that 1969 when it first opened (I think that is the year that the sign said but I’m not for sure). I guess, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. I would definitely go there again.
I also liked the privacy of where it was located… off the beaten path and definitely not commercialized.

Great locally-​owned gem of a restaurant. Hard to find, and very rustic décor, but if you don’t mind low light and are interested in a great steak, you won’t be disappointed!
Prices are reasonable compared to the big names, and I really love the pâté/​cheese and veggie appetizer plate. We visit 3 – 4 times a year and have not been disappointed yet.

What can I say, this is as straightforward as it can get with steak. No sides like french fries, etc… That youd expect at most places.
We got the ribeye medium rare which was perfectly tender and still sizzling when it came out. The sides are underwhelming but the taste of the steak compensates for it tenfold. Really well marbled fat that gives it the juicy taste and the sizzling pan keeps it hot. I really enjoyed my experience here!

This place was our Wed night «go to» for a good steak and chicken. I loved the staff more than the food. Always great laughs and fun. Miss this place. Nothing like it in MA where we live now.

A lot of folks compare Farmhouse to the Angus Barn. That’s crock.
Farmhouse is good (not great), but you don’t go there for the same reasons you go to the Angus Barn. Farmhouse is no frills – be okay with plastic and the like, and you’re golden. That’s because the steak is actually pretty good – well-​cooked, tender, and sizable. Bottom line, go to Farmhouse if you want a basic steak dinner and don’t want to make it yourself. However, Angus Barn it is not.

I’m always on the lookout for a steakhouse that serves a well-​cooked piece of good beef, with all the trimmings, but doesn’t require that you take out a second mortgage on the house in order to afford the meal. I came across the Farm House a couple of years ago (and I mean, just happened to pass by while exploring the back roads north of Chapel Hill) and finally got around to sharing the dining experience with another guy who also likes red meat.
The Farm House is going to creep out some people because of its location and ambience (or lack thereof). It’s literally an old house, nestled back in the woods, and if you’re not familiar with the area it’s best approached in daylight the first time you go. The parking lot is gravel and could use a bit more lighting, and there are no signs indicating where to enter. Not a place where you’d want to take her for a first date. I half-​expected Snuffy Smith to emerge and tell us to get off his property.
If you arrive after dark, you may find that your eyes will adjust to the interior lighting quickly, because there ain’t much of it. The electric illumination is kept very low, and each table is furnished with a kerosene lamp that barely allows you to read the menu. How atmospheric. Good for clandestine meetings. (I did not detect any offensive kerosene odor, however.) Since we went on a weeknight, we were seated immediately, and the staff was more than friendly and competent. I assume the weekends are busier.
As I said, some people are not going to like the rusticity — but if you can get past that, the food is pretty good. This is a grilled steak place, pure and simple (although the menu includes a few other entrees, such as grilled tuna and chicken breasts, sirloin tips, and pan-​broiled shrimp), so please don’t go if you expect anything fancy. I had a 12-​oz. ribeye, and my friend had a 12-​oz. sirloin strip, and both steaks were grilled to order, tender, and quite delicious. The meat portions seemed to be quite a bit larger than advertised, and the sides (baked potato, grilled vegetables) also were well-​prepared. The salads that preceded the entrees were nothing fancy, but fresh. The beer and wine lists are serviceable.
All in all, we came away satisfied, for the money (about $ 30.00 each). The food was quite good, but if you’re looking for variety and imagination on your menu, go elsewhere. If it were up to me, I’d ramp up the interior and exterior lighting, add a few more entrees to the menu (more poultry and seafood), and make The Farm House a bit easier to locate. As is, the service is good and the food is well-​prepared and reasonably priced. I don’t really enjoy eating in the semi-​gloom but I’ll consider a return engagement.

I hadn’t heard of Farm House restaurant before, but my husband suggested last weekend that we give it a shot. Thank goodness for GPS, otherwise I don’t think we would have ever found the place. It’s north of Chapel Hill, a ways off 40. When you see Allen & Son you turn in onto Millhouse Rd, then right before you cross the railroad tracks, you turn into a small, 1 lane gravel driveway. The parking lot is more gravel, and the walkway to the restaurant is even more gravel, so don’t wear your fancy shoes. We were a bit confused a bit as to where the entrance was, as it all looked like just a solid wall of wood. But yes, there is a large wooden door that swings outward, with a nice little sign asking you to please close it.
The interior of the restaurant is very dark, no windows at all, and smells very much like an authentic barn or farmhouse. I suppose that smell really never goes away. The interior reminded me a lot of Angus Barn, except it was even more rustic. The tables don’t have tablecloths, just plain, worn wood, and there are small kerosene lamps at each table for your lighting. The menus were simple place mat style with only 7 entrees available. I actually don’t mind a limited selection of entrees, as it usually indicates they can do a few things really well. This is a sharp contrast to places like The Cheesecake Factory, where the menu goes on for pages and pages, but they actually do very few things well (I’ll make an exception for the Miso Salmon, that’s really good). So, if you’re a vegetarian and you come to Farm House, you’re going to be out of luck. They do have a grilled tuna entrée, so if you’re a pescatarian you’ll have something. Otherwise it’s mostly steak and a grilled chicken option. All the entrees also come with a potato and half piece of toast.
I figured if I go to a steakhouse and order tuna I’d probably not have as good of an experience, so I went for the 8 oz. rib eye cooked to medium. They gave me the option of substituting out the potato for a sweet potato, so I went for it. My husband got the 12 oz. farm house strip steak, no potato. Their wine selection is limited, and their beer selection is even worse. They were out of Merlot, so I ended up going for a Cabernet Sauvignon which went fine with the steak.
The little pickle tray had some nice snacks on it while we were waiting. The carrot and celery sticks are light so you don’t fill up too much. I tried a pickled pepper, and it was like an explosion of vinegar in my mouth, quite strong. The regular pickles were pretty good. Pimento cheese on crackers are a good way to make yourself full before the meal though, so don’t eat too many of them!
The salads they brought out were very plain iceberg salads, with dressing in small plastic containers. It looked very similar to what you’d get at a Denny’s or IHOP. I also don’t get the Bac-​Os, is that some sort of inside joke? I guess at $ 20 a steak I shouldn’t be expecting Heron’s quality from their salads, but they could have tried a little harder.
The steaks took quite a while to come out. I think most of the delay was due to the sweet potato I ordered. They came back after a while and asked if it would be ok if they just microwaved it for me. I said sure, but I really just wanted my steak. They brought a huge dish of butter, some brown sugar in the same kind of plastic dish the dressing came in, and a bottle of 5^th Season cinnamon (the cheapo kind you see at dollar stores). I assume this was all for my sweet potato, but I suppose the butter could have gone on the toast as well.
The steaks came out sizzling hot on cast iron skillets, with a wooden board underneath to protect the table. We didn’t ask for any A1, because I don’t think you should use steak sauce unless the steak is terrible. Well, the steak was delicious, and perfectly medium just as I asked. The baked sweet potato wasn’t exactly the highlight of the meal, but it wasn’t terrible either. I was so full by the end of the meal that I couldn’t even consider dessert. Maybe next time if I get the fish and save some room, I can try their apple pie.
The prices are pretty decent at $ 20 a meal, and the steaks are as good as what you’d find at most quality steakhouses. Farm House is a lot like Angus Barn, without the high prices and pretension.

Liver Pâté, Cheddar Cheese, Juicy Steaks, you’ve got my heart Farm House!
A Chapel Hill institution The Farm House offers up the best steak for the money in the Triangle. With the rustic flare of the Angus Barn and a meal at a fraction of the price, The Farm House is a great place to get your steak fix without breaking the budget. Set off the road, The Farmhouse is an experience. Use your strength to open up the heavy barn door and enter the dark and rustic interior. Smell the steaks cooking on the grill (sometimes it can be a bit too smoky) and take a peak before sitting down.
Starting off with a smörgåsbord of liver pâté, cheddar cheese, peppers, carrots, celery, pickles and crackers — it’s a terrific, filling starter that comes complementary on every table. Steer clear of beer though — usually served from the can, in our case wasn’t that good (flat and not cold). All entrees comes with a salad, I recommend their blue cheese dressing with HUGE hunks of blue cheese. You also can’t go wrong with their 8oz. ribeye for $ 19.50 with choice of potato (regular or sweet) and little triangle of texas toast. The table will soon be filled with oversized toppings of margarine, sour cream and sometimes bacon bits. Steaks are perfectly cooked to your order, are insanely juicy and do come with a little bit of fat/​trimmings, but that makes for a good steak, right? Overall for $ 20 you get a tremendous deal — steak, baked potato, salad and starter plate. You’ll leave happy and full and ready to come back soon!

Eleven neighbors went here for dinner last Friday night and had a wonderful evening. The place is really out there in the forest; but, the log cabin type décor, lantern lighting and good service made it a wonderful spot for a group dinner. The menu is somewhat limited; but, has good steak choices, seafood & chicken. Outstanding appetizers & salads; excellent chowder; good steaks & potatoes; good desserts, wine & drinks. The only reason I didn’t give it 4-​stars was that several folks had steaks either more rare or more done than they ordered them… don’t know if waitstaff mixed them up or if the cook was off a bit. (Mine and my wife’s were great…4-stars worth!). We’ll go back again, as it was very nice and different from the chain steakhouses around.

Had a wonderful steak and one of the best potatoes that I have ever had last night. Steak cooked to perfection, very hot baked potato. Service very good. Will definitely go back.

Probably the worst experience I’ve had dining out in a long time. My family took me out there to try a new place for my birthday. We made reservations for 5:30 on a Saturday. We were sat at our table and ordered drinks. The beer was delivered in a can with a water glass to pour it in. We ordered our food. When our salads were delivered the waitress told us to eat slowly. We over heard from the next table that the cooks had not shown up yet (45 minutes after opening) and that they were having a hard time getting the grill started. Ok, things happen… let’s give it a shot. Finally, 45 minutes after sitting down our steaks arrived. The baked potatoes sides, butter, sour cream, and those fake bacon bits. Uhg. The steak served on a sizzling platter look promising. WAY over done, chewy, and not seasoned at all. When asked how our meal was… we tried to explain why we thought it was below par. No one seemed to care… just stared at us and said thanks for coming. Will never go again. If you know what’s good for you… you should stay far away from this place.

About the best steak I’ve ever had in this area!
A friend has been trying to get me here for dinner for several months. I was a little put off by the prices of the steaks, but my partner and I joined her last night and so glad we finally did!
Down the road from Allens BBQ off Hwy. 86, cross over the railroad tracks and follow the Farm House sign to the road into the woods. You’ll feel like you’re really out in the country!
We split the 12 oz. super ribeye steak and oh, my… was it ever good! Chargrilled to perfection sizzling on a hot, hot metal plate with a perfectly cooked baked potato too, but I’m getting ahead of myself.
They start off with a complimentary relish tray (sorry for the awful picture, but the lighting there is very low & no flash on my phone camera) which is a small container of liver pâté, cheddar cheese spread, cherry peppers, celery, carrots, and a basket of crackers. It didn’t seem like it would be much for the three of us, but it was.
The two of us shared a tossed salad, which was nice. Simple, but good with a nice dressing. I asked if the dressings were homemade and told no. Honestly, I would have thought for the price of the meal (21.95) they’d have homemade dressing, but they don’t.
Because we shared a meal there’s a $ 5.00 plate fee. I wasn’t too thrilled about that, but I understand they’re servicing two people so I guess it’s fair.
We were sitting right near the grill and I had a birds eye view of the action. The chef was in constant motion and every time he opened the oven to get a baked potato I had to laugh cos it was completely filled with them!
When I made a trip to the restroom, which is adjacent to the grill, I had to stop by and take a look at the grill. I found out it’s the original grill from 1969 so you can bet it well seasoned!
We also shared the apple pie, which was very good and served warm. Darn they were out of ice cream. The coffee was excellent!
It is a bit off the beaten path, but it doesn’t seem to stop a who’s who of UNC’s athletic people from being there to dine and other notable Chapel Hillians.
The staff is super friendly and it’s a very laid back and relaxed, yet very intimate. I have to say, coming from the Midwest I’ve found it difficult to find an excellent steak in this area, but this is definitely one I’ll return to.

Probably the most interesting restaurant within 100 miles. Truely a unique experience that not many seem to know about. The restaurant is a rustic building set back into the woods. Low wood ceilings/​beams, wood walls, and a stone fire place give the place a very intimate feel. It specializes in steak, which was better than most places. If your looking for a good steak and potatoes place, skip the chains and come to this mom and pop place that’s been around for 40 years.