Taberna Tapas

Intimate space with a modern ambience. Service was great, food was alright. My friends and I were able to try out several of the dishes, such as the octopus tapas, watermelon gazpacho, grilled salmon, and Valencia paella.
I found the octopus a bit bland by itself. I preferred the tomatoes that the octopus was paired with — extremely fresh. Texture-​wise, they did a pretty good job of cooking the octopus. It wasn’t too chewy or too soft.
The watermelon gazpacho was alright. They put a twist on it by adding salsa, but I wasn’t a fan. The texture was a bit off — kind of runny with weird chunks.
Grilled salmon dish was your standard salmon dish. Nothing particularly memorable, nothing particularly bothersome.
Paella was decent. It was a bit watery, which was kind of strange, but the seafood was very fresh. I think they could have cooked it a bit longer.
Overall, not the best tapas I’ve ever had. Not terrible, but not spectacular.

Really great meal. Selected 4 plates plus one dessert for 2 people. Very satisfying! Loved watching what everyone else was having. Will definitely go back and recommend

It was mojito Monday but they didn’t have any Mojitos? The beef ribs were excellent and by far the best thin get we had. The patatas bravas were not as good as what I have had at other tapas restaurants. We got the flatbreads, which were sort of bland with dry Parmesan piled on dry flatbread covered with dry spinach and then some sautéed shrimp. Blah. Paella? Not awesome. I didn’t taste the saffron?!? The wine and sherry I got were excellent and the mussels with chorizo had a tasty broth. I thought it was strange they didn’t have bread and oil for the table or even on the menu.

This was our last hope for tapas in the Raleigh Durham area. The food seemed to be prepared in advance. It all came out at the same time and was lukewarm. I would not recommend La Taverna to anyone who has enjoyed good tapas as they would be disappointed.

I came here on New Years and I was quite impressed. The portions are pretty decent for a tapas restaurant. They make simple things like kale taste exquisite. I shared six plates that night and they were all delicious. I also had a Spanish martini which is the strongest drink I’ve ever had in my life lol (beware). The atmosphere is quite intimate so be prepared to share conversations with your neighbor.
Service *****
Food. ***
Ambiance *****
Fun. *****

Taberna is equidistant between DPAC and the Carolina Theater. When there is an event going on at eitehr place, they ask whether you have tickets before they even take your order. And they help you keep track of your time.
All the food is delicious. Nightly specials enhance an already interesting menu.
Seating is designed for 2 or 4, but they can easily push together a section of booth tables if you give them a little warning for a large group.
This is a go-​to for us when we have a night out in Durham.

Taber“not” the best place to eat.
Tucked into the downtown Durham scene, Taberna Tapas occupies rather a small restaurant space. It’s shape can only be described as narrow, though there were plenty of seating options when I came in for a weekday lunch.
As for the food…
Arugula salad: I was a fan of the interesting mix of flavors between slightly bitter leaves, sweet then sour sensations in the honey vinaigrette, and richness. This was my favorite dish of the day.
Asparagus: the stalks were slightly over cooked, and the ham was too salty for my liking.
Lamb: rather fatty meat that was not well-​marbled. The foodstuff under it had a light mashed potato like flavor but a strange and off-​putting aftertaste.
Service was average and unremarkable.
Unfortunately, only one out of three dishes left me with a good impression, and I don’t believe I will be returning here anytime soon.

Excellent tapas place — everything we had was tasty. The paella was chocked full of tender chicken, homemade chorizo and tasty shrimp. Chimichurri skirt steak was tender and tasty. Service was spot on. Drink prices were slightly high. Overall a great experience.

I agree with the reviewers who have said the food was good but not great. However, I would like to stress that I did have an enjoyable time at this restaurant.
I went with a friend on a Wednesday evening (half-​price bottles of wine!). I made a reservation in advance, and we were seated promptly. The place is small but cozy, and I loved the atmosphere. Our waiter was prompt and very adept at answering questions about the food. Food came out in a very timely manner.
My friend was from out of town, so I let him have at ordering the food. I selected the wine. We were able to get a 50.00 bottle for 25.00 — that was fun! Since I didn’t order the food, I don’t remember exactly what all we had. I do recall fried pickles that were fine. We also had meatballs that were amazing. The meatballs are definitely a 5-​star experience. Get them if you can. We also had a salad which was fine.
I ordered the chocolate lave cake for dessert. The cake itself was a little dry. The chocolate lava part was excellent. Portion size was right on. Good for sharing but one person could eat this without feeling overly stuffed (I ate most of it).
Although I didn’t find the food to be too exciting, I would recommend it as it’s a great atmosphere with great service. It would be a great place to go for a date or with a group of friends.

The food was good, but not great — the drinks were great though. Very nice atmosphere and very accommodating host, but our server was a bit spacey and it paled in comparison overall to other tapas places I have been (even in Durham). I would come back for drinks and an app, but not for dinner.

We tried to come here on a Friday evening, but the place was packed so we abandoned that thought and came back the next night armed with a 9pm reservation. As it turns out, Saturday night was dead and the restaurant was nearly empty (weird, Durham, weird).
We ate a teeeeeenie amount of food that night since it was already so late, but what we had was pretty tasty. The bacon wrapped dates are just awesome — get those. No complaints. The crispy pork shoulder was tasty, but not mind blowing. The meat was tender and flavors were okay, but there wasn’t much to the dish other than meat and sauce. I’d probably opt for something else next time.
We finished up with some flan that was delicious, but nothing mind blowing. The sliced almonds on top added some nice crunch to the dessert.
I’d come back again in order to try some other dishes (the brussel sprouts looked delicious)

Another downtown Durham gem. Between their extensive cocktail and tapas menus, there’s no question I could make a night of this low-​key, hipster-​ish hangout, and put a massive dent in my wallet. Couldn’t stay long, but did manage to try their daily special, skirt steak with chimichurri sauce. Skirt steak was great, and the chimichurri had the perfect balance of garlic, oregano, parsley, and chili pepper. An Old-​Fashioned and other house cocktails were prepared extremely well by our welcoming, cordial host. Had we only more time to demolish some Clams and Chorizo, Albondigas, Bacon Wrapped Dates, Roasted Chicken Wings, Roasted NC Brussel Sprouts, Croquettas Jamon Serrano, etc!!! The list goes on and on, prompting definitive return visits to Taberna on our next trip to Bull City.

We were headed into Mateos but didn’t know we needed a reservation. We had our heart set on tapas and as we looked for what else was in the area we found Taberna. Well within waking and distance and didn’t disappoint. We chose the crispy pork shoulder
, calamari, meatball, flank steak, and the octopus special. Nothing disappointed. We were referred to Mateo by some friends and have never sampled their menu. I was satisfied enough that if I were in the area again I would go back to Taberna

Great food! Great atmosphere! Great friendly staff!
Wine list is fantastic and there are plenty of food choices. My favs are the bacon wrapped dates and the Brussel sprouts although it’s hard to not order everything on the menu. I have yet to order something that I did not like. Cute and quaint. A must!

I have some very happy taste buds after dining at this tapas restaurant! I went as a party of 6, so i was able to sample most everything we ordered and it was all delicious. My meal was one of the Paella, which I had never had before ever, and it far exceeded my expectations! The perfect amount of spice and moisture. Delicious seafood. Just wonderful. My friend’s braised beef short rib was also amazing. If it was socially acceptable, he would have licked the plate.
This restaurant boasts a rather handsome wine selection, however I didn’t partake and can’t comment on that front. To dessert– Oooo if you like chocolate definitely get the chocolate mousse. It is INCREDIBLE! Pretty sure I have dreamed about it since. The portion is shareable for up to 4 people even. So, so good! The flan and strawberries & cream I sampled were also satisfactory!
The service was top notch. The server was very relaxed and go with the flow but perfectly attentive at the same time. As I had never been here before, I had many questions with the menu. He provided descriptions and dish suggestions, even rating the three most popular. I enjoyed how the dishes come out as they are ready, which he mentioned to us beforehand. The food took an appropriate amount of time to prepare and the server was cognizant and attentive to our pressed time schedule that evening.
I would go back here in a heartbeat! Such a pleasant experience and I would love to try all of those other amazing sounding items I saw on the menu. Thumbs up!

Yes Yes Yes! I give it all the stars. The food was amazing. I had Clams and Chorizo & Durham Oyster Mushroom and Kale Sauté! I want moooooreeee. Definitely will be back soon.

I went to Taberna for restaurant week in Durham, and got horrible service. The waitor was very rude and snobby. On top of that, the food was very subpar (especially compared to Mateo). I liked the croquettas chicken and bacon, but the tortilla espanola and bacon wrapped dates weren’t good in that they lacked a lot of flavor. I thought they had too many items on their menu, which was confusing and explains their prioritization of quantity over quality. My Spanish roommate also agreed that the food there was not good.
Overall, the service was terrible, the food was mediocre, and with Mateo right around the corner I don’t see a reason to go here.

Taberna is the perfect place to go to before heading to the DPAC for a show. I made sure to make sure reservations ahead of time. 5:00 or 5:30 pm is a perfect time to go and you won’t feel rushed especially with the DPAC being a 5 min walk across the street.
I have been to Taberna twice and our last visit was on a Wednesday. They have a great deal on Wednesdays — ½ price on bottles of wine. Yes, please! As for tapas, we ordered Croquettas Chicken and Bacon, Roasted NC Brussel Sprouts, Crab Cake (Pintxos Con Pan) for me only, Valencia Paella, and Crispy Pork Shoulder. Everything was really good especially the brussel sprouts and croquettas. The paella was great and the portion size is perfect for two people to share. Then for dessert, we got a dark chocolate mousse. Yum, I enjoyed it very much.
Overall I thought I had a great meal on every visit. I think the perfect amount plates to share is 5 if you include paella in your meal. Definitely coming back to Taberna again!

Had a great experience here; I think I like the vibe even better than at the bigger Mateo just down the street. This is a small, intimate place – probably not 15 feet across at its widest point. But the high ceilings keep it from feeling cramped. It has a nice dark atmosphere, with iron chandeliers casting a small, flattering glow. There are about ten seats at an L-​shaped bar, plus tables all the way down the length of the room. There are a couple of tables for groups right at the front window looking out onto Main St., then the rest of them are away from the door.
So when you try a new Indian place, you sample their chicken tikka masala. When you try a new tapas joint, you go for the patatas bravas. Those here were spot-​on, with small chunks of nicely-​crisped potatoes and some good heat behind the red sauce, which had a nice depth of flavor. Also had the clams and chorizo in a wine-​garlic-​spicy sauce. This was one of the best small plates I’ve had in some time. The clams were plump, the sauce was savory, and each clam had a generous slice of chorizo for that perfect ultra-​salty bite. It was served with a few pieces of garlic bread to soak up the sauce. Wonderful! I also greatly enjoyed their white sangria, which is made to order – no pouring out of a pitcher. At $ 7 a glass, it was cheaper than anything else on the wine list and very tasty to boot. Service was right on and food comes out of the kitchen efficiently. I’ll be heading back here many times I’m sure, to work my way through the rest of the menu.

Rustic and reasonably priced is what comes to my mind after my first visit to Taberna Tapas! Stopped in here before a show at DPAC, the location is convenient for anyone in the same boat. Inside Taberna, the space is tight and revolves around the dark wood bar. But it certainly feels simple and European in style. We order up some sangria, chicken-​bacon croquettes, short rib, and stuffed dates. The sangria starter is excellent and full of fruit.
The bacon wrapped dates are nicely browned with manchego cheese and an almond inside. I’ve made these at home and it’s a great sweet, salty, crunchy, chewy app! Enjoyed the creamy and crispy croquettes, we finished off with an excellent flan for $ 4. All in all, Taberna Tapas does an excellent job with a convenient location and reasonable prices. Consider it an alternative to the über-​popular Mateo and you’ll even save yourself some steps when you need to head over to DPAC.