Lantern Resturant

Lantern is really good but the menu is very fishy. If seafood is your fave then you will love it. I love the back bar room for drinks. The room is dark, red and very sexy. The service has always been great. I love their heirloom tomato salad but it is seasonal, which is to be expected. One flaw--a little overpriced more

I'm sorry I subjected my family to this experience - the food was less than mediocre and extremely overpriced. As a vegetarian, I was excited at the description of the tofu entree on Lantern website and for $21.00 I expected it would be really tasty! - one star - edible but in the realm of Asian fast food. The sides [rice etc] were skimpy and two in the party found the chicken to have a rather strange taste and did not eat it. more

I think the food here is overrated, the service is poor & its expensive. Have a drink in the bar & go elsewhere for dinner. Pros: good bar atmosphere Cons: bad service, food a bit dull more

This place is really beautiful and a cool place to bring a date. The food is unique, delicious, and beautifully presented. I was there on a Friday night and it did get a little loud, but I knew that was a possibility going in. For a fantastic meal that's a departure from the everyday, I'd recommend Lantern. more

Five of us girls went to Lantern for a Girls' Night Out on a Saturday night. We were seated right away, and ordered drinks. Then, we waited. And waited. Seriously. It took over 20 minutes to get 2 cocktails. One member of our party asked to have her water glass refilled. The waiter huffed, got the pitcher, refilled it, rolled his eyes and asked if she'd like a larger glass. Rude! Appetizers: salt and pepper shrimp (tasty!), pork and chive dumplings (good, but unremarkable), seafood spring rolls (eh - not much too 'em). Entrees: Shaking beef (REALLY good!), ribeye steak special (not terribly flavorful), tomato stew (good), smoked chicken (yummy). Desserts: sweet corn panne cotta (different, but not bad), hot chocolate cake. Three members of our party were concerned about the ""chocolate rum"" on the cake (they're pregnant!) and inquired if it could be left off. The snooty waiter said it was part of the ice cream (not at ALL how the description on the menu reads!) and we'd ""be fine."" Really. But, the desserts were fine, even though it took a long time to get them. Several of us ordered coffee, and it was never refilled or warmed up. No split checks at Lantern, so we figured out our portions and had just paid when the manager came over and asked us to leave since the ""next reservation"" had arrived. Wow! I understand the need to turn tables over in a busy, small restaurant, but really. I'm not sure how Lantern was named Best Restaurant in the Triangle last year, but we won't be returning. If I feel the need to go to Chapel Hill for Asian Fusion again anytime soon, you can be sure I'll visit Jujube instead! Pros: Food's not bad Cons: Ridiculously rude staff more

Great food - friendly staff, but please be sure to ask about ingredients if you have any allergies or food restrictions. I had dinner there this weekd with a friend who's a recovering alcoholic. My friend ordered a dessert and was shocked by the taste of uncooked alcohol. Alcohol was not included in the item's description; and when we talked with the manager, she was sorry, although unconcerned that this might be a problem for other restaurant guests, and wouldn't consider including important information such as this in future menu listings. Pros: Great food Cons: Problematic for people with food restrictions more

Having spent significant time on the west coast, where gourmet Asian fusion places are a dime a dozen, I was pleasantly surprised to find Lantern in Chapel Hill. Although it would be fairly common-place in a larger city, Lantern really shines in Chapel Hill... tasty and fairly unique food, imaginative drinks, and slick decor. The only drawback is that it gets quite loud when it's busy... an atmosphere that can be pulled off in chic restaurants in larger cities, but one that doesn't quite work on Franklin St. more

I was really impressed with Lantern - though the ambience wasn't as elegant as comparable DC restaurants, the food more than made up for it. The dumplings were excellent, the chicken delicious but not as delicious as the farm fresh long beans that accompanied it. Our favorite was the pork lettuce wraps - absolutely wonderful. The drink menu was exciting in a town of $2.99 miller lites - I recommend the dark and stormy (rum and ginger beer). We did not sit at the bar, but we did peek in and we plan to go there next time - its dark and romantic, a complete contrast to the bright, stark restaurant. We didn't save room for dessert, but next we'll try! more

After seeing all the raving reviews, I had to go here. I'm Asian and love Asian-fusion restaurants. Unfortunately, I wasn't very impressed with the food. Everything my date and I ordered had no taste. I was disappointed...especially for the cost. Although, I must say...LOVE the bar... the drinks, decor, and cozy feel are great. Pros: drinks, decor, bar Cons: food, price more

Went on a Friday night without reservations. I had called earlier in the day to make them, but they were full. The person on the phone said to come around 8:00 or 8:30 to get on the waiting list. She said it would be about an hour wait. We went at 8:00, got on the list and at 9:00 they seated us. We hung out in the bar area in the meantime and it was fine. Once seated, the service was excellent. The waiter was very knowledgeable about the dishes, not to mention courteous and prompt. I had the tea-smoked chicken and my wife has the steamed stripped bass - both excellent. Almost for got to mention - I had the bento box as an appetizer. It's basically roll your own sushi, but the presentation is very cool. The dessert we had ordered was excellent. All in all, a really good experience. We'll definitely be back. Pros: Food, service Cons: Hard to get reservations on a whim because it's so popular! more

I've been to the Lantern Restaurant and it's bar on several occasions. The food has always been excellent. I've been to many asian fusion restaurants -Slanted Door, Buddakan - and the Lantern's food is among the best. Their pork, fish, and lamb entrees have been great! Try their special farm dinners as well - they're really wonderful. The decor is sleek and minimalist in the main dining area, and more trendy and very dark in the bar. The service has always been good - however, it is not the level that I would expect from a ""Gourmet Magazine top 50"" restaurant. But maybe that is not the goal of this restaurant. My only real complaint is that in the past the desserts have been uneven - it's been mostly pretty decent but I've had some boring and bad dishes. A pavlova is not a super sugary crunchy merengue - and it was nearly inedible with the overwhelming sugary-ness of the sorbet and fruit. Overall, I love this restaurant, definitely the best I've been to in the Triangle. Pros: Food, Ambience, Farm Dinners Cons: occasionally bad desserts more

Our first visit to the Lantern was fabulous! We ate in the bar and had only drinks and appetizers. On our second visit we had entrees and were less pleased. The dining room is nice, but doesn't have as much ambience as the bar. The appetizers far surpass the entrees in creativity, value and are just better all around. The entrees we found uninspired and more basic. The flounder dish (whole flounder) was highly recommended, yet we found that it had very little actual meat on the fish and had no unique side accompanying dish. Overall, we like the restaurant, but haven't had the same unique experience as the first time we dined there. We feel that it is a bit inconsistent. Pros: great appetizers, fun bar, good drinks Cons: bad parking, poor entrees, pricy,forwhat you get more

We've been to Lantern's back bar for food and drinks on two occasions over many weeks. We found consistently high quality in the service, drinks and food provided. The food is rewarding if you are in an adventurous mood and willing to take a chance. The deserts have been excellent. We'll definitely go back. Pros: service, food, atmosphere more

The Lantern is spotty. It is sometimes great and it is sometimes very poor. The appetizers are probably the best option on the menu. I went in 2005 Jan with my family of four. We had a great waiter who was very attentive. We ate wonder full dumplins with black mushrooms and cabbage, but after that it was downhill. The special was a Tom Yum type dish that included shrimp, squid, scallops and mussels in broth and noodles. The sauce tasted like dishwater. The spice condoment you could ad made it taste like spicy dishwater. There was no citrus or great exciting flavor her. My companion was served a pork shank with no knife other than a table butter knife to cut it with. Overall four of us ate for $115 and it was very disappointing for the price. I have had better at for a lot less Pros: good wait staff, Chapel Hill Cons: , too proud (overpriced, needs better flavors more

Went here for our anniversary. Promptly seated. Weeknight. No reservations. Appetizer: Lantern Pork--OK,not for sharing (only 5 pcs). Entree: Tea & Spice Chicken--A+, Pork Tenderloin--A+. Dessert: Fresh fruit w/ creme--OK, again not for sharing. Entree serving: Adequate. Server: Helpful but not intrusive. Place was not as big as we thought. Ambience: dim lights w/lanterns. Crowd: Casual but trendy. No dirty torn jeans and worn-out t-shirts here. There is a bar upstairs, no smoking before 11pm (as bad as NYC, i thought). The value was remarkable. For the food that we had, we only spent a total of $60! Wine/glass is around $8 so you may want to tack this on to your budget. From one coming from NY, this place is truly special. And just like the 'in' clubs in Manhattan, this place doesn't have a sign outside--just a lantern symbol so look out for that. Pros: Great Value!, Chic Crowd, Great Food Cons: , Limited Menu, Expensive Wine more

I took my husband here for his birthday and it was awesome! My husband had the tea & spice smoked chicken and I had the six hour braised pork. We couldn't decide which one we liked better -- both dishes were so delicious and different. The portions were huge and we felt that the dinner was a very good value. Also, worth noting, I called to make reservations and was told that they didn't accept reservations. When I explained that it was a birthday celebration and we were traveling from Raleigh, the hostess asked us to call as we left our house and she would have our table ready when we got there. When we arrived, our table was ready within 5 minutes. We were very pleased and very much impressed with this level of customer service. Overall, it was a completely positive experience. We can't wait to go back! Pros: great customer servic, excellent food, good value Cons: crowded more

Admittedly I don't spend much time in the Chapel Hill area, but I will be going back very soon to revisit Lantern. What a killer spot- the decor is soothing and a nice change from the typical blonde wood and oil paintings in many establishments these days. It was pretty loud, probably because the ceilings are so high, but the food was outstanding and our serverw as great. I had the veggie spring rolls, the Moon Viewing noodles and hte panna cotta. Great reislings by the glass to compiment the Asian flavors. The presentation of the food deserves note as well. Pros: Food, Decor Cons: LOUD more

Definitely go for the food which is eclectic, great flavors, nice sized helpings that you can and should order with either a soup or a salad with your entree. Try to share a couple of appetizers with your friends. Best place to eat is in the bar area where the decor is nice but only if you like a crowded room. For a quieter experience if you want to converse sit in the dining area away from the bar. Beer selection is just OK, the only draft beer is a very wheaty German flavor, domestics by hte bottle. Wine selection is excellent, the waiters are knowledgeable, try it by the glass. The music in the bar area should be Techno 'cos of the food and decor, or perhaps straight soulful jazz, as it is now it's mushy and sounds OK in the dining area. Greeeaat Fooood experience !! Enjoy ! Pros: excellent bar area., flavorfull food. Cons: poor beer selection d, could get local micrb, Mushy music. more

The wait staff was friendly, knowledgeable, and attentive. Our waiter easily provided more information about the food and wine choices. The appetizers were excellent. Our table chose the summer rolls, salmon handrolls, and two different types of dumplings. The entrees were good, but not impressive - nowhere near the level of the appetizers. All of our choices were spicy, which we enjoyed, but we agreed that people who did not enjoy spicy foods would not have many options. The desserts were wonderful, particularly the hot chocolate cake with creme fraiche ice cream. The mojito and panna cotta were also delicious. If you like to munch, this is an excellent option. We plan to return for appetizers and desserts. Pros: Knowledgeable waiters Cons: Crowded more

the new hot spot in chapel hill has great food, good servers and a cool bar. Menu is still limited though. Pros: food, service, the bar Cons: limited menu, small more