After the unfortunate demise of the Wild Orchid Grille, we have been looking for an upscale place to go that does not necessitate paying the babysitter for the extra hour required to drive from north Raleigh to downtown and back. We have tried Fins and Jibarra, but 115 Midtowne is our favorite thus far (besides Nina's, when we want Italian.) I called on a Friday to request reservations for 7:30 on Saturday--no problem. We were greeted by a friendly hostess and seated immediately upon arrival. There is a pianist on weekend nights, which added significantly to the already impressive ambience. (Yes, it's in a strip mall, but don't judge until you go inside. BTW, there are outside tables, but I do not enjoy sitting in a parking lot.) \r
Our waitress was friendly, knowledgeable, and prompt. The crab cakes appetizer was excellent. I had a tasty filet and my husband had some sort of Asian-style tuna, which was delicious despite the fact that I'm not a fan of tuna in general. The portion sizes seemed appropriate for both of us, and my husband can put away some food. The only disappointment of the evening was his seven-layer chocolate cake--quite dry, but he ate it anyway. My tiramisu was among the best I've had, which is not a small feat considering we love it so much, we had a tiramisu-flavored wedding cake.\r
In summary, leave the kids at home and go out for excellent grown-up food for a reasonable price-- everything, including the above plus my glass of Pinot and a tip, was around $100. You might even have time to catch a movie!
Pros: location, ambience
Cons: chocolate cake
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