We had the best time! The food was wonderful and our server, Birdie was very informative and lots of fun too, she represents the restaurant very well!!! read more

Super weird, no salt or pepper to go with anything and the steak looked like a steak but did not taste like a steak

Came for Father's Day Brunch. Had trouble with online booking so called, only to get put on hold and dropped several times. Front desk staff took my info (since I had tried many times and couldn't get through to restaurant). Never heard back so emailed but couldn't ever get indoor seating confirmation. Lovely employee (who was out of town but emailed me the day before) confirmed we were outside but suggested I talk to hostess when we arrive. Tried to but the hostess never really looked up from her ipad and mumbled no when we asked and didn't even try to work with us. Not quite the welcome one likes when they walk into a restaurant. Great atmosphere although patio very warm today and not totally shaded. Fans would have been helpful. Food was very good but wait staff seemed very indifferent which took away from the experience. read more

This place was dope!! Very cool and trendy environment and fantastic food... each of the plates we got were amazing. Then the service was top notch on top of that - all around great experience. Came on a date night and both my date and I loved it - would totally come back! read more

Very good Sunday brunch. We had bean dip, egg sausage biscuit, cinnamon roll, kids cheese pasta dish, migas, quinoa bowl. It was all so tasty. Cute bright atmosphere. No wait. Well done. We stayed an extra 30 min just talking. Highly recommend. Coffee is strong and good too. read more

Flavorful salads and savory burger with a comfortable and welcoming atmosphere. I enjoy seeing the transformation of old spaces and will be back to enjoy the outdoor area. The staff is beyond friendly and accommodating. Would highly recommend. read more

If you enjoy feeling completely unwelcome and uncomfortable while you eat, this is the place for you!! The only way to describe the staff is pretentious. When we walked in for breakfast the host literally said not a single word to us and SNAPPED HIS FINGERS and POINTED to the our table? Our waiter walked over shortly after and said "still or sparkling water" and I am not exaggerating when I say these were the only four words he said to us the ENTIRE time we were here. He did not introduce himself, smile, or any way attempt to be friendly. He would walk over to the table, say nothing, and wait for us to speak. If we asked for something he would already have his back turned and would be walking away. What kind of waiter doesn't speak to you when taking your order? No confirmation that he understood what we had asked for. No comments like, "great choice, you'll enjoy that." Basically no interaction whatsoever. Just the feeling we were inconveniencing him by being in his presence. I am so surprised by how many people left reviews saying the staff were excellent when I watched how the staff interacted with the other tables as well and it was the same. Pretentious staff who make no attempt to interact with you. Honestly one of the worst experiences I've had in awhile. It is very disappointing because of how adorable the place itself is and how great the food is. Until the staff are trained on how to interact with customers, I will not be returning here. I've worked in the service industry for years and cannot believe the staff is allowed to act this way. Where is the management in this place? read more

Easily one of the best meals I've enjoyed in Austin. Highly recommend most items on the menu, but the barbacoa, clams and steak really stood out. Fantastic drinks, atmosphere and overall experience. Excited to be heading back for brunch before returning to Los Angeles. read more

Food was beautiful, especially the Chicory Ceaser salad! James was our server and he was polite, informative, and laughed with with me as I tried to tell him silly jokes. All in all, great ambience and great experience. Thanks James! read more

Interesting menu. Had brunch for Dad's day. Seemed like the staff was coached on being indifferent to customers. From the unfriendly hostess who barely looked up from her iPad to the waiters who were not friendly at all. Loved the atmosphere read more

The venue is great--they even have the old union flag on the wall. The ceilings are high and the table spacing is generous. You can see the cooks at work in the kitchen. On a Thursday night it seemed there were a lot of office groups dining out together and it was a little raucous but not too loud. The pace of the meal was pleasant--not rushed, just right. The Spanish red wine I chose was great. My green salad was fabulous--with lots of fresh herbs mixed in with great lettuces and oil. The dessert--carrot cake--was yummy. And I think many people, including my husband, would have liked my entree. For me it was too spicy. But our server very nicely brought me some fabulous dense sour dough bread to take the heat away and also offered to make something else. All in all I will definitely go back. read more

Food , atmosphere, wine and service have all been top-notch the 3 times i've been here. Will be returning often.

An extremely special dinner in a very fun atmosphere with terrific service!! The best part was the carrot cake for dessert! Amazing wine list both by the glass and by the bottle - some funky choices! If you are in the neighborhood for breakfast, check out the cinnamon roll and a vanilla latte! read more

We were made aware of this restaurant from a chef from the SF Bay area who said we should try this place. He was dead on, it is a great restaurant with a good vibe. You would not know this is a restaurant, nor does it look like a hotel. Follow the signs and you will find the entrance. Food was spectacular, from the appetizers to the main course. We said we were too full to try any deserts but we ended up with 3 of them, and licked the plates clean. The wait staff was incredible, and it just wasn't our waiter who took care of us. They used a team approach and everyone was wonderful. They were interactive, interested and just fun to chat with. All of our dishes were spot on, and wonderful. We tried most of the menu, and have no complaints. If we didn't want to try other items, we would have ordered another round of our appetizers and entrees. The cocktails were excellent, and well done. We can't wait to come back. read more

So. Good! Went for a Saturday date night. The dining area is pretty casual (wood tables, benches, chairs, etc.) but the low light and candles still made it feel intimate. The food was SO GOOD. Salty. We had a reservation a few weeks in advance and would probably recommend that as it was busy when we arrived. Service was very nice and educated on the menu. Love all the windows! The restaurant is set back off the street, so it doesn't feel like you're sitting on S Lamar. There was a pretty cool event spaces up front that looked like it would be very fun for a large party. We were not invited to the party that was held when we dined there, but it was tempting to crash it. ;) JK. But it did look fun. Fun fact! When you receive your bill, you will get a post card with it and can mail the post card for free at the hotel reception on your way out for free! Also, this used to be the old Carpenter's Union building, which is why it looks like a school. :) read more

I'd love to give it another try when they've been open longer... I had the Quinoa Bowl and I found it to be super salty. It was hard for me to eat it all. I gave it to my husband who preferred it over the Anti Pasta salad he had, as he said his was too bitter. I'm sure after more time open the chefs will tweak their recipes and it will get better. Looking forward to that day, as this spot is so cute and the people who work their are incredibly nice people. read more

First let me say I travel a lot so I eat in restaurants generally 30x a month...at least. I also worked in restaurants for a number of years. Lastly, I have never posted a negative review on Yelp. That said...I had Father's Day brunch yesterday with 6 other friends and family members. I have to say I was very unimpressed overall. The venue is very cool...love what you've done with the place. However, everything else was a disappointment starting with the hostess. We were first to arrive and approached the hostess stand. Just like another reviewer experienced, the hostess had her head buried in an iPad and didn't look up or acknowledge us for about 60 seconds. Really. When she did, she was not pleasant at all. All business. No welcome, no smile no nothing. She did tell us though our table was ready, we had to wait for our remaining party. I get that...kind of, but the restaurant was not at all busy. So we waited about 10 minutes and then she sat us. Had she sat us when we got there, you'd have sold a few more Bloody Marys. You're receptionist seems to be miscast. Not the first person I'd want my guests experiencing. Our waitress was just ok. Again, no smile no engagement...all business. I had to ask for tea refills over and over. Once I asked for more tea, there were three of us drinking it, and she brought ME one ignoring the two women who also had empty glasses. I asked to have theirs refilled which at that point she did. A small thing, granted, but it shouldn't happen at a higher end restaurant. We observed the other servers, all seven of us, and they seemed to be just going through the motions. It's as if management held a meeting prior to opening and told them, " Let's turn on the indifference and get rid of those smiles and personalities today!" Not the experience we expected or one that you want to project. Finally, the food was mediocre at best. I had a Mahi Mahi Melt. I assumed, wrongly, that it would be a grilled piece of fish with cheese, etc. on sourdough. What it was was an open faced sandwich with Mahi Mahi salad, think tuna salad, and not much of that. Management, I hope you read these reviews...you've got some work to do. Austin has no shortage of great restaurants now. Time for an all employee meeting to up your game. read more

This place has so much potential but was a travesty of errors. We showed up at 12:40 for lunch, sat within ten minutes on the patio. It was so suffocatingly hot we asked to be moved inside. We were told "there's a table finishing now, should be right up". 30 minutes later we were finally seated. Gave our order promptly upon seating (since we had been staring at the menu for 45 minutes). Sat, and waited. Noticed a large table (7) sit 20 minutes after us. We waited. Waited some more. About 30 minutes after sitting the server came over to inform me that although the computer showed what I ordered as having one left they were out. I reluctantly ordered something else. Within 10 minutes the larger table that was seated 20 minutes after us got served. And they got served the dish I ordered that was "sold out". Mystery solved. The servers seemed to all have a strange disaffected air about them. After complaining and expressing my annoyance, food eventually came - over 90 minutes after being seated first. Food was fine. Space is cool. That was our last visit. read more

Fantastic breakfasts! Everything on the menu is delicious, so it's safe to go back again and again, but start with the breakfast sandwich with sausage. Warm and friendly customer service, cool vibe, pet-friendly outdoor deck, good coffee. read more

Our first time at Carpenters Hall did not disappoint. The afternoon started with snacks at the pool with chips, guac and a fire roasted salsa and a fun take on a Paloma. We were celebrating our anniversary and at dinner we were treated to glasses of delicious bubbly after we were seated. Our server Katie was terrific and walked us through the unique menu. We loved the beautifully presented amberjack ceviche appetizer. BBQ mackerel and scallops were the entrees we chose and we were thrilled with the presentation and taste. Grilled corn and green bean sides were outstanding too. The chocolate mousse with gorgeous whipped cream, pecans and a tiny swirl of herbaceous olive oil were the icing on this delicious meal. We also enjoyed terrific mezcal and traditional Old Fashioned drinks! Can't wait to go back! read more

We came Saturday for an early dinner. We had the ceviche, garganelli, and steak frites. The ceviche was good, the pasta was good but portion size was TINY and the steak was awful!! It came to us already cut which was strange and although it looked like it was cooked medium rare, it was super chewy! Not what I would expect for a 32 dollar steak! The worst part was that it also took a long time for the food to come so we didn't even have it sent back because we needed to get home to the babysitter. Not sure why it took so long because they weren't very busy. It was not a good experience... and the food was very disappointing. read more

The food and atmosphere was great here. Went late night. Had terrible service experience though. Very sassy waiters and bartenders who seemed very bothered by our requests. read more

Went back again. Let me put this out there. Try the carrot cake and their choc chip cookie. Seriously so dang good. Missed our little waitress that we had before. the server wasn't as knowledgeable or personable. Won't mention names. Don't want them to get in trouble. Good food again. read more

Honestly, the food was incredible but the hostesses were all entirely unwilling to be helpful, and were downright rude. We couldn't make a reservation for 8 people for some reason on Resy, so we made two reservations for 4 and called hours ahead of time asking if we could at least have tables near each other, since my and my fiance's family had flown down to Austin to meet each other for the first time. We told them this, and they basically said they would seat us wherever they would seat us (which ended up being across the restaurant from each other). I would have understood this if the restaurant was packed, but a table for 4 was literally sat directly before us next to another empty table, and while we sat there, almost the entire place emptied out. After an extremely stressful conversation with the hostesses, they finally decided to up and move the other table after we tried to be accommodating and say we'd fit at something smaller, then proceeded to tell us after we thanked them that we "Needed to go and make a point to thank the other people for moving and causing them such an inconvenience," which we of course did with no need for prompting. As one of 5 people in the party who has worked in the service industry including being a hostess for years, I can confidently say that the situation was dealt with in the worst possible way, and I've never been condescended to like those hostesses did, especially after explaining how important this event was to my family and my fiances family. Even with the food being delicious, I would never recommend this place to anyone. read more

Great place! Had brekky this morning. Loved the food, staff and place! Very good vibe.

Had lunch here today with my wife, our son, and my wife's Uncle. Had a great time. Very light, airy, and inviting atmosphere. Food was great! Prepared and presented extremely well . Service was exceptional! We'll be back. read more

Came here again to visit the bar and one of the hostesses was extremely rude. We were told we weren't allowed sit at the bar because it was full - even though there were empty seats. She made us put our name on the list and wait over 45 minutes to sit at a table instead of just being able to hang out in the bar area. read more

Had the pleasure of dining here several times opening weekend. Energy and vibe were great. Service and food and wine were great

Great food and service. We had an awesome dinner finished with the best carrot cake I have ever had. Breakfast was also fantastic.

Went here last night for my birthday and had high expectations. The decor and scenery was absolutely beautiful but I had a few problems with the menu. It was not well organized, with it being hard to differentiate between what were "bites," "appetizers," "entrees," and "sides." My friend and I decided to split the "crunchy vegetables with green goddess" as an appetizer. We expected roasted or maybe even grilled veggies with the sauce on the side -- when the food runner brought it out we both stared at the dish in disbelief: on the table in front of us was a bowl of *raw* veggies... stuck in ICE. Although the veggies were beautiful and certainly "crunchy" it was not what either one of us expected and not worth the price tag. When the waitress asked us how we liked it, I thought she was joking (!), I mean, what's so special about a raw carrot? The rest of the meal was pretty good, the steak was cooked perfectly, the chocolate mousse divine (although a little heavy on the EVOO) and the coffee sublime. The carrot cake was OK- the icing had the sticky consistency and taste of sitting in the walk-in cooler for too long. I would go back for the cocktails but otherwise, it fell flat. read more

We came here after a few recommendations to try their burger on the late night menu, and I am so glad we did! Typically, places like this in Austin think they can get by with an Instagrammable aesthetic, overpriced, subpar food, and employees who seem like they're too cool for you; that was not the case for Carpenters Hall. We encountered at least 5-6 different staff members from the time we walked in the door, to eating dinner, and then roaming the property a bit afterwards, and each and every single one of them was knowledgeable and an absolute delight. The fries with the aioli were so yummy, and the burger was priced very fairly, especially for how good it tasted! My only con was that I didn't find anything on the cocktail menu to be super original. I ordered the Oh Yeah! at first and didn't love the taste, so my waitress, without hesitation, let me replace it with one of my go-tos, a Bees Knees, which was much better. Still, because the service was so great, I give it 5 stars. Keep it up, y'all! read more

So here are the good things: really outstanding service and a nice patio. We had plenty of people coming by to bring us things. The best was the busboy (at least that's what they called it, when I had that job as a teenager), who not only cleaned our table between courses, but brought our drink and dessert menus quite surreptitiously. Other than that, skip it. We shared the ham-and-toast (bland jelly), sausage (way under-cooked) and chicken schnitzel (I've had it at three places in town, and this ranks 3rd of the 3, and the most expensive). The drinks were very small pours. It started quite badly, too, because there is no valet parking or parking lot, and the location is so amazingly congested that we circled, literally, 45 minutes before finding a pay parking spot. We called the restaurant, trying to figure out where to park. "There are plenty of parking spots on the street," the reply. Nope. I really don't see how this place will make it. read more

I was lucky enough to enjoy a meal here with friends last week; we came in with high expectations, and both the staff and food over delivered. We opted to share plates as there were so many things we wanted to try. We started with the Vaquero Bean Dip and Grilled Head-on Gulf Shrimp - both of which were delicious. We followed those up with the Chicken Schnitzel, Carpenter Steak Frites, Charred Beans and Crispy Spaetzle - all of which were amazing! The black garlic chimichurri on the Schnitzel was a great addition and our steak was tender, well seasoned and cooked to perfection. We had a variety of cocktails which were all also superb. In addition to the great food the staff was also amazing, they made great recommendations and were very knowledgeable. It wasn't until we were about to leave that we found out they had only been open for about a week - we had NO IDEA, everything was so smooth and well executed, it was as if they had been doing it for years. I will undoubtedly be back! read more