Always dependably great service and food and value. Great go to place. Love the Sunday brunch.

Safety protocols were followed. Tables were separated well. The falafel was AMAZING, crab dip had tons of crab but I didn't love the pita it came with, chicken was Devine (great crispy exterior), and they have a great tea menu! Worth asking about it! read more

Vegans beware. This is not a place that knows how to cook vegan food. It feels like the chef doesn't understand what vegan dishes can be and just found recipes on the internet, made them, and assumed that's good enough. The prices for the vegan dishes start at $20. That includes a dish for a cauliflower steak with no protein. The server (very kind and well meaning) let us know we could add a protein from the salad section ($6 for adding tofu). Meanwhile, an all beef burger and sides is $18. The plant based dishes we ordered were lacking any complexity in their flavor profile. My apricot sauced stir fry was no better than something I could order from Panda Express. This dish actually had tofu come with it (one of the few plant based dishes that had a reasonable amount of protein). Unfortunately, the tofu, though breaded, was soft and bland. My friend ordered a mushroom paella that was one note, that note being primarily sour with rubbery mushrooms. Nothing about it made it a $25 dish. We went to Irregardless hoping to find an alternative to vegan versions of greasy pub food. Sadly, we won't be back. Although these weren't trying to compete with pub fare they don't demonstrate an understanding of how to cook plant based dishes that have a variety of textures and flavors that will leave you feeling satisfied. The prices were way too high for what we were served. The bill felt like a sucker punch at the end of a disappointing meal. read more

What brought us here? Glad you asked. The night before, my family and I were discussing words used that are incorrect - Irregardless, the non-standard, redundant word, is the one we laughed about the most. The next morning, we were looking for a place to eat that did not serve biscuits and gravy or fried chicken (although we love both:), and when Irregardless Cafe came up in the search, we knew we just had to go. I didn't read much about the place before I went; just a quick scan of the menu. My daughter is a vegetarian and it so happens there were a lot of options for her - whew. That has not been our experience in the South thus far. We ordered Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup and Garden Toast. Both were excellent. Tasted fresh and all items were flavorful. Within the first 45 minutes of opening (11 a.m.) the place was packed! I wanted to ask about the name of the restaurant, but the staff was busy. I have to find out though!! Definitely worth going to. Live music at night too! read more

Mediterranean App. : B Mojito : C- Neopolitan Chicken Pasta : B+ Curry: B The two piece band was the great. The seating near the front door: COLD. The staff : being eccentric is fun at a coffee house - cool it... OVERALL: Irregardless is in my opinion one of Raleigh's finest. Feels like an institution, tastes like someone's family's recipes. A classy place. read more

Irregardless Cafe - New American Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

Excellent food and drinks. We had huevos rancheros and the open face sando. Highly recommend the huevos. Perfect ambiance, good service.

Let me start by saying we really liked this place. We've tried a different dish and have visited several times over the last two months since moving to the area. The tofu scramble is a bit bland, the brisket omelette could use more flavor in the meat but the basic breakfast and pumpkin spiced pancakes are great. We've also had dinner here a few times but for brunch we usually get there at open and are in/out in 30 minutes. The service was always great and reliable, until today. After getting off to a slow start where we were ignored for some time while others behind and next to us were tended to multiple times, we were given water by Chris G and told he'd be right back. He apologized for the wait (I get it) and I ordered the Vegan Burrito. While it was a large serving, it did not come with guacamole (as advertised) and it was impossibly salty. After a few bites and searching the inside of the burrito I asked for a side of guacamole. After realizing the guacamole did not help tone down the saltiness, I pushed my plate aside and was asked if I'd like a box. I said no, explained the situation and requested to get a cinnamon roll to go, instead. My partner enjoyed their shrimp and grits. Our waiter, Chris G said "No problem, we can make that happen for you". He comes back with the cinnamon roll and said "I'm sorry about that, we'll change that vegan burrito for you." However, he brings out the check, and still charged us for the vegan burrito that was sent back with three quarters of the plate still full. Why would you even bother saying those things if you still planned to charge us, Chris? Again, my plate was still over halfway full. I literally only ate a few home fries and a left an ENTIRE half of the burrito, PLUS part of the other half, AND the remaining home fries. If you're a server and someone sends back a plate that is basically still full, there's obviously a problem the customer has with that dish. If your customer explains the problem and you acknowledge it, and offer to take care of it but still charge them for that item, that's just bad customer service. He told us to "come back and see us again" and I said we always do, but after seeing the check and realizing the burrito was not removed as implied, I'm sad to say that we will not. Everything else was fine and we were happy to just get over it and come back again to try something new. But that was just plain unacceptable. We paid and tipped, and left disappointed. -SC read more

This place has amazing vegetarian/vegan food and a creative menu. It's a little more expensive, but it's one of the few places where I actually enjoy live music at night (it's quiet enough to have a conversation, and usually you'll hear a James Taylor song) and it makes for a nice atmosphere. This and the Remedy are lifesavers for any vegetarians living in or visiting Raleighwood. I do wish they would abolish tipping though, just read this paragraph: Studies have shown that tipping is not an effective incentive for performance in servers. It also creates an environment in which people of color, young people, old people, women, and foreigners tend to get worse service than white males. In a tip-based system, nonwhite servers make less than their white peers for equal work. Consider also the power imbalance between tippers, who are typically male, and servers, 70 percent of whom are female, and consider that the restaurant industry generates five times the average number of sexual harassment claims per worker. And that in many instances employers have allegedly misused tip credits, which let owners pay servers less than minimum wage if tipping makes up the difference. Citations for those claims can be found here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/08/15/the-case-against-paying-waiters-in-tips-in-one-irrefutable-paragraph/ read more

Got the shrimp and grits! Delicious! They gave mimosas while we waited to be seated which was cool.

We like Irregardless Cafe for their creative vegan dishes (they serve meat & fish too). This is our first choice in Raleigh for finer dinning. The atmosphere is nice, if not noisy at times. They often have live music that enhances the dining experience. The chef is top notch. Our only issue is the prices: $18 for a stuffed poblano pepper and a side of beans. My favorite dish is the king trumpet "scallops" I recommend dining at Irregardless Cafe. read more

I was shocked to discover I've never reviewed Irregardless before! This is one of my favorite places to bring family when they're in town. I have been many times with many different people and I can honestly say everyone has always loved their meal. Most recently I had the calamari as an appetizer (I should have this every time). It has a delicious Asian bbq sauce on it. They are also doing a "Veganuary" menu right now. I tasted my friend's black bean gorditas and she really enjoyed them! We split the chocolate layer cake and key lime pie and I couldn't decide which I liked more. I've never had key lime pie before, so future iterations have a tough act to follow. They have a great restaurant week menu whenever that comes around too! They also give you a free bottle of their house wine on your birthday or anniversary so make sure to take advantage of that! I'm always impressed with my server here. Most notably, my large family comes down every June and we eat here one night. They beautifully handle our entire party (with some members often late) including young kids. My 8 year old niece claims Irregardless has the best chicken fingers she's ever eaten (and she eats quite a lot of those). Irregardless, I love you. Don't ever change. read more

Excellent food, service, and prices. Would definitely return. Also, our waiter was the best. read more

Irregardless Cafe - Pretty - New American Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

oh my goodness! What an awesome experience! If you enjoy live entertainment, great food and on-point service (thanks Kerri-An!), you'll LOVE this place! 1st-timers but we have decided this is our "New Fav" of all time. We had the pleasure and privilege of hearing The Atomic Rhythm All -Star band tonight. They play / recreate authentic sounds of the 1920's - 30's - such wonderful musicians. If you are a fan of Armstrong, Whitman or Crosby, this is the place for you! Check out their website: http://www.irregardless.com/ Performances by various bands, musicians. Different genres all the time Trust me, you'll love it!!! Note: we registered on their website and received a free bottle of red (delicious) wine read more

See all

This restaurant was okay. The food was bland and the service was disappointing. I really wanted to like this place, but my friends meal was cold while mine was over cooked. I'd give it another try if I lived nearby. read more

Came here with a large group- they set us up as two tables of 8 which was a great accommodation with last minute reservations. Service was good, our waitress was very helpful in helping us pick a bottle of wine. Everyone enjoyed what they had. The starter breads weren't overly impressive but the entrees were good. Lots of vegetarian, vegan and gluten free options. The Veg strudel was baked to perfection. My sis had the polenta mushroom dish and said all the parts went together very well. My only complaints are there was too much garlic in everything (my sisters dish as well) and the entrees are a bit pricey. read more

Waited too long to write this review and can't remember exactly what I ordered, but what I do remember whatever it was, it was good. My friend and I visited for the first time and had the best meal, with a friendly server, healthy options and in an inviting atmosphere. Will definitely return on my next visit to Raleigh, and will also take notes for when I do make it to a computer so I can be more detailed. read more

Irregardless Cafe - New American Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

Food was delicious! We had to sit inside because the outdoor section was full. You might want to call ahead to reserve.

Bad service & unfriendly wait staff. We arrived with a reservation at 5:30 to a nearly empty dinning room. The hostess took us to a two top right between the only other diners in an open room. We decided to sit at the open bar instead as we wanted a little intimacy. The bartender did not greet us or acknowledge that we were there. She instead dropped two menus down in front of us with out a word and walked away. We waited a little longer and when she continued to ignore us, we decided that an unfriendly place was not the place for us. On our way out the hostess gave us an inquisitive look, wondering why we were leaving. We briefly explained the unfriendly manner in which we were addressed. No attempt was made to write the situation. We have heard good things... but will not return after this sort of encounter. If Zero starts we're an option, that would be our rating. read more

Well based off the hostess' inability to recognize me, seeing as how im 6'6" and standing right in front of the 2 of them, but able to seat the 3 other couples/groups that came in behind me (no reservations) due to being familiar faces, i don't think i'll try here again. Even after i was the only one standing there, i still got no greeting. One looks at me and looks away while the other one plays with a young boy behind the booth. Lastly i said "hello........" To which i got a look before turning her attention away completely. . read more

I was pretty disappointed in our experience. I had the mango salmon plate. The salmon was dry with no flavor. The salmon sat onto of couscous that had small bites of mango, asparagus, and possibly tomatoes? Even that was not good. My friend had a vegetarian plate that he could not eat as well. The pictures on the website was very misleading. The staff was friendly. Not a lot of people there so seating was right away. I wanted to try a new restaurant but end up leaving hungry and spending more money at a known restaurant. I do not know who is giving this restaurant the stars that they have because the food was not good. read more

My new favorite! Everything was fresh, the corn in my tofu salad had just been cut off the cob, carrots crunchy, tofu warm. The menu had so many vegan options I had a hard time picking what I wanted. Finally I chose the Vegan Shepard's Pie, it was stuffed with veggies and a great turn on a classic dish. The asparagus on the side was crunchy and perfectly cooked so it wasn't soggy. The best was dessert, my vegan coco "cheese" cake. It was made with tofu and cashew cream. The tofu made me a little nervous, I'd never thought about it being in a dessert like this. It was so spectacular, it didn't last long on that plate! I would 100% recommend this for vegans/vegetarians. Great date spot for taking out a vegan for dinner! read more

Irregardless Cafe - Vegan coco "cheese" cake - New American Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

The live music here is always tasteful. They get alot of things really right. One of the main ones is that me, a pescatarian, and my boyfriend, a carnivore, can eat at the same place and not feel like one of us is there for the other person. Having to take turns catering to better options for each others diet. read more

See all

We had a wonderful brunch on a Saturday morning at Irregardless and I can't believe it has taken me so many years to come here to dine. Irregardless is right next to the Goodnight Comedy Club and across from the SAFEchild office. Irregardless has been a Raleigh destination for 40 years and is one of the first "farm to table" restaurants. It started out as the first vegetarian restaurant in Raleigh and over the years, the menu has evolved and poultry, seafood and meats were added. As you enter Irregardless, you will see a small stage to the left and this is where the live music (mainly jazz) performances takes place. When we dined for brunch, a Spanish guitarist was playing and it was a very fitting sound for the meal. There are tables and booths and the light comes in through the windows from the street side. I love the colorful artwork and the majority of the pieces are done by Kyle Highsmith. This artist is a native of Greenville, NC and he paints colorful scenes from France and the Mediterranean and then local boating scenes from North Carolina's water towns. We were lucky enough to also meet the chef and owner, Arthur Gordon. He and his wife have a collage of all the newspaper articles and publications featuring their history on the wall near the restrooms. A young Arthur is featured on Raleigh's magazine covers and the articles highlight their successes. We were a group of 9 and the waitress took great care of us. As part of the brunch, fresh orange juice, teas and muffins and breads are included and were on the table already. I ordered an omelette from the brunch menu and it was very tasty and the potatoes were my favorite part. The music was a really nice touch and we had a very enjoyable celebration. Even Attorney General Roy Cooper came in with his family and sat in the booth next to us. I would come here to listen to jazz again and it is a great brunch destination. Whether you are a vegetarian or carnivore, Irregardless offers something for all palettes. read more

See all

This place has been on my list for a long time, I just never got around to it. I finally found myself downtown in search of some food and looked it up. I like the large open space, the live jazz music and the friendly atmosphere. I tried the specials, watermelon gazpacho and the blackened shrimp and apple salad. It was both filling and delicious. The gazpacho had a good refreshing flavor to it. The shrimp was just the right amount of spicy and was packed with flavor. The salad was a good combination of goat cheese, crunchy walnuts and an orange vinaigrette. All the dishes were plated nicely with a good presentation. The cafe ran fairly smoothly for being so busy and popular. The space was the right amount for live music and the crowds they brought in even with the rain. It's lively, loud and interesting. The bar is pretty well stocked too, with a good variety of choices. I tried the basil grapefruit which was far more basil-like (liquid pesto?) and not so much tangy grapefruit but the drink was still mixed well and wasn't a skimpy mixed drink. They keep their pours decent, my friend ordered a gin and tonic and wasn't denied a good pour. Definitely will keep this place on the list. read more

See all

Its sad that it took me this long to visit this place... so glad I did. My friends and I were a group of 10 and our server took such great care of us- she was amazing I wish I remembered her name. The live band created a great ambiance. I shared the fish cakes and the shrimp and grits with a friend. Both were great but the shrimp and grits were just wow. Def coming back here... need to try their brunch asap! read more

Irregardless Cafe - Shrimp and grits. Wow. - New American Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

See all

Is this what passes as a top restaurant in Raleigh these days? I truly hope not, because our experience was mediocre. We came in on a Friday with a 7:30 pm reservation for two and were not seated until 8:05 pm because they were "a little behind". While waiting in their cramped waiting area we saw them put at least half a dozen walk-ins on the wait list, which probably explains why they had no open tables for existing reservations. To boot, the guy who sat us did not even apologize for the wait. It seemed like this was just their standard way of doing things. Perhaps they take the name of their restaurant a bit too literally? We were seated, finally, but it was practically on top of two other tables. There was so little room between the tables that the wait staff kept running into my chair and elbow. Finally for the important part: the food. It was OK. Both of our dishes (Salmon and Chile Relleno) were tasty. And we had no complaints about the chocolate tort and cobbler. But it was just nothing to write home about. After hearing so much about this place, it was a bit underwhelming. This place must have seen better days to garner so many accolades - I hope they do better in the future. read more

Wow this place! While browsing brunch options on a quick trip to Raleigh, I stumbled across this listing and basically, they had me at "gluten-free waffles". It's a treat for me to get a legit waffle that's gf and this one did not disappoint. My friend walk in and didn't have to wait for a table. There's live music and lots of families in their Sunday Best. There's also the trendy hipster type and a few handfuls of new parents. First thing they do is put down complimentary glasses of orange juice and a tray of breakfast breads and biscuits. Who gives away free goods like this anymore?! I had a tough choice picking between the crab/scallop omelette and the gf waffles, but I had to go with my original craving. Not only did this come with a very generous side of fruit (that I didn't even touch as I went straight for the good stuff, but made a great snack at the airport for me a few hours later!!) but it also came with a side of vanilla ice cream. WAT?!?! Plus it also had a bunch of strawberries and blueberries on the waffle itself, separate from the huge fruit bowl. I also ordered a fried egg on the side that was cooked perfectly. They have several syrup options which was great because I can't have normal syrup because of a corn allergy, but they had pure maple too. My friend got the salmon bagel sandwich and I was blown away by the New York Jewish Deli-style stack of salmon on this thing. She nearly had to put all her weight into smashing it down to be able to actually take a bite. Very impressed. This place is great. Our waitress was super sweet and speedy. I'd definitely be a regular here if I lived in the area. Win. Win. Win. read more

See all

Pros: The menu offers a lot of vegetarian options, and because I went on a Saturday night, they had live music. The staff was very nice, as were the other people in the restaurant (it got a little social, which was fun). I had the vegan sex salad, which was delicious, as was the complimentary bread and olive oil. Cons: My friend ordered the wild mushroom polenta, and I thought it was disgusting. I could barely eat one bite of eat; I don't know how she ate the whole thing. The mushrooms tasted canned (not wild), and the polenta had a metal, artificial taste. Don't order this! read more

Great place for brunch - good food, good service and music to boot. While it's got a strong vegetarian tilt, the shrimp and grits were tasty. read more

I came here for brunch with some friends and had a great experience! I love the interior and the live music (a little noisy, but still nice). I think my favorite part is that any of the brunch menu items comes with a free plate of biscuits, scones, and muffins AND coffee, juice, etc. A very pleasant surprise. I ordered the Garden Frittata omelette, which is an open-face omelette that comes with fresh tomatoes, avocado, basil, scallions, and cheese on top. I switched out the side of fries with fruit. Very fresh ingredients, good portion size - everything is really made well-done. My friend ordered the cheese blintzes, which are basically small burrito crepes filled with a light ricotta cheese. These were AMAZING. Not too sweet at all. Would highly recommend Irregardless to anyone! read more

Irregardless Cafe - New American Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

I love this cafe! The food was great. The wait staff were friendly and extremely efficient. One of my favorites!

The food was great, the service was amazing, and the environment is clean! I love the soft music playing in the background. Special thanks to Heather for all of her amazing help. read more

I was there for there Vegan January specials and my, what do I have to do to make that menu permanent?!? It's so great!!!

This place used to be very good but I think the quality is just going down month by month. Every time I come I am never wowed by anything, and considering how expensive it is I feel like I never get my money's worth. An extra aside, this place does not have very good vegan options. I always see it listed as a great place for vegan dinner and brunch but that's not the case. It has a few vegan options but in the way that red Robin has vegan options. Above all else, the service is amazing. I always have fabulous servers who are nothing but attentive and sweet. I've just sat and had little convos with my servers before and it does add to my experience. Just wish y'all had better food though! read more

Went Saturday for brunch. They are taking reservations but we did not have one. They had just opened for the day and they were able to seat us right away. The restaurant was 3/4s full already. They are seating at half capacity. The service was great. I give our server Jamie L, 4.5 stars The food was good we ordered the big ol' cinnamon roll. Sharing we only ate half. I expected it to be overly sweet, but was pleasantly surprised, great flavor and not overly sweet. I got the kale omelet, which was good. But for my pallet a touch heavy in the garlic. My mom got the My Favorite omelet and she really liked it. We had loose leaf tea. read more

See all

I've been coming here for years! Love Irregardless! They are definitely my go to brunch spot in Raleigh. Huevos Rancheros is my favorite brunch meal and this one is definitely in my top two! Really generous portion and amazing flavors with the pepper purée. They do live music too which is a fun background element! It never hurts to make a reservation here, sometimes there's no wait at all and another times it can be quite long- so go ahead and book one on their website! I've also been here for dinner and happy hour which have also been great experiences. They have plenty of vegan and gluten free options. I would say 4 out 5 stars because the service can be hit or miss. Sometimes I have the best service of my life and other times it is completely meh. Overall, an awesome spot for brunch, happy hour, and dinner! read more

Irregardless Cafe - Huevos Rancheros - New American Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

3 stars would've been 4 with better service. I showed up on a Sunday morning at 11:45a, right during rush hour lunch on Sundays. I did not have reservations and was able to be seated within 5 minutes (a table for 2). Even if I wasn't able to get a table, the bar had seating. Once we were seated we were greeted with a glass of orange juice and a water. I ordered a coffee and received that immediately. Then we waited a long time before seeing our server again to place our order. Which we did and then received our food very quickly. Since it was during Sunday brunch, we were supposed to get assorted bread/bakery items, we never saw those. However, when the table next to us was seated, the waiter brought them the bakery items and went over the specials with them. The food was delicious. I got the Florentine omelette and added mushrooms. There was a little too much cheese for my taste, but the extra cheese was a great addition for the home fries. The home fries were good, but there was essentially no seasoning on them. My breakfast partner got one of the specials, which was a ropa vieja. The tastiest part was the saffron rice. The meat was fine, but not incredibly flavorful. We finally saw the waiter again when it was time for the check, which at that point was the first time in the entire meal he asked if I wanted a refill on my coffee. This isn't really acceptable for a brunch place. The food was good, so I will go back again to see if the service gets any better. However, at this point, it leaves much to be desired. read more

Absolutely amazing experience!! Warm ambiance, kind staff, delicious food & desserts. Couldn't have asked for more! I had the tempeh tikka masala and the coffee caramel pie and they were so good. The whole menu sounds incredible - I can't wait to go back! read more

This place is amazing! We go every time we have tickets to Goodnights. And we are never disappointed! The crab dip is LITERALLY the best I've ever had read more

See all

Everyone in my party loved their food! We tried a variety of dishes both veg and non veg. The place is cute and wait staff friendly!