Found this restaurant for lunch while on vacation last week. Mei was our server and we enjoyed talking with her and the great service. Food was excellent, we had the "Root Bowl" which was very fresh vegan, gluten free and large and the "Fish and Chips". The latter had a thin batter coating that tasted flash fried and was excellent addition to the fish. Fries were light and crunchy. Decorum was nice comfortable and relaxing and the beer selection on tap was tasty. Nice area of little shops and old town look feel of relaxation to enjoy while walking off some food. We recommend the restaurant and hope to get back there again next time through. read more

Had lunch and we not disappointed. Had the not a Cuban with the house chips. Great flavors and cooked to perfection. Great service also.

I have tried so many times to like this place. When it first opened, it was the only place in town with a modern decor, "farm to table" feel, and cocktails. It should have been an instant success, but it just keeps disappointing. We have been a few times in the last year with mediocre food. Service is usually good, but nothing justifies a $30 meal that barely registers as average. However, they advertised for a New Years Eve dinner, and we thought we would give it another chance. The New Years menu offered three appetizers and three entrees - figured they couldn't mess that up with only three options! We were seated for our 8:15 reservation, and the place was packed. Despite that, there appeared to be only two waiters for the entire place. It took 20 minutes for the waiter to come, but that didn't bother us - he was doing the best he could! We ordered oysters for an appetizer, and our entrees. After an hour and fifteen minutes, we asked about our appetizer. The waiter apologized but it took probably another 20 minutes. We wolfed it down... the THREE oysters for $11. Wish I made that up. Times started getting rough. We ordered dirty martini's so that we could eat the olives. I reached into my purse and found some crumbs from my child's Puffs. Two hours after our reservation time, we spoke to a manager. We got our dinner at 10:30. It was good, but not good enough to make up for the wait. Trust me. Save your money and your patience. read more

I would rather eat a bag of burnt farts before attempting to eat here again. I say attempting, because that's what we did, and failed. When we walked up to the hostess station we were informed that it would be a 35 minute wait because the kitchen was backed up and unable to take orders due to a large party. We were told that if we wanted to wait that we could be seated and order drinks in the meantime. This being our anniversary dinner while on vacation, we decided to wait and have a few drinks before we were able to order food. This was the worst decision made since Abe Lincoln decided to go to the theatre in 1865. After ordering drinks we waited 15 minutes for the server to come back and say that they are out of the wine my wife ordered and to bring me the wrong drink. I don't blame the server considering that she told us this is her second day on the job and she was completely alone. I felt so bad for this poor young woman who is running around like Forrest Gump before something jumped up and bit him in the buttocks. Unfortunately, this experience didn't end with free ice cream while hanging out with Lieutenant Dan. They must have a Lannister style of management to shove this server from a window on her second day like some nosy free climbing twerp. Well we waited 40 minutes for her other drink to come and we were able to order food. So now we are in there like swimwear right? We have drinks and ordered food all in about an hour, so it's all uphill from here? I mean, what else could go wrong? Well we were more misguided than pollsters during the 2016 election. We finished our drinks and ordered another round, which took another 45 minutes to come. All while still waiting on our food to come out. Meaning it's been just under 2 hours and we have had 2 drinks and no food. So we continue waiting longer than It took Jim to get Pam to notice him as something more than a friend. Well about 35 minutes later the server came over and asked how we are doing and my wife said that we are ready to eat and are getting more aggravated than Dexter when he has to wait more than 2 days to make his move. She kindly apologized and walked away. About 10 minutes later the manager came over and asked how we were doing. Well we are doing about as well as Helen Keller at a rave. We tell her we have been waiting quite a while and hope to eat soon. She asked what we ordered and went to check on it. She came back and said that our order was put in behind the large party so it would be another 15 minutes. Wait, I thought we had to wait 35 minutes when we got there because the kitchen was backed up due to the large order the party put in. Well we told her we would like to leave and not wait for the food and she canceled our order and comped our 2 drinks. After almost 3 hours of absolute pampering we decided we couldn't return to normal life if we stayed another second. We left without eating and stopped by Pappa Johns on the way back to our rental property. If you are hungry and want to eat I would strongly suggest staying away from this place. If you enjoy just looking at your significant other saying "when is Ashton Kutcher going to pop out because we are definitely being Punk'd right now" and then going to Papa Johns to eat, then this is the place for you. read more

Drove up from Bryson city while on vacation menu on thier web site looked great. But the menu at the restaurant was different and very limited. Draft beer was 3.00 which was an indication that they reduce prices on drinks to get the locals to eat there. Ordered a blackened drum to share and a kale salad all other options were very high in saturated fats. Server was friendly and very apologetic on the food. Fish was good but rice and vegetables were very salty. Should of asked for low sodium version. Bryson City has much better options for dining. read more

So My wife and I gave this place a second shot. The first time we were underwhelmed. We have eaten at every place in Franklin and this place is almost worth it. The overall atmosphere is really nice. The staff was super friendly and attentive. Our Server was amazing. They could use with something more to cut down on the echo but the old building that is hard. The issue comes in with the food. Overall it tasted good. Steak was cooked well and scallops were seared nicely. The kitchen does know how to cook. The issue is the price to portion ratio is off. You pay way to much for what you get here. It's not far off but either an increase in portions or a 10 percent decrease in prices would go a long way. Not bad but overall it's like a lot of other places in this town just OK. read more

Visited Root + Barrel for the first time this evening with my best friend. We really liked the decor and rustic setting. Yet, despite being classy, it's totally comfortable--a "come-as-you-are" type place. The outdoor seating looked delightful, with a great view of the mountains. The menu was diverse and the cocktails were great. I had a ginger take on a Manhattan that was just delightful. Our waitress was attentive and we marveled at her ability to describe the menu in great detail. I had the steak and it was delicious, as we're the potatoes and veggies. Only a few things weren't perfect: My gal said her scallops--a special on the menu--were a bit too salty for her taste. And also, there seemed to be gnats/fruit flies and mosquitos buzzing around our indoor seat. They wanted a sip of my cocktail, I suppose. Franklin should be delighted to have a place like Root + Barrel! They also do a fine job at keeping up their social media (I follow their Facebook, even though I live an hour away). read more

Very disappointed in our experience here. They potentially could have had 5 stars, because one e we got the actual food we ordered, everything was delicious. The service was terrible, the kitchen screwed up 4 of our 7 orders. And for some reason, mine was "dismissed " form the order all together. Other than that, it was a nice ambiance. It seems like they can accommodate large groups and the have a private room for parties. read more

Food is good and the atmosphere is nice. A great restaurant.

We had a cup of soup and a hamburger with fries. $20. Hamburger was good. Soup was excellent. Atmosphere is very nice. Server was slow. read more

JR Chophouse - Hamburger is enough for two. - Seafood Near Me - Franklin, North Carolina

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The frenchie burger was one of the best burgers I've ever had! The staff were so friendly and helpful. We would definitely come here again.

Have eaten here on at least two occasions and gotten take out once. Food very good and freshly prepared, although some items seemed a little overpriced. Good upscale "farm to table" restaurant with great atmosphere and good service/drinks. Would definitely return, hopefully soon! read more

Great modern design and creative, fresh, local cuisine. The spinach, mint strawberry salad with chicken was perfect. Trout with spring vegs equally delicious! read more

JR Chophouse - Seafood Near Me - Franklin, North Carolina

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This service takes slow to an entirely new level. I waited easily 15 minutes at the bar to get a drink and it wasn't even full. Then the waiter decided to forget to take our order. Once we placed a Cesar salad to start off with they decided to take over 30 minutes to make it. .. slowest experience ever. The food tastes good once it comes out. .. don't expect anything quick. Neat decorations inside though. Can someone explain to me how I can sit at the bar for 3 hours and never get asked to top off my water glass? Sitting with an empty cup of water that I drink in between beer and wine. .. and it's empty. It's not that hard to fill up a water cup. Ridiculous. read more

Ambiance was exceptional. Presentation of Food was even better, but here is the 3 stars part: taste. We got the steak sandwich, and the southern soul. Both lacked salt immensely, very bland flavor. Would go back, but the food was very bland. Maybe an off day ? read more

The old fashioned is a smooth trip to flavor town. I would recommend the chefs choice soup as a snack on your trip to flavor town.

Poor service. We had a big party, but staff forgot about members of party at other table and didn't communicate well. Bar staff were unhelpful and ignored us most of the time. Restaurant wasn't full at all. How can a restaurant with so little customers be so slow? read more

Nice up scale restaurant in downtown Franklin. Enjoyed some appetizers, a salad and shared an entree. Will visit there again soon.

My wife and I were very fortunate to have lunch here just the other day. Do yourself a favor and go here! We live about 20 miles south of here and we will be back. The food is outstanding and the whole experience could not have been better. What a helpful staff too. Nice and friendly folks here. We look forward to going back for dinner soon. Super food and a just a super place too!. read more

It's always nice to find a high-end place in a small town, and this came recommended on the internet, so we figured we'd give it a try for lunch. Our appetizer of dips was pretty fantastic. Great hummus, delicious pimento. My salad was a bit disappointing. The description propped it up as a cracked pepper caesar salad with these awesome cornbread croutons and something called lamb chopper, which I now know is a cheese from around the area. Still, the salad itself was pretty basic, no pepper that I could find. Still, though, the locally-sourced food, nice presentation and atmosphere make it a great place! read more

Hager Steak sandwich was good, little small and steak a little too tuff. Dessert tasted like it was bought at Sam's club. Service was way too slow, especially for lunch. read more

I. Love. This. Place. The chicken gumbo: just enough kick with interesting mix of flavors The gazpacho: tomato based with avocado purée and chili oil, yum Pork "wings" app: crispy on the outside, flavored with delicious BBQ sauce Southern soul sandwich: the ultimate comfort food. It checks every single box. Barrel fried chicken. Mac and cheese. Fried collards. Spicy aioli. Brioche bun. Just remembering it warms my cockles. Decent draft beer selection. Nice wine list. And excellent service. read more

They working understaffed to put the food in the kindness and the atmosphere in the place is perfect I hope they get good people to replace those recent departures great place overall and the best Moscow Mules in town read more

Extremely disappointing. The cheese on the meat and cheese plate had a rubbery texture, like pre cut cheese. The steak wasn't even half an inch thick. The mushrooms tasted like they were canned. I haven't been this disappointed in a restaurant for a while. The only good part was the wait staff. For the price I expected much more, and I honestly wouldn't return here for any price. read more

Our first time to Franklin. Root and Barrel was recommended by a friend, and we are glad we stopped in. The atmosphere was great. We loved the decor and granite bar. Great appetizers and friendly bar staff. Will definitely visit here on our next trip to Franklin. read more

Beautiful well done restaurant on main street. Local vegetables and meat. Grass feed beef etc. Fancy but casual so okay to dress up... Or not. read more

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Better than we were led to anticipate..our entire party of 8 enjoyed their meals, and felt the price was reasonable for what we received as well read more

Must try the fried green tomatoes app. Very unique . Loved the design of the restaurant and service was great! read more

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We had dinner reservations on New Years Eve 2020. Once seated we were told they were out of food! Anyone who is familiar with Franklin, NC knows that there are limited options to begin with. Add to it New Years Eve, leaves zero dinner options. What a disappointment! The response to our email was: "Well you are not the only ones we disappoint! We had 120 last year, 160 this year and we under order'd .. sorry!" That's IT! Word for word! In a town of this size, one would think they would care a bit more than that. Please, do NOT support this business who cares so little about their customers! They do not deserve anyone's money! Please go enjoy dinner anywhere other then this place! read more

We've been at least 8/10 time in last year. Their drinks are overpriced and weak. Their service is very slow. People just moving in slow motion!!! Items we had were tasty enough, but the portions are small for the price. Good location and we hoped this would be our regular go to spot! read more

The only game in town for Sunday brunch in downtown Franklin. It was bitterly cold the day we came, but the coffee was hot and strong, the food good and the staff friendly. read more

JR Chophouse - breakfast chimichanga - Seafood Near Me - Franklin, North Carolina

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Great place, friendly staff, good food. Just a bit slow bringing out the drinks. One person takes the order, somebody else pours, and a third person brings it to the table. I think it could be streamlined a bit. That's only a small thing and nothing that would stop me from going back or recommending it to friends and others. read more

There was a time when good dining in Franklin meant The Chef and His Wife. Clearly those days are gone and Franklin now has several excellent options beyond a traditional Meat and Three. The Root and Barrel stands out as nothing short of delicious. Southern inspired cuisine but not hamstrung by the definition. They rely as much as possible on locally sourced food and the freshness comes through. Special mention needs to be made of the pimento cheese served hot with caramelized onions. Holy Moly! If you only order one thing let it be that. My dinner companion and I spent the rest of the evening trying to decode the ingredients. It was "slap yo momma" good. Kudos to our server this evening. Many things were going wrong for her yet she never lost her cool, and was very engaging and entertaining. (Didn't catch her name but ask for the gal from Decatur, Georgia) Now their chess pie was what attracted us but each of the three times we have tried for it we missed out. It is that popular. We will just assume it is as good as the traditional carrot cake we had instead. read more

Had a good experience here. The wait staff was friendly and helpful, especially to my son who has celiac and has to eat gluten free. Our food was well prepared and interesting. The atmosphere is warm and inviting. Honestly, I have no idea why others rated this restaurant 1 star. We almost didn't come in because of those. We would have missed a good meal and a good evening. read more

I love the farm to table experience! A wonderful place to have a date night! Amazing service and excellent food. A must see rare find! read more

JR Chophouse - This is their tomato and basil soup of the day! Absolutely amazing! The texture is wonderfully smooth and a bit of a peppery finish! - Seafood Near Me - Franklin, North Carolina

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Food was joyfully prepared but not overly complicated. Staff was very accommodating to our request for a spaced out table as we had an immune compromised person with us. We will certainly be back! read more

What a wonderful meal! Best chicken I've ever had! New Year's Eve so they were slammed. But my waiter Ben was excellent- very attentive. Definitely will be back! read more

We enjoyed our dining experience very much. I had filet prepared medium. It was excellent. We share the meat and cheese plate.... beautifully presented and very large portions. It really would be suited for a party of 4. Our server was super sweet knowledgeable of the dishes and very attentive with our being invasive. It's clean and well decorated. Nice variety on the menu and the dishes seem to have a bit of an upscale twist. Very likely the nicest place in town to eat. read more

OMG!!! What a great place...now called Root+Barrel. We had the app called fried pork wings...perfectly fried and seasoned. The boiled peanuts that accompanied the app were delicious!!! Get them... you will not be disappointed. We also got the arugula salad and the turkey sandwich on ciabatta bun also delicious...the green Chile on the sandwich HB was a nice spicy kick. Our server was Chelsea and she was very responsive professional and a pleasant waitress. Thanks Chelsea for a wonderful lunch! read more

JR Chophouse - The only thing left on the fried pork wing plate is a smile! Delicious appetizer! - Seafood Near Me - Franklin, North Carolina

My family loved this place. We stopped for lunch on a road trip from the Smokey mountains to Atlanta. It's such a great atmosphere and everyone loved their food. Great salads & burgers. read more