Grabbed an early lunch here recently and really enjoyed it! I parked in a nearby downtown parking lot off of Saunders St. and snagged a table immediately. It wasn't too busy at ~10:30 AM but judging from the number of people walking around, I'm sure it gets way busier at peak hours. Anyway, I ordered the steak salad for myself and it arrived promptly. It was really, really good! Steak was maybe not medium rare as requested, but it tasted great, and all of the components of the salad really worked together. The beer menu had good variety but it was a little early for me so I took a pass on that :) The server was attentive throughout my meal and did an excellent job. Overall, I really enjoyed Scratch and would definitely come back! read more

Got there early today for lunch and tried today's special. It was a really good meal and the experience was positive. Staff were nice and the location has a great look. The building itself really looks cool and I've always enjoyed eating here. The food always has a weird array of foods and options but it's always been good. read more

Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - Special bowl - Bars Near Me - Apex, North Carolina

Back again! SCRATCH is one my favorite restaurants in Cary/Apex. So unique and something for everyone.

Was in town for a concert, this was a great restaurant near the VRBO I stayed in. Casual atmosphere, freshly prepared food and the staff were friendly. Portions were good. I'd eat here in the future. read more

Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - Crab omelet - Bars Near Me - Apex, North Carolina

It's the triangle restaurant week and we wanted to try Scratch kitchen and taproom for their $15 lunch entree. We ordered their lunch entree hot honey chicken bowl and grilled honey sriracha shrimp bowl. Both of the entrees were amazing really, we loved the perfect collection of veggies and sauces with chicken and shrimp. The serving size was more than enough and the restaurant week special price made it all a great deal. We love this place and have been there multiple times. We love the apex location more since it has a huge outdoor seating too. The food pick up was quick and easy. read more

AWARENESS: My daughter and I were in the Apex area and decided to find a nice place for dinner. After opening the Yelp app, looking at reviews and pictures, we decided to give Scratch Kitchen & Taproom and go. NARRATIVE: Due to construction in the parking lot behind Scratch Kitchen (Temple Street), we ended up entering the restaurant from the N. Salem Street. And before going in, I noticed the signage above the building says; Tobacco & Mule Exchange. I'm not sure of the buildings history but the buildings interior has a story. Entering from the Salem Street side, you'll pass several shops and a unique bar / barber shop and Scratch Kitchen is located at the end of the hallway on the left. When we arrived at the podium, just outside the restaurant, we were promptly greeted and seated and within the minute, our server and his "shadow" server greeted us and introduced themselves. And after going over the menu and special meals for the day, our drink orders were taken. We ordered the Spicy Tuna Sushi Round as our appetizer; "Spicy ahi tuna with avocado, cucumber and wake over a seared sushi rice patty with edamame and fried green tomato. Topped with wasabi-miso crema and mirin-soy glaze." It was presented and tasted just as good as it sounds. For the main dish, I had to get the Shrimp & Grits; "Cheddar stone ground grits with seared shrimp and pork belly, peppers, onions and a creamy gochugaru sauce. Topped with green onions." And as you can see by not only my photos but others on Yelp, it was an amazing choice and amazing meal. I don't recall what my daughter had as her main but she said it was really good. SCENE: Scratch Kitchen & Taproom is located in the downtown area of Apex. Parking, especially when city workers are doing construction in the rear lot (Temple Street) can be a challenge. I also noted a man, who had too much to drink did order and get a ride from either an Uber or Lyft which is great if you don't want to drive or worry about parking. RECOMMENDATION(S): Scratch Kitchen is quant with that small town feel. Service from the staff was top notch and genuine and could be felt during our interacts with them. The food and its presentation were exemplary so yes, I'll highly recommend a visit. I know I'll be back. read more

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Very friendly to gluten-free requests. The staff and kitchen are aware of celiac, and very accommodating. The food was tasty and the room was lively and welcoming. Overall a great eating experience. read more

Even tough the BBQ bowl is gone its replacement the Tropical Chicken Bowl at Scratch in Apex is a standout--bright, fresh, and surprisingly satisfying. The chicken is tender with a subtle char, the pineapple adds just the right pop of sweetness, and the citrusy sauce ties everything together without feeling heavy. It's the kind of bowl that tastes like summer in the best way and leaves you feeling good afterward. read more

Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - Tropical chicken bowl - Bars Near Me - Apex, North Carolina

Our last stop before returning home after our long weekend in Raleigh was this place. Wow! It was so comfy and relaxing. My daughter and I had the sandwiches with sides. Omg! The sandwiches were heaven. The potato salad was riveting with so much flavor. It became one of my favorite side dishes to have there. The atmosphere is fresh and airy. There is an outside patio the weather was nice for that but we decided to a high top table. The waitress was nice and with good customer service. Everything was great. Thank you. read more

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This place never disappoints! The staff is welcoming and attentive, the restaurant is always clean, and the food is delicious. My go-to dish is the shrimp tacos, but everything else on the menu looks just as tempting. It's a perfect spot for hosting out-of-town guests or enjoying a relaxing meal. read more

I've been here several times for dinner, but this is my first lunch experience. Service was good and I really liked the lunch specials menu. Had the tropical chicken bowl and enjoyed it. The food is always good but the price point is a bit high for lunch. read more

Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - Tropical Chicken Bowl - Bars Near Me - Apex, North Carolina

I truly wanted to like this place, but my experience left me very disappointed. We came for brunch on a Saturday morning and sat outside. The table was wobbly, so we ended up using the soaked napkins they provided to stabilize it. The food was just okay -- nothing special. We ordered the burger and steak & eggs, along with a French press coffee that arrived lukewarm. Service, however, was the real issue. I had to ask for a steak knife to cut the burger, a spoon, hot sauce, and black pepper for the grits. Our waitress took several minutes to bring any of these items, despite helping other tables promptly. We waited so long that we ended up cutting the burger with a butter knife. She finally brought the items after we'd already started eating. Throughout the meal, she was inattentive. At one point, another waitress brought a to-go order we didn't place. We told her it wasn't ours -- twice. Even after clarifying, our waitress came back with the same bag and asked again. It turned out it belonged to the table behind us. When we finished, our check sat on the table for over 10 minutes until I flagged down the hostess. Even then, my card wasn't taken right away. I asked to pay via Apple Pay but was told the terminal wasn't working, so I ended up paying with my card. To top it off, there were a lot of flies. Every other table had a fly-repellent fan, but we did not. I had high hopes, but between the slow and inattentive service, the mix-ups, and feeling overlooked compared to other guests, I can't see myself coming back. What a shame read more

Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - What a terrible experience. 9 flies = 8 on my plate + 1 on the Chex mix container. No fly-repellent fan provided - Bars Near Me - Apex, North Carolina

I landed on Scratch Kitchen as kind of a roll of the dice for dinner on our way back home from the Raleigh/ Apex area. After "Yelp surfing" we landed on Scratch Kitchen and couldn't have been happier. We were fortunate where we were going for a late, late lunch (or really early dinner) so there was no line. It did start to build up when we were leaving so I think we timed it perfectly, accidentally. The experience started when the water brought a tray of what looked to be three large mints. He then poured hot water over the "mints" which quickly expanded into hand towels. That was a really nice touch. We started our meal with pimento cheese won tons. I wasn't a fan because I felt it was mostly wonton and not alot of cheese flavor. They were good but I missed the cheese. Our entrees consisted of the Buddha Bowl, Pad Thai and the mac and cheese burger (we were all over the place). everything was absolutely amazing. Tons of flavor and very high quality ingredients. The burger was probably the best. It comes with a huge ball of fried mac and cheese. Lastly was our dessert. We ordered the mud jar and a strawberry cheesecake. The server mistakenly brought the chocolate cheesecake. After apologizing he ran to correct it but we decided to keep the chocolate cheesecake to try as well (yes we got the strawberry cheesecake and paid for all three). The chocolate cheesecake he brought by mistake was in no way a mistake. The heavens opened and brought this dessert straight from up above. This had to have been the best dessert I've had in a long, long time. The chocolate was so thing and rich and it was accompanied by house made whip cream. This is a definite when you go. read more

Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - Buddha Bowl - Bars Near Me - Apex, North Carolina

The food here is great. I ended up eating the Smokehouse Mac & Cheese and it did not disappoint. Even without the bbq sauce, I thought this meal was so flavorful. The BBQ had amazing flavor, the mac and cheese was creamy and the fried onions on top were a great textural addition to the dish. Our waiter was friendly and attentive. They have both inside, outside, and bar seating. They do not offer reservations so plan accordingly. I will be eating here again! read more

Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - Smokehouse Mac & Cheese - Bars Near Me - Apex, North Carolina

This was a team dinner. Another colleague of mine arrived late. And my other team members had already ordered some appetisers. The ambiance was casual. I arrived in time to try firecracker shrimp. And the fries. They were delicious even though it was cold. I ordered sesame salmon. The risotto rice was not bad for me. The salmon was perfect not dry. And the rice was subtle but delicious. I like something that is not heavily seasoned so this was perfect for me. The roasted seaweed was a little strange for me. But otherwise, I thoroughly enjoyed my meal. There was a lot of parking on both sides of the mall. read more

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Visited for lunch with my wife Diane. We were greeted warmly and decided to dine outside on the covered patio. Kacie was our waitress and did a great job. I had the daily special tacos and she had a shrimp salad. Both entrees were excellent. Parking was free and plentiful in the public lot behind the restaurant. We'll be sure to dine there again when we're in the Apex area. read more

Seating is plentiful with inside and outside seating. Service ordering was quick and responsive. Meal came out quickly and timely manner. Green tomato stacks were surprisingly flavorful and delicious, Bibimbap bowl was colorful, flavorful and filling. Service after was disappointing even if I was by myself I wasn't checked on or had water refilled. Look forward to trying again, hopefully Service will be better as it was only moderately busy Tues. night. Many tasteful looking options here. read more

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So this is the last stop on my North Carolina vacation, our server was Eric and he was very attentive and accommodating. The food was amazing, especially the brussels sprouts, even if you're not a brussels sprouts person, you would've loved these. Pictures not shown kids meals, chicken tenders and French toast serve with potatoes and fruit. I highly recommend when you're in North Carolina especially Apex area, visit this Resturant. read more

Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - Chicken Dutch Pancake Dutch baby pancake baked in cast iron with hand-breaded fried chicken, fresh berries, and rosemary lemon maple syrup. - Bars Near Me - Apex, North Carolina

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Cute little spot in downtown apex. Unfortunately I did not get a picture of the honeydew cocktail I got, but that was by far the best thing there!! It had house made flavored honeydew syrup! As far as the service, they were pretty busy and the waitress didn't check in on us too much or ask us if we wanted another cocktail but other than that food was great read more

Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - Harvest Salad - Bars Near Me - Apex, North Carolina

Very different from downtown cary, and very good. The food was very good, the service staff was very good, the seating options at lunch were very good, parking was fine, the ambiance was very nice. Nice sized bar, comfy and clean. In general, the management had a steady presence, and the food was very timely and tasty. Completely different than Cary... fortunately for apex! Had firecracker shrimp and the steak salad. Nice medium rare on the steak. read more

Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - Flank salad - Bars Near Me - Apex, North Carolina

Well....... at least the Chex mix was good? The rest is just annoying don't waste your time. read more

Honestly I've only gone about 3 times. Each time I go the staff is super welcoming and they make an effort to make solo customers comfortable and happy. Drinks are always mixed very well especially a manhattan if that's your drink of choice. Food is great. Always comes out nice and hot and is a great price for the quality you're getting. Bartenders here have self respect and have a level of maturity you simply don't find at other establishments nearby. I wish they stayed open later but that would only make sense if more people discovered this absolute gem located in Apex of all places! Great job scratch. Great place for a first date as well if you're in need of something that's not so corporate but also nothing like a dive bar. 10/10 would recommend. read more

Service | Fries | cornbread Service - The overall experience was a perfect blend of classic Southern charm and attentive service. The way everyone addressed us as "ma'am" and made sure our water glasses were always at least a quarter full really made us feel right at home. Fries - The fries were absolutely delicious - they were really tasty and crispy, with just the right amount of firmness. I highly recommend them. Cornbread - The reason we came to the restaurant from Omaha, Nebraska was because we had heard about the cornbread, and it did not disappoint. We ordered it as one of our appetizers, and it was perfect for a group of two to four. Pro tip: The restaurant is located in a great area, right on a downtown strip. Make sure to leave some time before or after the meal to explore and check out local vendors. read more

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Delicious smokehouse dishes and fantastic service. Had the NY strip, greens and scalloped potatoes and ham. Will definitely be back!

Scratch Kitchen is another project by the people who brought you Mason Jar and Tap Station. So far I love all of their restaurants and breweries. Scratch Kitchen is a step up from the Mason Jar restaurant which in itself is really good, but this place has a bit fancier food. It's also a lot harder to get seated. The restaurant itself isn't that big. I've never not had a wait to get in of at least 30 minutes. The parking lot is huge and outback and offers free EV charging. The menu does change some, not sure if it's seasonal, so some items reviewed may no longer be available. Consider that when reading my review and others. I'm gonna start with something that should be obvious...don't come here and order pad Thai like I did. Go to Thai Thai or another authentic place for that. Oh good I just checked the menu, 2025, doesn't seem to be on there anymore. The spicy sushi round is a great starter. It's so good I almost get it every time. The jalapeño cornbread is also a must try. Somehow they hit it with the spicy sushi round but miss it with the poke bowl. Skip. The bibimbap and the smokehouse Mac and cheese more than make up for it. In fact, someone in your party should get either the smokehouse or lobster Mac and cheese. These are spectacular! The bacon Brussels are really good, just the right amount of crispiness and flavor. They do a rotating dessert and one time in the fall they had this pumpkin pie creme brûlée cheesecake and IT WAS TO DIE FOR!! I've never had anything like it for dessert, part pie, part creme brûlée, part cheesecake...all deliciousness. Seriously, like put that on the menu permanently! There is a second location of this restaurant that serves the same menu. read more

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Bottom line: This Scratch Kitchen & Taproom location in Apex has given positive experiences for the most part. No reservations, so be prepared for that. Good service each time. The bibimbap bowl and appetizer selections were delicious (Scratch Fries for me especially) but the Sesame Salmon, while relatively good, fell a bit short for me in my most recent visit. The Deets: I've been to this (original) location of Scratch Kitchen & Taproom a couple of times, both of them for work team related dinners actually. They do not accept reservations so be sure to get there well before your intended time to get your name in as they will seat you for groups only if at least half of your party is present. This Scratch is located in the back of a multi retail store building, with plenty of parking in back as well as street parking available. There is a nice bar area where we stayed each time waiting for those others in our party. The bartenders/service at the bar each time was good and friendly. There is a moderately sized seating area, but not huge, so again get your names and party there in good time to get good available seating. Scratch has a varied menu but most all have a Southern flair to them even if they are not a primarily Southern cuisine on its own (I guess the term would be "Southern fusion" here). An example was their take on the bibimbap bowl which I had on my first visit. It is menu-described as "Seared Rice Bowl with Shaved and Marinated Ribeye Steak, Fresh Spinach, Carrots, Green Onions, Pickled Red Onions, Cucumbers and Over-Easy Egg. Served with Spicy Bib Sauce." This bowl was excellent, you can ask for the sauce on the side as I did so you can adjust the spice to your taste. All the ingredients made for a delicious meal experience and I recommend this one. On my most recent visit, I did remember our appetizers we selected (they escaped my memory from the first visit quite a bit ago, unfortunately). The group agreed upon Firecracker Shrimp, Smoked Cheddar Rangoon Dip, and the Scratch Fries. All were eagerly received and enjoyed by the group, with my favorite standing out as the Scratch Fries that are menu-described as "Hand-Cut Fries Topped with Shaved and Marinated Ribeye Steak, Worcestershire Cheese Sauce, Spicy Bib Sauce, Candied Bacon, Buttermilk Ranch, and Scallions." Sorry on not having apps pics but we dug in immediately with those selections! For my main entrée, I decided to venture out of my usual picks and went with their Sesame Salmon (see pic). The presentation of the menu-described "Pan-Seared Salmon Over a Mushroom and Edamame Sticky Rice Risotto, Garnished with A Mirin-Soy Glaze" looked nice, but honestly the taste fell a little flat for me. Overall it was cooked well but I really wish I had more of the mirin-soy glaze taste coming through, it looked like it was really not evenly distributed on the salmon so it was lacking flavor impact for me in those areas it was not seen. The risotto was good but again not a power packed flavor choice to at least compliment the salmon. This entrée was a relatively good one, but not a great standout one like I had hoped and not like I had experienced with the bibimbap bowl in the past. Our server did pretty well with serving a large group, as good as you would expect with trying to please a long table of diners. Most of my experience at this Scratch has been positive, and I think my selection of the Sesame Salmon was one that was not the right choice for me personally. I look forward to trying more of their many selections and taste choices on the menu in the future. read more

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This is my go to restaurant anytime we have family or friends in town or just want to go out. The food is delicious every time and the staff are always accommodating and wonderful! read more

Love going here! Good atmosphere and set up. Def want to try some more dishes. I'm mad at myself for ordering a sub-par dish though! We went on a Saturday, mid-morning so were ordering off the brunch menu. The ham/cheddar skillet dish was just a bunch of home fry-style potatoes, pepper and onion with cubed melted cheese and ham and a fried egg on top. I don't know what I was expecting, but I couldn't find a picture of what it looked like so I decided to try it, hoping it'd be good. Yelpers, I took one for the team here!! I would not order it again, that's for sure! My husband loved his shrimp poboy though! *Note about the sweet tea - not very sweet, so that's good for some people! read more

Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - Shrimp Po'boy Sandwich - very good! - Bars Near Me - Apex, North Carolina

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Nice and welcoming staff at the hostess station. Dropped in for a take-out order to enjoy on the shared patio area while patronizing a neighboring business. We told the staff we would be taking our food out on the patio. The staff packing our order did not include plasticware to eat with or any napkins. I return inside the business. Got the plasticware from a staff member who was eating behind the bar. I then asked for napkins and she said napkins were inside the eating utensils package. Those thin napkins were not enough. I sensed I was bothering this person and the way she gave what we needed was in an extremely scarce way, as if it came from her paycheck. Aside from this situation, the food was good. I had the cheese steak. It was very good and flavorful but the way it was prepared (cheese sauce on the bottom) made the bread very saugy. The individual I dined with had the scratch fries. The marinated ribeye steak was a winner for me. Very good flavor and is well balanced with meat, cheese sauce, and spice. I prefer my Moscow mules in a copper cup but they don't have these cups. I was told they had a house-made ginger syrup. I love good from scratch syrup and what better place to have it? My gin mule in the mason jar glass was delicious. I highly recommend it. read more

Scratch Kitchen & Taproom - Bars Near Me - Apex, North Carolina

Food was amazing! My fiancé and I almost didn't go because of the reviews, but we decided to give it a try because we are newer to the area and want to try local restaurants. They had a lot of local beers on tap (had something for everyone). We both got burgers and my jammin burger was AMAZING. They have a bunch of great salad dressings I've never heard of like peach vinaigrette which was also really good. Our waiter was very friendly and the ambience was beautiful outside with the string lights. HIGHLY recommend this place! read more

Typical inside / out door cafe. Out side seatingand inside. Very busy place the severs were great extremely friendly and polite. I got the cast chicken. So much flavor so good. My wife got the general taps cauliflower. Extremely good We got two appetizers Deviled eggs and the pimento cheese pot stickers Amazing everything was so flavorful. I ma impressed. read more

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Excellent Food, Service, Ambiance and assistance. Excellent food choices! Service is always very professional and friendly. I go there on a regular basis because of how GREAT it is!!!! read more

The cocktails were top notch. The Old Fashioned was perfection. For a party of 8, our appetizers were well recieved. However, 5 out of 8 entrees were not. Beyond disappointing by the food and the excuses made when we mentioned it & mgmt came over. Frasketta pizza truck after a $100 dinner for two out back was far more rewarding. read more

I went on a Wednesday night & it was quite busy but not as busy as I've seen it can get. I sat in the bar area. The customer service was great & they have a variety of different food and they start every table off with wasabi Chex mix which is nice & a Smokey flavor to it. My table was more than satisfied with our food items. I got the tropical chicken bowl & it was delicious. I liked the portion I got , had enough for leftovers. No complaints about this restaurant. read more

Comfortable, relaxed, reasonable and fabulous. Tonight started with the firecracker shrimp and then we had the red chicken curry and a creamy gochujang shrimp and grits with pork belly. Generous portions of wonderful food. Our server tonight Amelia made our meal even more enjoyable with her efficient and friendly service. It was a pleasure to have her be a part of our evening. We are visiting and we're not particularly hungry but didn't want to leave without one more visit. We were not disappointed. Time to stop reading and go have a wonderful evening at Scratch. Sorry I was too busy enjoying myself to take a picture. read more

My husband, Troy, and I go to scratch all the time... The ambience is warm and inviting, food is wonderful, cocktail menu is always changing and amazing! We especially love, Catie one of their amazing managers! read more

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Scratch Kitchen & Taproom in located in Downtown Apex. You can park in the lot across the street on Salem Street or the large parking lot in the back which will be closer to the entrance. The restaurant as inside; outside and a covered patio to sit. With the summer heat and humidity, we chose inside. The restaurant is decorated nicely. I came for the brunch menu and liked the varied selections. But you can order from the regular menu as well. The restaurant was well staffed. Our waitress first brought out the hot hand towels to start our meal. She was a little over eager to get us to order but the large menu required more time to look over. I sensed they wanted us in and out. I went with the biscuit benedict and they let me substitute the fresh fruit for the potatoes which was nice. The fruit was berries and melon. I'd return for another meal here. read more

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Ate there for the 1st time a couple of weeks ago and was very happy. It wasn't as busy but my 1st cheeseburger there was outstanding yesterday just not as on the mark as the first time. read more

I've eaten at many places and this restaurant has stolen my appetite, my heart and my tastebuds. I can't recommend Scratch highly enough and express how much I loved everything about this place. The service and feeling of being welcome could not be better. The ambiance was second to none, I hope to sit by the fireplace one day, but the food was exquisite . I wanted to taste everything . And the selection on the menu hit all my favorites. I know I will be back many times . Btw we were so lucky to have had the Banana Fosters cheesecake make its debut the day we went and I can only hope it's a keeper forever. read more

We love scratch but this was my first sandwich and it was delish! Our server was a doll and the food came out quickly. She was fast getting waters refilled and we love Helen! read more

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