I hesitate to write this review. Stanbury in Raleigh is so phenomenal that I’m afraid I can’t do it justice. I don’t know if I’ll be able to convey to you how wonderful all (yes, all) of the food actually is. I’m afraid my pictures are shit and my descriptions inadequate. I cannot stress enough that I was blown away. I’m worried that if I write a review, it won’t be near good enough.
But I’m damn sure gonna try.
Stanbury is so fantastic that it was featured in the New York Times. But hey, so was I, so let us begin.
(I’ll make this even more fun by periodically inserting quotes from our meal throughout this post. I wrote them in a tiny notebook I keep in my purse for occasions just like this.)
Flower of Pomona. Let’s just go ahead and start using orange blossom water all the time.
I’d been to Stanbury once before without Charlie. I only came for drinks and one dish: the steak tartare. I absolutely love tartare, and often find myself craving it, searching the Internet like a madwoman for restaurants around me that have it. So far, the best in the area has been at Bin 54 in Chapel Hill, though I also enjoyed Vin Rouge‘s version. There’s got to be great texture as well as seasoning.
Stanbury accomplishes this. They take a unique approach to steak tartare by using Thai flavors and serving it with crab chips. This dish has the largest chunks of steak I’ve ever had in tartare while still managing to remain incredibly tender. This was a very good start to our meal indeed.
Come back to me!
Next we had the scallop crudo. I’m a pretty adventurous eater, but other than in ceviche, I’d never had raw scallops before. At first I was disappointed that they didn’t have the other raw fish dishes I’d seen on their menu previously, but I’m so glad we tried this instead. They were buttery soft and truly- excuse the overused phrase- melt in your mouth good.
“Why don’t we eat ALL scallops raw?!” (my revelation)
So beautiful! And yes, that’s watermelon (and cucumber and jalapeño) they’re served with.
“Would you order all this without me? No, you definitely wouldn’t? What would you do without me?” (Me, re: having two raw dishes in a row)
Our third dish was fried oysters. I don’t care that this month has no “r” in it. Man, these were big guys. Fried with a thick, well-seasoned crust on them. And through the frying, they retained that seawater taste that just bursts in your mouth. That sounded weird, but I mean it in the best way possible. And they’re sitting atop some sriracha mayonnaise. You can’t hate on a mayo combination like that. (Or any mayo combination really…)
Me: “I’ve got to write these things down. I don’t know how drunk I’m getting later. I need to remember how funny I am.” (after being scolded for taking out the mini notebook in public)
Charlie: “Fine, go ahead, under the table.”
And then the gloriousness that is bone marrow commenced:
Nectar of the gods
O. M. G. Bone marrow. Why don’t we eat this shit all the time?! Salty, meaty butter is what it is. When Charlie went to the bathroom, I may have embarrassingly run my finger inside the bone to get the last traces of that wonderful stuff. I would have picked up the bones and licked them if it were socially acceptable. My face and hands were shiny with marrow after all was said and done. And in no way is that gross.
It came with a salty, acidic little salad of capers, parsley, and shallots, the waitress explained, “In case, you know, you need a break.”
Charlie: “What? A break from the best thing ever?!”
North Carolina Littleneck Clams. A fab ending to our savory small plates. And another time where I definitely could’ve engaged in some socially unacceptable behavior: drinking the sauces from the bowl. The chorizo-tomato-paprika broth was so damn good. We used the bread to soak it up. It was SO difficult to say no when the waitress asked if we wanted more bread to get the last bits.
The lights dimmed a bit before the marrow and clams. “Ah, I knew this lighting for food pictures was too good to be true!”
Charlie: “How’s my hair?”
Charlie: “What? You want a picture of the lonely clam?”
For dessert, we thought about going next door to Escazu to grab some of their house-made chocolates. But they were closed, and who am I kidding? After perusing the dessert menu and seeing a chocolate crepe layer cake, I had to have it. Chocolate is my go-to on any dessert menu. Go home, fruit people.
I’ve only seen these crepe layer cakes on TV, so this was like meeting a celebrity. Talk about a dessert that requires some manual labor. It was rich, soft, delicate, and came with ice cream. The perfect portion size to split and not be overstuffed. (And it used Escazu chocolate anyway, so yeah, two birds…)
It just glistens with perfection
“Well, I popped my Stancherry!” (Charlie, obviously…)
Stanbury is unassuming, small, almost tiny, and scattered with retro decor and North Carolina paraphernalia. And lots of hipsters. “But they’re nice hipsters” it was agreed. I’m not posting our particular menu because it changes so frequently. Our menus were actually stamped with the date of the evening we were eating.
Reservations are a must. If you’re lucky you may be able to sneak a seat at the bar, but don’t count on it. It was packed when we arrived at 8:15 on a Wednesday night. Try everything . Seriously. I was so sad that the Crispy Pig Head was not on the current menu (it may be back though!) but this meal totally made up for it and blew me away. Charlie and I agreed this was one of the top five meals of our lives. Yes, I know that’s a bold statement. But honestly, it was that good. Go here. Now. And order as many things as you can.
Stanbury is located at 938 N. Blount Street, Raleigh in the Mordecai neighborhood. They are open for dinner Tuesday through Saturday. They take a limited number of reservations so you can try to call ahead; otherwise you have to show up and wait for a seat… or try to snag one at the bar.
