Top of the Hill Restaurant & Brewery

Doesn't Recommend

truth in dining triangle

Joined 2 years ago

Top of The Hill is Bottom of The Barrel. You know its very disappointing to go to a place that others have said was great. It reminds me to wait for my own experience and then I would not be so let down.

Top of the Hill is anything but. I have read several of the other reviews and clearly there are some good attributes, or at least one or two. Yes the view is great. The atmosphere is casual. The brew room is fairly impressive. That is where the attributes end.

Let

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heintzel

Joined 5 years ago

Food is overrated, drinks are great. When you go to TopO, you are paying for the location. The food is average but very over priced. The bar scene is fun and the bartenders are very knowledgable. They only have their brew of beer which is sometimes disappointing because I sure do love Bud Light. Their White and Blueberry wheat beers are good but I don't like any of the others. Their French Onion Soup is awesome

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brandigirl2005

Joined 2 years ago

Hit or Miss. The beer was good but a bit pricey. The food seems to be hit or miss. I've been there several times and in general have enjoyed it.

Doesn't Recommend

adougla1

Joined 5 years ago

So many things were bad.. My husband, my daughter, and I went to this restaurant expecting a normal casual dining experience. We are not at all picky about food and are not demanding customers. No one came to our table for 10 to 15 minutes so we had to ask the hostess to send us our server. When our server finally brought us our drinks, I received a coke instead of the diet coke I had ordered (and with no straw). This is a totally human mistake and it wouldn't have bothered me if it it weren't for the fact that it took ages for our server to get back to the table. When she did, she stated that my coke was indeed a diet coke and that she would bring me a replacement just to appease me. Again. No straw, but at least it was a diet coke. When our food came, mine was fine, but my husband's chicken sandwich was raw. Now he's the type of man who would eat a raw chicken sandwich if it weren't really, really raw. Anyhow, I was finished with my meal by the time the server came back to check on us. By then we had to leave, so my husband never got to eat anything at all. Also, our outdoor seating might as well have been indoors since we were tucked in an awkward corner with no view. Also, there is no kids menu and no crayons for entertaining the little ones.

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durhamresident

Joined 5 years ago

The place people love to hate?. Reading through these reviews reminded me that TOTH is the place CHers love to hate. They all seem to think it's unimaginative to go there, but I must say, it's a great place to take a friend visiting town for the 1st time. I've found that the specials are somewhat touch & go, but most of the ones I've had have been great. Personal favorites include the fried chicken plate, the Baja Chicken Salad, the Old Well White, & the Sweet Potato Cheese Fries. Great place to hang out w/ friends, creative entries.

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bumkneeguy

Joined 4 years ago

Was there when MJ was there. I was there the same night the previous reviewer was there. I counted over 300 people try and get to MJ. The staff was as polite as they could be but some people were really obnoxious in their efforts to get to MJ or to take pictures or both.

By the way, there is always food available when I go to Top of the Hill. However, they stop serving dinner and go to their bar menu at 10 because the bar crowds are so large and want to take over the tables so they can't serve restaurant patrons well.

Doesn't Recommend

JenniferAnderson

Joined 4 years ago

Rude Staff. I have always enjoyed going to TOTH due to the fact that it is a great view of Franklin Street and a decent crowd. I have been going there consistently for many years after the football games. However, I have been very frustrated recently due to the arrogance and difficulty of the staff. It all comes down to poor management. I can understand not taking game day reservations, but why would they turn away people because "they are no longer serving lunch, etc" on a mid afternoon game day AND they stop serving food at 10PM. They could make a ton of $$ here after the games. Also, Michael Jordan was there tonight, and one of the managers kept telling everyone not to take pictures (based on MJ's request) and while everyone was following "the rules", he kept saying that he was going to ask anyone to leave that tries to take one. I am a professional and don't need a 20 something year old that I will be kicked out of the place. He could have politely said that MJ has requested no photos please and got the same point across. Also, since when does MJ control what the fans of CH do?

Doesn't Recommend

Pumpkin4352

Joined 5 years ago

Going DOWN HILL!!!. A group of friends and I made the grave mistake of thinking TOTH would be a good selection for dinner this past week... the experience was nothing short of disastrous! I used to go to this place all the time, and can honestly say it has gone DOWN HILL fast! It seems like this restaurant now intentionally targets a very drunk crowd of sloppy beer chuggers and NOT diners. Our party (consisting of 8 people) came out to celebrate a birthday. There had been a football game earlier in the night, and the bar was not super crowded. However, our party waited almost three hours to be seated!!! Despite having reservations, we were barely permitted upstairs by the incredibly rude door security (who at 5'3" wouldn't have been able to bounce anyone, if necessary). We were told we would not be allowed to go up and meet our party until out table was ready to be seated; this did not stop them from filing in a semi-conscious group of drunk undergrads. Once upstairs, we were groped by hideous drunkards. Our server seemed bothered to have a table, the food wasn't good. TOTH- leave the frat parties to the frat houses... not your early evening Saturday night dining. I've talked to a lot of people who have had a very similar experience. If you want to be burped and spilled on, go to Top of the Hill. If you want a nice dinner, let me suggest the Lantern or Elaine's.... or *anywhere* else on the strip.

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JaneKF

Joined 5 years ago

Great patio...fun place.. The food is good. The service is usually great. Keith is the best bartender there. He always remembers my name and asks me how school is going. Pretty neat that that can still happen these days. Yea Keith!

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csburdick

Joined 5 years ago

Pleasant Experience for Outsiders. We're new to the area and wanted to try some new places around the Triangle area. Top of the Hill was one of the places we've tried, and will definitely go back. The outside deck is great, friendly people, and a great place to be and relax. Great exclusive beer, although one waitress was rude.