Crossroads Chapel Hill — Restaurant in Chapel Hill

Reservation for 7.

We called in advance a few days early to secure a reservation for 7. We were seated no problem and with courtesy. Once seated we were not served or checked on for the first 30 minutes. No drinks. We finally received service in the form of waters and tea. We had to request the drink menu as it had not been provided when we were seated. Ordered drinks for 3 of the 7 in attendance. Drinks arrived in a timely manner. At this time I had to flag a waiter to assist with refills for the waters/teas of the other individuals. We weren't asked for dinner orders until nearly an hour into service. We placed appetizer and dinner orders together, including an order that was shared so an extra plate was provided. It took 30-45 minutes for the food to arrive, the bus service attempted to take the extra plate due to the time it took. We weren't asked about a second round of drinks, I had to catch the servers eye as he set our food down and outright state we need another round of drinks. At this point we've been here far into the night. We are glad the food arrived. However, my husband ordered a steak medium rare, it arrived in a variable state ranging from medium rare on one end to well done on the other end. 3 of us ordered a pasta dish. This dish was bland, the noodles still tasted of water and were stuck together. They had not been well mixed with the sauce. Tried ordering dessert and coffee, the top choices were no longer available. Had to move to backup options. We were given the Gelato for free due to a consistency issue (melted/soupy). The coffees were fine, the dessert was fine. After receiving a check for about $480 which included an auto gratuity, I was NOT impressed with the service or the food. Our thought was that the wait staff believed they were getting an auto-gratuity so no additional service was needed. Other tables were in and out quicker than us even though we were seated first. I would not recommend this restaurant. Mediocre food, mediocre service,...

Carolina Inn – Saturday at noon. (The one day of the week they do not have a buffet.) My partner and I invited guests to lunch and wound up too embarrassed to talk about the food. I had Sautéed Sunburst Trout, Sunchoke Puree, Dandelion Greens, Sunflower Seed Vinaigrette. Since I attempt to eat heart healthy, I avoid fried foods and asked for it to be broiled, which they agreed to. When it arrived, the meager portion had had all flavor cooked out of it, been soaked in some yellow salty solution, possibly butter, and served over a dainty portion of dandelion greens. Everything was way too salty for my taste buds. The ½ teaspoon of Sunchoke Puree, forgettable. Didn’t see a single sunflower seed, but maybe it was pureed too. My companion ordered the Confit Chicken Salad, which she assumed was to be fresh chicken, and healthy. It turned out to be limp shredded chicken of somewhat slimy texture, with seemingly micro-waved cheese, on tomato slices. Our guests, who treated us to lunch, since we picked out the restaurant, had the Crispy Chicken and Half Sandwich and Soup. This was the first time I had ever been with another couple and no one talked about the food. No one offered to share. In retrospect, they probably were being polite and not complaining because we had chosen the venue. My partner and I, in turn, would not complain because we felt it would embarrass our host. Lastly, the service matched the food. We sat there, with three empty plates and one picked at, for over ten minutes. Only when the waiter came over to ask if we wanted coffee, did we have the chance to ask to have the table cleared. The restaurant was not very busy. Things like cleaning empty dishes and refreshing empty water glasses could have been done without asking. One star, since they did have our table ready...

I recently stayed at the Carolina Inn for work and had the opportunity to dine at their on-site restaurant, Crossroads. Upon arriving late at 7:45 PM, the front desk staff informed me that the restaurant was open until 9 PM, with room service available until 10 PM.

First impressions were disappointing. The front desk staff and the restaurant's host both lacked the customer service skills expected of a high-caliber, expensive hotel. The restaurant host appeared overwhelmed, simultaneously managing phone calls and my order without clear communication. This indicated a need for better training to handle multiple tasks efficiently.

I placed a to-go order for the vegetarian slider and the pimento mac and cheese. The host didn't inform me of the wait time, and I had to ask twice. It took about 10 minutes for my order to be ready. When I received my bag, it lacked ketchup for the sliders. When I requested some, the host sighed, saying it was already in the bag—which it was not. She eventually retrieved it but I could tell that my request was an inconvenience. During this time the restaurant was virtually empty, with no other guests or ringing phones at this point, making her behavior even more perplexing. While I understand the pressures of being a host, better customer service is expected, especially given the hotel's standing and pricing.

Back in my room, the vegetarian slider was dry and lacking in flavor. The pimento mac and cheese was mediocre at best. Surprisingly, the highlight of my dining experience was the complimentary cookie from the front desk.

Overall, the experience at Crossroads was underwhelming, with poor customer service and subpar food quality. Management should invest in staff training to elevate the dining experience to match the hotel's...