Granite Restaurant & Bar — Restaurant in Concord

I have absolutely no clue what is going on with this restaurant, but it isn't good. This was previously one of my favorite restaurants, with that being said... I've been here twice, within the last year. My visit, I'm reviewing, was provided to me free, as a courtesy, based on my previous dining experience.

I was completely astounded that this dinner was worse than the previous. To start off with, the drinks as well as food service is soooooooo slow it is ridiculous. Especially, since the restaurant wasn't even close to full! Our waitress, (same problem as last time), is not trained appropriately, for a fine dining experience, which they are "trying" to portray, and I use the term "trying" loosely.

Now onto the food.... I'm a big fan of sharing a bunch of small plates. There was plenty to chose from. We started with the oysters. Not cleaned or shucked properly. They were room temperature, and my husband was getting shell fragments in every single one. My fingers were dirty from the shells, and left black marks on my napkin, when I wiped my hands. Next up, was the Beef Carpaccio and the soup of the day which was a tomato bisque. The Beef Carpaccio was the most pathetic sight ever. It was 8 slices the actual size of a quarter each in diameter, and was $12. It was a laughable portion, and to add insult to injury, it was missing the Grana Padano cheese as listed on the menu. The tomato bisque was the best course we had, I have zero complaints. For our next two plates, we got the gnocchi and the mussels. The sauce for the gnocchi wasn't really even a sauce, it was more like a soup, which was obviously completely wrong. So watery that....our waitress gave us a soup container, to bring the leftovers home. The mussels arrived with a giant dead fly, floating right on top in the broth. We immediately notified the hostess and waitress, and the replacement order took 25 minutes. We finished up with the lamb lollipops and cheese plate. I have a nut allergy so, they omitted the sauce. They did not even render the fat on the lollipops, and we were left with a gelatinous, fat section, which made it totally unappetizing. The cheese plate was good, but let's be honest, how can you mess up a cheese plate.

Sadly, unless this restaurant brings itself back to their previous quality, I will not be returning. The audacity, of this restaurant, to charge high end dining prices, on sub quality food and terrible service, should be embarrassing to them. Heck, I'm embarrassed for them. It is the exact opposite of what is expected, at a high end dining establishment.

There's my honest review... and I'm sticking by it. Worst experience ever! I wish I could give it zero stars. My posted photo, is of the best part of our dining experience... our table, when our...

The Granite Restaurant had a new chef take over a few weeks ago (the website hasn't even been updated with the new menu yet), and I will be shocked if this doesn't become one of the busiest restaurants in Concord. I was absolutely blown away by the food, and our server, Laura, was great! I'm not a snob, but I definitely appreciate good food and have eaten at quite a few Michelin Star restaurants (everything from 1 to 3 stars). This restaurant punches way above its weight, and I wouldn't be surprised to see them make the Michelin Eater's Guide in the near future and maybe pick up a star in the coming years. Let's talk about the food. Everything was very good, but there were a few things that fell into the category of memorable and had me involuntarily swearing under my breath in stunned appreciation. I love arancini, and I can honestly say that I've never had better than the ones I ate at granite. As someone who likes to cook a lot, I am usually underwhelmed by steak at restaurants, but that was not the case with chef Slovek's picanha. Picanha is such an underrated cut, and it was cooked and seasoned perfectly. The chimichurri leaned towards the Argentinian style, and was amazing. One of the biggest starts of the meal however was the chicken. When chicken is done really well, it is great, but hardly memorable (it is usually only memorable when it is really bad). The chicken that my girlfriend ordered at the Granite Restaurant was hands down the best chicken that I have ever tasted in my entire life. It was memorable. Now that I'm done singing the praises of the food, I should address the restaurant's atmosphere. The restaurant does not have the coolest or most visually attractive dining space. It would benefit from a quick facelift (maybe get rid of the wallpaper and add some cool art to the walls). The quickest and most impactful change would be addressing the most noticeable part of the decor, the fabric on the chairs. I'm sure I've seen the same fabric on the seats of busses and/or subway cars. Don't let the questionable decor dissuade you from trying the...

We came back in 2019 for Valentine's Day. Again had reservations, but waited well over an hour to be seated.

As before, the people, the food, the atmosphere, and my French Martini was great.

We stood at the bar for a while, because drinks are not allowed in the waiting area. Then seats at the bar opened up and we were able to sit down. We had great conversations with people we met and the bartender, Cory, was excellent.

We finally were seated and our server was friendly, attentive, and our meals were perfect.

My suggestion, if you are making people wait that long to be seated when they have reservations, and you are already charging exta for the experience, and have failed to deliver on the package ... offer them a complementary drink as compensation.

I have not changed my rating from last year, but was tempted to drop it down, as the price paid, there was no excuse for the delay in the seating for us and many others. Sometimes the experience you have includes the attitude you bring with you. (Me)

Below is my first review. First visit here. It was Valentine's Day, but we had reservations, so we were seated promptly. Not sure if they were short staff, but our wait between ordering and receiving anything was very slow. Most items were great. I ordered the 8oz filet, and my husband ordered the duck. He said mine was the better choice, and I would agree. The oyster selection was very good as well. The dessert champagne cake was moist, but nothing spectacular. The 2012 malbec was just opened, I was told. But the temperature was too warm. But the French Martini was very well made. Overall a great expierience, but over priced for the experience. My suggestion try this place when it is not a set...