Levant Bistro — Restaurant in Raleigh

Thank you for the wonderful catering, Anita!! I discovered this place recently, recommended by someone who knows I am allergic to tons of foods (gluten, corn, dairy, soy, to say a few). This is my safe, delicious place, were almost all the menu is available for me. We came once for lunch (gluten and corn free still wonderful flatbread!!!!), once for breakfast (I could eat a french toast gluten and dairy free and flavor full!!) and my non allergic husband and we both loved it. I am stealing his google account for this well deserved review :) So naturally for my birthday we decided to cater there. Anita explained us the best dishes to eat cold, and she said she could bake a birthday cake as well. I said I usually don't like American bday cakes, too sweet for me (I am French and don't get me wrong I love living in America except for its sweet desserts lol). She said, tell me what you want, I will do it for you. So I dared to reply "a Saint Honoré, but it is gluten and dairy all over, plus it is very complicated". She said she would make it, even the very specific "chibboust" cream that is already a mess to bake with regular ingredients. So, well, Anita, you made my day. The cake was insane (see picture) my childhood in my mouth. It was amazing, I am so glad I can still enjoy the leftovers :D The dishes looked fabulous and tasted even better, all my guests were surprised to eat delicious, healthy food (yeah I need to convince some that healthy is good!!). Knowing that I am not poisoning my friends, feeding them with non gmo, organic, grass fed, I appreciate that even if it doesn't matter for them. They just loved the food, and they looooved the cake as well! Thank you so much Anita and your team for creating this restaurant, please never leave!! Can I add that I tried also a lot of your pastries another day to bring to friends and we all loved them as well. I wish I could sneak my nose in your chocolate cupcake recipe. And your flatbread dough. And your vegan pita. And the meatballs. I could keep on, oh he carrot cake as well.... :) Again, many, many thanks. And of course I will come back, and I wish you the success your restaurant and cooking & baking skills deserve. Lise Ps: plus you have a nice outdoor area and a very sweet and thoughtful staff as well. What else could...

Let me first state that the food is five stars. However the service is zero Stars. I've been there at least six times; the food is consistently wonderful, but the staff is consistently inattentive, slow to respond, not personable and frankly their energy is anemic. I can only imagine that they lack training and those consistent deficits detract from the experience. Last weekend we went for brunch, and several of us showed up on time. The waitress asked us for drinks and they were served very quickly. When the other three showed up 10 minutes later, it took another 20 minutes for the waitress to appear, and she needed to be flagged down. At that point or coffee cups were empty and wanted refills for our plain regular coffee. The waitress was correct in telling us that refills are not free and will cost the same as a regular cup of coffee. That policy is annoying, shortsighted and almost unforgivable, especially when you are there for brunch. When she brought the drinks for the others, we decided to order because 30 minutes had elapsed. The food arrived, almost an hour after we sat down. It did not disappoint, just fabulous and we had the scrumptious desserts as well. Because of the consistent poor service, I didn't give my usual 22% - just 15%. That didn't make me happy because wait staff depend on tips, but the owner has to better train the staff. From now on, I will only order take out because the food is so good, and because the dining...

Our family had a fantastic meal at Fresh Levant over the July 4th week. There were five of us, and we ordered alot of food. The appetizers were excellent. Three different dips all with amazing flavors and smooth textures. We then had flatbread pizzas. You will not believe that they are gluten free. I think they should open as a pizza restaurant because their flatbreads were better than any high end pizza restaurant I've ever been to. Not only the toppings, but the crispiness of the crust and amazing flavors.

For entrees we ordered beef tenderloin and broiled salmon. The beef was tender and very flavorful. I will order it again next time for sure. It was my favorite part of the meal. The salmon was also excellent, fresh, moist and flavored perfectly. Another highlight were the Brussel Sprouts. I've never had them prepared this way before. Truly amazing. We had wine with dinner, all organic. The house wine was very nice.

The desserts were also delicious. Again, hard to believe they are gluten free. The chef is very talented. We had a chocolate cake that was rich and not too sweet. Another favorite for next time. This is our new favorite restaurant in Raleigh. Not because it is gluten free. Just because it has the best tasting food. The atmosphere is casual and comfortable. A great place to hang out for a few hours on the weekend. I highly recommend...