Celebrated Our Anniversary at Vinnie"s with some friends. This is a real steakhouse in both its atmosphere (not snobby or stuffy) but also in it's offerings and service. Not a red-meat eater? Not a problem as the Vinnie's offers good seafood and some vegetarian offerings. But come on -- it's a STEAKHouse!.

Steaks are always perfect cooked to order with a nice variety of sides. Good wine list and selection of mixed drinks and liquors. This has been a favorite for many years and we will return often.

Visited the place on a business dinner, so it was with a fixed menu and not the regular menu. I had ribeye, meet was tender, cooked as ordered. But other colleagues didn’t get the cook point ordered, which made them get their hot sides much before there meals...it would have been a nice touch that when they received there meat again, they would have received also a new side. On my order, since you ordered with no spice my dish just came with the plain meat, while the others got theirs with the garnish...these things show a lack of special touch. Restrooms ok. Service Personnel excellent.

We reserved a table for 4 at Vinnies's to treat our daughter and son-in-law for helping us move in to our new home in the Raleigh area.. The service by Miranda was impeccable and the menu promised wonderful dining choices. Unfortunately the chateaubriand ordered by two of our party came over done and really overcooked and the rack of lamb came seriously undercooked. My rating for a restaurant is largely based on what they do when there is a problem. Because anyone can be good when things go right. Miranda got Larry involved who seemed to be the manager. He immediately put right both of the meals that were prepared incorrectly, apologized profusely, treated us to dessert and did everything humanely possible to put things right. We felt that Larry could not have done anything more. Amy restaurant that serves food will make mistakes - it goes with the territory. To us, what is most important is what they do when mistakes occur. In this case, Larry and Miranda acted with a great deal of class and for that, we look forward to our next visit.

The food was overall good. We have been to several steakhouses and this one was reasonably priced for the food that we ordered when we compare it to other steakhouses we have been to. The items are a la carte. We got the hot crab dip (it came with soft/toasted pita points around it. It was good but we would not order it again, we would try something else instead. We both got the queen sized bacon-wrapped filet mignons. The steaks came out with onion strings surrounding the filet on the plate. I usually do not like bacon-wrapped filet because the bacon is not cooked correctly (too fatty) but they did an excellent job. We got a side of homemade mashed potatoes (nothing different, just regular). They were good but we have made better at home with Yukon gold potatoes. We ordered dessert – Classic crème brûleé and hot fudge pie. The crème brulee was good, again we have had better before, but it was still good. We did like the pie minus the crust. The crust was too hard to cut and too hard in places.

The atmosphere is more casual / relaxed than a Ruth Chris and an older look to everything. We did dress up but we saw some people that just had on regular t-shirts so I am not sure if it is a requirement. The chairs were not one of my favorites I have ever sat in. They have a great selection of wines (we do not drink so we did not drink any alcohol) but they do have a big selection. Tuesdays you get any wine 50%.

I made reservations for the date night a few days in advance. We needed them too since it got busy around 6:30. We arrived a few minutes early and waited 2-4 minutes to be seated.

Service was great. They have several people going around to pick up dishes/silverware when you are done eating and also to fill up your water when it gets a bit low.

If you love filet is this a great place to go. If you want to pay a little more and have a more modern business experience, I would go to Stoney River in Chapel Hill instead or Ruth Chris (we have not been to a Ruth Chris in the Triangle area yet though). I think Vinnie's is worth the price for their filet mignon. Overall, I think they are average with other steakhouses we have been to that did not match up to Stoney River or Ruth Chris or our own home-cooking.

We had a calamari starter that was OK at best. The rings were rather small and over battered, the sauces were bland - really needed more spices. The main courses a fillet for me and scallops for my wife were acceptable but nothing special. The special collards as a side were over salted and needed more bacon but again, were just OK. Given the prices, I was expecting more. Service was very good. An aside - as a craft beer fan, I was very disappointed to have only bottled beers available. The selection was OK but the beer was served ice-cold. Far too cold to enjoy that quality beer.