Mandolin

"Mandolin, an elegant neighborhood fave, is a two-minute drive from where I live in University Park, but it takes my husband and I on a new and deliciously unexpected journey every single time we enter the dining room. The menu features seasonal produce that’s sourced directly from proprietor Sean Fowler’s family farm. The pickled octopus dish will always be our go-to appetizer, featuring a peanut sauce that leans into the salinity of the octopus. And no matter how much I try to switch it up, there’s just something about a steak—exceptionally cooked, with farm-fresh veg and black garlic demi-glace—on a date night that’s always a match made in close-to-home heaven."

"Chef Sean Fowler puts as much thought into the George Clooney Burger as he does with every dish at Mandolin. 75 percent Angus beef and 25 percent pork belly give it a solid meaty flavor, and when paired with blue cheese bacon ranch, tobacco onions, and lettuce on a Lucette Grace brioche bun, served alongside Mandolin fries, it’s next level." - Jenn Rice

"Mandolin’s chef Sean Fowler will offer a five-course tasting menu on New Year’s Eve. The tasting menu is $85 per person (plus tax and gratuity) with the option to add wine pairings for $40 additional. Standouts include truffle quiche, octopus carpaccio, beef tartar, a collard and pimento cheese empanada with Babaganoush, and a sinful souffle with Videri chocolate sauce and Chantilly (pictured). Book a reservation online or call 919-322-0365." - Jenn Rice

"For chefs like Sean Fowler of Mandolin, in Raleigh, it’s a different situation because of the sheer fact that he turns to his farm for ingredients." - Jenn Rice

"In Raleigh, Sean Fowler, of Mandolin created made-from-scratch Mandolin Farmhouse Meals that show up at your door fully cooked." - Jenn Rice