Death & Taxes

Good morning readers! I apologize for the posting hiatus, it's been busy over here in Hart-land. Lots of working, visiting cool places and working on my summer bod. But prepare yourselves for a litany of posts all at once! Lucky you! So buckle up, buttercup and let's get started!


Nate and my wedding anniversary is June 7 and on June 8th we went to a restaurant I've wanted to visit since before we moved to Raleigh, NC - Death & Taxes. This beautiful space is located at 150 W. Hargett St, Raleigh, NC 27601


Death and Taxes is an experience from the second you walk through the door until you leave for the evening. Everything was delightful and I still can't really fully explain how much I love this restaurant and I want to go back ASAP. Also they have an incredible wine list and cocktail menu.


Décor: this remodeled bank building features interesting chandeliers, vintage mirrors and a beautiful bar with a front-row seat to the action going on in the open kitchen. The dining room is narrow with different sized tables lining either wall. Due to limited space, they also do not accept parties over 6 people.


Food appearance: Ashley Christensen isn't an award winning chef for nothing, that's for damn sure. Every plate was a feast for the eyes as well as the palate. I'm just going to post some pictures and let you see for yourself.

Food taste: we began with an appetizer of Roasted Oysters and Charcuterie. The oysters (of which I ate 5 out of 6), were succulent and topped with chili butter and preserved lemon. They were deliciously ocean-y and anything with butter is automatically going to be phenomenal.

Roasted Oyster Appetizer

Charcuterie Appetizer

The Charcuterie was a mixture of hard meats, pate, house pickled onions and pickles and grilled toasts. I only tried 2 of those things but they were magnificent! I normally don't care for pickles but these were slightly sweet, slightly acidic and still had a great crunch. My only complaint was there was no cheese...where is the cheese? Of course, Nate can dish on how the meats were.


Up next - main course. I ordered the Grilled NC Fish (truthfully I cannot remember what our lovely server said it was) with cannellini beans, crab, spinach and cherry tomato. The fish itself was a massive fillet; buttery and luscious (excuse me while I drool), capped with raw cherry tomatoes and set atop a bed of wilted spinach, and cannellini beans. The "salad" as I shall now refer to it, was slightly acidic and was a perfect pairing to the rich fish. My only complaint with this dish (besides that there wasn't more of it) was the skin wasn't crisp and resulted in a rubbery mass I ended up removing from the dish and setting aside.

Grilled NC Fish

Nate ordered the Heritage NY Strip Steak that was accompanied by crispy fingerlings, roasted red pepper and cilantro. He ordered it on the rare side and the fillet was beautifully pink and he kept making "mmm" noises while munching - that means it was good, right? The potatoes were crisp and wonderfully seasoned.

Heritage NY Strip Steak

Since everything is served ala carte style, we ordered 2 sides to split - the Creamed Greens and the Twice-Cooked Mushrooms.


The greens were large leafy monsters (I'm not great at identifying my greens) and in a delicious creamy sauce. They were even better when fried up and whipped into eggs the next morning. But the real star of this course - The Twice-Cooked Mushrooms. I know this sounds weird with all the wonderful dishes I just described but these little fungi were acidic bites of heaven and I have no idea what wizardry they did to accomplish this but I will gladly return just for these alone!

Creamed Greens Side

Twice-Cooked Mushrooms AKA manna from the gods!

After a brief siesta, we were given a dessert list to peruse, because a meal this magical is just begging to be finished off with something even more decadent. After much deliberation (literally everything sounded heavenly) we settled on the Videri Dark Chocolate Cheesecake. This elegantly bittersweet cheesecake is made with locally produced Videri dark chocolate and surrounded by a pool of dulce de leche and burnt cinnamon.

Videri Dark Chocolate Cheesecake

Service: your customer service experience begins the second you walk into their beautiful marbled lobby. We were greeted by 2 smiling hosts and led to our table. Since I had specified in our reservation that we were celebrating our wedding anniversary, we were greeted by our server by name and with 2 complimentary glasses of the most crisp and possibly most delicious sparkling wine I've had the pleasure to sip.


Our server was extremely knowledgeable and willing to answer any and all questions about dishes and ingredients. The other staff was just as helpful - no dirty plates left on tables, no even half-way empty water glasses, all utensils replaced after each course. And we were called by name as we exited the restaurant too!


Cleanliness: as this is a high-volume and award winning establishment; absolutely nothing was out of place or looked dirty.


I eagerly await another trip to this magnificent eatery that is nothing short of extraordinary. My best advice is to 1) come hungry, you will leave looking like a stuffed turkey; 2) plan to stay here awhile - the courses are timed so you are allowed time to digest and enjoy before moving onto the next; and 3) bring your wallet and save up money! This restaurant is definitely not one I'd be able to afford to go to regularly. Cheapest entrée is $24 so be prepared to splurge!