vernon's speakeasy

great atmosphere and excellent food. music in jazz lounge wasgreattoo!

vernon's for that special dinner date.. agreatplace for special occasions and sharing with out of town guests. a fun speakeasy atmosphere. interesting appetizers,greatlobster bisque, and gun desserts. and, while vernon's is a steakhouse, my wife has always enjoyed the fish. their wine list is extensive and our service has always been great.

not worth the prices.. not going to elaborate, but this place was not worth the hype. my husband and had the worst experience, cold food that took too long to receive and eye rolls from the waiter who made us feel like we were wasting his time. there are plenty ofgreatrestaurants like zinc, down and dirty, and pelican's. save yourself the time and money!

mom2and pops. this is one of the only speak easys left and it was agreatenvironment. it is a fun experience when you enter after giving your password. the green chili dressing wasgreatalong with steaks. the bread also is very good. it is a fun place but also quiet enough to carry on converstaions. service was wonderful and everyone was very friendly. i would suggest only going for special occassions as it is expensive. also, not a place for young children unless they know how to sit quietly and properly.

overall
4
ambiance
4
food
4
service
4
noise level
energetic
recommended for
notable wine list
romantic
special occasion
book another table

be ready for an experience to behold, unforgettable for the right reasons.. it didn't start well as we had trouble locating the door of the joint (yes joint). after knocking, there was a shout from the speakeasy, "wait i am busy." once inside we were greeted by the 'mafia enforcer' that some urbanites have complained about. but he and his speech are all part of the theme, the act, the experience - very effective it was to the dark and secretive style nyc decor, coupled with the waiter's dress added much to the impression as did the piano player concentrating on his ivory keys.

the menu didn't disappoint all the way from shrimp tacos to chocolate decadence (or accompanying liquor - which was perfectly paired). the bill wasn't a shock; we went expecting fine dining and a unique experience and got that and an expected large tab (all worth it).

we would say stunningly good fun,greatfood, fabulous service and completely unique. if you don't want the abquirky add-ons to the fab food don't go!

as we left mr. mafia said "if you don't come back nobody will give a s**t" - in a perfectly awful ny accent, funny? yes, and all in good humor r.

great food,greatambience,greatservice!!. my wife and i have been to vernon's twice now. if you are looking for a place withgreatcharacter, food, service and experience in the 505, this is it! pricey yes, but absolutely worth it. make a reservation, get there early and sit in the lounge and have a drink before your reservation. music is fantastic, drinks are excellent. stories are hilarious! kick back and have agreattime in our own speakeasy in albuquerque. vernon's does not disapoint.

not worth the money! my husband and i went a few months ago and i have to say we were extremely dissapointed. we had been there previously and loved the food. the cheesey greeting at the door was fine. neither of us are from new mexico and have eaten at some of the best steakhouses around the country. that being spoken we order the los ranchos star which claims to be usda prime beef... i'm telling you we could've gotten a better steak at walmart. rib eyes are supposed to be thick cut and marbleized.. our steaks looked like sirlions. when we brought this to our waiters attention and confirmed with him that they didn't look like usda prime rib eyes our waiter got nervous and couldn't give us much information. in the end we didn't eat our cheap steaks withgreatmarkup and they removed them from the bill. if you have to head over there for any event i would swing by mc donald's drive thru- tastes better and is way less $.

exceptional experience. we celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary at vernon's and it was agreatchoice. from beginning to end, it was a wonderful and notable experience. the staff provided exceptional service and every person that we encountered was commendable. they attended to our every need as if we were the only diners. all of the food was delicious and the filet mignon was the best piece of steak that i've ever eaten. the special surprise dessert was an amazing surprise! i definitely would dine again and recommend it to anyone.

unique experience. we sent our parents here for an anniversary gift. we used a restaurant.com deal and bought them a gift card from the restaurant directly. they said they had an excellent evening with fantastic food and service. the live music wasgreatand it was a lovely evening altogether. it was quite expensive for dinner but it was also an experience to try at least once.

great secret. this was my second trip to vernon's, my date is convinced that they pipe some nitrous or the like into the dining room to enhance the experience. i believe it's just agreatblend of perfect ambiance, food, and service. that or something extra in the aperitif, the impearment drink was agreatstart for the night.

my date loved the speakeasy setting, seriously... how often do you get to surprise a date with the need for a password to gain entry? we knocked on the door (below the red light) and my date looked at me like she thought we were going to a secret drug deal. we walked in and met sonny, hilarious, my date grabbed me a little tighter, still not really knowing what to expect.

the wait staff is dressed for the part, friendly, and extremely knowledgeable of the menu. we had the duck and the lamb chops, both were cooked to perfection with excellent sides. after dinner we finished our bottle of wine in the lounge and enjoyed some rockin music that fit the night oh so well.
needless to say it was the start of a truly exceptional night.

be prepared, it is one of the most expensive places in town, overpriced if you're looking just at the food. but i believe it is well worth the price to have such a perfect dining experience.

best in burque. vernons is agreatplace to spend an evening out.
the unique/fun atmosphere has enough posh to impress, yet fun enough to enjoy.
the food is amazing, and the service spot on.

love vernon's. best fine dining restaurant in albuquerque.greatwine selection.


-----13 may, 2011-----

delicious food,greatfor a romantic dinner for two. to be honest this is only real fine dining restaurant in albuquerque. food, service, atmosphere are great. good wine list. the french onion soup wasgreatexcept for their choice of cheese on top. the aged rack of lamb was excellent. we visited for the atmosphere, but we will come back for the food. be prepared to splurge.

went there for the first time. i had taken my girlfriend on our first date here at vernon's. it was agreattime, live music, food was excellent, service was great. highly recommended for anyone.

special occasions. amazing experience! food wasgreatand of high quality. our waiter, gabe, was very insightful and added to our early valentine's dinner enjoyment. we had the proscuitto wrapped scallops...awesome! i had the los ranchos star. ordered it medium, came out well done.gabe realized the mistake and had another steak prepared, delivered by the chef. thanks gabe! really flavorful steak.

the well done steak was also very good, i must admit.

my valentine had the filet mignon medium rare...good stuff! we shared a lobster tail...wow! we were stuffed but still had the lemon sorbet...refreshing and the perfect ending to agreatexperience.

the music from the bar was a pleasant surprise! we will be back!

great restaurant.greatrestaurant for those special occasions. the food, atmospere, service, and drinks were fantastic. we will be back