First off - this review would have been 5 Stars but, for some reason, the Tenderloin Medallions were not medallions, but sliced. Small point, I know, but it just wasn't right.
Other than that, this is probably one of the best restaurants in Tallahassee - in the same class as Cypress, for sure.
With the exception of being sliced, the almond encrusted filet was wonderful and the presentation superb. My wife had the Sole which she enjoyed immensely. Our son had the Kobe Sliders which he liked as well. The waiter was extremely helpful and we had a wonderful bottle of wine from their large selection.
Love the cheese/meat board and pate platter. Great selection of wines (reasonably priced) that you can buy and take home or, for a small charge, drink at the table. The ambiance is pretty bad (I feel like it has not been updated since the 80s) but I think the food and wine are worth it.
Review Source:I spent a weekend in Tallahassee visiting one of my best friends. Â She and I had dinner at Cluster & Hops my first evening in the city. Â After traveling for almost 10 hours, it was such a treat to eat here! Â The space is cozy and intimate. Â The ambiance was calm, relaxed, and just what I needed after a long day of traveling. Â The bar tender/waiter was incredibly helpful and knowledgeable about wines and helped us pick out an amazing bottle of wine (a Syrah!). Â
The food was good: Â my friend had the coffee-encrusted filet mignon medallions (medium rare) and I had the duck with the truffle squash. Â Both dishes were delicious. Â I am taking one star off because the dishes were very busy: Â there was a lot of sauces and different flavors (all good) in one dish. Â I don't mean to suggest I prefer bland food, but there is something to be said for having just a *few* complex flavors (as opposed to many complex flavors) in one dish.
Overall, I had a good experience and would go there again. Â The food was good; service was excellent; the wine was phenomenal.
Discover this place using Yelp! The store front is a wine and cheese shop that makes way to a cozy little restaurant. The food ranges from the simple cheese plate to Kobe beef burgers topped with Foie Gras. Portions are right, the people are friendly and the food will have you talking about it for weeks to come.
Review Source:Went here for dinner a few weeks ago on a Friday night. Â There isn't much room to sit, and the place was very loud. Â The food was good, but definitely not worth the price. Â $120 for 2 dinners and 4 drinks. Â That's pretty steep in my book, and def not worth the price. Â If you're looking for quiet and romantic, definitely skip this place.
Review Source:Owner Kent Steels is a walking encyclopedia of wine as well as chef extraordinaire. Â Have had almost all of the dishes on the menu over the past 10 + years. Â All excellently prepared with beautiful presentation. Â Wine selection and values are outstanding. There is a deli with meats, cheeses, and more for take out. Â Agree with carol o below: ask Kent or one of the staff to suggest a nice bottle from the shelves to go along with your dinner. Â You get the most attention when it is least crowded (duh).
--- SammyR
Amazing food, great knowledgeable staff and relaxing atmosphere. Yes The average meal takes about 2 hours but isnt that the point of going to a nice restaurant? To be able to relax and not be rushed out as soon as your plate is empty? We really enjoyed our experience at Clusters & Hops and will certainly return. Â
We had the meat and cheese plate, filet of dover sole, sliced duck breast with truffled squash and bread pudding cake and it was ALL delicious. Prices were well below our expectations considering the food and service quality.
Clusters and Hops is as good as it gets in Tallahassee. From the outside it looks a little strange, since its attached to a mattress store, but just trust me---go inside. It has the atmosphere of a hidden little food oasis. Everything on the menu is high class, but you MUST try the Truffle Mac. I've never had anything so delicious. The waiters are highly knowledgeable about the many wines they carry, but they can come off as a little snooty if you don't know very much about wine. For me, it's all part of the experience of being in a super classy restraunt, but I can understand why others would find it uncomfortable.
Review Source:Move on over, Cypress! Clusters & Hops has won my vote for the "best restaurant in Tallahassee."
So, I've been to Napa, Sonoma, Temecula...and to wineries in Florida. When I walked in to C & H it gave me a nostalgic feeling. I felt like I was in a vineyard side restaurant sipping on delicious vino while overlooking the mountains.
Oh wait, snap out of it, Katy....you're in Tally!
Right when you walk in, you will see a little wine shop. They have a good selection of imported wines and domestic wines as well. If you buy a bottle of wine, you could take it to the table to dine with you and pay a $7.50 corkage fee! Â $7.50... you read right! In Miami, corkage fees are about $20 so that wow'd me, big time!
In the shop, they also sell cheeses, oils (including truffle oil), and vinegar. Nice touch and more good selections.
Then you walk towards the back and to your surprise, you will find a little bar which only has wine and beer. There are tables around the bar (about 10 or less) and a back, very dark, and romantic, room with only three tables. This is where my boyfriend and I chose to sit. We were celebrating our four year anniversary so it was a cute touch.
We had our bottle of wine and it was delicious. We got the Moscato on the menu. Yum! Very sweet...how I like it ;)
Our server was very nice and attentive. The food did take a long while to come out; however, I had heard overheard him tell another couple that there is only one chef and the restaurant was really busy, so I didn't mind.
On to the food.....
Cheese and meat platter for two- about $13-$15. Â Wow! Very good, quality cheeses that matched perfectly with the meats, olives, and grapes they were served with. They gave a generous amount for $13! Â In Sonoma, we found a restaurant that served a similar dish for almost double the price so I definitely appreciated this.
I ordered the coffee crusted filet mignon medallions. Very good. Cooked perfectly (about medium). The flavor was spot on. The presentation was superb. It was served with potatoes, carrots, and asparagus. Very, very, good. But not as good as......
My boyfriend's ostrich and duck dish. I genuinely appreciated this dish. It gave our taste buds the mouthgasm we desired. I will forever remember this meal because of the duck and ostrich in and of themselves.
The duck was like butter that melted in your mouth. It was cooked perfectly. The ostrich was a bit too rough for me but it still tasted amazing and my boyfriend loved it. It was served with veggies and topped with a parmesan crisp (yum!)
See the pictures I posted for more info.
The mac and cheese infused with truffle oil was really good too. However, I've had the same dish at "Red Steakhouse" in Miami which was significantly better. Not saying I didn't like it, I just know there's something better out there so I did not appreciate it as much.
Anyways, the bill came out to about $110. In my eyes, that's a steal for the quality of the food they served and a bottle of wine. Keep up the good work, C & H.
If you're looking for a romantic dinner or a nice place for wine/cheese with some friends or loved ones, I most definitely recommend this place.
This is the sort of place you need someone to bring you to - it doesn't look like much of anything from the road, and even if you go inside, at first glance it just looks like an unassuming little high-end grocery store. Go just a bit further, though, and you'll realize it's also a restaurant. Take a seat alongside some good friends and order something, and you'll realize it's a VERY GOOD restaurant, as well.
Clusters & Hops is delicious. Everything they create off the main menu is worthy of your attention. We shared a cheese platter, the truffle mac n' cheese (extreme truffle-ness), eggplant focaccia bread, and duck quesadillas (incredible). We loved everything so much, we even went for dessert, which was actually the only sour note of the night - they weren't bad, per se, but they were very underwhelming across the board. We got three different ones, and the only one we really enjoyed was the root beer float, which was great. The others (chocolate assortment and balsamic-drizzled parmesean) were surprisingly meh.
The only other downside is that this place gets crowded fast and has extremely limited seating, so you better get there early, and they're a bit understaffed - prepare yourself for a long, looooong meal. If that's the sort of experience you're in the mood for, great - if not, you may want to look elsewhere until you're ready to put in a lot of time for a lot of taste.
What a find! Being situated right next to a bed showroom and an unglamorous parking lot, this place doesn't look like much from the outside, but once you're in, you could be in a deli in the middle of New York. And the staff know their wines, cheeses, sherries and ports. I had the tuna and my friend had the goat cheese salad, both of which were fantastic. What a breath of fresh air.
Review Source:Quite good for Tallahassee's stds
We had the cheese board which i love the sesame crackers and the Portugal castelinhos. There was a good variety of 6 cheeses, olives and grapes. Good for $9.
The soup of the day tastes thin and watered down. The flavor was not robust enough for a roasted tomato and red pepper soup. We drank it with the olives from the cheeseboard to make the flavor come out.
We ordered the duck and pork shank for mains and added foie gras. Duck was over-cooked and under-seasoned. Sides were raw! Pork was good on its own and not a fan of the sauce and pasta. Foie gras was slightly overcooked on the inside and not seared to a nice slightly crisp on outside.
I feel that the cutlery used can be in better condition for a restaurant that charges this price.
Service was slow and the meal lasted more than 2.5 hours!
Tip : Buy a bottle of wine from the store instead of ordering it off the menu.
Long time user, first time reviewer. Â In a word: phenomenal. Â Perhaps I'm a bit spoiled (from Miami Beach), but it didn't matter. Â I went here based on yelp reviews, and it didn't disappoint. Â The beer/wine selection is top notch, and the food was terrific. Â My only complaint is that my take out order's silverware consisted of two knives. Â I ate my ostrich and duck with these "chopsticks" and was totally satisfied. Â Go here now.
PS - it may look closed from the outside, but if the neon sign's a-glowing, you should be a-going.
Tallahassee's best kept secret, I hesitate to rave in public about this place. I'm leaving soon, however, so I will pass on the wonderful knowledge of this local fare to others. :)
Best date location within a 25 mi radius, at least. First date, anniversary, fifth date, get-me-out-of-the-doghouse-date, best friend date, doesn't mater. Intimate ambiance, fabulous wine selection and overall setting comparable to NYC's famous Serendipity--this is a win across the board. Dim lighting and a quiet crowd provide an element of romance that isn't found elsewhere in Tallahassee, and it's hidden location next to a mattress shop on Monroe insure you almost don't find it.
The cheese plate and duck are personal favorites. Service is a bit slow, but you won't want to rush out anyway. Did I mention the wine selection?
Another favorite of mine in Tallahassee. If you were to move this place to Orlando, it would be more like $45/plate versus $20 -ish. It is too good to miss! The menu is perfectly designed by their chefs and many of the produce used to prepare the dishes comes from local farmers markets. I once had their vegetable bisque and I still miss it, that was YEARS ago! The venison/beef dish is to die for. I personally love ANYTHING thing that is served with a balsamic glaze, which many of their dishes are. The foccacia bread and mac n'cheese are as good as it gets! Oh Clusters & Hops, I miss you so!
Review Source:I have only been to this place twice, but each time was amazing. Once was for dinner, the other for dessert. For dinner, my girlfriend and I had the ostrich and duck. Each time I took a bite to eat, my mouth would stop chewing and just become agape with amazement by the savory taste.
Along with their extensive wine selection, they also have a small store which offers many different gourmet food items from across world. This includes meats and bread available at select times, but ordering is always something that can be done so just let them know what you want and they will do their best to help you out.
Great pricing as well. Their lunch menu (last time I checked) was their dinner menu, but done on a smaller scale, and I believe with some turned into sandwiches (but I could be wrong here).
4 of us started off with the cheese platter and salami for for. Â A Fab selection of French cheeses paired with cured salami. Truffled Mac and cheese followed and was well received by most, a bit on the runny side. Pate platter was another hit! Highly recommended. Â
Ostrich and duck entree was yum, tender duck melts in your mouth, ostrich had appearance of Mignon but much tougher meat. Black Angus thinly slices over baguette was great as was the crusted halibut. Portions are very generous. Â Sauces are overly buttey, this is not a place where you eat while dieting.
Desserts: mocha creamed brulee looked curdled, but tasted great. Death by chocolate was rich and heavy as expected. 7 chocolates was a joke! Look at photo attached, the mini drink in the middle is a milkshake! What? NO.
Great wines! Rare wines! Affordable Bottles.
Overall space needs some major updating, starting with the hard chairs from the 60's, not cool.
I'd definitely come back here to try more of the menu.
Waiting for my daughter to get off of work I finally stopped in here to check them out. What a very unusual place. When you walk in it is so small with small aisles and wooden shelves with wine and Champagne bottles for sale. Then as you walk around you spot a deli case filled with cold cuts and cheese, then in the back a small bar with a few tables for dining. They also carry specialty olive oil. Two separate staff members approached me asking if I needed any help, they were very friendly. They let me check out the wine selection without bothering me and as I left they even gave me a menu to take.
The wine selection is small but fabulous. Oh I spotted so many boutique wine's that are so hard to find. One example "Kistler" Chardonnay oh wow, so many great wine's. Prices were average. The Kistler was $44.99, not bad. For a wine novice, this place rocked my world. Seriously, great selections of wine. They had a few magnum's as well.
Then the cheese that they offer from all over the world is amazing. From Australia, Belgium, England, France, Holland, Italy, Sweden, Norway, Spain, Germany, US, etc...most are 1/2 lb. by the price. How cool to grab a fantastic bottle of wine and order some amazing cheese to accompany.
Their lunch and dinner menu blew me away. From sandwiches, to pasta, Ostrich, Escargot, Caviar's, Veal, Duck, Lamb, Quail, Trout Filet, Crawfish, Rabbit, holy moly they offer so much. I think they have covered everything to please anyone. Surprisingly, this place is so small I have no clue how they can offer so much food.
I am looking so forward to visiting again and dining inside to check out some amazing dishes or cheese. But heck if you are looking for a great bottle of wine for yourself or as a gift you must visit. Well worth the trip. Best wine shop in Tallahassee.
See you soon!!
I've loved this restaurant for years. Â The food is always perfectly prepared, from the cheese plates to the delicious medium rare duck served over truffled squash that I had on Friday night. Â I love browsing for a cheap bottle of wine that I can't find anywhere else and that white truffle oil I just ran out of at home. Â This is a place that you can stop in for dinner almost any night of the week, make yourself at home, enjoy an amazing meal, drink a couple of glasses of wine, pick up some bottles for home, and still escape for under $70. Â I find that pretty awesome, especially compared to the prices at other local Tally restaurants.
I realized when talking to the servers the other night, too, that most of them have been there for at least 4 or 5 years. Â That's practically unheard of in Tallahassee terms, but there is a reason for that consistency. Â This is a place that has the old-fashioned value of putting out really extraordinary food and wonderful, reasonably priced wine. Â The servers know a lot about the food, and the wine, so you get the added benefit of a person who can make thoughtful recommendations in both areas, and these folks are true professionals.
Every dish goes the extra mile so that every bite is a complex combination of delicious layors of flavor that both compliment and intrigue. Â My favorites are the cheese plate (omg, the cumin-scented olives--to die for), the duck, the osso bucco, the scallops, and the absolutely incredible mac & cheese. Â If you're the sensuous sort who can have a little gasm in your mouth because it's that amazing, this is your kind of restaurant.
Prices are surprisingly reasonable, you'd easily pay $40-50 per plate in a larger city for this kind of quality.
One thing you should be aware of: Â This is a tiny little restarant with a tiny little kitchen. Â They don't do parties larger than 5-6, and they don't take reservations, so if you show up at 7 on a Friday, be prepared for a wait.
As suspected, I liked Clusters & Hops a lot more when I stuck to small plates. Â We tried the eggplant lavosh, red pepper/tomato soup of the day, warm goat cheese salad, and (of course) the "crack in a crock" mac and cheese. Â Everything was as it should be: delicious, creative, high-quality, and priced appropriately!
One person in our group went for an entree. Â She had the same reaction I did last time: the menu is a bit misleading (tries to make the food sound "fancier" and better than it really is). Â Every dish seems to be 50% baby carrots, despite the fact that only one of them (the pork shank) says so in its description!
For example, the duck came with TONS of baby carrots despite not being mentioned at all. Â As for the "port-soaked cranberries" boasted about on the menu?? Â There were literally four tiny, shriveled cranberries used as a garnish on the edges of the plate. Â That's it...
Dessert was a little better this time. Â Our waiter recommended the root beer float and apple praline parfait. Â I casually asked him what he thought of the dessert trio (see my prior review) and he was not shy about telling me how much it sucks. Â (Validation!!)
All in all, I'd come back for the appetizers, soups, and salads. Â The entrees have been very disappointing and feel like a rip off. Â If I could ignore the main plates I would give Clusters & Hops four or five stars, I'm sure--but since I can't, I'm going to stick with three!
Ate here last night after looking around for a place I'd never been before. Â I feel like I've been missing out -- how did I not know this was so close to my house?
Anyway, the atmosphere is really interesting. Â It's a store and restaurant, so you walk through the shelves to get back to the bar and tables. Â Between that, the lighting, and the service the atmosphere is really nice. Â (However, decor is kinda, uh, odd. Â Sort of 80's reject furniture, slightly overdone wall treatments and pictures picked up from Target.) Â My boyfriend found the seating at the tall tables incredibly uncomfortable, though!
We had a meat/cheese appetizer, the chicken & ostrich as entrees, and desserts... With wines throughout. Â GREAT food. Â Lots of recommendations and enthusiasm from our server, which added to the experience.
There are so many good things to say I can't isolate a single one to say it.
Incredible food, great service, quirky setting--what more could you want? Cheese and meat plate for an appetizer--great assortment and helpful description of each from the server. My entree was the duck with truffled squash, partner had the fillet--both were fantastic and wonderfully presented. For dessert, excellent coffee, with me having the banana foster walnut cake and partner the trio.
We are definitely going again and have it at the top of the "cool places to take visitors" list.
Hand's down, the best place in Tally. Â Look at the other reviews, which I think more eloquently and comprehensively say most of what I planned to say here. Â The couple nuggets I would add is that, if you aren't looking to drop a cool 20+ per person then go for lunch. Â They offer similar items as they do for dinner, most for about 1/2 the price.
My friends love the truffle mac-n-cheese. Â My personal favorites are the Angus Mackie, which adds the mac-n-cheese to sliced Black Angus Roast Beef & truffle horseradish aioli, grilled goat cheese sandwich, and the panko-crusted seared ahi tuna served with delicious, delectable Wasabi mashed potatoes.
The desserts are awesome and it is best to go with friends so you can share multiple options.
I was thinking about this place today. I live in Chicago now, and thankfully, have more foodie choices than Tallahassee, but this one should not be missed. It was my favorite, gourmet restaurant in Tallahassee.
My friends and I were usually broke, so we would scrape together some money for cheese boards, duck quesadillas, wine, and  their Granny Apple Pie cocktail (apple cider ale mixed with caramel liquor) and had to skip the dinner menu. $22 is the norm for a good meal in Chicago, but not in Tally, and we were broke college students.
My dad took me here for my graduation dinner though so I finally got to have a real meal here. We both had the duck, and my bf had the filet mignon. Everything was cooked to perfection, delicious, and just as good as I anticipated.
I definitely miss this place. Check it out!
Clusters & Hops is a lovely little hole-in-wall in Tallahassee, Florida, that combines an eclectic wine and cheese retail shop with a fabulous fine dining experience.
We started by selecting a bottle of wine from the shop. There's a $7 cork fee but you pay retail for the wine, so definitely a value, plus there's a great selection.
For starters we order the Cheese and Sliced Meat Board, with imported cheeses, meats, olives, crackers, grapes. The spicy array tasted great with California Zinfandel we selected.
For our entrée we shared the Sliced Duck Breast on White Truffled Squash. It comes with (from their menu) "a duck demi-glaze, asparagus, smoked port soaked cranberries, a 1927 Sherry reduction & Oregon Alba Mushrooms." We passed on the option to add the Seared Foie Gras and were glad we did. This dish was beautiful on arrival and was tender, flavorful, and cleverly accented with rosemary and other spices. It wonderfully combined sweet and savory in a most rich yet delicate way.
For dessert we tried The Trio which combined pistachio gelato, peanut butter cake, and a s'more onto one plate. They were arranged separately so it was more of a sampling experience which suited us perfectly since we are usually in the mood for just a little something sweet.
This place is highly recommended. In a town where many restaurants *attempt* to mimic places in larger metro areas, Clusters & Hops stands out as a unique and enjoyable experience.
There are times in ones life when food gives one a new sense of awareness; when it tickles your soul, and when it makes one glad to be alive...Clusters and hops rouses all of that in me
The first time I had the SLOW ROASTED PORK SHANK OSSOBUCO, on Tagliatelle with a dark chocolate shiraz demi-glaze of carmelized onion, baby carrots & wild mushroom madeira, and loved it...The pasta was fantastic,and the pork was rich in flavor with a beautiful presentation.... though I did miss having barely with my OSSOBUCO.
The second time I had the HERB & ESPRESSO CRUSTED FILET MIGNON MEDALLIONS, black truffle Maytag Blue Cheese, roasted 'Parm' Potatoes, wild mushrooms & cognac carmelized onions, and literally had a "moment" with the food. I still think back to that meal, and often dream of the symphonic complexities it produced in my mind and mouth.
The third time, I had the SLICED DUCK BREAST ON WHITE TRUFFLED SQUASH with a duck demi-glaze, asparagus, smoked port soaked cranberries, a 1927 Sherry reduction & Oregon Alba Mushrooms, and was once again taken to a place of dreams, and visions of a better life.
What can I say about this place besides that it amazes me, it excites the foodie in me, and makes me embrace my decadent nature. Â
If you want a gastronomical holiday eat here. Â If you enjoy good wine, drink here. Â The staff can casually (and enthusiastically) speak about the subtle flavors of the wine they carry all day.
It's dark, it's small and cozy,and you cannot go wrong eating here.
If I could give it 6 stars I would.
Additionally they carry a full line of digestif's and dessert wines and port
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