Jibarra aims to introduce a novel approach to Mexican cuisine. We take deep-rooted, traditional Mexican dishes, use modern cooking techniques and present them in a contemporary way. You combine that with a unique Spanish & South American wine list, and margaritas made with the best tequila and freshest ingredients and you get amazing results. We are located in the historic Raleigh Depot building. The former train depot, built in 1912, provides an open, high-energy atmosphere. In the center, our Tequila Tower dominates the space, showcasing all our premium tequila bottles. Whether it be a casual weekday lunch or dinner, a multi-course experience or just hanging out at our bar, come check us o

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anonymous on Superpages

★★

13 years ago

I've been to the old location and now to the new one. The new items actually have some "flavor" and are quite tasty - but the old items (the ones they brought with them from the old location) are very much lacking - they are a bit on the bland side, not what you would expect from what is called an authentic Mexican restaurant. Apparently they brought the chef iwith them. The atmosphere is nice - not as cold and sterile as the old location. But overall, it's the food that counts and quite honestly, I think they should consider hiring a new chef who can re-do the old menu and give old food some new flavor.

jd334 on Citysearch

13 years ago

Terrible – After college I served/bartended at a small family-owned high end Mexican restaraunt. Since I've been in Raleigh I've struggled to find a good Mexican restaraunt. I had driven past Jibarra in North Raleigh but never got up there to try it out so I was excited for the downtown opening. The location is great. Its in the warehouse district close to The Pit (recently opened restaraunt) and Five Star (great Chinese food) Jibarra itself is in some sort of renovated warehouse and the decor is nice so it has a very cool and modern feel to it. Right now that is the only good thing I can say about this place. Management has no idea what they are doing. Drinks took forever to come out. We waited about 20 minutes for the first round of Margarita's, one of which came out with no tequila. Even those that were made were correctly were not all that good. We had their signature Margaritas which use the house reposado and Grand Marnier instead of triple sec. We were assured that they use fresh squeezed lime juice, but to me it tasted the a margarita made with mix that you get from Chili's. I can't say much about the food because we really didn't get to try it. I was told an hour after ordering that they did not have the dish I ordered-they were out of it. They were also out of another of my party's order. I asked what could be made quick. I got the Quesadilla de Camaron about an hour and a half after ordering. I'm sure this comes frozen and the kitchen deep fries it. It should be on the kid's menu. My girlfriend got the Tacos de Carne Asada (this was a late dinner-we were focused on drinks and small plates) This was not -so-tender, dried out steak served on top of mashed potatoes with a few tortilla shells. My girlfriends brother in laws food was freezing cold and the server told him he wasn't surprised it had been sitting around for a while. Don't go to this place. For a better experience try Dos Taquitos off Creedmor in North Raleigh. Watch out for the bean shot!

pugga on Citysearch

13 years ago

What happened Jibarra? – My husband and I loved Jibarra at it's original location- the only thing lacking was the location. The food and service was always fabulous. I was so excited to see Jibarra move downtown as it was one of my favorite restaurants. I told everyone to go there. Last night we went to the new location and we were sorely disapointed by the service. You can tell Jibarra now has different priorites. I expected a few bumps in their transition to the new space but the new staff is not as knowledgable or professional as it should be for this caliber of food. After waiting an hour for an appetizer I asked our waitress to cancel it. We then received it a half hour later. When we finally got our bill our waitress told us "we took off the appetizer-even though you still got it" Please don't do us any favors! I understand the waitstaff has nothing to do with the slow kitchen but there was no explanation or apologies by our waitress- we just sat there wondering. I hope Jibarra can work out the kinks and learn to hire better staff.

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blue321 on Citysearch

13 years ago

"fancy" Mexican – Went tonight for a friend's birthday. Got there early, and sat at the bar. Took nearly 20 minutes to recieve drinks for myself and one friend. Was asked only once in nearly an hour if we needed anything else. Ordered an appitizer that never came; instead was repeated given something that was not ordered. Had an 8:30 reservation was not seated until 9:00. Original appetizer finally arrived and it looked overcooked and as if it had been sitting for a while. The waiter seemed nice enough, and knowledgable about the menu (the menu was pretty limited). Did not order a meal due to having to leave by a certain time. Was all around NOT impressed. Will not be going back again.

menders on Citysearch

14 years ago

Best upscale "Mexican" around!...reopening in Nov! – My husband and I tried Jibarra after I read about it in Metro Magazine back at the beginning of the year. We LOVED it. The location was terrible (off of Six Forks Rd), but we had a great experience. We were given a free app from the chef (cold, Leek soup on a ladle), which was delicious. My husband ordered the softball steak, which he loved and I got Mahi Mahi over Lobster mashed potatoes....excellent! The drinks were also great. My husband especially loved the Tequila flights. We were so disappointed when we decided to try it out again for his bday a few weeks ago and drove there, just to find another restaurant had opened up! I am so happy to have found out Jibarra will be reopening in November in a much better locale!

raleigh2dine on Citysearch

14 years ago

Not worth the dollars – Nice environment. Too little food for the dollars. Decent service. Decent food. Not much else to say except there are certainly better places in the Raleigh area.

Dhildebrand on Citysearch

14 years ago

What a waste. – A group of my friends went to Jibarra on saturday night. First impression was great, the interior of the restaurant was very nice and inviting. We did not have any appetizers or anything but the waitress did bring out hibiscus flower juice and some fruit/vegetable combination on a stick. We tried this and were anything but impressed, but hey it was free. So i ordered ribs and my friend ordered the fajitas. The ribs were a poor cut and were very fatty and disgusting, while the fajitas had a good flavor, there were only three and the tortillas were only about 3-4inches wide. To wrap everthing up, we ended up leaving spending over $30 each. We were all hungy still, so we went to rudinos, and had four full size grinders and a pitcher of beer for less than one meal at Jibarra. Save yourself, dont waist your time.

CaryPete on Citysearch

14 years ago

Not as good as the Hype – My wife and I went last week. Neither of us were impressed at all. The Margaritas were OK at best, with the Chipotle one downright strange. I had a clams and Octopus dinner that tasted like salt soup. Not impressed. They brought out a drink with something on a stick - on the house and worth every bit of that. It was made from some flower I think. Bottom line - we have eaten in many nice places in many large cities. Jibarra has a lot of hype, but for sure our last visit here

123569 on Citysearch

14 years ago

good food very bad customer service – I made reservations for fourteen people to celebrate my husbands birthday at Jibarra's and from the time we arrived the service was bad,from food coming late and cold to staff trying to charge $5.00 for us to cut the cake we brought to the restaurant. A few of my guest were charged a different amount then what was on the bill and one guest was charged twice. Now the service should been as good as the looks of the place for the prices they charge to eat there,and not the sever nor the manager working that evening of march 13th offered to compensate any of us on the $600.00 bill we had. I was very disappointed at the whole experience.

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