TRU

The place has great potential but the ordering system is so inefficient. If you just want to have one drink and a meal it’s fine, but after that it’s easier to just go someplace else where you can just ask the bartender to hand you another beer, as simple as that.

It also uses single use plastic utensils which in 2023 shouldn’t be the go-to for places this innovative.

TRU is one of my favorite spots in Chapel Hill. It offers a wonderful overall experience with delightful staff, a welcoming atmosphere to all, and delicious food and drinks at an affordable price. I'm always impressed at how TRU can keep its prices low with such fresh ingredients.

TRU has a laid back and beautiful atmosphere that is always inviting and accessible to everyone, whether inside at the nice wood carved tables or outside on the open patio. It's not intimidating like other wine bars can be and offers food and drinks at price points more accessible than other restaurants in the area. To call TRU classist is simply laughable, given how they've made such an effort to keep their prices low when others in the area have not. And I think we can all agree that ordering online is not some challenging novel experience -- it's 2022, y'all. We've been doing this for years across so many aspects of our lives and it's become a convenient system for most.

I love going to TRU and always have a great experience here, whether food, drinks, or both. With a great atmosphere, affordable food and drink, and inviting staff, I know I'll keep coming back.

Went here for a recruitment event this past week. Decor and cleanliness seemed solid, though the lights in the area we had reserved were incredibly dim to the point of being difficult to make out the expressions of the people you were talking with.

I had heard some horror stories about how hard it was to order here because you have to order through a website you access through a QR code. Coworkers said they no longer went to TRU because of the website ordering system. Some people I was with struggled, and repeatedly took five literal minutes to figure out how to place an order, but I didn’t find the system terrible.

The wait times were atrocious though. I had ordered a couple of beers and noticed that they seemed to take quite a while. This wait time was particularly annoying because when ordering you (quite reasonably) have to put in your location so the server knows where to deliver your drink to. I ordered a beer while sitting in the couch area as I wanted a drink before mingling with people on the other side of the room. I then had to sit there on by the couches until my drink finally showed up so I could more freely move around wherever I wanted, which was a pain.

With my third beer (at a time when things weren’t particular busy) I started a timer as soon as I placed my order. The beer took 21 minutes and 17 seconds to arrive. After the server dashed off to the other side of the restaurant I took a sip and discovered I had been served a fruity cider rather than the simple lager I had ordered the better part of a half hour ago.

Seems like a fine place to get food with a friend (wait times wouldn’t be as big of a deal for that), but I will be advocating against my department holding any events here again. The clunky ordering system was just a horrible obstacle to getting decent service and actually mingling with people.

If management wants to fix things, they need to make it possible to order a beer by just going up to the bar and paying for it. Until that basic service in available, I wont be coming back, and I imagine the owner/manager will keep defending the website ordering system in their review replies even as more and more of my social circle avoids doing any business with TRU because of it.

Tru is one of my favorite spots in Chapel Hill. Great food-so many options, always a great beer selection, and really great prices. I always take people here when they come visit. Best spot for some working on a weekday afternoon or a relaxing weekend evening. Ordering is all online which is super convenient.
Truly the best spot in town.

The place was very nice. The meal with wine was pricey but it was worth it, the roast beef was excellent and wow, the selection of sauces was amazing. I randomly put random assortments of things and it tasted very good, compliments to the kitchen over me concocting some strange sandwich combo. I’m not sure if it would be a regular occurrence since the price was steep and I come to believe that Covid has bumped the prices compared to last year but that holds true to several places on franklin. Overall it was an excellent meal and enough so to justify the price, but don’t come in expecting a bargain of any kind.

The atmosphere and decor is awesome. However, as soon as you get to the point of purchase, good luck. The process to order is extremely cumbersome and confusing. I feel bad for the staff that have to find who ordered what…

Website is absolute trash. We had a group of 20 people and not a single person was able to make an order without help.

We have been here before but our last experience was the worst. We walked up to the bar that was 80% empty and ordered beers. The bartender told us we would have to order online. This has never happened before but ok, whenever, so we do. I typed in our entire beer order online, entire my credcard number, expiration date, code, etc. all while the bartender just stands there hanging out doing nothing and the app doesn’t register anything. I ask the bartender for help and she says oh yeah this has happened a lot lately. So she takes my phone and enters everything again. Entered my card number and info again. And in all of this time she could have already just poured our beers and swiped my card at least 2-3 times. But nope. Still ordering on the phone. To each his own but just seems a little lazy to me. Service was much better at the bar when a bartender just asked for my order and got my beer. This was
Annoying.

Staff is friendly which is why I gave it a 2 star.

Payment system made me change my phone settings out of dark mode. Because without doing this I couldn’t see what I was typing in. Everything was black. After changing my settings then it wouldn’t accept my card. After re-entering my information 3 times the option to submit payment finally showed up.

My friends had to reset their phone. Another had to bring up the QR code twice for it to work.

I’m all for convenience but this was a bit much and annoying

My food was awesome. The reason for the four-star is they don’t take cash, Venmo, or PayPal so if you don’t have a credit card with you, there is no way to order. Also, as a vegetarian, there was no protein option such as egg salad or hummus.

Tru has the best sandwiches in Chapel Hill, in my opinion. Their options for toppings are extensive, yet even piled high, their sandwiches are made cleanly and with care. They also have a great wine menu and good beer on tap. The upstairs balcony area is also a great spot for a cozy bite or drink. Truly one of my favorite places!