Story Bar + Kitchen - Anaheim (CA)

5 /5 Patrick Vuong: Bottom Line Up Front: Story Bar & Kitchen serves up delicious food in a place in a fun, fantasy-like setting — just be prepared to pay premium prices. The Setting: As the name implies, this establishment aims to give you a dining experience that whisks you to another land, someplace you might find in a fable or Disney movie. Think "Alice in Wonderland" meets "Beauty and the Beast." The booths are large, comfy, and decorated with a book motif. Theres unique artwork and dim lighting. Heck, even the bathroom has faux alligator skin wallpaper. The cool aesthetics make for a fun outing. The Food: Ive only been here once, so I cant speak for the entire menu, but what I did have was delicious. We went during Happy Hour (more on this later) and ordered miso butter noodles, braised short rib tacos, and parmesan garlic fries. The miso butter noodles were actually more spicy than expected (normally red pepper flakes are pretty mild) but the texture, flavors, and smells were spot on. The tacos were excellent — picture an authentic Mexican street taco, but elevated on every level. The fries were solid, but not the best Ive ever had. The garlic and seasoning were plentiful and tasty, but the texture of the fries themselves were just average. The Service: Everyone there was super friendly, polite, accommodating, and knowledgeable. Cant say enough good things about the staff. The Pricing: Here lies the rub — if you want delicious food, service, and atmosphere, youre gonnna have to pay for it. And at Story youll pay a pretty penny. I would consider this a premium sitdown restaurant and would go here on special occasions or, as I did recently, during Happy Hour when a shortened menu provides good discounts. The Conclusion: My true rating for Story is 4.5 out of 5 — I subtracted a half-point for the steep prices and the fries, which were satisfactory but not the perfect. However, since I cant give a half-star rating here, Ill round up to 5 out of 5 because I like Story so much Im willing to overlook the minor flaws.

5 /5 Stephanie Hogue: Wonderful food, decor was beautiful, service was on point, even if you cant eat another bite, get the carrot cake. Worth it. The best carrot cake Ive ever had. The lobster and short rib pasta were also 10 out of 10. ♡ will be back to try more menu items

5 /5 Jay Mcclusky: We decided to check out their happy hour. Drinks were reasonably priced. The bartender was friendly and the place is beautiful! Best of all the happy hour food was actually good. We had the green beans and short rib tacos, both were excellent!

5 /5 Heather Le Biller: We loved this place so much that we went once for dinner and again for brunch while on vacation. The interior is dreamy, decorated to perfection. The food is outstanding and the cocktails are so flavorful and unique. The service is excellent and both waiters were attentive and friendly. I’d highly recommend this place to everyone.