This restaurant is a beautiful mixture of modern and cozy spanish style.We ordered manchego cheese, tacos, crispy shrimp, paella, and bread pudding. Everything was really wonderful and fresh. The pork tacos were a bit greasy for my taste, but the rest of the did made up for it. The Manchego cheese, Mahi and jerk chicken tacos were well worth the visit.My favorite was the bread pudding. It was crispy on the outside with a gooey caramel'type topping. They serve it with vanilla ice cream, but the pudding was so good I didn't want the ice cream. We will definitely be back.
No wonder Babalu means baby, I love you-- cause I do love it! I walked in to a beautiful foyer under these (to die for) bohemian light fixtures. To the left was a large bar covered in textures and colors that were throughout the entire restaurant-- even the bathroom doors had unique details that just made the space really special. Two smiling faces were to my right ready to answer my questions even though they had a lot of phone calls coming in. They were on a small wait for a table (30-45 mins) but showed me an open seat at the bar where I could wait for the rest of my party and get a cocktail. The bartender was friendly and helped me pick a margarita and I browsed their large menu excited to try the new options since new management took over. I ended up getting seated only after 20 mins because the waitlist was cut in half when a large party cancelled. Our server let us know she was putting in an order and would promptly return with water-- she was wonderful and informative and provided great service.Fast forward since then, I come here all the time! My absolute favorites are the steak, the guac, the peach burrata salad, and if you go do NOT leave without trying the beet crostinis! I was hesitant before walking in due to some of the past reviews, but I am happy I did. Every restaurant that opens during a pandemic deserves all the support in the world from their local community and this one has earned it.PS- one day I got a tour of the pods they have for special events and snapped a shot on my way to the maple room (did you know it connects to Maple Hall & it's upstairs bar?!) here it is and a pic of their famous neon sign and my steak to-go dinner.
As a first-time customer, I was impressed. I liked the pink theme of the restaurant, the service, and the food. One of my favorite sandwiches is the Cuban, and BABALU’s Cuban sandwich did not disappoint. Just about everything is made in house. I thought it was delicious.
My family and I visited on a Sunday evening for dinner. We were able to be seated immediately. The waiter Aaron was very polite and attentive. We had the kid's pasta, the Cuban sandwich with fries and tacos (1 Mahi and 1 shrimp). Everything came out fairly quickly and freshly made. The tacos were delicious and perfectly cooked. My husband enjoyed the Cuban as always (one of his favorites).
WOW!! What a great additional to maple hall AND the downtown area!! The food is accessible by having a wide range of prices available on the menu. Their drinks are made well and consistent each time I go in. Their BRUNCH is a must eat !! They have low cost mimosas/bottles of champagne too! If you haven't been you need to go. My favorite are the pork taco with street corn, paella, and the red sangria.
Great vibe at this place. Haven't been since the remodel and it did not disappoint. We got the dip trio. It was delicious. The black bean hummus was a real surprise dish. I was not expecting it to be that good. And the chips were thick, fresh, and perfectly salted.
I love the aesthetic of this place. We went between lunch and dinner, so we practically had the place to ourselves, but I'm sure it's packed in the evenings. The charcuterie was good, but my favorite part was the preserves. I had the grilled peach and burrata salad. Great combination of flavors, but it could have used a little salt. I would go back.
We had a really lovely dinner here tonight! Cameron was our waiter at the bar and he was super friendly and attentive! We’re really impressed by the changes they’ve made since they redid the restaurant. The drinks are always wonderful here, and we’re obsessed with the pesto, beer crostinis! It’s such a wonderfully creative and delicious dish!! It’s by far one of our favorite appetizers in all of Knoxville. And I always get the paella as well and it’s spectacular. I’m so glad they have such great and different options rather than just pub food downtown. Keep doing what you’re doing! We’re always so happy to come here!
Torn on leaving a negative review. On a seemingly slow night (day before thanksgiving) we had to wait 60 min for a table in a less than half full restaurant due to limited wait staff. Understandable. I asked if this was going to effect food from the kitchen and they said no. We waited.Service started quick, with appetizers. Fried manchego seems to be cooked In oil that was too cool.Entrees, mostly tacos, came out over a very wide time range. First people could have eaten all their tacos by the time the second people got theirs, and same until the third group got theirs.Of those tacos, most looked small, oily, and lacking any finishing bits.Burger, advertised to have among other things, guacamole and bacon, had neither.Wait time is understandable given what is happening. Very unfortunate that it carried over to the kitchen as well.
Atmosphere is the only reason I am not leaving a less review. Food was bland. We saw our server twice in over an hour. food took 45 kin to arrive and it was as not even busy.