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9/3/2010 4:00:45 PM

I just showed my mom and she said she hopes it means he's going to open up Fins again

Maybe back up in North Raleigh

9/3/2010 4:01:55 PM

that would be awesome. it did so much better in that location.

although i still like buku so i hope this doesn't mean it is going to go downhill :/

[Edited on September 3, 2010 at 4:05 PM. Reason : .]

9/3/2010 4:05:12 PM

Fins was one of my fave restaurants in town.

My parents liked Buku but they liked Fins a lot more. My mom was VERY DISAPPOINTED when they did away with the "chef's table" when they opened Buku. That is where they always sat when they went to Fins downtown.

9/3/2010 4:08:45 PM

apparently NOT a fan of hopscotch as my FB newsfeed has told me like 28374029384 times this weekend. damn, buku. whats the prob? at first it seemed like it was all in good fun, but after the same old lameness over and over it starts to seem a little bitter. and bitter is not attractive.

Quote :

" While the rest of the town plays Hopscotch this weekend, we have love music & DJ's 7 days a week."

Quote :

" bu•ku welcomes all the in & out of town hipsters who have descended upon Raleigh to participate in Hopscotch. It's a funny game, though.....we just hope there's enough chalk & pebbles to go around. We are also debuting our new Bar Menu today....so, enjoy!!"

Quote :

" Jack is killin' it with the hipster mash-ups & remixes, say, if you're in line at the Lincoln Theater."

Quote :

"Two parties in a Fight to the Death Cage Match again tomorrow: Masala Beat Club (3-0) vs. Hopscotch (Hopscotch is a children's game which can be played with several players or alone. Hopscotch is a popular playground game)."

Quote :

"DJ Son of Sam is currently slaying it on the 1's & 2's.........then it's Masala Beat Club vs. Hopscotch........you can actually hear Flava-Flave on the P(h)atio right now......"

Quote :

"Hopscotch was cool, but bring on SparkCon!!! Check out the bu•ku music schedule http://www.sparkcon.com/venues/buku/ Starts Thursday, rolls through the Weekend, make your Reservations Early!!"

[Edited on September 13, 2010 at 1:11 AM. Reason : .]

9/13/2010 12:44:14 AM

food has gone way downhill since they opened

service was atrocious the last time we went

and motherfuckers can't even show respect for the greatest hype man the world has ever known

FUCK BUKU

9/13/2010 1:06:05 AM

hahaha

9/13/2010 1:08:07 AM

i agree, fuck buku

they were just pissed to be left out of the hopscotch fun

9/13/2010 1:09:05 AM

you think they legitimately thought they should be included?

they're not a venue by any stretch of the imagination

9/13/2010 1:12:36 AM

they think they are

Quote :

"7 NIGHTS A WEEK"

[Edited on September 13, 2010 at 1:13 AM. Reason : f]

9/13/2010 1:12:56 AM

jackpot's got DJs seven nights a week

still not a venue

9/13/2010 1:13:39 AM

yea seems like they were bitter about something

flava flav taking over their phatio

^ LOL. no, def not a venue.

[Edited on September 13, 2010 at 1:14 AM. Reason : .]

9/13/2010 1:13:40 AM

Quote :

"Masala Beat Club (3-0) vs. Hopscotch"

you're preaching to the choir

but don't tell buku

9/13/2010 1:16:57 AM

both the dudes I know that worked there said the dudes that run that place are complete pieces of shit

I've been souring on them ever since they deemed their patio to be the P(h)atio but the Hopscotch shit seals the deal. Why not embrace something that's bringing people downtown? Fuck this place

9/13/2010 1:46:31 AM

the p(h)atio thing is almost as bad as CHRIS LONDON'S BACKSTAGE

i hereby declare buku to be SOLAS EAST

9/13/2010 1:54:32 AM

LOL @ SOLAS EAST

and eric's comment on the buku wall

and the phucking phatio sucks.

9/13/2010 1:58:08 AM

Wait, you're telling me Buku went from awesome to crap before I ever even get a chance to eat there?

9/13/2010 2:10:33 AM

on the upside, it was too expensive to begin with, even when it was good

9/13/2010 2:11:53 AM

truth you had to eat like 9 things to get full. and they all cost like $8. it was delicious the one time i ate there though.

then their facebook started to annoy me so i didn't go back

then shit hit the fan so i didn't go back

now their facebook really annoys me so i won't go back

they should really get control of the FB updater. not funny. not witty. not cool.

9/13/2010 2:31:11 AM

i will say that i definitely don't consider The Hive to be a venue and that was included so maybe that's why they're bitter, but i didn't go to the Hive once this weekend and the only show I heard of that was good there was Active Child. and even then people were wondering why it was at the fucking Hive.

9/13/2010 2:43:27 AM

^I have very similar feelings about the choice.

Still, Buku would never have even been a consideration if I were proposing other locations, so I can't imagine why they've got their panties so tied up over it. Perhaps they went out of the way to really try and get in the festival and got let down pretty hard.

9/13/2010 2:47:47 AM

i've never been inside buku, just ate on the patio twice

is there a stage in there? at least the hive has a stage and a board

9/13/2010 3:06:15 AM

made me think of this
http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/36a8ceb3f0/kenny-powers-gets-signed-by-k-swiss

[Edited on September 13, 2010 at 5:39 AM. Reason : .]

9/13/2010 5:38:20 AM

I went the first weekend buku was open and it was amazing; maybe my favorite restaurant in Raleigh at the time.

However, I will not be returning.

9/13/2010 8:46:47 AM

more like blandku

9/13/2010 8:51:48 AM

I've heard nothing but good things about Bu Ku, but I've never been. Just took a look at the menu and it doesn't seem any more expensive than any other place of it's ilk in the area. The full out entrees are $$ but so at any other restaurant, too...

[Edited on September 13, 2010 at 8:53 AM. Reason : are.. typing quick]

9/13/2010 8:51:49 AM

i loveee this place. food from everywhere, and their drinks are amazing.

9/13/2010 9:14:30 AM

Quote :

"the p(h)atio thing is almost as bad as CHRIS LONDON'S BACKSTAGE i hereby declare buku to be SOLAS EAST"

hahah...GG
that was the first funny thing i have seen all morning

9/13/2010 9:33:37 AM

Quote :

"more like blandku"

9/13/2010 11:34:44 AM

^^^^You should still go. The food is great, this thread just happened to draw some haters in that regard. I really don't care about their Hopscotch grievances if they have good food.

9/13/2010 11:54:02 AM

it is pretty expensive though. those $8 plates each have about 3 pieces of meat on them.

the Tuna Tataki is definitely ftw

[Edited on September 13, 2010 at 12:12 PM. Reason : .]

9/13/2010 12:01:29 PM

^Yea, well, definitely have to be prepared for that. To be fair, that's the concept as it's been applied for a long time, they're not breaking expectations by having small plates that cost a lot.

9/13/2010 12:02:44 PM

their hopscotch grievances make them sound pretty petty and i dont think they will get my business until they apologize over facebook

9/13/2010 12:32:06 PM

they deleted my facebook comment btw

9/13/2010 12:48:05 PM

the plates at buku are priced similarly to those at humble pie, but humble pie has bigger portions

9/13/2010 1:01:55 PM

^ exactly

and to everyone who HASN'T been yet but has "heard good things" - that was at the beginning. the restaurant is changing. they just lost William D'Auvray (exec chef and founding partner) - which is why i bumped this thread a week or so ago. so if you wanna go, i'd suggest going sooner rather than later. well, i'd suggest having already gone but can't really fix that now.

Quote :

"To be fair, that's the concept as it's been applied for a long time, they're not breaking expectations by having small plates that cost a lot."

i think people understand this. people are just saying there are other, arguably nicer restaurants in the area with similar concepts, better food, bigger portions, same price range.

and now i'm starving. mmmm humble pie (boooo monday).

Quote :

"You should still go. The food is great, this thread just happened to draw some haters in that regard. I really don't care about their Hopscotch grievances if they have good food. "

when was the last time you went? just out of curiosity. and i don't really think it is the fact that they put down hopscotch, its their attitude in general. and yea, the way a place is run does influence what i think about it, regardless of the food + service (which, has gone downhill, allegedly). seems like a pretty shitty attitude for a fairly new local business to have. i don't think insulting something else, whatever it may be, is very smart marketing. but whatev. i think if any other downtown establishment were to have this attitude, people would feel the same way...

[Edited on September 13, 2010 at 1:16 PM. Reason : .]

9/13/2010 1:09:50 PM

food has to be absolutely incredible for me to deal with shitty attitudes

buku is not incredible

9/13/2010 1:34:47 PM

Quote :

"i think people understand this. people are just saying there are other, arguably nicer restaurants in the area with similar concepts, better food, bigger portions, same price range. and now i'm starving. mmmm humble pie (boooo monday). "

The point of a culinary endeavor isn't to top every experience you've ever had, and "better food" carries literally no weight in an urban environment where restaurants are so varied in their culinary foundations. Bigger portions may be important to some people, but then again I hope you're not going to an expensive small-plates restaurant to pig out. And price range? It's all expensive. As far as similar concepts go, what exactly in Downtown Raleigh fits the same concept as Buku?

Quote :

"when was the last time you went? just out of curiosity. and i don't really think it is the fact that they put down hopscotch, its their attitude in general. and yea, the way a place is run does influence what i think about it, regardless of the food + service (which, has gone downhill, allegedly). seems like a pretty shitty attitude for a fairly new local business to have. i don't think insulting something else, whatever it may be, is very smart marketing. but whatev. i think if any other downtown establishment were to have this attitude, people would feel the same way..."

What they say on Twitter or Facebook isn't what I consider when I make observations about their culinary value. Lots of downtown venues are full of snotty assholes, but they often make delicious food and serve it to me with great expedience. I don't approve of their mockery of Hopscotch, but I'm not going to make grand and uninformed statements about their eating establishment out of some misplaced loyalty jockeying. Even you yourself khcadwal said "although I still like buku so I hope this doesn't mean it is going to go downhill" at the top of this page, spoken after the chef left. I'm hesitant to think your new animosity and insistence of their lower standards is based on anything other than the annoying Facebook commentary they barraged you with.

As far as the last time I ate there, it was late August, and to my understanding Chef D'Auvray left early September. If the restaurant was going downhill already at the time then it escaped my awareness, as well as the other food writers I was dining with at the time--most of whom thought the service and food was better than the last time we'd come, which was about a month after their opening. You are right that it is a shame they lost their executive chef, but if someone has been wanting to try Buku I wouldn't turn them away because he left. D'Auvray is a talented and respectable chef, he wouldn't leave the restaurant in total dismay. It is very likely that his peers are more than capable of carrying on the business, and having some people test the food quality is more valued to our conversation than making assumptions about the "new quality".

^As far as dealing with shitty attitudes, you wouldn't be dealing with any. Their service is very noteworthy and the owners are fantastic people. Their Facebook updater is very unlikely to be the person you end up dealing with, and again it's a bit presumptuous to judge the "attitude" of a restaurant from their Facebook updates.

[Edited on September 13, 2010 at 2:00 PM. Reason : d]

9/13/2010 1:56:13 PM

has vinylbandit ever said something that kadwackle didn't immediately agree with

9/13/2010 2:00:18 PM

I spoke to the woman that confirmed with William D'Auvray about his reasons for leaving Buku. She can't/won't say much, but she said that his decision was based on being presented a valuable opportunity with another business, and that he did not seem to have any real disagreements with the current staff. It is odd though that he would leave a restaurant that he put so much work into so early on.

9/13/2010 2:04:32 PM

Quote :

"the owners are fantastic people."

i have heard the exact opposite from someone who used to cook there. and i've also heard that shittiness of the owners is the reason D'Auvray left

9/13/2010 2:04:40 PM

Well I've only spoken to D'Auvray and Degnan. Degnan was actually a lot nicer than D'Auvray, but then again it's possible D'Auvray is the source of the problem and he left on his own accord, instead of his leaving being a result of another.

Perhaps they're all really good actors. Granted, I'm not sure someone who works for them would necessarily always be in good faith with them.

9/13/2010 2:09:14 PM

Quote :

"has vinylbandit ever said something that kadwackle didn't immediately agree with "

hahaha. i don't even know where this comment is coming from. you mean more than one person can't like humble pie?! OMG!!!!

bottom line: if you and your food writing friends heart buku, GO YOU! i don't get why you have to get all up in arms over people not liking a restaurant as much as you and preferring others over it. maybe someone had bad service there while you did not have that same experience. doesn't seem that far fetched to me. maybe not everyone buys into the "global street food" concept. not really shocking. at all. name dropping and attempting to substantiate your claims by pointing out that you were dining with food writers only helps to further perpetuate my feelings about the establishment and its clientele.

*shrug*

9/13/2010 2:26:12 PM

Quote :

"s far as dealing with shitty attitudes, you wouldn't be dealing with any. Their service is very noteworthy"

If you mean noteworthy for how poor it's been, I'd agree.

I realize that the person who's updating the Facebook page is likely not management, but management should be aware of what's going out into the world as far as PR statements with their name on them are concerned. Right now, whether it's true or not, it looks like the management of Buku were down on Hopscotch for the entire weekend.

9/13/2010 3:51:31 PM

I'm excited to see what Chef William does next

9/13/2010 3:55:43 PM

bttt4eye

2/7/2013 7:11:42 PM

I miss this place.. a friend posted on fb about the LivingSocial deal going on now:

Quote :

"Were the world's best street foods from the Pacific Rim through South America to join forces in one dining room, it'd look a lot like bu•ku. Skip the curbside fumes and make your way into Chef Tony Hopkins's dining room for a brunch you won't soon forget: • $10 ($20 value) for Sunday brunch from now through March 24 • $10 ($20 value) for Sunday brunch from February 24 through April 28 • Brunch is served each Sunday from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m."

http://www.livingsocial.com/deals/590742?rpi=104028944&ref=personalized-link-box-104028944&rui=27640459

2/8/2013 1:34:56 AM

2010 was a fun time

2/8/2013 1:46:30 AM

I was extremely underwhelmed both times I went to buku for dinner--but their brunch is pretty sweet.

2/8/2013 2:11:02 AM

their brunch is delicious and their dinner sucks. thats not even opinion its pure consensus.

when they put that pork/egg thing on a roll or whatever i eat like 5 of them

2/8/2013 2:15:08 AM