500 Degrees

We went to Sunday brunch yesterday and it was wonderful! Not a huge buffet but at least a buffet. You don’t find too many of those these days. Prime rib was delicious and the best waffles anywhere! Can’t wait to try dinner!

We stopped in here after the place we had reservations at tried to seat us at a community table because of some local It’s a Wonderful Life festival that was going on in town. We didn’t really plan on spending our date night with 6 other people staring at us so we took off and wound up at 500° because Katie M. is a friend and she raved about this place.
First off, it’s a really spacious place– a main dining room, a bar area with seating and then a large, glass enclosed seating area with space heaters. We chose to sit and it was nice despite the screaming child that echoed through the place for ¾ of our meal.
Food was good– fried calamari to start which was perfectly cooked; I had fresh gnocchi with bolognese sauce, which was really tasty although a little thin; and the gf had penne with chichen and broccoli, which she enjoyed too.
Service was good and attentive. The meal took a bit of time to come out but if it’s all made to order then that’s understandable.
All in all, nice to see a place like this in the valley.

This Resturant is very good and deserves more attention being in the valley and in derby its really passed by, make this a go to place and you won’t be disappointed ! The staff are very accommodating and make you feel you are in their own house. Chef Manny is exceptional at his craft with the freshest ingredients and his 35 years at the stove shows his experience! A must try even if it be for appetizers or lunch or just stopping in for a drink you won’t be let down ! If this Resturant was in new haven or Fairfield I know it would be packed a full house every week ! Do yourself a favor and visit this place ! — & for all of you gluten free diets out there they offer that service also the chef has selections for folks with celiac disease

Wandered in on a Thursday and was surprised to see they offer a special: soup/​salad, entrée, and a mini cannoli for two people for only $ 30 on Thursday nights. We ordered our drinks (which were delicious), the soup (asparagus) and linguine with clams and white sauce and chicken piccata. The atmostphere, food, and drinks were wonderful. We added the grand marnier crème brûlée to the dessert (cannolis already included with the special). I loved everything and boyfriend says we will be back for this offer again for our ‘Thursday’ date nights. I totally recommend this place for a nice night out! Nicole was helping us out and I can’t say enough about the spectacular service. You’ll love it!

Awesome venue — fabulous wait staff! Come to Derby! Dinner for two was fabulous and the service was wonderful!

phenomenal! Everything was so delicious, from the mussel appetizer to the coconut crème brûlée dessert. Each plate made to order, service was wonderful. Melissa gave great recommendations. The live jazz music really set the ambiance.
Can’t wait to go back again!

Had a chance to eat here recently and have to say it’s quite good. I understand there is a new chef and I found his touch to be quite nice. I have not eaten here before he came so I can’t compare but the selections we had were close to five stars — if I could I would give a solid 4 ½ stars.
This is a white tablecloth dining experience and we found the waitstaff friendly and the food came out promptly. Everything we had was well prepared and presented as it should — a delight to see and eat.
Definitely worth a visit!

Had a great dinner with my family. Nicole was our server and she was excellent. Definitely will be back.

This was my first time at 500 Degrees. It’s nice to find a restaurant in the Valley that isn’t Italian. I met two friends for dinner. We started with wine, which was very good. The waitstaff was very friendly and accommodating. The entrees were quite good. I had the stuffed sole — delicious. My only real complaint of the night was that the zucchini that came with my entrée was overcooked for my taste. We all had dessert. I had flan which was great. I would happily go again.

This place was amazing! My food was incredibly delicious and the drinks were on point (Miami martini is amazing). The ambiance is very intimate so perfect for a night out with your significant other or girlfriends!

Came here for brunch one morning and it was ok. Price was a bit steep for the selection they offered. They did offer smoked salmon, sausage, eggs, fruit, pastries, spaghetti. Not sure if they change up the selection, but was expecting a little more for the price. The décor was beautiful though

We started with the calamari. The squid was cooked perfectly, but it was served with a lemon aioli, which ended up not having much of a lemon flavor and lot of aioli was put on top of the calamari. The dish needed a fresh good squeeze of fresh lemon and wish the aioli was served on the side.
Entrees: I had the ribeye steak. Prepared to a perfect medium rare. The steak was served with a chimichurri. The chimichurri was okay. It needed more garlic and fresh herbs, besides just parsley. I tasted mostly parsley. Overall enjoyable steak.
Husband had the zuppa de pesce. The seafood was great and lots of seafood was serviced on top of a bed of pasta. Over a pound of pasta was served. Massive dish. I am not sure the purpose of such a large amount of pasta, but I think the dish would present better with a quarter pound of pasta pilled high with the seafood.
The steak dish in my opinion needed a tad more salt. Suggest using a finishing salt, which is delicious on steak, vegetables and mash potatoes.
Great service and a very nice restaurant.
I will be back again!

My boyfriend and I went last night with a groupon! Besides getting a really great deal we also had great service and food. We had two appetiZers (fatkidsssss). The mussels and the calamari. The calamari was different than we’ve ever had before. Super delicious and the mussels were so freaking good! Omg delicious. The boyfriend had the stuffed flounder which was amazing (of course I tried it) and I had the lobster risotto. There was so much lobster! It was great! Soft and melted in my mouth, yum yum, and the peas in the risotto were a great addition. We loved everything we had and would definitely go back… With a groupon, we can’t afford everything we would want regularly haha.

Tried 500 for the first time last night. The Menu is pretty good. A good variety. I had the lobster risotto which much to my shock essentially had an entire lobster overlaying the risotto. That was pretty impressive. Especially for the low price. The food was good. Wine selection was good. My fiancé had the NY Strip and said that it was made perfectly. Overall — the atmosphere, space food and drinks were great. The service was clearly new so I am not going to ding them for that. However, would like to see an improvement the next time we go back. We frequent restaurants in the area and service seems to be the common issue so we have become very patient.

Went for a late dinner on Friday May 2^nd, since we have not been here in a while. Where to begin, lets start with servers. Our server, was awful, just was not a professional server at all. Seem to disappear for a long tome and the place was not crowded. Typical server for restaurants around here, young folks who are just trying to earn extra money and god i hate when they say «excellent choice» on every selection you make.
I started with the duck egg rolls… gross. very small, very dry, tasted old, probably frozen and fried to order. Next, I got the Ceasar salad and it was a joke. The salad was right out of the Ceasar salad bag at a grocery store right down to the toothpaste like squirts of dressing they put on the old tasteless lettuce with stale old pieces of cheese. The chef should be embarrassed to send out that crap and charge $ 8, that alone tells me the place is cutting corners because its not making the profit it needs. Hers a hint, use the bagged lettuce mix up the drissing for the customer and add fresh shaved cheese you might then get away with it. For dinner I had the chicken Ala Manny which is very good, but my wife go another chicken dish and both dishes had exactly the same potatoes and no veggies. Again, I’m thinking the potatoes which looked identical are a frozen product, so beasically junk. So unfortunately my high hopes for another valley restaurant have fallen by the «bagged salad» so to speak. I’m sure I will end up here again but I will try very hard not to unless its just for drinks.

Great place, and so refreshing to find something in the Valley other than the usual heavy Italian restaurants! The lady and I went for her birthday on a weeknight. Décor inside is chic, with dark woods and tin ceiling accents.
We started with seafood appetizers — grilled calamari for me, and mussels in a coconut milk/​lemongrass broth for her. Both were wonderful — the grilled calamari is a really neat take on an old appetizer, and the mussels were fresh and perfectly complimented by the bright, vibrant flavors of the broth.
For entrees, I had the Osso Bucco special, while she had the Lamb Shank. Again, both were very good! These are simple dishes, not ostentatious in the least, but prepared very well. The Chef came out about halfway through the meal to inquire how everything was, which was a nice touch.
For dessert, we split the flan de leche, which was nicely accented with a single candle for her birthday (As she poured the wine, I had mentioned to the waitress offhandedly that it was her birthday… nice touch on the candle!).
Overall, 500° is a solid restaurant. Prices are reasonable, service is attentive, and the atmosphere is very nice. We will definitely return!

500 degrees is somewhat of a rarity in the valley… one does not often think «fine dining» in downtown Derby. I really had no clue this place existed, as I don’t often frequent the area for dinner. It stands in between an array of (abandoned) old stores and mom/​pop type shops on Main street. Surprisingly, it is quite nicely furnished inside, with an upscale feel and quality service and ingredients.
I went with a group of ladies for dinner… part of the reason was for their advertised $ 2 taco tuesday night… you really can’t go wrong… unless they decided to end their special/​promotion as we learned upon arrival… womp womp. We were disappointed, but glad to hear of some of the other drink and dinner specials. They seem to run specials most nights of the week which all seem great… reduced wine prices, $ 6 martinis (quite an extensive list of specialty martinis worth checking out), 2 for $ 30 dinners, etc. Their website has all the specifics, although it is still good to confirm upon arrival.
Three of us shared a bottle of Riesling for $ 26, which was light and refreshing. They also had a special of $ 10 for «unlimited» glasses of Merlot or Pinot Grigio. One person in our group misheard and ordered Cabernet and was a little upset to have ordered 3 glasses assuming it was only $ 10, but which ended up costing the same as a bottle would have been.
I indulged in their replacement Tuesday night special of prime rib with mashed potatoes, creamed spinach and a side salad for $ 18.95…a great deal which was WELL worth the price. My salad was a generous heaping that was mostly mixed greens with some small cucumber slices, carrot slivers and quartered cherry tomatoes. The piece of meat in my plate was enormous and perfectly cooked at medium. Other items looked just as tasty and seemed to be enjoyed by all.
We happen to be the only ones in the dining room side of the restaurant, so we got very attentive service from our server who was accommodating and readily available (he sort of lingered from afar through most of our meal). We learned that the Wednesday night special is half price bottles of wine and half off appetizers/tapas…so hopefully I will be back to enjoy a more casual bite, even in the bar area (which also only had a few patrons).
I hope they do better on weekends, it would be a shame since the food and atmosphere are really pleasant and bring an element of sophistication to an otherwise run down area of the valley.

Had a 5:30 reservation on a Saturday night for 6 including two children ages 3 and 6. Figured early reservation easy in and easy out with the kids.
Initial impressions were positive. GREAT space in main dining room and the solarium was a find. Nice large bar area and a second bar in solarium. Looks like regular live music.
Hostess was nice and also offered kids menus. I was pleasantly surprised.
Things went downhill from there. While ordering asked to get cheese on the kids burger. Waiter hesitated and said he would try but it may be an extra dollar. Really? Are we the only ones to ask for cheese. By the way, I noticed you have an adult burger with cheese in the menu. I am sure you can do cheese so be confident. I don’t care about the dollar but it is a little chintzy.
Took over 45 mins for meals and they came out piece meal. Two entrees. Then the burger for my younger daughter. Then my meal. My wife’s about 3 – 5 mins+ after that. My older daughter is sitting there without her Mac and cheese at this point. Took at least another 5 mins from there. Waiter was complaining about the kitchen being backed up. Insane!!! We were one if the first to sit in dinner service. How could the kitchen be backed up?
When we mentioned our disappointment about the length of time for the Mac and cheese the waiter said he would check right away with the kitchen. So he then goes to the next table to check on them and chat about something. Don’t lie. It’s unbecoming and doesn’t help your tip…
Food was meh at best. Wife’s halibut was late and over cooked and salty. My Osso bucco was bland. Lobster risotto was dry and grainy.
To top it off they began cleaning plates and the table before people were done and returned at least 3 times to clear again. We felt extremely rushed. I understand you need to turn tables, but the kitchen needs to execute. It it unacceptable to push diners after the kitchen failed.
Service pointers. Don’t let water glasses be empty for a full meal as mine was. If one at the table asks for water fill all the glasses as my wife asked and mine remained empty. Make sure kids meals are addressed see above.
In the end over two hours for a meal with a couple of soups and entrees. No way we could justify spending more for dessert or more drinks based on experience.
I hope I had an off night, but I will never know since we won’t return.
Service 0 food 3 overall 1

Great place —
Went for Brunch.
Good food, well prepared and quite tasty, Decent service, a bit pricey but doable.
Will Definitely go back.

Went to 500 for the first time. The service was very good. Food on the other hand was mediocre at best. Wouldn’t go back.