We used to regularly watch basketball games at the Tavern when it was located on 15-501. It was one of the few places in town that was large enough and off-the-beaten path enough that you didn’t have to fight for a spot to watch a game. When the Tavern moved to its current location on Markham just off 9th street, we had high hopes. We stopped in the first week it was open only to be greeted by oversized bouncers outfitted in mesh shirts and walkie talkies. We didn’t go back.

However this past weekend, after spending too many consecutive nights at Geer St. and Surf Club, we ventured to 9th Street. Two guys playing guitars steered us away from Mitch’s, no empty seats meant Dain’s wasn’t an option and Charlie’s was overtaken by a loud DJ and strobe lights. We ended up at the Tavern.

Because they serve food, the Tavern is no longer a private club which means no membership fee and no bouncers. We were shocked to discover that the Tavern is actually pretty awesome. Lots of decent beers on tap, friendly bartenders and a diverse crowd. It’s a large open space filled with pool tables, dart boards, shuffle board and lots of arcade games. Darts and shuffle board are free, pool is $1 a game. There’s a small room with a stage off to one side. On a Saturday night, the side room was filled with dancers and a DJ. It looks like the Tavern also uses that room for bands and comedy acts.

When we stopped back in this week to give their food a try, the staff was again really friendly and welcoming. The Tavern has a large pub grub menu filled with burgers, chicken sandwiches, wings and the like. All of their sandwiches come with housemade chips and most cost around $6.99. We had the buffalo chicken pita and the veggie burger. The buffalo chicken pita was excellent – a large, fresh pita filled with grilled chicken, lettuce and tomato. The housemade chips were fresh, plentiful, tossed with salt and pepper and served with a side of ranch. The veggie burger was two veggie patties topped with American cheese slices, sautéed mushrooms, onions and peppers and served on buttered/toasted Texas toast.

Are they reinventing the wheel? No, but the Tavern is serving affordable, satisfying and solid pub grub in a relaxed atmosphere. It also may be our new favorite spot watch a game, grab a beer and play a round of darts.

The Tavern
1900 W Markham Ave
Durham, NC 27705
(919) 286-7665

Last night was the soft opening of Surf Club – Durham’s newest watering hole. Surf Club, just a block up from Fullsteam and Motorco, is the brainchild of Rhys Botica, a partner or owner in some of the popular bars around town (Whiskey, The Federal, Bull McCabes). A rare Durham site, Surf Club is just a bar bar – no themes, no gimmicks, no food – just a well curated beer and liquor selection. It’s refreshing.

The décor is dark and lovely – which isn’t surprising as Durham’s decorating superstar Heather Garrett is behind it. Subway tiles, vintage beer signs, dark wood, leather, a single dart board – right now in its newly open state, it is still warm and inviting.

With a staff made up of familiar folks from Botica’s other establishments – Surf Club already feels like our favorite neighborhood bar. Note: Surf Club’s dark lighting means these pictures in no way do it justice.

703 Rigsbee Ave.

Article from the Herald Sun

Not much needs to be said about Straw Valley Cafe, the pictures will speak for themselves. It is – to put it simply – a coffee shop/wine bar, but really Straw Valley Cafe is an artistic, mid-century paradise in the center of the hellish part of town known as New Hope Commons. Hidden beside a self-storage facility on the road that runs parallel to 15-501, Straw Valley Cafe was shamefully empty on a Saturday afternoon.

We ordered a mexican mocha – a rich spicy chocolate drink that was excellent – and strolled around the grounds. Straw Valley feels like a private residence (the private residence of the coolest person you know), public park and art gallery – needless to say it is pretty incredible . The open house and courtyard are filled with art and mid-century modern furnishings, there are even vintage Durham newspapers on the coffee tables. I look forward to spending a lazy saturday there reading, a night drinking wine with a group of friends or catching a band on their stage. Straw Valley would also make a great spot to rent out for a wedding reception or private party.

The shop does offer pastries, macarons, Kismet crackers, a few sandwiches and customers are encouraged to get food from Pomegranite Kitchen next door and bring it over. For a history of the property, check out the Herald Sun’s feature.

Straw Valley Cafe
5420 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd.
Durham, NC 27707
919.403.2233
Closed Mondays.
Tuesday-Saturday 9am-9pm
Sunday 10am-5pm

Honestly, I’m a sucker for a deal and the Firm’s tweet about $3 well drinks totally worked in getting us to drive out Cole Mill looking for the newish watering hole. The Firm is a cinder block building that seems to still be work in progress. The night we were in, part of the drop ceiling was missing and the bar didn’t have an ice chest or a soda gun. But hey, cheap drinks!

The Firm’s well drinks and draught beers are always only $3.50. Get that? Every day of the week, wells and beers are only $3.50. When we were there, on tap were New Belgium’s Fat Tire, Triangle’s Golden and Fullsteam’s Working Man’s Lunch. There is also a case full of domestic and imported bottle beers. Domestics will run you $2.50 and imports $3.50. In addition to these pretty great prices, The Firm also has daily drink specials.

On a Wednesday night, The Firm was surprisingly crowded with a dart league competition, a couple of folks playing pool and some guys hanging at the bar. The Firm seems to be doing a good job of hosting random events and live jazz music to get folks in the door. From their calendar – there are beer pong competitions, a pool league, a TV show viewing and a dart club in the next week.

On the downside, because The Firm doesn’t have a soda gun, the $3 vodka tonic and gin & soda we ordered were both flat (wells are $3 on Wednesdays). The bartender knew and apologized as she was pouring them, but should have given us a heads up. In the future, I’ll stick to beer or juice-based well drinks. On their site, it does say The Firm uses only fresh-squeezed OJ.

The Firm is a good spot to catch a game or play some darts or pool. If you live out Cole Mill or are looking for some of the cheapest drinks in town – the Firm would make for a good neighborhood bar.

The Firm
Open seven days a week:
Mon – Thu: 4pm-12am
Fri: 4pm-2am
Sat: 1pm-2am
Sun: 1pm-12am

1647 Cole Mill Road, Durham, NC 27705

Carpe Durham’s love for Moe’s Tavern is well documented. In addition to this review, on previous visits we have been rewarded for the drive out to Rougemont with steak fresh off the grill, taco dip, bowls of chips and various other nibbles. A bar with free food is a bar after my heart. Lucky for us – the cold beer and friendly vibe of Moe’s has found a new home right in the heart of Ninth Street.

Mitch, who owns and formerly operated Moe’s in Rougemont, has opened Mitch’s Bar & Grille in the old Dogstar spot on Ninth Street. Mitch’s opened the last week in September and we were able to stop in and check it out. Like Moe’s, the vibe is welcoming and the crowd is diverse. It doesn’t seem like Duke students have discovered this place yet, but given the location and the price of beer – it’s only a matter of time.

Mitch’s has a nice selection of affordable beer. Bottles of Big Boss Angry Angel and Natty Greene’s Southern Pale Ale are $3.50, most of the domestic bottles are $2.75 and 16 oz. PBR cans are $2.00. Mitch’s draught beers are a nice mix of local/nonlocal and will run you $4 pint (even Triangle Golden) except Pacifico which is $3.50.

Mitch’s also has a pretty basic pub grub menu – burgers, fries, chicken sandwiches, wings, etc. He’s not trying to do anything fancy here. We sampled a late night grilled cheese and it did the job. It was classic white bread with slices of American cheese, thrown on a buttery grill. It was satisfying and came with a ton a fries for $5. This is straight ahead, affordable diner food and not trying to be anything else.

There are a handful of TV’s and Mitch’s would be a good spot to catch a game. Though some would argue Ninth Street doesn’t need another bar, we are excited to have Mitch’s in town. It’s a low key neighborhood bar where everyone is welcome and you can get a no-frills meal including a cold beer for less than $10.

Mitch’s Bar and Grille
730 Ninth Street, Durham, NC 27705
919-423-6337
Mon.-Sat. 11am-2am
Sun. 12pm-2am

The Republic is a bar and lounge that always intrigued me when I walked by, but for some reason, I never stepped inside until recently. I think it might be because the space looks really, really dark from the outside, which doesn’t come across as welcoming. But my glimpses of fancy, black armchairs lined up against the walls finally convinced me to try the place out. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the drinks and the friendliness of the employees.

Inside, the club’s walls are either brick or black with lushly patterned wallpaper that could do with more light to show it off.

The bar is lined with red lights. In addition to the row of seating areas on the main floor, there are more toward the back of the club and a much brighter alcove upstairs, behind where a DJ normally plays on the weekends. There are also tables on the street if you’d prefer your drink with easy conversation and no music.

The Republic has a full bar and a cocktail list. I looked askance at the several cocktails made with Red Bull, but if energy drinks are your style, you might enjoy them! I definitely liked the other options on the list. I started out with a Berry Diddy martini.

The drink was an incredibly pretty yellow. It’s made with Ciroc Red Berry vodka, lemon Juice, and simple syrup. It tasted very similar to a lemon drop, but the berry flavor from the vodka cut through the lemon, making for a refreshing combination. It was definitely sweet, so I’d recommend it for a dessert drink.

One of my friends tried the Republic’s Tea made with Firefly sweet tea vodka, Absolut Peach, a splash of sweet and sour, a splash of pineapple, and lemon lime soda.

This one was like a drinking a peach sweet tea, and it was great.

My second libation however, definitely took the cake, or cocktail shaker as the case may be.

The Ooooh La La Martini—made with Crown Royal Black, raspberry liqueur, and pineapple juice—was pretty close to perfect for me because I like my drinks strong with something smooth to help them down. The raspberry seemed too prominent at first sip, but the whiskey mellowed it out nicely. It felt thick in my mouth, like it gained creaminess from the pineapple and the froth from the shaking. I loved it.

All in all, I was very impressed with the cocktails I tried, but the Republic needs to do something to make the ambience more inviting, and I say that as someone who loves black and red. I just can’t put my finger on what it’s missing–maybe a better lighting scheme? Regardless, the bartenders’ friendliness and quality of drink should be enough to keep you there for a round or two.

The Republic
353 W. Main Street
Five Points
Website

Reviewed 2 Aug 11 and 26 Aug 11.

G2B, a new gastropub from Shane Ingram of Four Square and One fame, opened a few weeks ago in the seemingly doomed spot that has housed Starlu and Restaurant Eden. And this past Wednesday, I drug four friends to G2B for what we thought would be a casual dinner and beers.

Despite a trippy, psychedelic website and logo, G2B’s interior is swanky and urban with lots of white and red leather. It felt like a place one would find on Glenwood South, not behind the Target in Durham. On a Wednesday night, it was pretty empty and most of the men were wearing collared shirts. We sat outside.

G2B does have an excellent and affordable beer list with four or five North Carolina Breweries on draught and an extensive list of bottled beer. They also have a dozen or so wines by the glass and bottle.

Having been to Four Square a few times for special occasions, it was the food I was most looking forward to trying. Our table of four ordered pizzas and burgers. Entrée’s range from $12 for a pizza to $23 for veal schnitzel. The burger is $13, which is pricey but the meat is ground in-house and it comes on what seemed to be a housemade bun with marinated tomatoes, lettuce, housemade pickles, colby and a caper-cornichon tartar sauce concoction. Yada yada – I know $13 is steep for a burger in the Bull City – but it’s really good.

The pizzas were large enough for two to split and richly indulgent. The tomato mushroom (on wheat crust, marinara, mozzarella) was beautiful, piled high with tomato quarters, fresh greens (arugula) and a pesto (maybe garlic ramp). The mushrooms were plentiful and the pizza had the punch of lots of parm. Our other pizza, Moroccan barbecued chicken, was a fresh take on a BBQ chicken pizza. Though not listed in the description, instead of marinara it had a caramelized onion jam that was loaded with gouda and wilted greens. The chicken hunks were large and flavorful, spiced with cumin, tumeric, garlic, etc. I’m guessing some of G2B’s ingredients are sourced locally based on pricing but the menu and website don’t mention it.

The food was solid and the service friendly, but this isn’t the casual beer/burger joint we’d hoped it’d be. Despite the groovy logo/website, hip tunes (Matt and Kim) and a Wii by the bar, G2B still feels kind of stiff. But G2B should fill a niche in Durham for folks who want an excellent beer selection and new take on classic bar food in an upscale setting.

Note: Sorry for the crappy pics, the lighting in G2B is tough.

G2B Gastropub
3211 Shannon Rd Ste 106
Durham, NC 27707
(919) 251-9451
g2b-restaurant.com
Mon-Sun 5 pm – 12 am

Looking for a neighborhood bar with cheap beer, free pool, lots of TV’s and a friendly vibe? Then Doyle’s is for you. Hidden next to Piper’s Deli, just a block off University – Doyle’s is a laid-back sports bar and would be a great spot to catch a game.

Staring at a TV, nursing long-necks isn’t your thing? Doyle’s has five pool tables, a ping-pong table, dartboards, shuffleboard, foosball, bumper pool, a bunch of arcade games and a shoe shine stand. It seems shuffleboard and the arcade games are the only two that cost to play.

The bartenders are nice and the beer is cheap. Bonus: we’ve heard on some warm nights they wheel out the grill and cook up some communal grub.

Doyle’s is off-the-beaten path but worth seeking out.

Doyle’s Sports Bar
3219 Old Chapel Hill Rd # A
Durham, NC 27707-6232
(919) 419-9791
Mon – Sun:    4:00 pm-2:00 am

written in collaboration with MEZ

In general, I prefer smaller bars to larger, more mainstream establishments. So when a friend suggested we watch the Final Four at Tobacco Road Sports Cafe, I wasn’t psyched. Not one to rock the boat, I went along for the ride and ended up being pleasantly surprised. Tobacco Road Sports Cafe is adjacent to the Durham Bulls Baseball Field and is walking distance from DPAC. This makes it a conveniently located downtown bar for folks wanting to grab a snack or watch a game. There’s a huge wall with over 12 TVs, allowing you to see the games being broadcast from pretty much anywhere in the cafe. The interior is gigantic and there’s also outdoor seating, making it a great place to hang when the weather’s nice. The food was your typical bar fare–nachos, sandwiches/burgers, soups, salads, desserts, and more than a few entrees.

What makes this sports cafe, not to be confused with a sports bar, (a distinction they make on their website), stand out though, is it’s happy hour special. With the purchase of a $2.50 drink, you can get a select menu item for $3. The special runs Monday through Friday from 4:30 to 5:30.

On a separate occasion, MEZ went to their happy hour and had the BBQ pork sandwich. This is what she had to say, “I thought the sandwich straddled the line between sugary and vinegary quite nicely, and the coleslaw—often an afterthought for BBQ sandwiches—gave a nice contrast to the sauce. The heaping mound of onion strings had a flaky batter and were delicious.”

When I went the night of the Final Four, the sports cafe was jammed packed, which made it a pretty fun place to watch basketball. We ordered the nachos, sweet potato fries, wings, cheese grits, chocolate cake, pecan pie, and apple pie. The fries and nachos were pretty standard, but tasty. The cheese grits could have used more seasoning (not super surprising, I know, but I’m just putting it out there). My friends said the wings’ buffalo sauce, which is made in-house, “had the perfect heat level.”

The desserts were good too, but oddly, they all came with chocolate sauce drizzled on them. Chocolate sauce drizzled on chocolate cake totally makes sense. I can even get down with chocolate sauce on pecan pie, but the chocolate sauce on the caramel apple pie was just a bit strange. Of the three desserts, the pecan pie was my personal favorite.

All in all, I would suggest Tobacco Road Sports Cafe if you have a large group of folks getting together and/or if you want to watch a major sporting event in a setting with a lot of energy.

Tobacco Road Sports Cafe

280 S. Mangum Street

Durham, NC 27701

919-937-9909

On Saturday May 21, the Casbah is hosting Cask-Bah – a night to celebrate cask beer. A $30 advance ticket gets you unlimited samples of cask conditioned ales from local breweries such as Triangle Brewery, Roth Brewery, Natty Greene’s, Top of the Hill and Carolina Brewery. A commemorative glass is included.

There will be live music and a food truck rodeo. All proceeds go to Durham Central Park. Cask-Bah is sponsored by Triangle Brewery and All About Beer Magazine.

Casbah
Saturday, May 21 · 6:00pm – 10:00pm
1007 West Main Street
Durham, NC 27701
(919) 687-6969

Advanced tickets can be purchased at etix

If you haven’t already checked out Casbah, it’s worth a visit. It’s a solid music venue with a cushy hang-out area and nice bar. They always have an extensive list of excellent beers on tap (including many NC brews). And the staff is, for the most part, friendly and welcoming. One of their bartenders is even a trained pastry chef who will occasionally stock cupcakes and other goodies at the bar. They are booking a wide variety of music from garage rock and metal to laid-back folky stuff and bluegrass as well as hosting corn hole tournaments and movie nights. The Casbah is a welcome addition to the Durham music scene.

Note: Per NC law, Casbah is a private club. $5 will get you a lifetime membership.