Where to Sleep and Get Brews & BBQ in Durham

In the 1800’s, Durham, like many of its surrounding neighbors, found their fortune in tobacco. When tobacco production all but dried up in the area, many tobacco mills closed shop. Rather than just bulldozing the historic building, the city and Capital Broadcasting reopened the campus in 2004 as a premier entertainment venue.

The American Tobacco company was formed in 1890 by J.B. Duke. He joined forces with his four biggest rivals and formed the company. Amongst the brands made here were Lucky Strike, Pal Mall, and Tareyton. The company continued to do well through the 1970’s and 80’s. Americans would eventually realize the harmful effect of smoking by the 1980’s there was a serious decline in smoking in America. American Tobacco left the area in the late 1980’s.

Today this place is again a busy commercial area but this time as a vibrate entertainment complex. It is a blend of commercial ventures, private businesses, and residential spaces. You can grab a meal here before the Bull’s game, attened a Broadway show here, throw your next big shindig here, or even live here. The Old Bull River runs through the middle here making this an idyllic place to stay a while. The 250,000 foot campus is a registered historic site and offers up 40,000 feet of retail space.

The campus offers up 5 restaurants for you dining pleasure. Café Zen, Mellow Mushroom, Saladelia, Symposium Café and Eatery, and Tyler’s Tap Room. Step across the road and you can catch the Bull’s playing in the warmer months. The movie was made famous by the movie Bull Durham which stared hunky Kevin Costner . As I have mentioned a time or two, come Dec 08 there will be a new place in NC to attend Broadway shows. The 2800 seat performing arts center will premier its general Broadway seasons which includes RENT, Legally Blond, Fidler on the Roof, and the Color Purple . Oh and I may have mentioned this before, but the ‘09/’10 season will include WICKED!!!! Yeah for me!!! So yes you can expect more reports from the American Tobacco Campus in the future. For a really unique place to hold your corporate function, wedding reception, convention, or what ever event needs you have, try Bay 7. Bay 7 offers 10,000 square feet of space that can accommodate 400 people. A number of businesses, including several spaces occupied by Duke University, call this place home. And soon almost 400 people can too! Those looking for a really unique place to call home purchase a place here. There is also a YMCA on the premises.

Through out the year they do hold a number of events and concerts. They have a blood drive coming soon. In Dec you can join in as the lights are turned on for the holiday season, turning this place into a fantastical magical holiday place. And in May you can purchase a rubber duck and enter it in the American Tobacco Race to raise money for the Food Shuttle.

There is a huge parking deck on the grounds. They also have some pretty unique bike racks. There are several hotels nearby including the historic Grey Stone Inn and the beautiful Morehead Manor. Both less than a 10 minute walk from the area. It is easily accessible from I40. For more information you can go to www.americantobaccohistoricdistrict.com.

When in Durham this is defiantly the place to stop by for dining before a show or a game, or just bring your pooch out to enjoy the beautiful area. What ever your reason, just make sure you stop by to enjoy this really unique place.

John and I couldn’t have picked a better place for a romantic weekend away in Durham. This place is gorgeous, in a great location, and two of the nicest innkeepers around.

This scrumptious 8000 square foot Colonial Revival was built for the CEO of Liggett and Meyers around 1910. This area was one of the first well to do areas of the city and today is still a great area to live or stay in. When innkeepers Monica and Daniel Edwards purchased this home, it had been well taken care of by the former owner. Who actually wasn’t even selling it at the time! None the less Monica and Daniel purchased the home and have turned this elegant inn into a home away room home.

The inn features 4 eye catching rooms with private baths (Tiger Room, Magnolia Sweet, The Eagles Inn, and Jasmine Room). Both the Magnolia Suites and the Tiger Room have their own fireplaces and the Eagle’s Inn features two beds. Perfect for a gilrs weekend getaway.

John and I stayed in the Magnolia Room. This room has a blue and yellow color palate with red diamonds painted over the fireplace. It does still have its original mantel and fireplace, but it now has gas cast iron system for heat and romance. It does have the poster bed as well as chest of drawers for your stuff. This suite has its own separate reading room with a couch. There is an area in the corner for reading as well. It features beautiful African inspired artwork. You get plush robes to use during your visit. There is an iron and ironing board and a terrific amenities basket in the bathroom.

Now most B&B’s I have stayed in usually are over flowing with antiques. Not that I have anything against that as I love antiques. Monica as however, blended some beautiful antique pieces with African inspired pieces which blend together quite harmoniously. She truly has outdone herself with this inn. Guests will find this place as warm and inviting as the innkeepers themselves.

Breakfast here is a real treat. Rather than have a formal dining room with one table everyone eats at. Monica will make you feel like you are dining in a quite bistro with the beautiful mural she has on her wall and individual café tables, making for a more intimate dining experience. Our first morning we were treated to divine pancakes with apples and sausage links. Our last morning we had a vegetable frittata with fruit, bacon, and a muffin. There is coffee, tea, and juice as well. And talk about some good food. What a way to start you day. They do keep their fridge stocked with drinks for guest and Monica always has one of her amazing desserts waiting for you. While we were there we were treated to her sinful pound cake.

The inn is perfectly located within walking distance of the Bulls Park, The American Tobacco campus, and the new performing arts center. It took us less those 10 minutes to walk to dinner. They are within close driving distance of Duke University, the Brightleaf Square, and the airport. They just off I40 giving you easy access to Chapel Hill and Raleigh. They do have parking at the inn. You do get a key to the inn so you can come and go as much as you want. The inn can be rented out for special occasions. Dining options abound nearby and your hosts will be glad to help you with dining suggestions. In 2005 they were voted the #2 B&B in the southeast by Bedandbreakfast.com.

For more information, rates, or to book your own room, simply go to www.moreheadmanor.com.

Monica and Daniel are the perfect hosts. You are made to feel welcome in this home. And yes it does feel more like a home that an inn. Oh and you can feel especially safe here as Daniel is also on of Durham’s finest. With such a perfect location and charming hosts, you can’t go just simply can’t go wrong with this choice.

Now I have to admit when it comes to food, I am not exactly adventurous. After all eating the wrong thing can have lingering effects. When I found out that there was a Ted’s Montana Grill in Durham, I decided I really wanted to give Bison a try.

Ted’s is of course the brainchild of entrepreneur and media mogul, Ted Turner. Who by the way is also an environmentalist. He started his restaurants in 2002 in Columbus Oh with Executive Chef, Chris Raucci. Their menu has emphases on all natural beef, bison, and chicken. Everything here is fresh and made from scratch.

When we arrive we are seated and Tasha comes over to greet us. She asks us if we have ever tried bison when we replied ‘no" she offered us a sample of bison burger, bison pot roast, or bison chili. I tried the burger and John tried the chili. Now bison contains less bad fat and more of the good fat. The bison tastes just like beef and yet doesn’t leave your mouth feeling like it has a coating of grease on it. Oh and only around 200 calories for a burger!

The do have a soup of the day and a variety of salads. Appetizers include sliders, onion rings, and crab cakes. There are 19 burgers that you can get as beef or bison. There are 16 chicken grills. They have a daily blue plate special with offerings such as turkey and dressing or crab cakes. Entries include pot roast, prime rib, trout, or beer can chicken. They have several cuts of steaks with both beef and bison.

John is still full from our lunch so he keeps it light with the bison chili and Caesar salad combo. I decide to give the bison burger a try with the COB which is cheese, onions, and bacon. My order comes with fries and I also decide to go with a house salad with vinaigrette dressing. It doesn’t take long before Tasha comes out with our order. John’s chili is rich meaty and oh so good. My burger is hearty and tasty..again though no greasy feeling afterwards. Otherwise I would have thought it was beef.

The restaurant is warm and inviting with lots of use of woods and a cowboy/southwest theme going. Now they are really into the environment making you feel even better about eating here. The restaurant is 99% plastic free. Their paper items are made from recycled paper and they even have paper straws! Their togo cups are made from corn starch and degrade in 50 days and their togo containers and also biodegradable. They also have water conserving bathrooms, solar panels, and low voltage lights.

They do have a kids menu. They do have some options for vegans and vegetarians including salads and veggie plates. They also have a great desert menu but we were too stuffed to even consider it. They do have a full service bar. This particular location is at the Renaissance Center at South Point across from South Point Mall.

For more information and to find a location, go to www.tedsmontanagrill.com.

The restaurant is treat for the whole family. The kids will love the chance to try something new as well as the adults. Just make sure not to sit under the big bison head!

When I was making our plans for trip, I actually didn’t make plans when we were in Raleigh. I knew that the Segway tour was in the City Market area and knew there were places to eat there. So we decide to wing it and wait until we arrived. When we got out of the truck and we noticed Cooper’s BBQ on a building.

For 70 years now Cooper’s has been serving Eastern style NC to the citizens of Raleigh. Eastern style BBQ (in case you haven’t read any of BBQ dissertations) is a vinegar based BBQ compared to the thick sweet tomatoes based BBQ of Western NC BBQ. And while the area around Cooper’s BBQ is growing and high rises are springing up everywhere, Cooper’s remains the same.

Like most of BBQ joints, the main focus of this place is good ole’ Q. There is BBQ pork and chicken. You can get it as a sandwich or plate. You can get the pork chopped or sliced. But true BBQ coinsures only eat it chopped.

John goes for a plate which includes fries and slaw. I go for the sandwich and a cup of Brunswick stew. Brunswick stew is a thick soup (kinda like Rachael Ray’s stoup) with a mixture of several meats and veggies and oh so good. The meal comes with pork skins, but I gladly let John have the basket. The slaw here is your typical may based and not BBQ slaw. It doesn’t take long before our meal comes out and oh my goodness. Mine and John's conversation stopped immediately and we sounded more like a pack of lions devouring their dinner.

I imagine this building has been here since 1938 as well. The inside isn’t fanciful, but as I have mentioned before, BBQ joints rarely are. We really aren’t here for décor. The place is kinda on the small side with a counter seating on one side and booths and tables on the other. Our service wasn’t the best, which is unusual in one of these places. Our waitress never gave her name and seemed very young and inexperienced. Most likely her first job. At one point she comes over and asks us if we need anything else because her shift is over! Overall our experience was still a great one.

They do have catering here and plenty of writes up from magazines and newspapers including the Yankee paper, The New York Times . The restaurant is in the downtown area and close by the City Market. There is parking in the paid lot around the corner and some limited on street parking. They are open from 10 to 6 pm and closed on Sunday. Prices are low and portions are generous. It was less than $15 for us both.

After your Segway tour you will need some energy to make it through the day and Coopers is the place to go.

When John and I originally planed our Durham weekend, we were going to the Bull’s game and this place is at the American Tobacco Campus which is right across from the stadium. It was only a 10 minute walk from our B&B, so we decided to stick with it.

I was afraid that we would end up with a long wait at prime time on this Friday night. Thankfully when we got there we were seated right away. We were given a choice of indoor dining or outside. Since it was such a beautiful night we opted to sit outside and were seated near a waterfall which sounded wonderful.

The restaurant serves, lunch, dinner, and brunch. Appetizers include fried olive or pickles, salsa and chips, wings, and a fried seafood basket. There are a variety of salads. Sandwiches include salmon, French dip, and crab cake. There are 7 types of burgers. Traditional meals include fish ‘n chips, fish tacos, and pot pie. Vegas and vegetarians have plenty of options here including a veggie and hummus platter, veggie burger, and salads.

After John and I were seated, Jo came over and took our order. John was still stuffed from our Elmo’s meal, but I was starving. John went for the turkey burger but I go for the ribs. John’s burger comes with garlic fries. My ribs also come with the same fries and slaw which is vinegar based slaw not mayo. John said his burger was juicy and so good. My ribs were just lip smacking good and messy. They do have a tempting dessert menu that includes apple brown betty, mango cheesecake, and peanut butter mouse. We decide to go with the stout cake. This rich and creamy chocolate cake is made from stout beer but you’d never know by tasting it.

The inside is just warm and wonderful with lots of rich woods. They do have a full service bar and include 60 beers on tap. There is a game room inside as well as places to sit. It is very noisy inside though and is very noisy inside the game room. The outdoor seating is great and romantic as well as dog-friendly.

The restaurant is just around the corner from Bulls park and the new performing arts center (where Wicked will be playing ’09 or ‘10. Again wooo hooo). It is a 10 minute walk from Moorhead Manor and Graystone Inn. Or easy accessible from I40. There is a parking lot on the premises. They do host concerts and other events.

Hours/info

Hours: Monday through Saturday 11 am to 10 pm
Sunday Brunch 10 am to 3pm Sunday dinner 3 to 10pm
The game room is open from 11 am to 2 am Monday through Friday and noon to 2 am Saturday and Sunday.

Website: www.tylerstaproom.com/durham

This place has it all kids. Amazing food, great service, excellent location, and great outdoor dining. So need a great place before or after the game? Then give Tyler’s a shot.

One of my favorite TV personalities is Rachael Ray. I have been a fan of Rachael's since her $40 A Day. So when Rachel has stopped by, you can bet I will be stopping by as well. So when we were in Durham I had to stop by one of her picks when she was in town.

The restaurant does serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Breakfast is served throughout the day so you can cure you pancake cravings any time of the day. John and I arrived I time for lunch. The lunch menu consists of a variety of salads and appetizers. There are ‘square meals" with options such as meatloaf, salmon cakes, chicken and dumplings, and roast beef. Sandwiches include several burgers, ham and Swiss, turkey, hot pastrami, and chicken or tuna salad. Vegas and veggies have options other than salads. They can choose from veggie plates, veggie burgers, grilled cheese sandwiches, and grilled hummus sandwiches.

After perusing the menu I go with chicken salad plate and John opts for the Ruben. My chicken salad comes on a bed of lettuce, a pickle, and warm grilled pita points. It comes with soup or for $1 more get a fruit cup instead. John’s Ruben of pastrami (you can get a Ruben with turkey instead) and an order of fries. My chicken salad is wonderful. I am not a fan of mayo but tolerate it if the chicken salad isn’t swimming in mayo. This one wasn’t and it also had crunch provided with grapes and celery. Yum! John said his sandwich was terrific.

When John and I arrived around 2 there was still quite a crowd inside. But we were quickly taken over to our table and within just a minute our waiter arrives (and looks like Mr. Clean). He never gave his name but he takes great care of us and we never wanted for anything. I am sure most of the wait staff are students as they are all very young looking.


The building it’s self is gorgeous and is a mix of the historical and a throw back to the 50’s. There are brick walls and beautiful hard wood floors and the counter is shiny chrome. There is a counter as well booths and tables. There are warm and vibrant colors and art hanging on the walls.

They do have a kids menu. You can purchase gift certificates. They also have a location in Carrboro. It’s near the Brightleaf campus as well as Duke. And like I said it is housed in a very beautiful old building. They do have plenty or parking. And the total for 2 was under $20. Making it very wallet friendly. You can go to their web site at:
www.elmosdinner.com

As always Rachael is right on the money with her picks. Great food, great location, great prices, and great service. The only thing missing? That would be you! So come see what Rachael, myself, and the rest of Durham knows…this place is great!