Central North Carolina Restaurants
We’ve compiled the best of the best in Central North Carolina - browse our top choices for Restaurants during your stay.
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We’ve compiled the best of the best in Central North Carolina - browse our top choices for Restaurants during your stay.
Gourmet meets fried catfish at this staple of Greensboro fine dining for three decades. A remodel in 2020 brought the chic dining room up to par with the elevated, Delta-inspired cuisine. Cocktails like the peach-honeysuckle margarita are as grand as the hearty jambalaya, a rich amalgam of andouille sausage, pulled chicken, and Carolina shrimp.
Order a table of small plates to share, or dive into an entrée from the open kitchen's wood-fired grill at this Italian-themed café (no pizza though) that's known for making its own pasta.
This Greensboro staple (for nearly a century) is a pilgrimage spot for barbecue lovers from across the state. The chopped, Eastern-style pork is mostly shoulder meat already sauced in the kitchen, though there's also plenty of vinegary Stamey's Secret Sauce at your table. If you're looking for something other than straight pulled pork, try the Brunswick stew, a traditional Southeastern, thick, tomato-based stew. There's a second location on Battleground Avenue north of town.
The city's best food hall has a soaring ceiling with giant skylights, filling the room and its many stalls with natural light. Grab a hearty burrito, an empanada, or a sandwich from Benchwarmers Bagels, where heirloom grains and a wood-fired oven result in one of the Southeast's best.
Dinner at this huge, rustic barn (a Raleigh legend) is a real event and certainly worth the sizable prices. With its big portions, kitschy surroundings, and 89-page wine and beer list, this steak house is both traditional and fun. Under the supervision of Iron Chef Walter Royal, the steaks, prime rib, fresh seafood, baby back ribs, and homemade desserts are all delicious.
James Beard Award--winning chef Ashley Christensen (also behind Poole's Diner) opened this hip fried chicken spot, which serves the namesake dish as well as modern takes on Southern classics. Sit at the bar and wash down the restaurant's hearty cuisine with a craft cocktail or glass of champagne. Brunch is also a hit on the weekends.
The menu at this intimate seafood spot includes Lowcountry favorites, often presented with an Asian flair and a bit of French influence. The standout ahi tuna varies by season in its preparation. With black leather chairs and soft lighting, this is a classy pick for a date night. This white-washed brick restaurant is tucked away behind commerical buildings off of the highway, and is easy to miss after dark.
Durham's oldest restaurant sticks to the finely chopped vinegar barbecue that made it an institution. Pair a sandwich or platter with a bowl of beans or mac and cheese and you'll be in hog heaven. It's cash only, so head to an ATM before you arrive.
Five-time James Beard Award semifinalist Scott Crawford founded this comfy but sophisticated restaurant in the historic Oakwood neighborhood to showcase his unique approach to cooking and the seasonal bounty of his adopted hometown. The ever-changing menu is focused on seasonal, local produce that truly belongs to its community. Look for entrées like beef cheek ragout, pork schnitzel with smashed roots, and swordfish with ancient grains. Save room for dessert because pastry chef Krystle Swenson’s creations are out of this world. Craft cocktails and a solid wine list round out the experience. If you can't get enough of Crawford's cooking (or the reservation time you're seeking), his French restaurant, Jolie, is next door and is equally terrific.
This repurposed warehouse includes 10 counter-serve restaurants, offering pizza, raw oysters, and gourmet coffee. The soaring ceilings and industrial-mod decor make it a pleasant place to explore and dine.
In an austere building underneath the highway, this out-of-the-way eatery has dished up gyros and souvlaki since 1970. Patrons, including workers at the nearby hospital and local families, enjoy the friendly service and ample portions of moussaka, spanakopita, and salads, plus more familiar fare like hamburgers and pizza. The wine list includes Greek reds and whites.
Locals have flocked to this upscale German bakery, café, and biergarten for more than 20 years, drawn by the delicious pastries, lively brunch, and expansive dining patio. While the restaurant doesn't skimp on the classic sausage-and-schnitzel fare, the menu is enlivened by frequently rotating seasonal entrées that showcase central North Carolina's farm bounty; vegans and vegetarians will be pleasantly surprised by the range of elegant and inventive plant-based dishes.
At this elegant hotel restaurant, the menu shifts with the seasons and is always filled with new twists on traditional Southern dishes and international fare. Truly farm to fork, the restaurant uses produce from its own sustainable farm, which is less than a mile away.
This Greensboro mainstay (now with two locations in town, plus a third in Winston-Salem) was early to the gourmet burger bandwagon. They keep up their sterling reputation with a commitment to well-sourced ingredients and inviting offerings like the North Carolinian (bacon, fried green tomato, pimento cheese, and a fried egg). There's a quality selection of local beers to wash down the caloric overload.
James Beard Award--winning chef Andrea Reusing’s flagship restaurant brings together Asian flavors and North Carolina ingredients sourced mostly from local farms and purveyors. The menu changes seasonally, but the legendary tea-smoked roast chicken and chive-and-pork dumplings are staples. The small, intimate dining room is accented by hanging light fixtures of various shapes and sizes. Tucked away in the back of the restaurant, the red-hued bar area is a nice place to linger with a cocktail.
The town of Lexington is the base for Carolina's sweet, red-sauce style of barbecue. At this mainstay where locals line up daily for takeout, meat is pulled from smoked pork shoulders and served up as a sandwich in a soft bun topped with red slaw. Finish with a traditional fruit cobbler.
Located in the historic West End neighborhood, this small, cheery café with shaded sidewalk seating offers Southern fare with a touch of elegance. The menu is based on seasonal local ingredients, with standouts that include the Southern spring rolls, bacon-wrapped meat loaf, and fried chicken with peach chutney. The bistro also regularly hosts curated wine dinners. On the weekends, brunch with sake Bloody Marys and tomato pie is a hit.
The Jones family have been smoking whole hogs in the Carolina Piedmont for three generations, so Raleigh urbanites greeted Sam's chopped pork and slow-cooked ribs with open arms. Order a platter and a craft cocktail and grab a seat in the light-filled dining room or at a picnic table in the yard.
Wood paneling, muted lighting, and well-spaced tables make for an elegant dining experience in this restored 1879 house. The menu, which changes seasonally, has a regional flavor. The food is intricately styled so that colors, textures, and tastes fuse. A brick tavern on the lower level is more casual and has a less expensive menu that has included bison short ribs and grilled North Carolina trout.
"SOB" dishes out a mean pulled-pork sandwich, but it's not your typical barbecue joint—the varied menu also includes grilled salmon with chimichurri and an array of gourmet burgers. Tables out front fill up on weekends—it doesn't hurt that it shares a wall with Brown Truck Brewery, whose fresh IPAs and lagers are a perfect accompaniment to the elevated pub grub.
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