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The Research Triangle is home to seven major universities, so you can bet on having plenty of restaurants around to feed the thousands of students in the area. Chapel Hill, home of University of North Carolina, has several great restaurants. For upscale French, try The Fearrington House Restaurant. Chapel Hill has cheaper, student friendly restaurants, including Azure Grille, General Store Cafe and Jujube. Duke University students in Durham frequent Piazza Italia, Restaurant Starlu and George’s Garage. Raleigh itself has no shortage of restaurants. American favorites include 18 Seaboard, Glenwood Grill, The Twisted Fork and Winston’s Grille. For delicious Italian, try 518 West, Tavola Rossa or Vivace. Raleigh also has incredible Indian, Brazilian, Mexican, French and Japanese restaurants all over the city.
Durham Restaurants
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900 W. Main St., Durham, NC 27701
Contemporary American. $$$. Alivia's is a casual but refined Durham restaurant that features a changing menu of creative, southern-inspired bistro fare such as pan-seared sea scallops with grit cakes and country ham, spice rubbed half chicken with chickpea fritters and cider glazed North Carolina pork chops. Alvia's eclectic wine list focuses on estate producers, cult wine makers and small production bottlings.
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905 West Main St., Ste. 115 Durham, NC 27701
Brazilian Steakhouse. $$$. Chamas Churrascaria is the place in Durham for rodizio, a popular Brazilian-style barbecue that offers a wide variety of different cuts of beef, pork, lamb and chicken. Grilled meats are brought to you on skewers and carved tableside. Eat your fill for one fixed price.
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737 Ninth St., Durham, NC 27705
Seafood. $$. By day, George's Garage is a food market, cafe and bakery. By night, the Durham eatery is a fine dining seafood house and bar that features dishes such as blackened mahi mahi, oven roasted rosemary chicken and grilled pork chops.
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2514 University Dr., Durham, NC 27707
American. $$$. Led by chef-owner Scott Howell, Nana's Restaurant has emerged as one of a growing number of triangle restaurants that have elevated the region's dining scene. The Durham restaurant combines inspired French and Italian cuisine, a great wine list and expert service. Recent dinner menu items included prosciutto-wrapped duck breast, grilled Kobe-style flank steak over blue cheese spatzel and pan-roasted sea scallops over summer sweet corn and snow peas with chanterelle mushrooms.
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1821 Hillandale Rd., Durham, NC 27705
Mediterranean. $$$. Papas Grille, recipient of an award of excellence from Dirona, "Distinguished Restaurants of North America," is a Durham restaurant known for iits contemporary blend of Greek and Mediterranean cuisine. Not-to-miss-dishes include flash-seared organic Maine salmon, moussaka and lavender glazed lamb tenderloin.
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905 West Main St., Ste. 18A Durham, NC 27701
Italian. $$. Located in the historic Brightleaf Square District in downtown Durham, Piazza Italia restaurant offers distinctive regional Italian cuisine featuring fresh and seasonal ingredients. Menu highlights include fresh pastas and gelato prepared daily in-house. The restaurant also offers in-house cooking classes.
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3211 Shannon Rd., Suite 106, Durham, NC 27707
American. $$. Durham's Restaurant Starlu offers an eclectic menu of contemporary American food. Chef-owner Sam Poley's food is served in a casually elegant dining room that's evocative of a California bistro. Recent dishes included pan-seared wahoo with tomato consommé, spice-roasted North Atlantic salmon with poached white and green asparagus, double-thick pork chop with a warm Carolina sweet potato salad, and grilled rib-eye with foie gras butter. An eclectic, value-priced wine list adds to the appeal.
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2010 Hillsborough Rd., Durham, NC 27705
French. $$. Durham's Vin Rouge evokes a lively Parisian bistro with its menu of classic French dishes like steak and frites, trout amandine and sautéed calf liver. Choose from a romantic dining room or the inviting courtyard for great al fresco dining.
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—Reviews by Stett Holbrook
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