Seven reasons to love Raleigh
Handcrafted chocolate, fried chicken are among the city’s essential experiences
RALEIGH, N.C.— Don’t let Raleigh-Durham International Airport fool you. These two North Carolina cities are about a 30-minute drive apart and are definitely not twins. Here’s what I’ll remember from a whirlwind day in Raleigh, the more polished of the two: 1. Chicken and Champagne? You’ve eaten fried chicken a million times, but have you had it drizzled with honey and washed down with bubbly? That’s how they do it at Beasley’s Chicken + Honey, part of buzzy chef Ashley Christensen’s restaurant empire. Something about hot, crispy, fatty, salty fried chicken, sweet honey (a nod to the fact her dad raised bees) and dry Champagne or sparkling wine hits the perfect high-brow/low-brow note. 2. Laotian and Mexican eateries: Raleighites have reason to be proud of Bida Manda, one of the only Laotian restaurants in North America. We couldn’t get in without a reservation so we cooled our heels with a craft cocktail while we waited for takeout pork belly soup with coconut curry and rice noodles. Also on the pork belly theme: chicharron and corn masa waffles with agave-Sriracha sauce at Jose and Sons. 3. Cocoa tea: Videri Chocolate Factory’s cocoa tea was new to me. It’s simply cocoa nibs and husks steeped like tea. Strange but compelling enough to buy a few bags to bring home. Sam and Starr Ratto’s “handcrafted bean to bliss” chocolate factory in downtown’s historic Warehouse District has free daily guided tours, or enough signs for self-guided tours. 4. Makers: Raleigh Denimis home to a workshop full of “nonautomated jeansmiths” crafting denim “the old school way.” I got to peek at the clothing version of the open kitchen. These limited-run, handcrafted, artisanal jeans fetch more than $200 (U.S.) At Stitch, Holly Aiken makes vinyl handbags with a retro colour palette and geometric shapes. 5. Giftables: The Deco Raleigh-business card promises “local, unique, smart” stuff and that’s what you’ll find at this eclectic downtown gift shop. Come here for souvenir shirts and the creations of 60 local artisans. This friendly, community-minded shop is using two parking spaces outside to create a parklet with places to sit. Nearby, Moon & Lola was closed (and I don’t have a pet). This is the place media mogul Oprah Winfrey sends her fans for pet charms and related doodads. 6. Boxcar Bar + Arcade: Barcades are a thing in the U.S. and Boxcar Bar + Arcade has 70-plus classic and modern arcade games, pinball, air hockey, shuffleboard and more. Not my thing, but I whiled away about 30 interesting minutes here after lunch across the street at Jose and Sons. There’s craft beer on tap and free popcorn. It’s also a dog-friendly venue. 7. Red Hat Amphitheatre: In my house, we plan trips around music, so when I found out Trampled by Turtles and the Devil Makes Three were playing at the Red Hat Amphitheater while I was in town, I made up some flimsy excuse about needing to check out the venue and Raleigh’s music scene. The Red Hat is a bit like the Molson Amphitheatre, only downtown and with more people milling about instead of sticking to their seats. The perimeter is patrolled, so don’t even think about trying to catch a free concert. Jennifer Bain was hosted by Visit North Carolina and its partners, which didn’t review or approve this story.
DURHAM, N.C.— When people talk about this city, they mention its bluecollar roots, tobacco past and foodie future. Durham is giving Asheville serious competition as the “it city” of North Carolina. Take these seven things I loved on the Durham day of my Raleigh-Durham weekend:
1. Cold beer: North Carolina is much kinder to its four-legged friends than we are. You can bring your dogs to places such as Fullsteam Brewery, which doesn’t serve food. You can also bring your kids — until 9 p.m. The rationale is that plow-to-pint beer drinking should be normal, not hidden. However, the “Fullsteam Kid Multiplier Effect” warns you’ll perceive 10 kids for every actual one. “The Hipster Multiplier Effect,” meanwhile, means that for every certified, genuine hipster at Fullsteam, the subject perceives 20 hipsters.
2. Hot drinks: Cocoa Cinnamon believes it is “more subversive to be a space in which diversity of idea, belief and background are sought and cultivated than to profess a specific politics.”
My Aleppo Souk was a latte with a homemade cinnamon, cumin and nutmeg syrup topped with paprika and Aleppo pepper. Also deliciously unusual are cacao drinks (kakawas), like Al-Andaulus with raw cacao, vanilla, whole star anise, black pepper, crushed rose and raw sugar.
3. Great food: You don’t have to worship meat to make a pilgrimage out of downtown Durham to Picnic, but it helps if you appreciate wholehog barbecue and pulled pork that comes from heritage pigs ethically raised on a small North Carolina farm. Non-carnivores also have plenty to eat. Downtown, don’t miss the Old Havana Sandwich Shop and its farm-to-table Cuban food.
4. Ethical doughnuts: Speaking of ethical, read the chalkboard while you join the perpetual lineup inside Monuts. This neighbourhoody bakery-cafe pays a living wage to employees. Doughnuts are handmade from scratch and might or might not include apple cider, blueberry lemon, peach bourbon and chocolate s’mores. Upwards of 7,500 are handrolled, cut, fried and glazed each week. Monuts got started as a doughnut stand operating off a tricycle and then traded “three wheels for four walls.”
5. Street shopping: Just outside of downtown and between Duke University’s west and east campuses is the Ninth Street Shopping District. The area has a college vibe and a collection of independent shops. I grabbed a magazine at the Regulator Bookshop, scored kitschy souvenirs at Vaguely Reminiscent, browsed in Cozy, scored a “Keep It Dirty, Durham” sticker at Hunky Doryand ran- domly donated money to the American Civil Liberties Union.
6. Tobacco past: Cigarettes aren’t made here anymore, but Durham was once home to Lucky Strike and the American Tobacco Co. Now Downtown tobacco warehouses have been transformed into the American Tobacco Historic District campus, a business and entertainment area that’s home to the Durham Performing Arts Center, Durham Bulls Athletic Park, restaurants, an artificial river and the Lucky Strike smokestack. Burt’s Bees is also here. There’s no shop, but you can eyeball the observation hive.
7. All things lemur: Who can cram everything in? I thought about checking out the Duke Lemur Center, but never wrapped my head around Duke University opening its centre to the public year-round and offering tours. You can go on everything from a basic guided tour for $12 (U.S.) to a lemur-keeper-for-a-day experience for $350. It helps research and conservation efforts at the centre, which has the world’s largest collection of endangered primates. Jennifer Bain was hosted by Visit North Carolina, which didn’t review or approve this story.