This restaurant list has gotten dreadfully out of date. Many of the former
favorites are no longer in business.
So I guess I should revise the list. But in the meantime, view the following
as nostalgia rather than dining suggestions:
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India Mahal, 3212 Hillsborough Street in Raleigh
Map
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Good Indian food. The usual menu: vindaloo, saag, tandoori, masala. Curries
available with chicken or lamb. Good selection of vegetarian dishes, appetizers,
breads. Portions are good and prices reasonable. Service is inconsistent,
but seems to have improved lately.
Recommended.
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Neomonde, 3817 Beryl Road in Raleigh, hiding on the wrong side of
the tracks, more or less behind the Waffle House off Hillsborough Street.
Map
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Definitely THE Lebanese deli in the area. Neomonde is a family operation,
started as a bakery to produce the kind of pita they used to get at home.
The commercial baking continues to thrive, but the visible part of the
operation is the retail deli/grocery. On a nice day at noon you'll have
a hard time finding a place to park as people come to enjoy lunch out on
the deck or at the tables inside. Choices include pita sandwiches of hummous,
baba ganoush, falafel, sampler platters, spinach turnovers, and my favorite:
The Pies. Pies are the Lebanese version of pizza or boboli, flat bread
sprinkled with meat, or tomatoes and olives, or whatever. You can also
ask for a "pie delight" in which the pie is then topped with hummous, lettuce
and tomato. The desserts are also excellent.
Lunch is the time to go. Pies come out of the oven at ten and again
about noon. Pickings are slim in the late afternoon, although the standard
groceries are always available. Open seven days a week, though they don't
bake on Saturday.
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Nur Deli, 2810 Hillsborough St in Raleigh, and at Mission Valley
shopping center in Raleigh.
Map
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A mediterranean fast-food type place, with falafel, gyros, and the rest
of the usual suspects, catering to the undergraduate population with burgers
and other western fare also. I've only had the falafel, gyros, and tabouleh,
all of which are quite good. The desserts look quite appealing. Counter
service and hard plastic benches; good for a quick meal, not a rendezvous.
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The Third Place, 1811 Glenwood Avenue at Five Points in Raleigh.
Map
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A coffee bar with pastry and sandwiches, the Third Place was designed to
be a neighborhood hangout. The interior design is funky and cosy; bookshelves
abound, stocked with a great miscellany of books and games. Clearly you
are invited to sit and read or converse while you nurse your cup of coffee.
They make the usual array of coffee, espresso, latte, etc. and have an
assortment of Italian syrups to flavor the coffee or make sodas. A major
plus for tea drinkers: they use Grace Rare Tea in bulk to make tea. The
sandwich menu is limited, vegetarian, and very good.
Recommended.
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Lilly's Pizza, 1813 Glenwood Avenue at Five Points in Raleigh.
Map
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I haven't eaten here, but lot's of people swear it's great. Wood-oven pizza.
Apparently the wait-staff has an attitude, which is supposed to be part
of the charm of the place.
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Hayes Barton Pharmacy, at Five Points in Raleigh.
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A genuine drug-store, with a genuine drug-store soda fountain. I've only
had milk-shakes, but they are worth the trouble. Large following of regulars
at breakfast. A friend likes to go for Sunday brunch for the waffles.
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Irregardless Cafe, 901 W Morgan Street in Raleigh.
Map
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One of the best restaurants in Raleigh, certainly the best value. Menu
changes daily; generally there is a strict vegan entree, one ovo-lacto
vegetarian, a chicken, and one or two fish dishes. (Never beef or pork).
Call their listed phone number for a recorded recitation of today's menu.
Now featuring appetizer of the day as well. Excellent quality and reasonable
prices.
Highly recommended.
Note: Irregardless is on the right-hand side of the street, but their
parking lot is on the left, *before* you get to the restaurant.
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Bloomsbury Bistro, 509 Whitaker Mill Rd, at Five Points in Raleigh.
Map
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Developing a reputation as a top place in Raleigh for fine dining. Expensive
(for this area) but worth it. The menu is creative, the atmosphere is open
and informal. A very pleasant experience.
Here's a tip: tell the waitron that you're a vegetarian (even if you're
not) and ask for a vegetable plate consisting of the side dishes from all
the entrees on the menu. Can't be beat!
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Tudor Rose Tea Room, in Cameron Village, Raleigh.
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Not surprisingly, the emphasis is on tea, meaning tea served hot in a teapot.
The tea is Williamson and Magor loose tea, and the water is actually boiling
when poured over the leaves. Scones and cakes are available for snacks,
and light meal entrees for real food.
Recommended.
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Syzygy in Cameron Village, Raleigh.
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Very good italian-influenced food. Not a spaghetti place. Gnocchi and risotto,
wood-fired pizza, calamari, etc. Beautiful decor. Entrees in the $15 range.
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Piccolo Italia, in Cameron Village, Raleigh.
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Good Italian food. The usual suspects: spaghetti, manicotti, lasagna, pizza.
Nothing spectacular, but well done.
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Dos Taquitos 5629 Creedmor Rd, in the Creedmor Crossing shopping
center in Raleigh.
Map
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Good Mexican food. The decor is either charmingly idiosyncratically funky,
or a major eyesore. While it is possible to get the familiar taco/burrito/enchilada
combination here, the attraction is the presence of other items on the
menu. Try the Chili Verde, Mexican Stew, Carnitas, or Gorditas.
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Note: the restaurant has changed hands since last I ate there.
Watch the health rating.
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Oh Brian's 5925 Glenwood Ave, in Raleigh (conveniently located next
to the Jiffy Lube).
Map
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I try to avoid chains in this list, but the ribs really are quite good.
And if you're forced to eat in this neighborhood, you're better off here
than the Red Lobster across the street.
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Humble Pie Bakery 317 S. Harrington St., in the warehouse district
of downtown Raleigh.
Map
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I haven't eaten here. But I'm told it's good, it's different, it's got
an attitude, and this part of Raleigh needs more places like it.
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42nd Street Oyster Bar Corner of West and Jones Streets in downtown
Raleigh.
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Another Thad Eure, Jr. restaurant (he started the Angus Barn, Darryl's,
Fat Daddy's, and others I've forgotten). Seafood, obviously. Very good.
Your choice of a real table or sitting at the oyster bar. Also very popular,
so expect to park in the overflow lot and wait for a table if you're there
on a busy night.
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Geldof Chocolatier Ridgewood Shopping Center, Wade Avenue, underneath
Tripps.
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Well, maybe YOU can't make a meal out of chocolate... but this place makes
candies that taste better than Godiva and sells them for less (but still
expensive). In the new location, they also serve pastries, coffee, tea,
and the best hot chocolate drink you've ever had.
If you are looking for an impressive gift, go for the molded chocolate
jewelry box filled with the bite-size morsels du jour.
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Salsa Fresh Duraleigh Road, just south of Glenwood.
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Conveniently located right next to Geldof's Raleigh Chocolate Factory is
Salsa Fresh, serving good California/Mexican food. Order at the counter,
they'll bring it out to you. Not fast food -- they make everything to order
from fresh ingredients.
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Second Nature Cafe, in Olde Raleigh Village shopping center, Raleigh.
Map
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Healthy sandwiches, quiches, soups, salads; vegetarian, chicken, and tuna.
Very tasty. Try the smoothies as well.
Closed Sundays.
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Museum Cafe, In the North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh
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A very nice restaurant. Would be one of the top spots in Raleigh if it
weren't hobbled by the museum's hours. As it is, the Cafe is open for lunch
Tuesday-Saturday, brunch Sunday, and supper only on Friday nights.
Operated by "Art of the Irregardless" (a wonderful name, considering
that the Irregardless is owned by Arthur Gordon), the Museum Cafe differs
in menu from the Irregardless but shares the quality. The dinner menu is
limited to a handful of entrees and changes regularly, but does include
beef and pork dishes as well as a vegetarian selection. The desserts are
wonderful.
Highly recommended
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Capital Creations Pizza Medlin Drive and Old Wake Forest Rd in Raleigh,
somewhere in Cary, too.
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Take-out/delivery only.
Best pizza I've had in Raleigh. Good crust, fresh ingredients, imaginative
choices. You can get the standard American pepperoni pizza here, but there's
a lot more. You can get pesto or garlic puree as a base instead of tomato
sauce. You can get romano, provolone or feta instead of mozzarella cheese.
You can get barbecued chicken, fresh tomato slices, broccoli, banana peppers,
jalapenos and mandarin orange. And of course, you can get anchovies (I
spell my name, Danger). You can get a variety of creative combinations
on the standard menu, and you can get all kinds of wierd stuff in the monthly
special. Salads are excellent. Delivery in most of Raleigh and Cary.
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Thai Garden Off Wake Forest Road in Raleigh
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Serving Chinese and Thai dishes, they started with a Chinese-style menu,
the dubious name of "Stir-Fry Station", and a few Thai items at the back
of the menu. Over time, the name has changed, and the Thai items have taken
prominence in the menu. Green papaya salad is available, the Pad Thai is
pretty good, the curries are available with your choice of several meats
or vegetarian, and the Mother-in-law Eggplant is excellent.
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Red Dragon
Map
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Jin Yuan
Map
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Simple Pleasures
Map
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Dalat, Mission Valley Shopping Center, Raleigh
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A tiny Vietnamese restaurant in the upper level of Mission Valley, now
moved into roomier digs a couple doors down from their previous location.
Worth seeking out; order from the Vietnamese side of the menu in preference
to the Chinese side
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Cozumel, Stonehenge Shopping Center, Raleigh
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Satisfactory Mexican food. The charro beans are a welcome choice in place
of the usual refries.
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Mi Tierra, Corner of Atlantic Avenue and Millbrook (you know, where
Pizza Uno used to be :-), Raleigh
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A variety of dishes from Central and South America. If you look hard, you
find some standard Mexican-Restaurant fare on the menu: chimichangas, burritos,
enchilads, fajitas. But try the main part of the menu instead. Vegetarians
will find several dishes to choose from (assuming you don't mind lots of
cheese). Tortilla chips with really good salsa.
