Chapel Hill & Carrboro ★ 4.5
A 20-minute drive to a restaurant scene as independent as Durham's. Crook's Corner invented shrimp and grits; Lantern is a serious farm-driven kitchen.
Food destinations within easy reach of Durham. worth the train, the rental car or the early start.
Worth the trip
Raleigh Day Trip ★ 4.6
The state capital 30 minutes east. Ashley Christensen's James Beard-winning Poole's Diner and Bida Manda's Laotian kitchen are the main draws.
Hillsborough ★ 4.2
Twenty-five minutes west. Weaver Street Market co-op, Jujube's Asian-inflected kitchen and Hillsborough BBQ Co make a rewarding half-day food trip.
Saxapahaw ★ 4.4
A former mill village 40 minutes south-west. Haw River Farmhouse Ales and the Eddy Pub in a 1920s spinning room make an excellent half-day rural food trip.