What should I do in NC when I'm NOT eating BBQ?
I'm leaving NYC on Thursday night and heading down to North Carolina to explore the NC BBQ trail (discovered on this site!)...The question is: What should I do/see when I'm NOT eating BBQ?
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6 Comments:
If you're going to be Chapel Hill, I highely recommend going to Crook's Corner. They have the best Shrimp and Grits I've ever tasted. Also, the Duke Gardens are beautiful this time a year if you're in the mood for a walk to burn off some of the calories.
Alm25 at 1:10PM on 08/13/07
Go to Seagrove and shop for handmade pottery; it's not far from Asheboro, so you can also take in the NC Zoo, and Blue Mist BBQ (which should be on the trail) is not far from there.
I agree about Chapel Hill - it's a nice place to spend the day. The NC Botanical Gardens are there, and the Ackland Art Museum has a decent collection for a small museum. You might also go due north on 86 (it starts in Chapel Hill as Airport Road, though that may have been renamed recently since the airport was closed down), which takes you past Allen & Sons BBQ, the one you want to try, and wander around Hillsborough.
emily20008 at 2:04PM on 08/13/07
I live in Chapel Hill and would love to offer you many specific suggestions but don't really have time at the moment but I will agree Duke Gardens are beautiful, but so are any of the trails in the local state parks, Eno and Umstead, and any of the others really. Would be easier if we knew what part of the trail you are going to do (I think there are 25 restaurants on it, if you are doing them all you are my hero). I think Bill Smith at Crook's is an amazingly talented chef but I have never really liked the shrimp and grits and their barbecue is not made on site. Plus if you are here you need to eat barbecue at Alan and Sons (north of town, NOT SOUTH, very very important). We have a great farmer's market as well on Saturday mornings in Carrboro.
Important to note, we are in the midst of one of the worst drought in years so all the water sources are suffering massively, so swimming in the Haw or Eno are out, and the farmers are taking a huge hit as well.
I really like the old downtown in Durham, just walking past the old tobacco warehouses (now becoming million dollar condos), walking and riding the Tobacco Trail, looking for places Blind Boy Fuller or Rev. Gary Davis used to play on the streets.
Lots of great roadside attractions in NC, Vollis Simpson's Whirligigs, the country doctor museum, world's largest chest of drawers, John Coltrane's piano, the house where Maceo Parker lives in Kinston, NC, the Woolworth's of the famous lunch counter sit-in protest in Greensboro, the Ava Gardner museum, the town of Mt. Airy, dirt-track auto races, kick ass rock and roll, old time music picking sessions in stores and barns, fiddle contests, abandoned mills covered in kudzu, the Nahunta Pork Center outside Goldsboro (Wilber's barbecue is there).
Check out the roadsideamerica website.
More specific questions would be easier to answer. "What should I do in NC?" is a little vague. What are your tastes and how long is your trip?
intheyearofthepig at 2:04PM on 08/13/07
jugtown pottery in seagrove is excellent, best christmas and birthday presents ever. can go to Lexington afterwards for barbecue.
intheyearofthepig at 2:08PM on 08/13/07
sorry! to be more specific:
we only have about 4 days and while i'd love to eat at 25 restaurants in 4 days...that's probably not going to happen :( My guess is we'll mostly be on the eastern to central side of things. We are semi-winging it, so details are a little tough.
as for our tastes, we definitely like quirky cultural attractions. I've spent some time on roadsideamerica.com. we also really like music- old timey country and rock and roll. so any great places to check out live music would be great.
crafty at 2:34PM on 08/13/07
Hi there. Just to throw in a couple of ideas. I just moved to the Hickory area (Western NC) a little bit ago. My fiancee goes nuts over fried pickles and also livermush (shudder). We didn't have livermush back home in CA, but everyone out here love's it for breakfast. Might be something you want to try. Personally I can't even think about eating it, but it is one of those regional things that you may want to include on your trip. :0) Enjoy.
-Justin
P.S. Make sure you try the 2 different styles of bbq. I know they are both covered on the trail... But in case you didn't know, there are 2 schools of thought in NC. Mustard based and Vinegar based sauces. You need to try both.
Jdoepel at 3:54AM on 08/14/07