1. Milltown
City: Carrboro, NC
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (919) 968-2460
Address: 907 E. Main St.
Description: The pairing of beer and meat are the specialties at Milltown, with the emphasis on the beer. Their selection is designed to impress beer geeks, and it does, with a number of Belgians on tap and a rotating menu of great choices from North Carolina as well. Burgers, fish tacos, and curry fries are among the favored choices for soaking up the suds. The atmosphere is laid back and no one cares if you wind up spilling a little beer on the floor. It’s just on the Chapel Hill side of Carrboro and close to the Cat’s Cradle, which makes it a good pre- or post-show nosh.
2. Cat’S Cradle
City: Carrboro, NC
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (919) 967-9053
Address: 300 E. Main St.
Description: The Triangle’s best-known club music venue, the Cradle is a staple on the national club circuit. Indie bands, hip-hop acts, and punk rockers—bands on their way up and established genre veterans—make the Cradle part of any tour. Nirvana played there in the early 1990s, a time when Chapel Hill’s music scene was prompting industry watchers to label it “the next Seattle.” Acts like Ben Folds Five and Archers of Loaf built momentum with their early Cradle shows. Chapel Hill didn’t wind up being the new center of the music universe, but the Cradle remains a star. Inside, it’s dark and loud and grungy. Seats are scarce, but nobody goes to the Cradle to sit down anyway. The beer selection is pretty good.
3. Glasshalfull
City: Carrboro, NC
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (919) 967-9784
Address: 106 S. Greensboro St.
Description: A great selection of 25 wines by the glass and small plates of seasonal, Mediterranean-inspired dishes to nibble alongside make Glasshalfull popular with grown-ups looking to have a lively conversation over delicious food and drink. The bright, airy dining room is a great place to mix and match wine and food pairings or simply to nibble on olives and grilled artichokes while sipping something simple at the marble bar. Glasshalfull is also a wine shop, so if you find something you like while you’re there, you can take home a bottle.
4. Elmo’S Diner
City: Carrboro, NC
Category: Restaurants
Telephone: (919) 929-2909
Address: 200 N. Greensboro St.
Description: Cozy and cacophonous at the same time, both Elmo’s locations offer food to fill the belly and a welcoming atmosphere. The custom-made omelets are fun to create, with ingredients including kalamata olives, sprouts, turkey sausage, and broccoli. Waffles include a bacon-infused model and the French toast is made with sunflower bread. You can pore over the menu while the kids color with the crayons the waitress brings with the coffee.
5. The Open Eye Cafe
City: Carrboro, NC
Category: Restaurants
Telephone: (919) 968-9410
Address: 101 S. Greensboro St.
Description: At Open Eye, you can get coffee made from 10 different kinds of beans from Carrboro Coffee Company. You can also see the work of local artists on the wall, listen to open mic poetry or local musicians, and stay up on community events. It’s a hub of activity in downtown Carrboro.
6. Neal’S Deli
City: Carrboro, NC
Category: Restaurants
Telephone: (919) 967-2185
Address: 100 E. Main St.
Description: From the buttermilk biscuits that serve as the base for the morning’s egg-and-meat sandwiches to sides like locally grown marinated green beans and roasted squash, Neal’s does deli with a local, Southern ethos. The house-made pastrami will keep meat lovers coming back, but vegetarians don’t need to feel left out because the veggie—an inventive blend of pureed Tuscan-style white beans with roasted carrots, wilted spinach, and pickled red onion on rye—is just as good. All the desserts are house made, so save room for the banana pudding or dark chocolate brownies.
7. Weaver Street
City: Carrboro, NC
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (919) 929-0010
Address: 101 E. Weaver St.
Description: Weaver Street is Carrboro’s landmark co-op grocery, specializing in locally grown and made food, fair trade goods, and environmentally sound products. The market bakes its own bread and pastries and sells vitamins and herbal supplements, antibiotic- and hormone-free meats, locally grown produce, and prepared foods made on site. Opened in 1988, the market now has three locations and operates Panzanella, a Mediterranean-style restaurant in nearby Carr Mill Mall. The large lawn and patio serve as a meeting place for crowds of Carrboro residents on most any warm day.
8. North Carolina Crafts Gallery
City: Carrboro, NC
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (919) 942-4048
Address: 212 W. Main St.
Description: Find artisanal works by North Carolina craftsmen and craftswomen at this Carrboro gallery. Selections include traditional and modern pottery, blown glass, turned woodworks, jewelry, garden art, and folk art. More than 500 artists from across the state contribute to the inventory. The gallery hosts two shows per month and artisans are often on site for receptions held during the community’s Second Friday Art Walk.
9. Wootini
City: Carrboro, NC
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (919) 933-6061
Address: 200 N. Greensboro St.
Description: If you appreciate the sensibilities of Tim Burton, you’ll find much to like at Wootini, an art gallery focusing on Pop Pluralism art and designer toys. Burton is one of the scores of artists Wootini carries, but you’ll also find anime-inspired designs, Hello Kitty–like posters, robot paintings on wood, and much more. The gallery’s show openings can be lively affairs, with musicians wearing devil masks inspired by the art, for instance, or robots dancing across the hardwood. It’s a fun place to explore on any day.
10. Carrboro Farmers’ Market
City: Carrboro, NC
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (919) 280-3326
Address: 301 W. Main St. on the Town Commons
Description: After more than three decades in operation, the Carrboro Farmers’ Market is the oldest and most renowned of the Triangle’s many markets. A meeting point for local farmers and customers, it has helped them build relationships that are key to the area’s thriving sustainable agriculture movement and its farm-to-table dining scene. The market’s home is on the Carrboro commons beneath a series of pergolas and tin roofs, where about 75 farmers, cheese makers, bakers, jelly makers, flower growers, potters, weavers, and craft workers of other stripes present their wares. A co-op of vendors runs the market and ensures that everything presented is locally grown or made by the seller. On a sunny morning, nothing beats picking up tomatoes for Saturday night dinner while making a breakfast of bread and cheese bought fresh from their makers.The market is open Saturday mornings year-round, and crowds are heaviest between 8 and 10 a.m. It’s advisable to bring your own bags for produce, and the vendors will smile at you if you pay them in small bills. During the growing season, the Carrboro Market is open on Wednesday afternoons, and Carrboro Market vendors also sell in Southern Village on Thursday afternoons.