Nanas

We remember the old Nana's, and the new one is much nicer. Food was absolutely terrific, and the atmosphere was very inviting. My husband and I both had small plates. I had the scallop dish, and he has the lobster pasta. Both were fantastic! And then we ordered dessert and they did not disappoint.

Sublime food, lovely if odd decor, and helpful unobtrusive server. Recommend without hesitation. Not inexpensive but worth it.

We sat at the bar and this was the first time we dined here since it reopened under new ownership. I love the decor and dark wood. Music was great playing in the bar. We had 4 dishes we shared and they were all good. Grit cake, bread with agrodolce honey and fig, shrimp risotto and scallop Milanese all tasted good. Portions were on the smaller side. Bartenders were very attentive. I would go back. It would be great if they offered a bar menu in addition to the regular menu.

My recent visit to Nana's in Durham, NC, left much to be desired. The restaurant's ambiance could undoubtedly benefit from a makeover, as the décor appeared outdated, the carpets showed signs of wear and tear, and the artwork adorning the walls was not to my taste and lacking in aesthetic appeal.Unfortunately, the service only exacerbated the disappointing experience. Our waiter seemed disinterested and displayed an attitude throughout our meal, prompting us to affectionately nickname her the "Nazi waiter" in an attempt to lighten the mood.However, the true letdown came with the food. I ordered the fresh fish, expecting a dish described as deboned and grilled to perfection. What arrived at my table was far from it. The fish appeared overcooked, with charred bits clinging to it, rendering it nearly inedible. The accompanying butter sauce was lackluster at best, and I couldn't help but feel wary of its quality.My visit to Nana's ranks among the most disappointing dining experiences I've had in years. This establishment could greatly benefit from improvements across the board, from the ambiance to the service and, most importantly, the food quality.

Our first visit was great but this last one was subpar. First of all the realization that they are serving bottom shelf liquor in $15 signature cocktails is alarming at best. I mean Smirnoff, Gordons and Old Granddad are college booze you'd expect at a dive bar for a $5 rail drink. Portions are small, I mean tiny small for the price. Our appetizers were tasty but the main Salmon dish was flavorless and cold. The staff rocks, the ambiance is fun but its clear they are maxing out profits here in Durham.

Probably one of my favorite restaurants in Durham. The recent renovation that took place also makes this one of the best atmospheres for dinner. The bar is great. Amazing cocktails, comfortable seating options, and friendly staff. The food is very good. The best food I've ever had... no. However, I wasn't disappointed nor was I blown away. Everything is just very good. The perfect spot for date night, going out with friends or taking folks from out of town.

My wife and I went to Nana's a lot a long while back but honestly it had been a while since I had thought about it when it shuttered a few years back. It was always very good but it seemed a bit predictable and boring towards the end. I remember when I was younger and it, Foursquare and Magnolia Grill were the only fancy dining options in Durham -- it was really such a dazzling testament to creative cooking in my home town at that point. By the time it closed those days had passed -- Durham has a plethora of great places to eat, so why go to Nanas for the same cast iron cooked duck they were serving in the late 90s? When I saw Matt Kelly was taking it over it was pretty exciting. When a good buddy of mine who has really good taste went for his birthday and loved it the excitement grew. Looked at the new menu and I really wanted to go. The ambiance looked similar but it seems like some renovation had been done and the who place seemed less stuffy (though it had been nine years since I had been so I can't remember it properly). The service was excellent which to be fair was always the case in its previous life. As to the food:1. Parker house rolls were fine and did a great job of sopping sauces;2. Oxtail mezzaluna was fantastic -- also not a huge portion so worked well as an app. Loved the smoky pecans alongside it; 3. Scallop Milanese -- amazing. Best part of the night. U10 scallop pounded flat and then expertly fried. Served with a tarragon and caper sauce and surrounded by seared bay scallops;4. Duck with duck sausage, sweet potatoes and braised collards -- cooked perfect and in a delicious Madeira sauce. My wife loved it, especially the duck sausage; 5. Salmon with blackened fennel, mussels and citrus -- perfectly cooked as well. Especially loved the citrus element And 6. Chocolate soufflé -- it took quite a long time to cook but it was totally fine. Probably the low point of the meal which is more than anything a testament to its uniform excellence. Thrilled about the new Nana's and can't wait to return!!

Somewhere between a 4 and 5 star review, I can't put my finger on it but not comfortable with five stars. Started with the scallops Milanese, the bay scallops and sauce were great, I didn't like the consistency that much in the actually scallops Milanese, which was like a thinly sliced scallop cake, didn't work perfectly. I ordered chicken as my main, not usually a chicken first person, but it was very good. The sauce was extremely flavorful and made the chicken anything but boring; my only small negative was it was somewhat hard to cut given the small pieces of cartilage (probably best totally deboned). Also it was listed with asparagus, and there were only a few very small almost unidentifiable slices of asparagus stem. The sauce with the scallops was great as was the flavor of the chicken, so please do not take this review negatively, it just wasn't perfect.

Made it into Nanas 2.0 which opened up this week. This classic restaurant has re-opened after a pandemic-induced break and has been renovated and revamped. While the exterior remains the same (plain jane), the interior is beautiful. Sporting a 70s or 80s retro vibe, the woodwork and lighting at the main bar is fabulous. The menu is ecelectic, seasonal, I did the classic shrimp risotto and duck tagliatelle. Service was solid as I would expect to be at these price points. Didn't make it to the chocolate souffle which takes 20 minutes to bake. But overall, super impressed with Nanas in Durham and can't wait to get back!

I think it is terrific! I would say the portions are a little small but they can make very interesting meals and weird cocktails! As my mom noticed, there seems to be an abundance of servers! Maybe they are doing some training.This place has gone through a lot of trouble in recent years. The new setup seems good!