Caffe Driade
"Super cute little shop with extensive grounds. Best in good weather as the indoor seating is quite limited. The brown sugar oat milk latte is a house favorite - they make the brown sugar syrup in house. The pour overs change day to day and are quite good. The grounds are adorable but can be buggy if it's humid out. Baristas are helpful if you need guidance. Baked goods are top notch and there's vegan options. Watch out for snakes outside though! Parking is tight but there is more around the corner if you go to the roastery so keep driving through the parking lot!"
The Blue Note Grill
"We enjoyed our time at The Blue Note Grill in downtown Durham. I think the food is three stars (okay), but the live music, laid-back atmosphere, and friendliness of both the staff and the patrons bumps this business up to four stars (good) for me. Barbecue, ribs, and music succinctly sums this place up.We ended up here because we were looking for a barbecue restaurant in Durham that was open for dinner on a Wednesday night after 8:00pm. There weren't many options. We didn't know about the live music aspect of The Blue Note Grill until we arrived. This place is popular.We showed up and checked in around 6:45pm. They don't take reservations. We were told the wait would be about 30 minutes and I was given a pager. The estimated wait time was pretty much spot-on as we were seated around 7:15pm.On a Wednesday night, we were told the main indoor dining room and bar - the one with the stage and live music - was full. If we wanted to sit in there, there would be a $5 cover charge per person. Our other options were the fully-enclosed patio and the open-air patio. I asked if I could see all three options before making a decision and one of the staff obliged.I ended up choosing the open-air patio for our small group of three because: (1) We wanted to catch up and the music was too loud inside. Sitting inside is for those who primarily want to enjoy the music. (2) The enclosed patio was actually warmer and stuffier than the open-air patio. We ended up liking the open-air patio, even though we had to deal with flies and mosquito bites, because we could hear each other easily and still enjoy the live music coming from the inside. The patio was decorated with plants and string lights. It had picnic tables, most of which were covered by umbrellas. We got the only table that was under a canopy.By the way, I also noticed another indoor dining room called the "Rib Room." It's to your right upon entering. There was no one in there and it appeared to be closed. Maybe they didn't have enough staff to open that room.The night of our visit, it was "Brett's Open Mic," 7-10pm. "Brett" being Brett Chambers, who's been doing Open Mics since September 1996. Go to https://www.thebluenotegrill.com/events to see all upcoming events. According to The Blue Note Grill's website, they've been around since 2010 and moved to their current location at 709 Washington St in June 2015. They have live music nightly, Tuesday-Saturday. They're closed Sunday and Monday.The business is located on the northern edges of Durham's Central Park and Warehouse District neighborhoods. The building is old. Free parking is located next to and behind the building by an old wooden train trestle bridge and some defunct oil tanks. I'm not sure what was here before. Be careful pulling into and out of the parking lot because the ramp from the street was very steep. Sitting on the patio, we heard many cars hit and scrape the curb/driveway. The ramp needs to be redone/regraded.Along with barbecue, The Blue Note Grill serves burgers, sandwiches, chili, Brunswick stew, wings, barbecue/Southern sides, appetizers like crispy pickle fries and deviled eggs, and desserts like banana pudding and chocolate lava cake.Here's what we got:* Redneck Cheese Fries ($9.99) with Pickled Jalapenos (+$1.00) - French fries smothered with melted housemade pimento cheese, served with ranch dressing* Alaska Wild Wings ($9.99) - eight fried pollock bites with sweet red chili sauce and tartar sauce* Baby Back Ribs Full Rack ($31.99) with hush puppies, fried okra, and housemade coleslaw* Baby Back Ribs Half Rack ($19.99) with hush puppies, substitute salad (+$2.00), and fried okra* Pulled Pork BBQ Plate ($13.99) with hush puppies, collards, and green beans sauteed in bacon and onionsOverall, I thought the food was fine. Nothing stood out as either great or bad. My wife enjoyed the Redneck Cheese Fries more than I did. The ranch dressing was a nice touch. I liked the Alaska Wild Wings. They were crispy and boneless. They also came with celery and carrot sticks. The Baby Back Ribs were a bit too tough and chewy. However, the portion size was generous. The Pulled Pork was OK. In general, I think it and the sides lacked a bit of seasoning and flavor. The salad was fresh and came with onion, cheese, tomatoes, and carrots. The fried okra was yummy.The condiment basket included two kinds of barbecue sauces, Eastern NC (thinner, more vinegary) and Western NC (thicker, sweeter).Our server Kai S was great. He was funny and did a nice job. The other staff was great as well, including the hostess/manager. Despite a busy night, all of our food came out fast.There was a scan-QR-code-to-pay option on the receipt. I usually prefer this over using my physical card, but The Blue Note Grill uses Heartland Payment Systems who makes you download/install their app, sign up, and then pay. I didn't have time for that and paid with card instead. From a guest experience, Toast is better."
