The Federal

Great dive bar with exceptional bar food downtown Durham. Great flavors and eclectic vibes from this small bar with a full bar and big tastes! Only qualm is that sometimes they are limited in staff and the crowds seem to surge to a point where the bar/wait staff can be overwhelmed, but they're still friendly and pretty effective. Fries are a major draw for me, new menu has some good salad and sandwich options.

Excellent service, delicious fries, wings, and salad. Thinking about making a trip back just for the fries alone!

I probably haven't been here for 15 years but had a craving and it will definitely not be another 15 years. Shared garlic parm wings with my family, nice sized wings. The true highlight was the steak frites. As I don't eat regular potatoes, subbed sweet potato fries in and turned into a great (and filling) meal. The steak had a nice garlic butter and was a hefty portion itself. The crinkle cut sweet potato fries were great, and sweet potato fries are usually hit or miss. These were as crispy and crunch as regular potato. Sat outside on a nice day, the perfect compliment to the meal. Overall a very nice experience.

I'm still trying to get over my last visit. It was my birthday and we were heading to a concert. We hadn't been in years and I wanted to get back. The menu was filled with great options. I settled on the schnitzel sandwich. I was shocked by what they delivered. I never send food back (fearing a vengeful chef) but I really should have. Not only couldn't it cover the bun, it was paper thin (even for schnitzel) and just didn't taste great. The rest of the food was OK (not great) but this really ruined the meal. Hard to imagine that at least two people felt ok at serving that plate.

It has been a minute since I have visited The Federal. On this most recent visit we dined in before a show. It was a beer and the fish & chips for me and the fish tacos with sweet potato fries for my husband. It is small both inside and out but it is a good dining option in Durham.

Good food. Good service. Plenty of beers on tap. Give it a try. We ate and watched the Olympics.

There is a bar and seating inside. The bar area looked really nice. It is the middle of November in NC...we sat outside. The view on the street was awesome. I loved the outdoor seating. If you like to socialize, this is the perfect set up. The menu is not extensive so it won't take you a long to ponder your selection. That's a good thing. It keeps things moving along. The waitress was super friendly. I ordered the Fed Burger with fed fries. Let me tell you something, the fries were absolutely everything! They have to be top 3 fries of all time. Add a little ketchup and a dash of malt vinegar...omg Yum! I was gobbling up my fries so fast...I had to refocus on my burger. Let me tell you the burger was also everything. The toppings were fresh. The burger was cooked to order. My friend ordered the beyond burger and she said her meal was excellent. Think I may drive back to Durham just for this meal. Go there...

I cannot recommend this place enough!We tried the nachos with carnitas and buffalo chicken sandwich with the Grapefruit Radler to drink. The food was delicious and gave HUGE servings which was great for the value. The drinks were super affordable ($3-4) and hit the spot. We sat outside to soak up the nice weather. There was a variety of seating options inside from bar top to booths and tables. By far the best part about this place was the service. Our waiter Haziel was not only incredible at his job, but was also a genuine pleasure to talk to and truly cared about making his customers feel welcome and cared for. It was our first time visiting and we will certainly be back P.S. request the Peach Cobbler to drink, it's delicious!

Great food and great service. We were looking for a nice (new) place for lunch, and this did not disappoint.

Spoiler alert: it's bar food! If you stick with the classics (burgers and chicken), you'll be pretty satisfied. A plus shoutout for their sweet potato waffle fries, trying to show Chick-fil-A how it's done I see you. Try branching out and you might be disappointed. Tried a BBQ pulled pork and got a lukewarm, little-too-reminiscent-of-church-cookout-leftovers, sammy. Also had some flies in the place that were also fairly interested in the food.Big thanks to the staff who were very kind and flexible when a big family came in looking for seat. That's true class right there.