Busy Bee Cafe

 

Had 18 beers on tap, mostly local but what was a big win was the bottle selection. Wide variety woth many styles including multiple barrel aged options and the pices for some of the rarer beers was very reasonable. Food was good and service staff was friendly and reasonably knowledgeable about most of the beers. Definitely worth a visit!

 

Love this place, especially The Hive upstairs. Excellent variety of beers, both bottled and on tap. These guys are very well connected within the NC beer community and tend to get rare/limited kegs that others in the area cannot . Helped empty a keg of BOMB! during my last visit. :)

The Busy Bee was my first stop during an Easter vacation sojourn to the Tarheel capital city. The comfortable vibe hits you in the face the moment you enter; it is a small place: a single room with an average bar on the left; the ceiling is high and airy (there is a mezzanine section towards the back) with plenty of ducts and brickwork to satisfy the most picky of construction workers. The Bee offers 12 taps and one cask, along with a massive selection of bottled beer - some very $$$.
My visit coincided with a recent Finch Brewing event, since there were plenty selections from this Chicago-based brewer: Pale Ale, Fascist Pig and Sobelski. Also wetting my palate: French Broad Ryehopper, something from Stone, a stout from Asheville's beloved Green Man, and my first try at Founder's "Blushing Monk.

Excellent service, delicious grub (fish taco) and reasonable prices made this a sweet place to hang out, but not long enough to swing by Crank Arm. (See My Review.)

 

 

 

 

One of my favorite beer places in North Carolina. Super tap & bottle selection, great food & service and all at a reasonable price.

My wife and I came here twice during a long weekend in Raleigh--first for drinks on a Saturday afternoon, then for Sunday brunch. Beer selection was amazing. They had some beers on tap that I had only ever seen in bottles--Dogfish Head Red & White for instance. Prices were very reasonable.

On both our visits we sat at the bar. Service was pleasant--we had the same bartender both times. Sunday brunch was tasty although the ham biscuit I ate was way too salty for my tastes. Ambiance was fine--not too noisy, a long bar with an exposed brick wall behind it. Only negative is the location. Busy Bee Cafe is next door to a bus terminal so you may have to dodge some folks asking for spare change.

 

 

 

 

I really enjoy this place. Great beer and great food. Love the servers, very knowledgeable. This is definitely a must stop if you are in the area. Great place to bring you non-beer nerd girlfriend/boyfriend since the cocktails and food are absolutely superb as well. It's a win all around.

 

No longer in biz - it's now Trophy Brewing - great joint, check 'em out!

 

 

I had the great pleasure of visiting the Busy Bee Cafe and the accompanying Hive on a recent trip through Raleigh. I can not say enough nice things about the place.

Food was very good and reasonably priced. Our group ordered a decent variety of items from sandwiches to desserts and everyone was pleased with their selections.

The beer selection was very impressive with a number of bottles I had never seen before. The waitstaff was great at making suggestions and steered our choices in the right direction. Wide variety of styles and prices. Very impressive list.

The atmosphere was lovely, the upstairs patio is gorgeous, and the bar has a fun yet tacitly reserved demeanor.

The service was absolutely incredible. I can't do justice for the experience we had with only a review, but know that the service was perfect. Ask for Catherine. The owner was incredibly hospitable and quite the gracious host.

It would be a crime to not visit the Busy Bee if you have the chance.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a good place but didn't have too much time so can't really say I got a complete layout of the place. Went around 6 on a Friday (for about an hour) during spring break so while place wasn't empty at all there were seats at the bar. Guess I would agree with "hipster" vibe as nothing but college kids with nothing to do were around (doesn't bother me). Bartender was quick and polite, no complaints about service, and while the bottle selection isn't the greatest or that cheap, the tap selection was pretty good as it mixes some local with hard to find domestic gems. Also, the draft beer prices, unlike bottle prices, were pretty even with rest of neighborhood. Seems like a good place to hang out if it doesn't get too crowded and enjoy a couple of drafts.