Visiting Raleigh for one night

Tasty Beverage for bottles and a few drafts, Pooles (fancier) or trophy brewing (awesome pizza and decent beer) for dinner, Busy Bee for beer on draft after if your still feeling up for it. All easily walkable when downtown.

 

Trophy Brewing for the best pizza in town and a great draft lineup.

 

Bottle Revolution 2 is open right by RDU. Opening this monday. There will be good liquid on tap, and your choice of great bottles. cheers.

 

I just got back from a trip and hit all the usual spots listed, that being said most can be covered with a trip downtown to Tasty, crank arm brewing and busy bee are all within walking distance of each other and 15 minutes or so from the airport.

 

Ridgewood Wine & Beer for the best draft list in town and best prices on bottles. Trophy or Busy Bee for dinner. Or the Pit for dinner in combo with Tasty (right across the street from each other).

If you have only one night then don't waste your time with Crank Arm or any other brewery that's not Trophy.

 

I don't really see Raleigh Times talked about much anymore... any reason? About 5 years ago or so I really liked stopping in when I used to work in Raleigh a decent bit. Nowadays I stop in maybe once a year or so when I'm in the area and hit up Busy Bee as well.

 

I think people have just grown too knowledgeable/nerdy about beer for Raleigh Times and now there are a good amount of other choices that have better beer and food both. The Times is crowded and beer is on the expensive side for this town and for what you get. Their draft list is smaller and lower quality than somewhere like Busy Bee or even the Pit and their bottle list is not what it once was.

It's still an okay place IMO, but if your primary aim is craft beer, it's just not in the top tier of spots in town.

 

I guess I need to visit Busy Bee, I always eat at Joule and see it packed. I just never knew it was supposed to be as legit as i've learned from this post.

 

The food is better at Joule, but Busy Bee has the best tap and bottle list of anywhere downtown.

 

Raleigh Times lost their edge because they started to worry too much about getting bigger & making more money.

The beer choices got worse, the food got worse & the prices got a LOT higher. I used to live there, I literally have left blood on the bar but now it's one of my last choices. All the good folks are gone and it's now a haven for young(sometimes too young) masses.

 

I'm sad to hear it, but that kind of meshes with what I'd been seeing the last time or two I've been in. Sad to hear that my last couple experiences were more the norm instead of them just having an off night or two.

 

Yeah, it sucks.