Durham's Geer Street gets an addition to its bustling nightlife scene — a bar and pizza joint
There’s a new bar and pizza joint open on Geer Street in Durham from the owners of Bull McCabe’s Irish Pub.
Hutchins Garage opened at the intersection of Geer Street and Rigsbee Avenue, squarely in the middle of the city’s nightlife center. Its owners are Malachy Noone and managing partner Tracy Hancock.
They also operated Stag’s Head Music Hall, a bottle shop-turned-live-music venue in Raleigh’s Glenwood South district. They closed Stag’s Head in the past month, citing a need to focus on Hutchins.
“We did not feel like we could manage the two together,” Malachy said.
Hutchins serves familiar, round New York pizza, plus Grandma-style, which is a rectangular pie with a thinner crust. Chef Michael Morrone, previously of Dos Perros and Pizzeria Toro, brought the pizza concept with him. Beyond pizza, the menu will also have sandwiches like chicken parm, salads and vegetables.
“Mike is a killer pizza chef,” Hancock said. “Obviously we’re working off of his talents. He’s been tweaking his dough recipe. (Grandma-style is) not as dense and bready as Sicilian, it’s got a crispy, airy dough, with a nice chew. It’s really satisfying.”
Hutchins had a soft opening for about a week and a half, but Hancock says everything is now up and running. Like its cousin Bull McCabe’s, Hutchins will keep a carefully curated taplist of about a dozen beers, including offerings from smaller sought-after houses, such as Burial in Asheville and newcomer Casita Cerveceria.
“We try to have something for everyone,” Hancock said.
Durham’s Geer Street district specializes in second acts, largely for old car repair shops and warehouses. Cocoa Cinnamon, Motorco/Parts and Labor and now Hutchins all make their homes in former garages, with lattes, craft beer and now pizza enjoyed among the ghosts of carburetors and transmissions.
Hutchins Garage is named for the Hutchins Automotive car dealership. The property remains in the family, Hancock said, with Mark Hutchins the current owner.
Hancock said he and the other partners behind Hutchins had a lease on the property for five years. The timing was right to open up the restaurant, with Geer Street routinely packed on the weekends, and the nearby opening of Liberty Apartments brinng in a few hundred new neighbors.
“It’s a great place for food and drink and nightlife,” Hancock said.
Much of Hutchins’ character comes from the space it moves into, Hancock said, with large frosted glass windows surrounding the dining room and plans to open the large garage door when the weather agrees. In a couple months, outdoor seating will be added to the concrete patio out front.
“It’s got a great aesthetic on its own, and we’ve just built off that,” Hancock said.
Hutchins will be open for dinner seven days a week, with lunch on Saturdays and Sundays. The kitchen will stay open until midnight on weekdays and 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday.
It is at 402 W. Geer St., Durham. Find it on Facebook.
This story was originally published July 20, 2018 at 5:27 PM.