Bring your pup with you! Here are the most dog-friendly Triangle bars and restaurants
Where would we be in this pandemic without the pups, those Zoom crashers, delivery driver barkers and work from home co-workers of the past year and a half.
The News & Observer has compiled a list of some of the Triangle’s most dog friendly bars, breweries and restaurants.
Here’s where to raise a glass to man’s best drinking buddy.
401 Main
401 E. Main St., Carrboro. 919-390-3598 or 401main.com
Pitched as a “dive bar for dogs” when it opened two years ago, this Carrboro restaurant was built for the dog lover, and its Main St. patio is a steady pup meet and greet.
Beer Study
2501 University Drive, Suite 4, Durham. 984-219-7538 or beerstudy.com
If you’re browsing the beers in this Durham bottle shop, you might have the good fortune to turn a corner and bump into a pup, which often roam the aisles and tables and outdoor patio.
Bull McCabe’s Irish Pub
427 W. Main St., Durham. 919-682-3061 or bullmccabesirishpub.com
Most of this downtown Durham bar is an expansive greenspace, right in the middle of the city. Amid picnic tables and grass patches pups have plenty of space to meet new friends while their humans consider pints of Guinness and chicken wings.
Burial Beer Co. Raleigh
500 E. Davie St., Suite 170, Raleigh. 919-617-1314 or burialbeer.com/location/dtr
Since opening in 2019, Burial has been one of Raleigh’s most popular taprooms, expanding from a narrow beer bar to a wide indoor beer garden. Inside, Burial attracts pups large and small, sometimes curled on the cool concrete floors or sniffing around for their next scratch.
Dingo Dog Brewing Co.
410 N. Greensboro St., Suite 150, Carrboro. dingodogbrewing.com
This is a taproom with a mission. Named for a beloved dog, Dingo Dog Brewing opened a downtown Carrboro taproom last year, aiming to use beer as a way to improve the lives of animals. This non-profit brewery raises funds for no-kill animal rescues in North Carolina.
Geer Street Garden
644 Foster St., Durham. 919-688-2900 or geerstreetgarden.com
Out back at this popular Durham restaurant, don’t be surprised to see well-behaved doggos tucked under tables tagging along on date-nights.
Glass Jug Beer Lab
5410 N.C. 55, Suite V, Durham. 919-813-0135 or glass-jug.com
The original South Durham beer garden of this popular brewery is an oasis in a strip mall. Between strings of twinkling lights and umbrellas, there’s plenty of grass or gravel for dogs to find a soft spot to curl up.
Loco Pops
2618 Hillsborough Road, Durham. 919-286-3500 or ilovelocopops.com
This popular Durham sweet shop has a little something for the pups. While you might be licking lemon curd or strawberries and cream, Loco Pops offers a Pup Pop, made with peanut butter and yogurt, with a rawhide stick.
Parts & Labor at Motorco Music Hall
723 Rigsbee Ave., Durham. 919-901-0875 or partsnlabor.com
Boasting one of Durham’s best patios, Motorco has long been a favorite for dog lovers. The large picnic tables offer shade for pups looking to hide away, and a fresh bowl of water is never far away.
Ponysaurus Brewing Co.
219 Hood St., Durham. 919-584-4265 or ponysaurusbrewing.com
This Durham brewery draws crowds for its sprawling backyard, studded with picnic tables and grass for pups to frolic and roll.
State of Beer
401 Hillsborough St., Raleigh. 919-546-9116 or stateof.beer
The patio at State of Beer is filled with narrow biergarten tables looking out on Hillsborough Street. Dog parents can often be found stopping in for a beer while on a walk.
Steel String Brewery’s Pluck Farm
6901 W. Highway NC-54, Mebane. 919-240-7215 or steelstringbrewery.com
Last year, Carrboro’s Steel String Brewery struck out for wider, more open spaces on the western edge of Orange County. Aimed at growing and foraging ingredients for the acclaimed brewery, Steel String’s farm also creates a pastoral pupper paradise.
Vicious Fishes Apex
2237 Old US Hwy 1, Apex. 919-446-6018 or viciousfishes.com/apex
There are three Vicious Fishes locations, with the Apex spot offering coffee service in the morning and beers until nightfall. The backyard beer garden is gravel and grass, with suburban-sized room for taproom-loving pups.
West Street Dog
400 W. North St., Raleigh. 984-222-2965 or weststreetdog.com
You might be out of place if you don’t bring a dog to West Street, though no one would blame you for wanting to grab a drink with dozens of romping pups. The first off-leash dog bar in Raleigh opened in August, serving beers for humans and a dog park for the dogs.
Wilson’s Eatery/ Lynnwood Brewing Concern
1053 E. Whitaker Mill Road, Raleigh. 919-977-5442 or wilsonseatery.com
Named for the family dog of Lynnwood owner Ted Dwyer, Wilson’s builds on the brewery’s dog-friendly reputation. Since it opened, 5% of sales go to local animal rescues and causes.
This story was originally published August 26, 2021 at 6:00 AM.
