NC airport bar with celebrity ties named one of the 10 best in the country
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- USA Today 10Best ranks Whisky River No. 10 for best airport bars.
- Whisky River has locations at RDU and Charlotte airports.
- The airport restaurant and bar is from former NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr.
A restaurant with locations at two North Carolina airports has one of the 10 best bars at airports across the country.
Whisky River, the restaurant and bar from HMSHost and Dale Earnhardt Jr., is the No. 10 best airport bar in the country, according to a new USA Today 10Best report.
The restaurant has locations at Raleigh-Durham International Airport and Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina, as well as Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.
Whisky River’s Moonshine Mule, made with Midnight Moon Original Moonshine, ginger beer and lemon juice, is shouted out in the 10Best report as the drink to try.
The publication’s popular 10Best competition takes business nominations from a panel of experts. USA Today 10Best editors select the final nominees, and then readers vote to determine the 10 best.
10 best airport bars
- No. 1: The Titans Press Box at Nashville International Airport
- No. 2: Three Kings Public House at St. Louis Lambert International Airport
- No. 3: Williams & Graham at Denver International Airport
- No. 4: Vino Volo, at more than 30 airports in North America
- No. 5: Bacardi Mojito Bar at Miami International Airport
- No. 6: Atlas Brew Works at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
- No. 7: Memphis Made Brewing Co. at Memphis International Airport
- No. 8: Blue2o at Palm Beach International Airport
- No. 9: Bar Sazerac at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport
- No. 10: Whisky River in North Carolina and Florida
About Whisky River
Former NASCAR racing driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. and partner HMSHost opened the first Whisky River restaurant at the EpiCentre in downtown Charlotte in 2008. The second location opened at Charlotte’s airport in 2015, and Whisky River came to RDU Airport in March 2018.
Whisky River serves dishes including burgers and sandwiches, which cost $16-$20, according to the online menu, along with salads ($20) and nachos ($17-$19).
Restaurants and bars at RDU
RDU Airport is already home to multiple dining options across its two terminals. Some have opened as recently as late August.
More are on the way from celebrity and local chefs. Here are a few:
- Adios! from James Beard semifinalist chef Oscar Diaz, who’s behind Durham’s Little Bull
- Bobby’s Burgers from chef Bobby Flay
- Bond Brothers Taproom & Kitchen, the Cary-based brewery
- Raleigh Beer Garden, a Glenwood South institution
Restaurants and bars at Charlotte airport
Whisky River isn’t Charlotte’s only airport restaurant with celebrity ties. Earlier this year, a restaurant from rock-and-roll artist Sammy Hagar, Sammy’s Beach Bar & Grill, opened in Concourse D.
The airport is also home to restaurants such as Midwood Smokehouse in Concourse B, Charlotte-based Sycamore Brewing in Concourse E and Bojangles.
