The Town of Chapel Hill

The University of North Carolina is the reason there is a Chapel Hill. This was just a spot on a map in the middle of the woods by a spring that someone decided in the 1700's would make a great place for a University. The land around it was auctioned off as depicted in the mural in the downtown post office and thus Chapel Hill was born. Back in those days Universities were private institutions, mostly for the children of the rich and powerful so they could become the next generation of the rich and powerful. UNC was the first public university. It was a school for the people, not just the privileged and the campus and the town were built from scratch. They have both grown. UNC is still one of the most respected Universities in the country with over 20,000 students and Chapel Hill is one of the most progressive towns in the south, if not the most progressive town in the south.

The town government in Chapel Hill as you might imagine is a progressive one. The politics of the area is progressive too with the vast majority voting liberal Democrat, drawing the ire of the state's well known and fortunately retired Jesse Helms who did not see the need for a Zoo when all they had to do was put a fence around Chapel Hill and once referred to UNC as the "University of Negroes and Communists". Nowadays there are a lot more SUVs than there are VW vans but Chapel Hill is still a bastion of a dying creed known as liberalism. Once known as The Southern Part of Heaven some of its holiness has been tarnished by the influx of Northerners, Easterners and Westerners, a lack of affordable housing that is sending a generation of artists back home to live in their parents basement, and a traffic problem that can make you feel like you are in a big city during the 5pm rush-hour which thankfully is a short hour. Still it is a damn nice place to live and to hear it from newcomers, a lot better than wherever it is they came from, though the old timers will tell you that it ain't what it used to be. But is anything?

The 100 Block of Chapel Hill

The 100 block of Franklin street is the hub of Chapel Hill and has gone through many changes. The old Carolina Theater became a GAP which paid big bucks for their space which caused commercial rents to go through the roof. Then they left. The Intimate Bookshop, driven out of business by the BullsHead bookstore on campus and Barnes and Noble, is now a shop that sells perfume last time I looked, or is it a college text-book store? The Shrunken Head, which was a head-shop in the early seventies with blacklight posters and hash pipes has become one of the tourist shops selling everything an alumni needs to turn his child into an instant Tarheel fan from T-shirts to socks and underwear. Town Hall, where I used to go hear bands like Arrogance, became a mini-mall that has seen a parade of tenants and is now home to Johnny's T-Shirts, Cosmic Cantina and a Subway. Julian's which used to be owned and run by Milton Julian a nice fellow who ran around town tearing down the flyers that were put up by the clubs and bands, is now run by his famous son Alexander Julian, but last week I saw a big closing sale banner across the front of the shop. Across the street Ye Old Waffle Shop has been serving breakfast since long before I came into town. Sutton's and The Carolina Coffee Shop have been serving breakfast since before I was born. In fact since before my parents were born.

Probably the saddest loss was the Hardback Cafe which stood between Franklin and Rosemary on Columbia Street and was the home-away-from-home of poets, rock-stars, artists, novelists and restaurant workers, many of whom worked at the Cafe-Bookstore, one of the first in the country. Thankfully a few businesses have survived Chapel Hill's march to turn Franklin Street into an outdoor mall by property owners who would rather see their storefronts empty than make them affordable. The Varsity Theater is still showing the kind of films that are a notch or two above those made for mass consumption and Stuart Hoyle is the perfect archtype of the independent theater manager. Pepper's Pizza has not been taken over in a hostile bid by Pizza Hut and you can still get great pizza made by rock musicians and artists. Schoolkids Records is now CDs and is what a music shop should always be, a cool store on a street instead of in a mall, run by guys who know music and don't have to wear uniforms and actually love their jobs.

Downtown Chapel Hill by day is a parade of people of all ages on their way to buy things. At night it is a parade of young people on their way to party at the large number of bars, clubs, pool-halls, restaurants and cafes on the 100 block. What are the coolest places nowadays? Don't ask me. I am no longer cool. But if you follow the crowds on a weekend night you can probably find somewhere where you can stand in line and wait to be allowed in just like you can in New York or LA. Where you probably won't need to stand in line unless it is at the bar to get a beer is He's Not Here, a watering hole for generations of students and Chapel Hillians and still going strong, located in the courtyard behind Carribou Coffee, a converted gas station. The Library is a new club that took over the space where Taco Bell finally accepted their defeat, giving the students live music, as well as a name that will put their parents at ease. "I'm going to The Library tonight, mom."

In the sixties and seventies Franklin street was full of street venders selling beads, pipes, and other interesting things. In the seventies they out-lawed this making an exception of the black women who sold the flowers who were exiled into the hallway of what is now the Bank America Building. The street venders were replaced by the homeless who had easy access when the shelter took over what had been the Police Department on the corner of Rosemary and Franklin. This seemed to make some locals uncomfortable and combined with the problems of finding a parking space sent many to do their shopping in the malls and shopping centers that were sprouting up around the town. The town tried to stem the tide by adding a giant parking deck with a rooftop garden and pavilion that never got the kind of attention they hoped it would and by putting up signs for people not to give to the homeless but to donate instead to the Interfaith Council which would support the shelter. Later they made a law that is was illegal to solicit money at night. This may be a good idea or an easy solution but the problem with downtown Chapel Hill, (if you believe there is a problem,) is grossly overpriced rents and the owners of buildings who would rather let a space stay empty for years and write it off, than lower the rent and allow a young business to increase the diversity of a downtown which prides itself on it's diversity but has become less so.

The newly renovated University Square has been bringing in new tenants and changing the face of the small shopping center in the shadow of the five high-rises that occupy the space where the old high school used to be. But the fact remains that this tribute to the poor planning of the seventies is as much an eyesore to the town as is the giant parking lot across the street or the empty spaces beneath Top of the Hill Restaurant. The style of University Square is better suited to US 15-501, not in the middle of downtown. The best thing you can say about it is that it is easy to park. But had the original designers the intelligence to put the shops on the sidewalk of Franklin Street and put all the parking behind them we would have a bridge to West Franklin instead of the impression that the town ends here so lets turn around and go back to the 100 block. But what can you do? Its there. It can't be moved, and now there is a nice little oasis in downtown Chapel Hill where rich people can park their SUVs, jump out and shop and not be bothered by the homeless people who can't hang out there because it is private property. But that is no reason to avoid it if you are not shopping for jewelry or a gown for the debutante ball. Time-Out serves chicken and bisquits and burgers and roast Turkey and just about anything a college student would want at 3am after a night of heavy partying or sitting in your apartment with a few friends, a few movies and a bong. On the back side of the Square is Bon's Barbecue where the daughter of Mamma Dip serves home style southern food. Beneath the square is 36, the Chinese restaurant with the biggest buffet in Chapel Hill where you can sit and stare in wonder at the amount of food people can put down.

Across the street from the 100 block is the University of North Carolina's McCorkle Place, a large green, tree covered area surrounded by historical buildings that serves as a downtown park for those smart enough to see it as one. The relationship of the University to the town has been described as a partnership though someone might just as easily describe it as a battle. The University owns several commercial buildings that would be much better suited for shops and businesses, which they have no intention of relinquishing. Many business owners complain that they are forced to compete with the University. There is no computer store or bookshop on Franklin street because they can't compete with the prices at UNC student stores and the Bull's Head Bookshop. Locally owned restaurants struggle while corporate fast foods with well known names have set up shop in the center of campus. There is even a rumor that a Food Lion will open on campus, further severing ties between the student population and a business community that is just trying to survive.

Arts and Culture in Chapel Hill

Just so you know that Chapel Hill is not just about eating and drinking and going to hear bands there is a historic district with a number of beautiful old houses owned by rich people, some attractive old churches and some terrific examples of the best and the worst of American architecture of the last 200 years on the UNC campus. On the corner of Franklin and Columbia across from the monolithic University Baptist Church is the Ackland Art Museum with a collection that any town would be proud of. Its permanent collection is impressive  with so many ancient Greek and Roman pieces that I can feel right at home. It is also host to traveling exhibits plus one of the southeast's best collections of Indian and Western art, NC pottery, and 20th Century and Contemporary art and its Asian statues and European and American paintings that date back several centuries. It is also free. Down the street just past McCorkle Place is the Morehead Planetarium and Science Center which was used as the NASA training center for the astronauts. There are various science shows and a multi-media Star Theater. The Planetarium is visited by nearly 80,000 school kids each year. Further east down Franklin street is the Chapel Hill Museum and the home of the Chapel Hill Historical Society in what used to be the public library on the corner of Boundry Street. A block or so further is the Horace Williams House which serves as a cultural center and the headquarters of the Chapel Hill Preservation Society and features exhibits of NC artists and rooms decorated with period pieces. The big, beautiful new Chapel Hill Public Library is now in the center of a wooded park area on Estes Drive, a few hundred yards from the corner of East Franklin street. On the UNC campus is Wilson Library and the NC Collection Gallery with its rooms that recreate history of the state and some of it's famous people and places, the Rare Books Collection and several other displays in one of the most impressive buildings in the state. Don't forget the Chapel Hill Children's Museum among the shops on Franklin street's 100 block.

West Franklin the New Center of Chapel Hill

West Franklin is where the older people go. That means late twenties and up. There are several great restaurants including Crooks Corner which has been serving Southern Gourmet Food since Bill Neil and Gene Hammer opened it twenty years ago. Elaine's is the kind of place that when customers leave after a meal they want to grab strangers on the street and take them in to experience it for themselves. Across the street The Lantern serves food with an Oriental flavor and people who know food swear this is the best restaurant to ever grace West Franklin. No it is not a Chinese Restaurant so describing it as Oriental is deceiving. How about 'eastern influenced'? Nice little bar in the back. At 11pm the ashtrays come out the artists, rock-stars, poets and sycophants arrive to drink,chat and eat amazing appetizers til they are kicked out at closing time. Across the street and next to Elaine's is the West End Wine Bar with live jazz, a fine selection of wines but a little weak in the food and appetizer department. Two doors down is the Carolina Brewery with their famed concrete bar and local beer, which in my opinion is pretty good. In between is Telluhlah's which despite the southern belle name is a Turkish restaurant that after 11 becomes a dance club where Greeks, Turks, Iranians, Lebanese, Israellis, Kurds, and even Americans forget their differences and dance the night away.

For people who can't drink a beer unless there is some kind of game on TV or on dozens of TVs there is the North Carolina Original Sports Bar. Right next door is Local 506 which along with the Cat's Cradle in Carrboro has to be the best place to hear a band in town. Their annual Sleeze Fest has gotten national attention and attracted such great acts as Link Wray and local legends Southern Culture on the Skids. Mike Nicholson's Sparklefest brings in pop groups from all over the country for a four-day weekend.

If you want to find some of the old crowd try The Dead Mule across from the old Fowlers Supermarket that is now a collection of restaurants and shops including Vespa, (Italian of course) and the WB Yates, an Irish Pub with live music and an atmosphere that will make you forget you are in the states. Patio Loco is a Mexican restaurant that has live salsa music on some Saturdays but always seems like a big outdoor party on warm weekend nights. One of the most popular restaurants in the neighborhood is 411 West with Italian pasta dishes, brick-oven pizza and a great bar where I go every Monday night for half-price wine. Stephanie Miller raves about it on her show but it is a healthy mixture of Democrats, Chapel Hill Republicans, (a beleaguered breed who usually don't open their mouths except to talk about sports) and closet radicals who like their thin crust pizza. The Mediterranean Deli (and middle eastern) Store is where most people who work in the area go for lunch. The struggling Seeds of Sheeba on Graham street is an Ethiopian restaurant that deserves more business than it gets. Italian Pizzeria needs no advertising because it is always busy, especially during World Cup Football. Next door the India Palace is one of those places that I really like but then you ask an Indian person and they say no the most authentic Indian food is at some restaurant twnety miles away and so I go there and I don't think it is so great as to justify driving forty miles. So either I am a better judge of Indian food than Indians are or I like un-authentic Indian food better than authentic Indian food or more likely, an Indian person will tell you that such and such a restaurant is the best because that is the only one he has actually been to because his cousin owns it. Whatever. The important thing is that the people who work at India Palace are very nice and it is never full, even on weekends when you have to stand in line everywhere else. Anyway just say that India Palace serves Chapel Hill's best all-you-can-eat Indian buffet, rivaled only by Tandoor Indian Restaurant on West Franklin, the other Indian restaurant in town.

A new shop has opened in Chapel Hill that is a prime example of why we all live here. 3 Cups is a coffee, tea, and chocolate merchant that has opened in the Courtyard on Franklin St. Lex Alexander (who started Wellspring) opened the store with one idea in mind - to offer the very best coffee, tea, and chocolate to the fine people of Chapel Hill-Carrboro. This is not just a place to go grab a cup of joe and hit the road or hang out with friends. This is a place to buy the freshest, best coffee beans, hand selected loose leaf tea, and gourmet chocolate to take home and enjoy in your own home. 'Enjoy' is the key word here. Every Friday at 3pm, 3 Cups has a seasonal coffee that is roasted that morning and available for customers to buy and enjoy. You won't believe how great fresh coffee can taste. And isn't that one of the great reasons that we live here. You can have the best coffee in the world, right here, in North Carolina. Next door is Sandwhich owned by Janet and Hich which serves beer and wine and the most imaginative and delicious sandwiches in Chapel Hill. To go with these 2 businesses the courtyard has rennovated itself to make it more friendly to people who want to eat, drink coffee, read the paper and enjoy the weather.

Rosemary Street

Parallel to Franklin street is Rosemary Street which is most famous for three restaurants and one cafe-bookstore. The most well known of the restaurants are Breadman's, owned by Italian-Pennsylvanian Roy Piscetello and Dip's Country Kitchen owned by Mama Dip. Breadman's was the original 24-hour restaurant and made their name by being the place to be after the bars closed. Dips is one of the best restaurants in the south for southern cooking and Mama Dip, whose real name is Mildred Councel has been written up in numerous magazines and her cookbook is a big seller. The Third restaurant is Fuse which despite having excellent food and being home to one of the best catering companies in town, is known more as a late-night hangout for the young and hip of the Chapel Hill scene, which means if you don't smoke you better bring your gas-mask. It serves a fusion of Asian and American cuisines and an one of the best late-night menus in town. Next door is the Skylight Exchange, owned by Dennis Gavin who has made what was once the Cat's Cradle into a used record, CD and books shop with an old time luncheonette and a large selection of sandwiches.  Monday Night is Trivia Night. It begins at 9:00PM and is the only smoke-free Trivia Night in town, and coincidentally, also the longest-running and BEST in town. The Skylight also hosts local bands and national acts as well as the Vague Metaphor spoken-word open-mike on Tuesdays. It is the favorite venue of acclaimed folk-singer and political activist David Lippman, heir to Phil Ochs and Tom Leherer, who moved here from the Bay Area. It is also the home of the legendary Poster Guys, the company that puts up flyers all over Chapel Hill, Durham and Raleigh for bands, theaters and other performances. In the evening the Skylight becomes Nightlight, a place to hear rock bands and party.

Beyond the Hub of Chapel Hill

Since this page has strayed from its course and is now a guide to eating a drinking I need to throw in a few of my favorite places which will require the use of a car or a desire to walk long distances to work up an appetite. First is the Flying Burrito on Airport road about a mile north of downtown Chapel Hill. This Mexican restaurant owned by Phil, a culinary legend of Chapel Hill, wins the best environment and best food award on my website. Every week Phil comes up with a half dozen fish specials. Servings are generous and it is the place in Chapel Hill you are most likely to see someone you know. The best wings in town, amazing queso and dips and burritos, some of which are mild enough for a child and others which they practically dare you to eat.

On the south side of town on 15/501, the road to Pittsboro just before Cole Park Plaza is Captain John's Dockside Restaurant. From the outside it looks like your typical heart-attack fried seafood restaurant that you can find anywhere in North Carolina. But step inside and you will find a dining area with the greatest collection of Clyde Jones Fish paintings on earth. The owner, John Dimos, whose family like many Greeks in Chapel Hill come from Karpanissi, has slowly but surely introduced into his menu some dishes that you won't find in Calabash or Morehead City. Fresh sardines either fried or grilled. Fried smelts or what we call in Greece marides, so crispy you can eat them bones and all. Whole kalamari fried or grilled, not rings. All-you-can-eat babyback ribs and crab-legs and a number of Greek and Italian fish and pasta dishes. The shrimp-fest is more than any man can handle and are not pitiful popcorn shrimp but as big, meaty, and as hefty as a shrimp can be.

Out on the by-pass is Mariakakis which has been in business for most of the last century founded by Tommy Mariakakis who came to Chapel Hill from the island of Crete after several years in Wyoming. The original store was on Franklin street and when he moved to the present location on the bi-pass people thought he was crazy and that would be the end of his business because at the time there was nothing else there. It turned out that Tommy was a visionary. Now owned and run by his son Johnny Mariakakis, it is a Greek restaurant-deli and international gourmet supermarket with a fantastic collection of wines from Greece and other wine-producing countries. It is a collection Johnny is quite proud of, as he is of the many varieties of olive oil he carries. John has been instrumental in the planning for the Greek Orthodox Cathedral and Hellenic Cultural Center being built on the outskirts of Chapel Hill. The center will host their annual Greek Festival as well as have classes in Greek language, cooking, history and culture and will be a beacon to attract Greek-Americans looking for a place to retire or to relocate.
 

Around Chapel Hill

Despite the North Carolina Dept of Transportation's efforts to turn the whole state into one massive superhighway there are green-ways and bike-paths so you can actually get around town and feel like you are in a quiet and beautiful place. The Chapel Hill bus system actually makes owning a car unnecessary. They go everywhere and they are FREE! Still it may take a few more dollars added to the price of gas before people give up their SUVs but when they are ready the system is waiting. One day North Carolina may have an enlightened Dept of Transportation that realizes that side-walks are not a bad thing and includes them in their building projects. For now towns like Chapel Hill and Carrboro have to fight for them and the good news is that they are making progress. One of the best bike trips is to follow Bolin Creek from Airport Rd til you see the signs for Cafe Driade, drag your bike up the hill and enjoy a coffee, a glass of wine or some nice music in a peaceful setting overlooking the forest and the creek. You can also drive here by going down the hill on East Franklin and looking for the sign on your left. Chapel Hill is loaded with activities both outdoor and indoor and besides a few little developments like Southern Village and Meadowmont each with several thousand people living in them, it is still in a somewhat rural setting. That means there are lakes, rivers, streams, farms and forests nearby. In the summer you can go boating on University lake. You can swim in Jordon Lake or in the hundreds of smaller lakes, ponds and swimming pools.

In the fall you have Tarheel Football who no matter how lousy a season they are having still are capable of beating somebody, even if it is only Duke. In the winter you have Tar Heel Basketball, no longer recovering from the departure of the legendary Dean Smith and alive and well with the hiring of the almost legendary Roy Williams that has T-shirt shops crossing their fingers and hoping the next transition won't be as bad as the last. Even Dean Smith fans have to admit that the mark of a good leader is the shape of the program after his departure and for all Dean's wins, his retirement and the confusing seasons which followed had to make you wonder if anyone in the program but Dean knew how to keep the train from going off the tracks. But the storm has passed and with another National Championship under their belts the Tarheel program is in good shape and having a great basketball team is a nice way to make it through the winter and into baseball season.

And in the spring you have...well, spring, which is beautiful. Summer can get a little hot and sticky but if you can make it through the day you have the bars, restaurants, clubs and all those things I mentioned above, all air-conditioned. There are several galleries in different shopping centers including University Mall which has begun a transformation with the arrival of George Bakatsias Spice World and the new giant A Southern Season gourmet store which is the size of a department store. A mall with more art galleries than fast-food stands is a sign of hope for the future. Probably the best jewelry store in the Triangle is Goldworks owned by Wren and Ted Hendrickson, who have been making jewelry together for over 30 years. The store features their own work, as well as the jewelry, hand blown glass and original craft work of  nationally known artists from all over the country. This spectacular store is both a jewelry store and a fine crafts gallery but more importantly Ted has the largest Frank Zappa music collection I have ever seen.
 

There are plenty of golf courses in the area and lots of celebrities, local and national, who play on them. The parks have baseball diamonds and pitching machines and Rainbow Soccer has dozens of teams with players ranging in age from four to eighty-something. Chapel Hill's Recreation Center has indoor and outdoor basketball courts, an Olympic sized pool, a climbing wall, classes, teams and activities as does the YMCA on Airport Road. The North Carolina Botanical Gardens are a center for research, conservation and interpretation of plants particularly those native to the southeastern United States and horticultural plants with traditional uses. It's a great place to just wander around with hundreds of acres of paths, trails, streams and forests. Nearby Duke Forest is even bigger, spreading out for miles.

As a place to visit Chapel Hill has a lot going for it. There are enough things to see and do in and around town so a normal tourist can be happy and get that feeling of accomplishment before going out for a nice meal and conversation. There are the usual chain hotels on the roads around the city and several special hotels including the Carolina Inn, right on the UNC Campus and a two minute walk from the Ackland Art Gallery and the restaurants and shops of Franklin street and it sits on several bus lines. It is an historical old hotel with a terrific restaurant. The new Franklin Hotel is right on Franklin Street and has spared no expense to make itself the best in town. Location wise it can't be beat, nor can the great bar in the lobby which may end up generating more revenue than all the rooms in the hotel. There are a few B&B's located in and around town and the well known Fearrington Inn, plus two fairly cosmopolitan hotels, the Italian flavored Sienna and the Europa, now the Sheraton.

As a place to live Chapel Hill is tough to beat because you have enough music, art and cultural activities to rival and even surpass some of the major cities in the USA but you are still in a relatively rural setting. (At least for now.) Prices for houses (unless you are coming from San Francisco or New York) are a little steep but that seems to be the case anywhere livable and Chapel Hill is one of the most livable towns in America. If you are old or getting there, as most of us are and all of us will, you will be pleased to know that UNC Memorial Hospital is not only the best in North Carolina but one of the best in the country and if they can't fix you, someone down the road at Duke Medical Center can. You don't have to be young to enjoy Chapel Hill. There is a fine Senior Citizens Center with lots of activities and some interesting people. There are several beautiful apartment complexes for seniors which also have activities. Because it is a University town the public schools in Chapel Hill and Carrboro are outstanding and students place among the best in the country.

Twice a year the town of Chapel Hill closed Franklin Street to traffic and hosts two Festivals. These street fairs attracted thousands of people from all over the state and gave an opportunity to area artists and organizations for reaching a wider audience. There were  live bands, lots of different kinds of food and lots of different kinds of people. It was a time for reconnecting with people you have not seen in years.

Chapel Hill also hosts the Saint Barbara's Greek Festival in the spring at East Chapel Hill High School, a weekend affair that features Greek food, music, dancing, art and gifts. Unfortunately because it is held in a school they can't serve Greek wine which sort of takes the kefi out of any Hellenic get-together. No problem. They are building a multi-million dollar Hellenic Cultural Center so they can host the festival and do it the way a Greek festival is meant to be done. The ethnic population has become much more diverse over the years as more people from other countries have moved here for undergraduate or graduate studies, research and jobs in the Triangle. The construction boom has brought many Mexicans and Hispanics who have made it a much more interesting community. Their Latin Festival which is usually held in the summer features some amazing bands and fantastic food.

One can't help but notice the proliferation of posters and flyers in Chapel Hill. In a town where it seems everyone you know is in a band this seems natural. Add to this the number of campus and community events, restaurants, alternative-health practitioners, and other locals who want a way to promote their events and businesses that it is no wonder that the town built the popular European-style kiosks to keep people from posting on phone-poles and buildings. Well they still post on poles but the kiosks can get two or three layers thick by the end of the week. Unfortunately when the town designed them they forgot to ask for input from the actual people who put up the posters and the kiosks are a couple inches too short to hold three 8.5X11 inch flyers and so they always look kind of messy. Had they asked The Poster Guys who have been putting up flyers since 1980 and have turned it into an art form, perhaps the new kiosks would be a little more functional and the downtown commission would be happier.

Chapel Hill seems to have something for everybody. And if you get tired or bored with Chapel Hill don't worry. It is right next to Carrboro!