Raleigh, NC

>>1200043
Been awhile, so I can't speak to current quality, but eat at The Pit and Beasley's Chicken and Waffle.

>>1200043
Maybe a hockey game, or ACC Basketball if you are into that. The museum has the only Acrocanthosaurus skeleton on display anywhere in the world, if you are into THAT.

Say, what are you into?

>>1200067
I like sightseeing. I'm pretty easily amused. That fossil sounds awesome!

>>1200043
Raleighfag here. If you get a chance, go visit UNC-Chapel Hill campus. Beautiful campus with a lot of sightseeting. almost close to 60% female on students population help too... Duke University is pretty good too. It's probably too cold to visit Duke Garden now. NCSU campus is meh. Go visit their centennial campus, and that's probably the highlight of the campus. They have Hunt Library with "Robots", 3D printing, etc.
Farmer's Market is right next to NCSU, so that might be a good thing to see. Downtown Raleigh is okay... I haven't been there to drink in while even though I work in downtown. Glenwood/Five points have good bars/restaurant. Cary recently opened H-mart, which is Korean market if you are into that.

>>1200043
I live in Raleigh and can make some recommendations.
>>1200047
First off, I would avoid the Pit. After it lost Ed Mitchell and its real head chef a few years ago, its quality has gone far downhill. They still smoke the whole hog--and, in fact, are the only restaurant within the city to do so--but the overall quality of their food has decreased.
I would recommend Clyde Cooper's instead, it's a Raleigh tradition that just opened a new-and-improved location.
Beasley's is still very good.
If you want excellent mac & cheese, try Poole's diner.

For beer, try Raleigh Brewing Company or Big Boss. They both have good ambiance. For the best beer, try Crank Arm (the only good brewery downtown) and especially Neuse River Brewing. They're fantastic.

>>1200319
A place with really good mac and cheese sounds interesting.

And I'm always down to try some beer. Thanks for the recs!

Bump for interest

Maybe a little too far out of the way for you, but there's a cool tea place way out in the farmland around Hillsborough/Chapel Hill. It's open air and built on shipping containers. Also, in the same area is Maple View Creamery where you can sit in rocking chairs eating ice cream and gazing out over the hills.

>>1200120
>Farmer's Market is right next to NCSU, so that might be a good thing to see.

Not just that, but the Flea Market. A swap meet for you West Coast types

You should check out Charleston instead.

>>1200074
There's a story that goes with it. Raleigh decided to make a play for the Tyrannosaurus, "Sue." It was essentially auctioned, and everybody was surprised that po-dunk NC city was serious and had deep pockets -- but Filed Museum had deeper pockets.

At the sad get together after losing the auction somebody says, 'Say, would you guys be interested in having the world's only Acrocanthosaurus? No as famous as a T.rex, but a big complete skeleton, and unlike tyrannosaurs, which many museums have, you'd have the only one. And cheaper!"

After a round of phone calls to the donors to make sure everybody was OK with that, the deal was closed and the bones headed for the Tar Heel State.

This is a cool thread. I was thinking of heading to North Carolina someday, so thanks for the recommendations.

Downtown Durham is also fun, several good breweries there, and a minor league baseball team with a nice stadium. Wheels outside Durham has roller rink and batting cages if you want to kill some time. Duke campus is also nice and you can drink and picnic on their lawns.

If you're more into outdoor stuff check out Umstead Park, Jordan Lake, and the outdoor trails/art around the art museum.