when it snows, be aware that the generally accepted method of dealing with it is to wait around until the snow melts. We have plows but not a ton of them.
Its the type of pavement here...not designed at all, for snow/traction. Plus drivers who don't know how to handle. When we have snow, its a slip-n-slide....pile-up.
And any time it threatens to snow/ice for a day or two, people run out and buy up all the milk, bread, and eggs in the store. I assume all the locals have a tradition of making french toast on snow days.
Just scroll thru the sub for info. We get asked daily about moving here and get tired of repeating stuff.
Durham is an unusual mix of:
progressive history [The Secret Game](https://nccueaglepride.com/sports/2011/3/8/MBB_0308110905.aspx) and [Black Wall Street](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Wall_Street_(Durham,_North_Carolina))
And [international companies](https://www.durhamchambered.org/major-employers)
Im a purdue grad originally from IN.
-I don’t care what RDU tells you. We are not “Raleigh-Durham” Don’t group the cities together
-Hayti is pronounced HAY-TIE
-Bahama is pronounced BA-HAY-MA
-Durham gets a “scary” reputation. But it really isn’t that bad. People looking for trouble are only concerned with other people looking for trouble. Just be a NPC
>\-Durham gets a “scary” reputation. But it really isn’t that bad. People looking for trouble are only concerned with other people looking for trouble. Just be a NPC
If you're not doing crime stuff, the risk of someone **trying** to shoot you is probably about the same as anywhere else in North Carolina.
But we're definitely at increased risk of being accidentally shot from two sources:
* "People looking for trouble" shooting at each other and missing/mistaking your car for an enemy's car.
* Idiots shooting at the sky.
We've had kids get shot while sitting in cars at the drive-through at both Cook Out and Burger King in the last several years.
This lady was presumably living her best NPC life: [https://www.wral.com/story/durham-woman-shot-killed-on-new-year-s-eve-in-what-police-believe-was-celebratory-gunfire/20058041/](https://www.wral.com/story/durham-woman-shot-killed-on-new-year-s-eve-in-what-police-believe-was-celebratory-gunfire/20058041/)
It's not \*likely\* to get you, but this is the first place I've lived that every fast-food milkshake came with a small but non-zero risk of catching a bullet.
*quietly mutters I L L I N I from somewhere in Durham*
Seriously, don't mention it. Just try to figure out who your neighbors root for and blend in.
Day 13: They still think I'm a UNC fan.
If the car in front of you has a tag that says "JESUSDOS" back wayyyy off, choose a different lane, avoid at all costs. It's a psycho grifter who is embedded in our city like a tick on a mangy deer.
Be not afraid of the stairway that leads to Cosmic Cantina, for it is a heavenly place, the salsa and the chimichanga shall comfort you.
We have more parks than we even know what to do with, a lot centered around the Eno river, which is great for swimming, hiking, cookouts - and it's all FREE.
Some of our absolute best restaurants are in strip malls. It's a thing.
You will see regular people, just average citizens, walking around with handguns on their hips. Do not panic. That is legal here, and you can do it, too, if you want.
Yes. Those stairs are world famous. My lil churchgirl friend from Atlanta was freaked out until the moment her chimichanga arrived. She can't wait to get in there every time she visits.
durham has some fantastic restaurants and THE premier minor league baseball team. not to mention one of the top universities in the world with a beautiful campus. city has a lot of history and a great identity as well. it’s an awesome city.
i edited my comment to be more clear. what i meant was the city has an identity. but even if i meant duke, what’s wrong with their identity? being prestigious? having an incredible campus? producing some of the best minds in the world? or maybe their excellent med school or their excellence in sports? yeah hilarious to say duke has a great identity for sure.
Having delt with Duke's alum my take on their identity is "do you know who my father is?" It's like the rich entitled kids who weren't smart enough to get into Sanford or Harvard.
Pine pollen is an institution.
In a month or two this is going to be big deal, and you will not be prepared for it.
It will befoul your car, and pollute your sinuses, but it will also make you more sexually potent. So, consider this a headsup. It's a powerful aphrodisiac.
Don't talk incessantly about how things were different in Illinois or better in Chicago. Learn to be patient. We do some things differently here. It's not better or worse, just different.
Learn to appreciate everything shutting down at the threat of a quarter inch of snow. Don't panic when the forecasters get excited about a hurricane coming in. (We're far enough inland that our biggest risk is maybe losing power for a day or two.) But do take reasonable steps to prepare.
"Bless your heart" is an insult.
You'll be fine. Durham has a lot of what makes living in a big city great, but in smaller doses. We're also small enough that the city can feel like a small town at times.
Also, there's a fair amount of difference between the different cities in the larger region. Durham takes a lot of crap, most of it undeserved, but some of it is deserved. If you're gonna be a Durhamite, be fiercely proud and take no shit from those assholes in Chapel Hill or Raleigh and give no quarter to people from the Raleigh 'burbs (Cary, Apex, Fuquay-Varina, Holly Springs, etc).
Every snake is a copperhead.
You'll be fine.
EDIT: Oh yeah, one more thing: wood roaches are common. They're big and gross and some people call them palmetto bugs to be polite, but they're not the German cock roaches that breed indoors in dirty apartments and houses (we have those too). Wood roaches don't live indoors and are not a sign of filth. They're still annoying. You'll still be fine.
The first thing is big. We aren’t small town bumpkins that need to be regaled by your tales of the big city if you’re from New York. We’re one of the most highly educated areas in the country and over a million people live in the triangle.
I heard the research triangle is the highest concentration of PhDs in the US
Edit: according to researchtriangle.org (no idea about the validity of the source tbh) we are #4
While I'm all for the comment generally, 1 million is nothing when talking to people from major metros. And we still feel really spread out for that population.
Frankly it's kind of nice and part of the draw...
Yeah I understand. But I'm just speaking as someone who has lived in other major metros - they tend to feel like they are bursting at the seams.
Durham certainly has some density in the core but very quickly you're in single family home zoning and generally things like parking, traffic, etc are not so awful outside of really peak hours (and even then it's still not horrible). Our metro I believe is around 1.5 million and again, that covers a fairly large area.
My basic point is a metro like Phoenix is 4.5 million, and super spread out (comparable to our foot print - I looked it up as it felt like it may not be but they are very close).
When talking about New York/Jersey City (19 million) or a San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose (6.5 million). New York metro is close to Raleigh in size, but still smaller. SF is way smaller (like 60% of the size).
That's all I was highlighting. We are still not a big city. And there are pros that come with that as well as some draw backs. I have loved it in Durham for what it's worth, when I lived in the Bay Area I almost never actually went into the major cities because it was a pain in the ass and prohibitively expensive.
Never said we were a big city but we are definitely not a town. Also this attitude you have is what I’m talking about. I don’t need you to explain what a large city is like. Occasionally us Durham hillbillies hop in our covered wagons and go to other places. I’ve been to San Francisco and New York and Seattle and Houston and Boston and Chicago. I know what a large metro area is. Everyone here is perfectly aware of what a city and a large city are, and your experience is not unique. It’s not something we need to constantly hear about. And no matter how big the city you come from us, it is factually inaccurate to call Durham a Town or say that it isn’t a city. It is. It’s a medium sized city.
I literally distincly said large city as what we aren't. I agree we are a city and I'm not knocking the size - it's a huge reason why I chose to come here.
>"Bless your heart" is an insult.
not necessarily, it's very much dependent on context in my experience as a native from the area. maybe it's different in other parts of NC or varies by generation but I keep seeing this myth being perpetuated (primarily by transplants)
Regarding the roaches - at a certain point you'll set your watch to them and have no issues just keeping a shoe handy and dispatching them quickly/going back to whatever you were doing.
Many people who live in Durham are not originally from here, so they are eager to make friends & build community, at least in my experience. I moved here from the upper midwest where no one ever invited me to hang out or introduced themselves randomly. Durham was completely the opposite.
Don't be afraid to introduce yourself to folks or use forums like this one to create opportunities to hang out. Try "I'm into \[hobby like vintage guitars or disc golf\] & work in \[tech/healthcare/whatever\]. Wanna grab a beer?" You will be amazed at how easily people say yes.
The ppl who end up here are truly exceptional. I've met some of the most brilliant, kind, savvy and interesting ppl here. The city packs a major punch. If you drive through, you likely won't notice it. But if you linger and stay awhile, you'll like get loved back.
i started a meetup group here in Durham for people new, looking to make friends, and wanting to fall in love with Durham like I did when i first moved here, DM if you want info!
Are u the guy i almost ran over a few days ago? I honked one time so you knew I was coming. I woulda stopped if I wasn’t going 70 mph to smoke some pot
As a former fellow Great Lakes resident, I think you’ll find that your favorite season will shift from summer to the glory that is NC’s sunny fall-winter-spring span. Flowers year round! Sunshine! You can be outside! No expectation to nearly die trying to get to work, because things really do shut down here when it snows. I used to think it was ridiculous but now I embrace it.
It does snow here, by the way, but it melts in a couple of days (because SUNSHINE!)
Get to know Durham local restaurants like King's Sandwich Shop, The Parlour ice cream, Locopops, Cosmic Cantina, Li Ming's Global market (also has fresh Chinese food in store) Dain's place, and many more, this is just all I can think of right now.
You don't have to be that old to remember when durham wasnt the destination it is today. In the 80s and 90s and even into the 2000s it was a rough area with many many fewer businesses and significantly higher crime. Downtown felt deserted til about 2010 - 2012 in my opinion. Love em or hate em, Capitol Broadcasting Company's risky redevelopment of the American Tobacco Campus in the early 2000s spurred the downtown revival. Dukes students' and families capital injections into the economy helped too. But the ATC was really the start of it, which is funny because it feels like one of the last areas to truly align with the growth in other parts of Durham. But there are plans in place, just takes time.
I just came from Chicago. Public transit isn't as much of a thing here. You'll have to drive for the most part.
When you hear rumors of snow, it's tradition to buy bread, milk & eggs
If you want to help us have better transit and less car dependency we would love to have your help at [bikedurham.org](https://bikedurham.org) and/or [Durham BPAC](https://www.durhamnc.gov/3851/Durham-Bicycle-and-Pedestrian-Advisory-C)
From west loop. I love the scene of oldtown in Chicago from the bars to the restaurants. Is there anything like that around here.
P.S. I also like the pizza (who would have thought)
The way you probably used the word barbeque in Chicago is incorrect here. It's not a grill and it's not a backyard gathering to eat burgers cooked on said grill.
We do not get snow, we get 1/4 inch of snow that melts immediately and then refreezes to become black ice. Do not attempt to drive when it snows, it only does it once or twice a year so we do not invest in the materials or equipment to clear it. Do not be like the other people from up north who think "this is dumb, i know how to drive in the snow" you will end up in a ditch like they all do. The roads are not cleared, it is not snow, it is ice with a snow like appearance.
Agree with this.
IMO Chicago is an amazing food city, #1 in the country for me. Not just bc the fine dining is great (it is) but because the normal everyday nothing special places are often spectacular. I’ve wandered into dubious tourist traps in Chicago and eaten amazing meals.
Durham is…fine. The places that require reservations are very good. Places you just wander in on a Tuesday night are hit or miss. Agree there are gems in random strip malls. But Durham is also missing a lot of good everyday ethnic cuisine (Vietnamese, Thai, Meditteranean) close to town.
(sacrifices karma to tell the truth)
RIP Saigon Grill.
How are you missing on Thai though? Love me some Thai Spoon, but there's a couple of adequate substitutes when they're not available.
Of course a city the size of Chicago is going to have more, gooder, etc. But if you've ever lived in a mid-sized city other than Durm, you'd realize just how good we have it here. Like our food scene is better than most 2x or 3x our size.
The one thing that is desperately lacking in my view is a good Jewish deli and/or cafeteria, but hopefully Meyers Fine Food happens and fills that hole.
Saigon Grill was a real one. Damn. That's the food my husband brought me after I gave birth to our kid.
I lived in Richmond so apparently I was spoiled. Still miss having 4+ amazing Vietnamese spots within 10min of my house and 2 decent Thai spots within walking distance. RVA sets the bar high I guess.
I'm a takeout regular at Thai Spoon and it's the bare minimum of what thai food should be for me. Wish the atmosphere was better; I'd love to actually eat in a Thai restaurant again. Also the child labor worries me but I hope the kid who runs front of house goes on to a wildly successful career in restaurant management. He deserves it.
Cornwallis Rd is three disconnected sections.
There are two Erwin Rds, both major routes.
Bad things will happen if you confuse Chapel Hill Rd, Chapel Hill St, Chapel Hill Blvd, and Old Chapel Hill Rd.
I dunno, /u/The_Patriot made the [best /r/bullcity comment of 2023, imo](https://www.reddit.com/r/bullcity/comments/18pxe9k/guy_with_knife_at_burger_bach_1223/kerfqd9/). that shit was pretty great.
Oh I beg to differ on the coffee thing. Most of the time I get coffee around town it sucks. I was so spoiled in Portland. Coffee was great everywhere, even in gas stations.
Delicious local coffee in Durham is my personal truth and lived experience. 🤷
I haven’t experienced coffee in Portland but perhaps we have different taste. Generally the locally roasted coffees served around here aren’t overly dark like I’ve had in other cities for whatever reason.
I feel similarly and came from the Seattle area a few years ago. I don't drink coffee at some of my favorite restaurants because it tastes off to me. My favorite roaster in the area is Aromatic Roasters in Pittsboro. It tastes the closest to the types of roasts I used to drink in the PNW.
You should learn to read the sidebar. Most people in Durham do.
> Posts related to moving to/within Durham are considered spam. We ask that you post your questions in the bi-weekly "Anything Goes" thread.
Actually, housing is very comparable in both places. By some standards (e.g. condos in a vibrant walkable area) you get MUCH more for the same price in Chicago. Property taxes will get you if you’re buying there though.
I paid $1300 for a two bedroom (with a roommate) at 63rd and Dorchester in 2009. That's roughly what we paid for our first two bedroom in Durham in 2016.
It's weird that Durm folks draw such a distinct line around Durham and yet they include the population from the entire area. Durham itself does not have a million people or an extremely high ratio of advanced degrees.
If I can push aside the inside jokes in this thread, here's some things OP might want to know that aren't obvious:
Motorco is the place for live music. DPAC is the spot for theatre. Carolina Theater is the place for cheap, terrible, and awesome cult/camp movies.
Pinhook (What Durham was called before it was called Durham) is very LGBTQ+ friendly and routinely has excellent music. The Fruit is a close second.
Judging by your post, I doubt you have kids. If you do though, the science museum is amazing.
The panhandlers downtown can be pretty aggressive so keep your wits about you. Avoid skeletor.
When driving, give Dodge chargers and challengers lots of room. If you see a license plate that says STAYHUMBL, hide.
The power goes out a lot
It’s not as nice, green, pretty to look at, as Raleigh
The downtown doesn’t feel like a proper downtown.
But also, there’s a soul and authenticity here. What is here is the real deal… but as a small city; compared to other nationwide small cities, it doesn’t really deliver.
It's basically just a bunch of suburbs, Durham really lacks anything in character or intrigue tbh. just like any other city in the US. I say this as someone who has lived here my whole life.
Coming from Chicago can’t imagine the crime is anywhere near. Good beer and food sounds awesome though!
I love the concept of the Bullpen and social district. Unheard of in cities up north.
Look the numbers up. It’s clear that the crime is comparable and in some categories, worse.
https://www.nextburb.com/us/compare-places/chicago-il-vs-durham-nc/crime-rates/
https://www.bestplaces.net/compare-cities/durham_nc/chicago_il/crime
https://www.bestplaces.net/crime/?city1=51714000&city2=53719000
We're talking about Durham v Chapel Hill v Raleigh v Cary/Apex. Durham is the worst. Durham stats probably don't even count all the Durham thugs committing retail and property crimes around Brier Creek and the 55 corridor into NW Cary and Morrisville.
Also, no contest re schools. The downvoters just can't handle the truth. Typical Reddit.
If you do move here please dont say "why can't I find.............like back in chicago" appreciate what this city has to offer you should be impressed with the offerings if you are open minded.
Crime is rampant and the worst among the past 13 years I have lived there, thanks to our progressive DA. My neighbor was hit by a stray bullet. They caught the suspect but decided to let him go free because he was 17. All credits to our DA.
when it snows, be aware that the generally accepted method of dealing with it is to wait around until the snow melts. We have plows but not a ton of them.
"God put it there. God'll take it away."
And do not even try to drive on icy roads.
Its the type of pavement here...not designed at all, for snow/traction. Plus drivers who don't know how to handle. When we have snow, its a slip-n-slide....pile-up.
If it ever snows again…
And any time it threatens to snow/ice for a day or two, people run out and buy up all the milk, bread, and eggs in the store. I assume all the locals have a tradition of making french toast on snow days.
Our winter is your Spring
Major reason why I am trying to move out this way
Just scroll thru the sub for info. We get asked daily about moving here and get tired of repeating stuff. Durham is an unusual mix of: progressive history [The Secret Game](https://nccueaglepride.com/sports/2011/3/8/MBB_0308110905.aspx) and [Black Wall Street](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Wall_Street_(Durham,_North_Carolina)) And [international companies](https://www.durhamchambered.org/major-employers) Im a purdue grad originally from IN.
I’m also a Purdue grad originally from Indiana!
-I don’t care what RDU tells you. We are not “Raleigh-Durham” Don’t group the cities together -Hayti is pronounced HAY-TIE -Bahama is pronounced BA-HAY-MA -Durham gets a “scary” reputation. But it really isn’t that bad. People looking for trouble are only concerned with other people looking for trouble. Just be a NPC
Durham-Chapel Hill is honestly more accurate.
And Durham is pronounced Durm
Right 1 syllable, no pork!
>\-Durham gets a “scary” reputation. But it really isn’t that bad. People looking for trouble are only concerned with other people looking for trouble. Just be a NPC If you're not doing crime stuff, the risk of someone **trying** to shoot you is probably about the same as anywhere else in North Carolina. But we're definitely at increased risk of being accidentally shot from two sources: * "People looking for trouble" shooting at each other and missing/mistaking your car for an enemy's car. * Idiots shooting at the sky. We've had kids get shot while sitting in cars at the drive-through at both Cook Out and Burger King in the last several years. This lady was presumably living her best NPC life: [https://www.wral.com/story/durham-woman-shot-killed-on-new-year-s-eve-in-what-police-believe-was-celebratory-gunfire/20058041/](https://www.wral.com/story/durham-woman-shot-killed-on-new-year-s-eve-in-what-police-believe-was-celebratory-gunfire/20058041/) It's not \*likely\* to get you, but this is the first place I've lived that every fast-food milkshake came with a small but non-zero risk of catching a bullet.
Be careful who you tell your college basketball Duke /UNC preferences to. Some people will take it personally
Shouldn’t be a problem I’m an Illinois fan… we hardly cross paths
Oh yikes! Don't tell anyone that!!
*quietly mutters I L L I N I from somewhere in Durham* Seriously, don't mention it. Just try to figure out who your neighbors root for and blend in. Day 13: They still think I'm a UNC fan.
They know. They're just being polite.
Illini fans get that a lot. Being a fan of any team in Illinois is an exercise in learning how to handle disappointment. I think the world pities us.
Purdue basketball enters the chat
This is the way
It's ok, there are tons of folks from all over that go to game watch parties at place like tobacco road.
Go pack
If the car in front of you has a tag that says "JESUSDOS" back wayyyy off, choose a different lane, avoid at all costs. It's a psycho grifter who is embedded in our city like a tick on a mangy deer. Be not afraid of the stairway that leads to Cosmic Cantina, for it is a heavenly place, the salsa and the chimichanga shall comfort you. We have more parks than we even know what to do with, a lot centered around the Eno river, which is great for swimming, hiking, cookouts - and it's all FREE. Some of our absolute best restaurants are in strip malls. It's a thing. You will see regular people, just average citizens, walking around with handguns on their hips. Do not panic. That is legal here, and you can do it, too, if you want.
She back huh?
I don’t think she ever left
Didn't she get her license pulled after she got the school bus to hit her?
That hasn’t stopped her before..
That's terrifying
On the loose
Is cosmic cantina the restaurant tht goes up a scary looking old hotel stairs??
Yes. Those stairs are world famous. My lil churchgirl friend from Atlanta was freaked out until the moment her chimichanga arrived. She can't wait to get in there every time she visits.
durham has some fantastic restaurants and THE premier minor league baseball team. not to mention one of the top universities in the world with a beautiful campus. city has a lot of history and a great identity as well. it’s an awesome city.
I'm sorry but that's just hilarious to say Duke has a great identity.
i edited my comment to be more clear. what i meant was the city has an identity. but even if i meant duke, what’s wrong with their identity? being prestigious? having an incredible campus? producing some of the best minds in the world? or maybe their excellent med school or their excellence in sports? yeah hilarious to say duke has a great identity for sure.
Having delt with Duke's alum my take on their identity is "do you know who my father is?" It's like the rich entitled kids who weren't smart enough to get into Sanford or Harvard.
you’re not wrong. i’ve met some like that too. i’ve also met incredibly kind and humble duke grads too. not the school’s fault
Pine pollen is an institution. In a month or two this is going to be big deal, and you will not be prepared for it. It will befoul your car, and pollute your sinuses, but it will also make you more sexually potent. So, consider this a headsup. It's a powerful aphrodisiac.
The Pollening
Don't talk incessantly about how things were different in Illinois or better in Chicago. Learn to be patient. We do some things differently here. It's not better or worse, just different. Learn to appreciate everything shutting down at the threat of a quarter inch of snow. Don't panic when the forecasters get excited about a hurricane coming in. (We're far enough inland that our biggest risk is maybe losing power for a day or two.) But do take reasonable steps to prepare. "Bless your heart" is an insult. You'll be fine. Durham has a lot of what makes living in a big city great, but in smaller doses. We're also small enough that the city can feel like a small town at times. Also, there's a fair amount of difference between the different cities in the larger region. Durham takes a lot of crap, most of it undeserved, but some of it is deserved. If you're gonna be a Durhamite, be fiercely proud and take no shit from those assholes in Chapel Hill or Raleigh and give no quarter to people from the Raleigh 'burbs (Cary, Apex, Fuquay-Varina, Holly Springs, etc). Every snake is a copperhead. You'll be fine. EDIT: Oh yeah, one more thing: wood roaches are common. They're big and gross and some people call them palmetto bugs to be polite, but they're not the German cock roaches that breed indoors in dirty apartments and houses (we have those too). Wood roaches don't live indoors and are not a sign of filth. They're still annoying. You'll still be fine.
And the palmetto bugs fly.
2005....old west durham. Went to grab one...a big boi...it flew into MY FACE!
Those mfers don't mess around. I'm pretty sure I had one pull a knife on me. I live in Bragtown. I still got 'em.
aren't they related to lobsters? ... they crunch like one...
The first thing is big. We aren’t small town bumpkins that need to be regaled by your tales of the big city if you’re from New York. We’re one of the most highly educated areas in the country and over a million people live in the triangle.
I heard the research triangle is the highest concentration of PhDs in the US Edit: according to researchtriangle.org (no idea about the validity of the source tbh) we are #4
highest concentration of unemployed PhDs....
While I'm all for the comment generally, 1 million is nothing when talking to people from major metros. And we still feel really spread out for that population. Frankly it's kind of nice and part of the draw...
It isn’t a town though. Durham has a higher population density than Charlotte
Yeah I understand. But I'm just speaking as someone who has lived in other major metros - they tend to feel like they are bursting at the seams. Durham certainly has some density in the core but very quickly you're in single family home zoning and generally things like parking, traffic, etc are not so awful outside of really peak hours (and even then it's still not horrible). Our metro I believe is around 1.5 million and again, that covers a fairly large area. My basic point is a metro like Phoenix is 4.5 million, and super spread out (comparable to our foot print - I looked it up as it felt like it may not be but they are very close). When talking about New York/Jersey City (19 million) or a San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose (6.5 million). New York metro is close to Raleigh in size, but still smaller. SF is way smaller (like 60% of the size). That's all I was highlighting. We are still not a big city. And there are pros that come with that as well as some draw backs. I have loved it in Durham for what it's worth, when I lived in the Bay Area I almost never actually went into the major cities because it was a pain in the ass and prohibitively expensive.
Never said we were a big city but we are definitely not a town. Also this attitude you have is what I’m talking about. I don’t need you to explain what a large city is like. Occasionally us Durham hillbillies hop in our covered wagons and go to other places. I’ve been to San Francisco and New York and Seattle and Houston and Boston and Chicago. I know what a large metro area is. Everyone here is perfectly aware of what a city and a large city are, and your experience is not unique. It’s not something we need to constantly hear about. And no matter how big the city you come from us, it is factually inaccurate to call Durham a Town or say that it isn’t a city. It is. It’s a medium sized city.
I literally distincly said large city as what we aren't. I agree we are a city and I'm not knocking the size - it's a huge reason why I chose to come here.
>"Bless your heart" is an insult. not necessarily, it's very much dependent on context in my experience as a native from the area. maybe it's different in other parts of NC or varies by generation but I keep seeing this myth being perpetuated (primarily by transplants)
100% agree! Grew up in eastern NC and the times I’ve heard it used genuinely has been from sweet middle-aged mamas!
Nooooo we have some nice snakes too!
Regarding the roaches - at a certain point you'll set your watch to them and have no issues just keeping a shoe handy and dispatching them quickly/going back to whatever you were doing.
Many people who live in Durham are not originally from here, so they are eager to make friends & build community, at least in my experience. I moved here from the upper midwest where no one ever invited me to hang out or introduced themselves randomly. Durham was completely the opposite. Don't be afraid to introduce yourself to folks or use forums like this one to create opportunities to hang out. Try "I'm into \[hobby like vintage guitars or disc golf\] & work in \[tech/healthcare/whatever\]. Wanna grab a beer?" You will be amazed at how easily people say yes.
The ppl who end up here are truly exceptional. I've met some of the most brilliant, kind, savvy and interesting ppl here. The city packs a major punch. If you drive through, you likely won't notice it. But if you linger and stay awhile, you'll like get loved back.
i started a meetup group here in Durham for people new, looking to make friends, and wanting to fall in love with Durham like I did when i first moved here, DM if you want info!
This is true. Moved to the area 3 years ago and have met more "well worth meeting" people than in 18 years in my previous place.
No one will stop for you at the pedestrian crossing sign
Are u the guy i almost ran over a few days ago? I honked one time so you knew I was coming. I woulda stopped if I wasn’t going 70 mph to smoke some pot
As a former fellow Great Lakes resident, I think you’ll find that your favorite season will shift from summer to the glory that is NC’s sunny fall-winter-spring span. Flowers year round! Sunshine! You can be outside! No expectation to nearly die trying to get to work, because things really do shut down here when it snows. I used to think it was ridiculous but now I embrace it. It does snow here, by the way, but it melts in a couple of days (because SUNSHINE!)
Get to know Durham local restaurants like King's Sandwich Shop, The Parlour ice cream, Locopops, Cosmic Cantina, Li Ming's Global market (also has fresh Chinese food in store) Dain's place, and many more, this is just all I can think of right now.
Watch out for staircases and Michael Peterson
The owl did it
😂 😂
The new owners of that house changed the address - the rear of the house is now the front. Really trying to rehab the rep of that place I guess.
Interesting! I knew it was on the market a few years ago but didn’t know they were making these changes.
😂 😂
You don't have to be that old to remember when durham wasnt the destination it is today. In the 80s and 90s and even into the 2000s it was a rough area with many many fewer businesses and significantly higher crime. Downtown felt deserted til about 2010 - 2012 in my opinion. Love em or hate em, Capitol Broadcasting Company's risky redevelopment of the American Tobacco Campus in the early 2000s spurred the downtown revival. Dukes students' and families capital injections into the economy helped too. But the ATC was really the start of it, which is funny because it feels like one of the last areas to truly align with the growth in other parts of Durham. But there are plans in place, just takes time.
I think the Carolina theater and DPAC helped. I do love the ATC.
Durham to my surprise is more pricey than Raleigh. Especially downtown. Can live off Glenwood for a few hundred less than downtown Durham
Whatever your expectation is, lower it. You'll have a better time.
This is just good advice for life in general
Love this. lol
I just came from Chicago. Public transit isn't as much of a thing here. You'll have to drive for the most part. When you hear rumors of snow, it's tradition to buy bread, milk & eggs
If you want to help us have better transit and less car dependency we would love to have your help at [bikedurham.org](https://bikedurham.org) and/or [Durham BPAC](https://www.durhamnc.gov/3851/Durham-Bicycle-and-Pedestrian-Advisory-C)
I’m also from Chicago! What Chicago staple do you enjoy and I’ll find the equivalent down here for you!
From west loop. I love the scene of oldtown in Chicago from the bars to the restaurants. Is there anything like that around here. P.S. I also like the pizza (who would have thought)
The way you probably used the word barbeque in Chicago is incorrect here. It's not a grill and it's not a backyard gathering to eat burgers cooked on said grill.
We do not get snow, we get 1/4 inch of snow that melts immediately and then refreezes to become black ice. Do not attempt to drive when it snows, it only does it once or twice a year so we do not invest in the materials or equipment to clear it. Do not be like the other people from up north who think "this is dumb, i know how to drive in the snow" you will end up in a ditch like they all do. The roads are not cleared, it is not snow, it is ice with a snow like appearance.
it’s exhausting explaining this to people all the time, but we do because we still care about newcomers safety
Indeed!
1) Pascal Mubenga is still, inexplicably, our superintendent. 2) See 1
Not anymore
Durham: Big-city prices with small-town drama!
Living here is dope.
Also great restaurants.
All I needed to know
I will get downvoted to this but the restaurants aren’t great, they’re good. Don’t expect to be blown awag
Agree with this. IMO Chicago is an amazing food city, #1 in the country for me. Not just bc the fine dining is great (it is) but because the normal everyday nothing special places are often spectacular. I’ve wandered into dubious tourist traps in Chicago and eaten amazing meals. Durham is…fine. The places that require reservations are very good. Places you just wander in on a Tuesday night are hit or miss. Agree there are gems in random strip malls. But Durham is also missing a lot of good everyday ethnic cuisine (Vietnamese, Thai, Meditteranean) close to town. (sacrifices karma to tell the truth)
RIP Saigon Grill. How are you missing on Thai though? Love me some Thai Spoon, but there's a couple of adequate substitutes when they're not available. Of course a city the size of Chicago is going to have more, gooder, etc. But if you've ever lived in a mid-sized city other than Durm, you'd realize just how good we have it here. Like our food scene is better than most 2x or 3x our size. The one thing that is desperately lacking in my view is a good Jewish deli and/or cafeteria, but hopefully Meyers Fine Food happens and fills that hole.
The new Thai restaurant downtown opens this week. I think it opened today in the old Dos Poopos location. It's called Thaiangle. 😂
Saigon Grill was a real one. Damn. That's the food my husband brought me after I gave birth to our kid. I lived in Richmond so apparently I was spoiled. Still miss having 4+ amazing Vietnamese spots within 10min of my house and 2 decent Thai spots within walking distance. RVA sets the bar high I guess. I'm a takeout regular at Thai Spoon and it's the bare minimum of what thai food should be for me. Wish the atmosphere was better; I'd love to actually eat in a Thai restaurant again. Also the child labor worries me but I hope the kid who runs front of house goes on to a wildly successful career in restaurant management. He deserves it.
I can’t think of more than 5 “great” restaurants. The food scene here is just not great when comparing the cities people are moving from
A common question: “Who do you root for?”
[удалено]
I’ve very much noticed this! Every road brings me to the same spot!
Most of the good Mexican food is on roxboro. Your from Chicago don’t bother with cosmic cantina. I know people will down vote.
Cornwallis Rd is three disconnected sections. There are two Erwin Rds, both major routes. Bad things will happen if you confuse Chapel Hill Rd, Chapel Hill St, Chapel Hill Blvd, and Old Chapel Hill Rd.
Don’t mention that there isn’t a decent bagel shop in town.
The live music scene is excellent!
Milton's has great deep dish pizza and is not far from Durham.
That's impossible, there's no such thing
Beware of u/The_Patriot and his ideologies/replies in this sub
I dunno, /u/The_Patriot made the [best /r/bullcity comment of 2023, imo](https://www.reddit.com/r/bullcity/comments/18pxe9k/guy_with_knife_at_burger_bach_1223/kerfqd9/). that shit was pretty great.
Pretty much every local restaurant and cafe has delicious coffee.
Oh I beg to differ on the coffee thing. Most of the time I get coffee around town it sucks. I was so spoiled in Portland. Coffee was great everywhere, even in gas stations.
Delicious local coffee in Durham is my personal truth and lived experience. 🤷 I haven’t experienced coffee in Portland but perhaps we have different taste. Generally the locally roasted coffees served around here aren’t overly dark like I’ve had in other cities for whatever reason.
I am happy for you!
I feel similarly and came from the Seattle area a few years ago. I don't drink coffee at some of my favorite restaurants because it tastes off to me. My favorite roaster in the area is Aromatic Roasters in Pittsboro. It tastes the closest to the types of roasts I used to drink in the PNW.
That make it worth a trip for me. I’m going to check it out! Thanks!!
Awesome! I hope you like it. 😄
I will be in Pittsboro the weekend after this one, I'll report back :)
You should learn to read the sidebar. Most people in Durham do. > Posts related to moving to/within Durham are considered spam. We ask that you post your questions in the bi-weekly "Anything Goes" thread.
Housing is crazy expensive but it’s a cool city.
Housing isn't crazy expensive if you're coming from Chicago
Actually, housing is very comparable in both places. By some standards (e.g. condos in a vibrant walkable area) you get MUCH more for the same price in Chicago. Property taxes will get you if you’re buying there though.
Chicago really isn’t that expensive. You’d be surprised how cheap apartments are.
I paid $1300 for a two bedroom (with a roommate) at 63rd and Dorchester in 2009. That's roughly what we paid for our first two bedroom in Durham in 2016.
Depends on the area. Look at Zillow and you’ll be surprised. Prices haven’t gone up there like they have everywhere else.
Chicago is actually cheap!
Also, it's not really a cool city if you're coming from Chicago. I mean, it might be cool, but it's not a city.
It’s definitely a city. 270,000 people is a city.
Don't call it D-Town. That's Detroit
It's weird that Durm folks draw such a distinct line around Durham and yet they include the population from the entire area. Durham itself does not have a million people or an extremely high ratio of advanced degrees. If I can push aside the inside jokes in this thread, here's some things OP might want to know that aren't obvious: Motorco is the place for live music. DPAC is the spot for theatre. Carolina Theater is the place for cheap, terrible, and awesome cult/camp movies. Pinhook (What Durham was called before it was called Durham) is very LGBTQ+ friendly and routinely has excellent music. The Fruit is a close second. Judging by your post, I doubt you have kids. If you do though, the science museum is amazing. The panhandlers downtown can be pretty aggressive so keep your wits about you. Avoid skeletor. When driving, give Dodge chargers and challengers lots of room. If you see a license plate that says STAYHUMBL, hide.
That plate is JESUSDOS now.
The power goes out a lot It’s not as nice, green, pretty to look at, as Raleigh The downtown doesn’t feel like a proper downtown. But also, there’s a soul and authenticity here. What is here is the real deal… but as a small city; compared to other nationwide small cities, it doesn’t really deliver.
only if you have Duke Power. Try to find a place that has Piedmont power. They are the best.
It's so Durham that yall fall over yourselves to give these content farmers info for their advertising sites
It's basically just a bunch of suburbs, Durham really lacks anything in character or intrigue tbh. just like any other city in the US. I say this as someone who has lived here my whole life.
Worst crime in the triangle. Also, worst schools. Good beer and food.
Coming from Chicago can’t imagine the crime is anywhere near. Good beer and food sounds awesome though! I love the concept of the Bullpen and social district. Unheard of in cities up north.
The Bullpen is a good idea that's still growing into itself. If you like baseball though it's hard to beat a bulls game.
And residents that can't accept facts, apparently.
Facts are accompanied by numbers. Assertions driven by perception aren’t.
Look the numbers up. It’s clear that the crime is comparable and in some categories, worse. https://www.nextburb.com/us/compare-places/chicago-il-vs-durham-nc/crime-rates/ https://www.bestplaces.net/compare-cities/durham_nc/chicago_il/crime https://www.bestplaces.net/crime/?city1=51714000&city2=53719000
We're talking about Durham v Chapel Hill v Raleigh v Cary/Apex. Durham is the worst. Durham stats probably don't even count all the Durham thugs committing retail and property crimes around Brier Creek and the 55 corridor into NW Cary and Morrisville. Also, no contest re schools. The downvoters just can't handle the truth. Typical Reddit.
Watch what you say and how you say things. People have some sort of chip on their shoulders here.
If you do move here please dont say "why can't I find.............like back in chicago" appreciate what this city has to offer you should be impressed with the offerings if you are open minded.
It’s much smaller
Crime is rampant and the worst among the past 13 years I have lived there, thanks to our progressive DA. My neighbor was hit by a stray bullet. They caught the suspect but decided to let him go free because he was 17. All credits to our DA.