Seen outside Darry’ls wood fired grill restaurant on a recent night which was far too chilly for dancing outside.
See the small figure inside the red circle with diagonal bar? The familiar “no” symbol? Does this mean “no dancing on firepit”? We all recognize Smokey the Bear, and realize there’s to be no smoking here, of any sort, I suppose. Soon no drinking, and no talking. (Thank you Eddie Izzard). That seems sort of sad, but I guess the management can’t be blamed for not wanting the customers to dance on this inviting elevated platform. At least until they have a chance to post the “watch out for falling drunk dancers” sign. le sigh.
Set aside the forbidden spontaneous expressions of joy, the recent remodeling leaves Darryl’s looking still very familiar, with improvements to the exterior (including the new firepits) and to the flow path of customers once inside the door. I think the upstairs restrooms are new too. That may be my favorite improvement. The menu includes many old favorites and some fun new stuff too. Like s’mores. For the firepits, I guess.
The menu says that “at its peak, Darryl’s had 39 restaurants operating in nine states.” The first time I visited a Darryl’s was in 1976, on Chapel Hill Blvd between Durham and Chapel Hill. That same night in that same place, I was introduced to the salad bar. This, to a starving student, was a miraculous concept. I must have made at least four trips. Who needed an entree? Thirty-some odd years later, Greensboro has the last Darryl’s restaurant. I still love the fun decor. Two booths look like elevators. Another is a ferris wheel seat. There is a carousel horse. The renovation included expanding the “jail” area, so that more diners can eat behind bars at any given time. What’s not to like?
I think we’ll be regular visitors to this old/new favorite restaurant.
carpool knitter 