Triangle Area Real Estate News & Information

We're in Chapel Hill, North Carolina this week while I do some research at UNC, and of course we've been dying for some good, official southern food. After going up and down the main drag of Chapel Hill and finding typical college town fare we could easily get in Philly, we heard about Allen and Son. I'd never heard of it, but it seemed pretty well thought of by the locals, and we decided to try it for lunch as we headed towards an antique mall in Hillsborough. We made a good decision.

The building itself is deceptively small, and the packed parking lot made me nervous. I envisioned a long wait for a tiny table and being packed in with impatient, hungry people. Not so! There was plenty of room inside, and we were able to walk right in and sit down under the head of a giant deer. I didn't mind, I like deer, and he wasn't chatty. Our server was friendly and helpful, and we didn't wait long before we got our drinks. Then came the food, and it was delicious.

We started with an order of hush puppies, as I'd heard particularly good things about them. They were almost perfect. No sauces, because they were exactly right as they were. Crispy, soft in the middle, and even the slightly burned bottom ones were great. We each ordered a barbecue sandwich with cole slaw, although I had it with fries and my dad ordered onion rings, so we could taste both. The fries were pretty good, and big enough to be allowed a little softness. They reminded me of boardwalk style fries, and I wished there was malt vinegar available. I also wished the table ketchup had been Heinz instead of Hunt's, but these are minor details. The onion rings were by far the better of the two sides. The sandwiches were pretty great too, with the meat almost but not quite falling out of the bun as I picked it up. We split a slice of peanut butter pie for dessert, and I was just a little disappointed to find it was ice cream based. Of course, it was still delicious.

Overall, I thought it was great. There were some points lost for the condiment choices, good-not-great fries, and the fact that it seemed a little pricey for what we got. Still good, though, and highly recommended if you find yourself in Chapel Hill.