My friends and I stopped by Dain's Place to get some takeout food. They weren't super busy (it was a Sunday night) so they had us sit down at a table while we waited and the waitress even brought us waters. I got the Ring of Fire (tots with cheese, chili, & jalapeños) and the serving size was HUGE! The tots were crispy and tasty, I enjoyed all the toppings. Dain's seems like a fun place to grab a burger, bar food, and a drink! read more

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This is a great little dive bar near Duke University East Campus. It has a great selection of on tap beers, ales and ciders. We also had fries and fried mozzarella triangles (like sticks). The bar tender and cook where great. I am definitely going back! read more

Dain's Place - American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

A solid place to grab some greasy American food. The vibes and drinks are more so what you go for than the food but the food still hit too. I liked that you could customize it all but would have liked a wider array of dessert options read more

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Burger was juicy and tasty. The tots were crispy the way I like them. The bartender was friendly and very accommodating. I was there for a late lunch. read more

This is a great place for a first time Eagles fan! The bartenders are quick, the people are amazing and there are lots of TVs showing the game I'll be back read more

Dain's Place - Tots (we ate 95% of them this was full enough for 2 people ) - American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

I had the defibrillator burger on my visit here and wow.....I finished the burger and the fries with a cold PBR and it was all delicious and very filling! That's a lot of food! Great service and the food is amazing. Will definitely be back here again! read more

One of the best burgers I've ever had. Juicy, flavorful, and cooked just right. The staff was welcoming, and the space felt cozy and relaxed. Great spot to sit and enjoy a really good meal. read more

Food, Service, and Ambience were great! First time there and will definitely go back again!!

great people, great food, what more can you ask for? For the 85 character minimum I'm writing this line read more

During a visit a while ago I ordered a non-alcoholic beer and the owner responded by saying, "Non-alcoholic beer is the beer for pussies," directly in front of me. It was a vulgar and degrading thing to say to a customer. I left feeling diminished rather than welcome. Respect should be the minimum in any establishment. I never returned. read more

I had the best grilled chicken sandwich at Dain's Place today. They fixed it my way. The staff there are phenomenal and the place has a very friendly environment and was very clean. Thank you, Benjamin Baker read more

Daub's is a Ninth Street institution. I've been here many times over the years, with my girls, with the whole family, by myself on a slow, hot afternoon during the week, and the service and food is always the same - frosty cold beer, hot tater tot's, and great sandwiches! There are some sidewalk picnic tables out front for the smokers, and they'll bring your food out or take orders there if they have staff covering. Inside, the entire left side of the small place is a wooden bar, with a TV in the upper corner over the can coolers, as well as at the far end, usually with a sports ball game on. A few tables crowd the center and booths line the right side. It's dark, without being unlit, but compared to outside, it's cool and welcoming. The fans over the bar seating is worth coming in to see. The Dainer is my go-to, a burger like you'd make at home with cheese, bacon, grilled onions, lettuce, tomato slices, and a side of fries, chips, or the aforementioned tots. Easy choice. Right now, there's a women's soccer game between the red and white jerseys. The room seems to favor the team in white. Shouting at the points. (Don't come here during basketball season if you're not a Duke fan!) I'm just here for dinner and a brew. read more

Dain's Place - The fans over the bar seating oscillate slowly with a visible gearbox. You can't see it in here, but it's really cool. - American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

This place has fell off. Its always been a "local" bar. Very tight as far as space but my issue is the food is not good anymore. I've tried my last 2xs. There wont be a 3rd. read more

My friends and I came here for the first time on a Friday evening. It was pretty loud and busy inside, but we were able to snag a table right away. We each ordered a drink and fries to share, and although it all took a while to come out, our waitress was great. She seemed to be the only one working, so although frustrating, the slow service was understandable. We ended up having a great time here and enjoyed the food and drinks. read more

Solid cheesesteak. Quick service. Multiple TVs. Clean bathrooms. Some unique items on the menu as well. Could probably find less expensive sandwiches elsewhere but that's alright. read more

Dain's Place - Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich - American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

Delicious food and drink. Service was amazing too. We enjoyed the decor. The large frame of pins was fascinating, some you could pinpoint in history. read more

Been here twice. Got a burger, which was fine. Guess maybe it's more about the toppings? Large selection of possible toppings, but the burger was kinda bland. Cooked perfectly, and a little juicy, just not a lot of flavor. Second time was buffalo tenders. Good heat, lots of sauce. Seems like a cool place, and I'd like to like it more, just never picked up a bit of conversation. I like meeting people, but hasn't happened here. Would give another star if they had carrots or celery with the buffalo tenders. read more

We enjoyed burgers from Dain's Place this week while visiting Duke Medical Center. We saw Dain's had highly rated burgers and decided to give it a try for a to-go order. All three of us had the cheeseburger, two with fries and another with tater tots. Burgers were very good, although a little heavy with the mayo and mustard. I went in to pick up the food and loved the atmosphere of Dain's Place. Would've loved to actually eat at the restaurant and enjoy a beer at the bar. All in all a good experience, and maybe I'll have a chance to come back and eat inside! read more

This is a true wonderful hole in the wall type of burger place! The interior is spartan but the burgers are delicious! Very juicy and perfectly cooked. I got the burger with pimiento cheese and it was as good as my favorite burger place in Greensboro (Big Burger Spot). The pimiento cheese was plentiful and tasted amazing. The bread is buttered and warmed. I got the spinach salad on the side and it was excellent. I tried the tater tots and they were yummy as well. Highly recommend this place! read more

Dain's Place - Pimiento cheese burger and spinach salad -- so good! - American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

We stopped in here after working a gig in Durham. We aren't drinkers but not much was open at the time. We thought we'd give it a try based on the good reviews online. We seated ourselves in a booth, the place is not very large. Immediately the bar tender came and sat down with us to take our order. The music was blaring 80s hits, it was a great atmosphere. Our food arrived crazy fast. We all ordered custom burgers with a split of tots and fries, and it was out of this world. The bun was Amazing !! So so delicious. This was a 4 napkin burger!! So juicy and full of flavor. The tots were perfectly crispy as were the fries. What a pleasant surprise to find such great food in a bar. We will definitely be back! Ray & Jose......keep up the awesome work. Thanks for a wonderful dinner and experience. See you soon ! read more

Dain's Place - Custom burger - American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

We went here this past weekend and we knew we were going to like it once we saw the decor. Very eclectic and a regulars bars for sure. The bartenders aller extremely nice and fast. We saw the loaded tots before we went and we had to try them out. We. We're. Wowed! HUGE portion of food, but it was delicious. Mower will be making this a regular stop for us. The best thing that I love about this place is that they have a full menu Wednesday - Sunday until 1am! read more

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Both of the burger places we normally go to are closed on Monday's, and we needed a place to eat. Happened across this place, and it's now our top spot. Service is good, but the food is phenomenal! read more

Dain's Place - The Defibrillator - American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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Pretty averagely good food. Cool atmosphere and quiet enough for talks but also lively enough for fun meet ups.

It's hard to find a good Schlitz Cocktail in North Carolina, but Dain's makes the best one around. It's not on the menu, but if you ask for it they'll whip it up. It was made to order (not pre-made, like you'll see at some places). The beer was fresh, and the whipped cream had good lift (I hate when it gets runny). The first Schlitz Cocktail I had was at the Tee Off in San Francisco, but now I try to order one pretty much anywhere I go when I'm travelling. The server was very kind and accomodating. I did not order any of their other food, but it all looked pretty good and I'm sure would have been delicious with or without whipped cream. read more

Dain's Place - Schlitz Cocktail - American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

I thought this was simply a bar, turns out they serve food! The hamburger is probably the best in town for real a must try I guarantee it.

Where to start when I have not had to write a review for a restaurant this bad in a long, long time.....but I've had a better meal at a roadside stand in Siberia, much better, and it was a dollar, not 26. So let me begin. Minor, but make the bread fit the meat. Bigger meat or smaller bread. I don't care which. It's mentally defeating to look at half size meat and think you probably used to offer a filling sandwich. This was not. Don't charge good money for rotten salads. Those tomatoes are rotten. You can see it even in the photos. I just got a made in USA tomato Wednesday that was perfect. I suspect you are using picked two weeks ago and sent from overseas tomatoes. Had they not been ROTTEN I would have given 3 stars for decent bologna. As for the rest of the two salads. Cucumber and cheese good. Croutons fantastic. Dressing fantastic just simply about 1/2 again more needed to cover up the barely edible wilted lettuce. Which in the end I ate 1/3 and quit. I hate I mean really despise restaurants that serve rotten salads in the take out. The cherry pepper looked ok but it was also a day being rotten. Soft and slimy. I'm not a picky eater. But today I am a captive audience. I had to have it delivered to the VA hospital. Think it through. That means I was in the service. That means I've eaten a lot of not perfect food. This meal ranks in the top 5 terrible meals I have had in my life. Usually a terrible meal is $3...$5....not $26. This meal was NC high school quality. As noted in the pics I threw most of it out, I'm still hungry, and now must walk the hospital halls looking for the vending machine. read more

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Looking good a good dive bar with great food, check out Dain's. Went there for dinner, and the service was amazing. The food came out so fast I am it sure how they cooked it so fast. Everything from the tots with cheese and bacon to the burgers came out hot and fast and cooked to perfection. The only complaint is, they gave me way too much food. The portions were huge. I made the mistake of ordering too much. Next time I may just skip the app and just get the burger, except the tots were amazing. read more

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Best burger in Durham. If you want a cheesesteak too it is phenomenal. Very nice service too. A great place to watch an eagles game but grab a seat ASAP when you see the birds on TV read more

Food is very solid - recommend burgers and cheesesteak. Good beer selection on tap. Main issue here is the service. A lot of the bartenders (not all) are extremely rude. Past experiences include being told the bar isn't open (20 mins after opening), being yelled at for sitting down at empty tables (you are told to seat yourself), and just general poor attitudes. It stinks because this place is in a great location with solid food and cool vibes read more

Dain's Place is a local staple of Durham. It's a small dive bar that has an incredible food menu from burgers to Phillies and don't forget about the loaded tots! They have a full bar and several beers on tap and cans. The service is always great and the atmosphere is inviting. Great place to meet up to have some drinks with friends. read more

Dain's Place - a view of the bar area - American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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Owned by Dain Cook, the comedian who was insanely popular for about 7 months back when I was hooking up with lots of college girls. Oh wait I still do. Cute little bar with not much room right in the heart of the College District of Durham close to Duke University. They have some attitudes in here but that's okay. Good looking servers. Cute with nice decor and the drinks aren't cheap but they could also be worse. read more

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I don't write yelp reviews, I write journal entries. But OMG I literally had to do this cuzz it deserves the public to know. The "Dainer"... is what you want when you want a goddamn burger. And THE TOTS, ugh. Smh. I literally wrote about it in my journal. THAT'S how good it was. I know it sounds ridiculous but I'm deadass. -girl who likes FOOD. read more

Dain's Place - The Dainer, just hands down the only burger I will eat in Durham. - American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

Not sure what happened. This place used to be good but today is awful. The Ruben is pathetic. Though, low quality meat... so sad read more

Dain's Place - So call Reuben - American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

Not really too much to say, it's a dive bar with a pretty good burger. It's a bit of a confined space and you're on top of other people pretty much anywhere you sit. Not necessarily a bad thing. It's a fine spot if you're looking to get a quick bite and burger then bar hop in your 20a I suppose. read more

Overall: I would go again. The quintessential local watering hole. Fun fact- they were on Dinners, Drive ins and Dives Worth it for the price: Yes. What we ordered: Cider- I'm not a beer fan so the fact that I like coming here speaks volumes. They always have a good selection of ciders for me while my partner gets the beers on tap. Great price. Hot dog- solid Service: Friendly Ambiance: Truly the quintessential local watering hole. I love their outdoor seating on the weekends. Very low key. Great people watching. The inside is very much a dive bar. read more

I'm going to kick off this review by saying -- I was a bit disappointed. I was craving a hot dog so I stopped in for a bite. I also wanted to try the tots on fire. It was a bit empty when I stopped in for dinner. There were less than 6 people there. I sat at the bar and was handed a menu immediately. I placed my order and the food came out pretty quick. The hot dog was ok and the bun was a bit tough. I didn't finish the bun. The tots were good but I wished that it was a bit more crispy. I finished my water and didn't receive a refill or anything. No one stopped to ask if I was doing ok or not. I had to stop someone and hand my card over to check out. It's a small and chill bar but I don't think it'll be worth to come back for the food. Thanks though! read more

Came here after work around 3 and it was busier than expected for a Friday. Only one worker out front to take care of the bar and all the tables--she did as well as she could for the amount of people in the bar and I applaud her. I ordered a Manhattan and it was great, loved the trophy wife, as well. I also had the chocolate stout on draft and I really liked it, as well. I ordered the hot dog with fries; the fries were delicious, the hot dog had split in half but still good. Overall, love the atmosphere here and a good selection of drinks. read more

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6 stars at least. This is the most fun bar & grill I've ever been in. Our bartender/ waitress, Bailey totally had her **** together... we are definitely going back our next time here. Wife got an amazing burger and I feasted on pierogies. Highly recommend read more

Dain's Place - American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

I've been coming here off and on since 2014 or so, but never left a review. In a city where there's constant restaurant turnover, quality "neighborhood hangouts" are increasingly rare. Yesterday I was jonesing for a good burger and crispy tots and again Dain's delivered the goods. The music was doing it for me, and one of the owners was there working, and stopped to chat with us for a while, which rounded out an overall wonderful experience. I felt really connected to Durham, and had an amazing meal. Dain's Place is a total gem. read more

As a Carolina grad I rarely strayed off of Franklin Street and certainly not into enemy territory up in Durham. Over the years I've gotten a bit better with my Durham visits but stopping in at Dains tonight had me feeling like a special forces paratrooper being dropped behind enemy lines! Despite all the Dookies about, the only real danger at Dain's is wrecking your diet and healthy eating habits! Inside Dain's you'll find some tightly packed booths, hi-tops and bar stools but hang in there my tater-tot loving friend because the wait will be worth it! I ordered up the two most absolutely, caloric items on the menu: the Defribalator burger along with the Tots on Fire appetizer. The Defribalator was covered on Man vs. Food, we're talking about a 1/2 lb burger with slaw, sweet chili, bacon, cheddar and drumroll please... a split hotdog! Seriously bad and good for you at the same time. Thankfully I split this bad boy with my friend April. As good as the sandwich was, for some reason the bun stood out to me as really good. Moving on to the appetizer, we're talking about really crunchy tots covered again in cheddar, sweet chili and jalapenos. Oh my this was a ridiculously tasty app but you know you're doing some damage to yourself! Tied in with the great food, good beer and friendly peeps, I totally gotta give Dain's Place a big thumbs up. Even after our group took a trivia beatdown tonight. The only saving grace was that the trivia winner was the team of UNC Yelpers led by John L who crushed all the competition... Rock on Dain's Place, rock on! read more

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