Dined today with a large group. Service was very slow and also disjointed. Two at our table did not receive their food until the others had about finished eating. The food was mostly ok to good (it was always good in the past) but the crab cakes were terrible. They appeared to have been twice-fried and were way overdone. The suggestion of crabmeat came as threads - there was not a chunk of meat to be found anywhere. My companion ate one because she was hungry, but left the second one untouched. Really poor showing - I don't know who "Giorgio" is, but he clearly knows nothing about crabcakes. read more

Amazing food and ambiance setting outside on a beautiful spring day! Parking however was difficult! read more

Birthday Brunch I visited the Nasher cafe to celebrate my friend's birthday. The food was good but not spectacular in my opinion. It seemed a little generic and like it lacked memorable flavor. I ordered the seafood omelet. It came with fruit and potatoes. The potatoes were yummy and well seasoned. My friend got the French toast and she enjoyed it very much. The service was nice. The server was attentive and answered any questions we had about the menu. I also appreciated that they asked about allergies upfront. It was a little tight in the cafe area but I think we felt that way because we had a bigger party of 5. Ambiance was airy and modern. My main gripe is parking. There aren't enough parking spots in my opinion and the fact that you have to pay for parking is ridiculous. Overall, I would go back though read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - Seafood Smoked Salmon Omelet - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

Cute brunch spot within walking distance of Duke campus, located inside a free museum. Both indoor and outdoor seating are available. I've visited twice now! I loved the large portions, especially the Farmer's Omelette--fluffy and packed with veggies. The tiramisu was a standout dessert. Would definitely return. read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - Tiramisu cake and affogato IG: michelleliphoto - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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Make your visit to the Nasher Museum complete by stopping by the Nasher Cafe to eat! We made reservations for a late Sunday lunch/brunch at 2pm but arrived earlier and was able to get a seat about 30 mins before. The hostess marked us as arrived but advised to go see the art galleries (which is FREE) while we waited to be seated. The area for seating is small but offers plenty of light from the outside. When weather permits, they also have patio seating as well. They do make the most of the space to accommodate as many people as possible. The cafe seemed to be buzzing and popular amongst Duke students, staff, Durham locals and others from around the Triangle. The brunch menu offered a variety of egg Benedicts , salads and other light fare. There were some featured fall cocktails(I enjoyed my Fall Mimosa) and a nice selection on the wine list. Service was pleasant and food arrived to our table quickly. The portion of the rainbow trout surprisingly offered two pieces of fish and so we share it and also split the Burratta salad which was also delicious. Save room for dessert because the warm apple galette with vanilla gelato was everything! read more

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I heard is a thing at Duke to get brunch at Nasher's so I went to try it out!! I got the smoked salmon benedict and it was pretty solid. Loved the generous serving of smoked salmon and how the hollandaise sauce was creamy but not too egg yolk heavy. Wish the poached eggs were a little larger but still tasted good over all. Also got to try the salmon omelet which also had lots of cooked salmon and cappers. This cafe is tucked inside the Nasher museum but it was spacious with lots of natural light and seating in/outdoors. Definitely try to get a reservation ahead of time or you can also call the morning of your visit to see if there are additional open spots. If you roll up without one you can also join the waitlist and check out the museum in the meantime. The lady in the front was super nice and friendly but servers were a little busy throughout our meal. I wanted to get some black pepper but no one checked in and I wasn't able to get anyone's attention until I was done with my food. read more

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I was at the museum today and decided to come by and check out the cafe located inside. I'm glad to have tried it since it was delicious! I shared meals with a friend and got half of the lamb burger and half of the smoked salmon sandwich. WOW! Both were absolutely delicious and I'm glad I could try both. Very filling. Highly recommend trying out the cafe if you are visiting. The service was great and it was fun dining in the museum! read more

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A hidden gem for brunch or light lunch! Service has always been excellent, portions generous and in beautiful surroundings. (What beats art?) Reservations recommended. read more

I'm a bit biased but I love the atmosphere here. It's a great place for a lunch meeting or quick snack. I also love that professors still take their classes here to have discussions over coffee. This time I just came for the dessert and they didn't disappoint. Tiramisu had a bit more cream than I was expecting. But it wasn't too sweet and a lovely afternoon snack. I was fortunate to have the person who creates their menu serve me that day and she gave great recommendations for food options that I might be interested in. Other waiters were also attentive and friendly. read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - Tiramisu - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

"Museum Cafe, with nice outdoor patio and good food" I can't believe I've lived at Durham, and worked at Duke, for 17 years and only yesterday just tried this place. I came with a group of 4 on a Friday just after noon, without a reservation, and asked for an outdoor spot. They said they didn't have any good shaded ones, so we may have to be in the sun. However, the spot they gave us was actually fully shaded for 3 of us, so wasn't bad overall. The seating was a LITTLE bit closer to the next table than I may have preferred (I had to watch not to swing my arms back or else I'd hit the person behind me), but not too bad. I will note that the indoor area was bright and airy with high ceilings, too. Service was friendly and prompt. I ordered the vegan portabella. Others in my party got either sandwiches or salads. Each comes with a choice of side-- my dining mates were eager for the quinoa, but I got the kettle chips. I think the food came in maybe 15 minutes, which is not bad for peak lunch hours. My sandwich was very tasty-- I somehow imagined it being "one giant mushroom" but it was instead caps of many small ones. I really liked the combination of flavors between the mushrooms, peppers, onions, and avocado chimichurri. Really flavorful. And not very messy to eat since it was a pressed sandwich. My dining mates liked they food too. I also liked that they left us a tall bottle of water on the table so we could refill easily. The server had no problem with separate checks, and was happy to answer any questions. And we were able to go in and out in under an hour. Price was reasonable-- I wouldn't say "cheap" but it was fair. I confess, as a generally big eater, I would have liked a little bit more food overall, but it was satisfactory for a normal-sized-portion eater. Overall, a very good dining experience. I'd happily go back to eat here again-- nice to have a good place with outdoor dining. read more

Such a lovely brunch spot on the path between Duke's East and West campuses!! I've been here a couple times this semester and my food and drinks have been consistently top-notch. I highly recommend the salmon benedict and the iced latte! And if you want something sweet for dessert, the apple tart is delicious. Flaky, warm, and complemented perfectly by the vanilla bean gelato. Definitely worth a visit if you're spending an afternoon on campus. read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - Salmon Benedict - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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I was thoroughly disappointed. We started with a female server who was lovely, but then our server changed to a make server who was less than enthusiastic to be at work. I ordered the Steak Benedict, and while my poached eggs were done well, both pieces of steak I received were inedible. They were basically just gristle and fat. I kept looking fir the meat, but every bit if it I put in my mouth I had to spit out. It's really disappointing because you could clearly SEE that these were bad pieces of meat, but I was served them anyway. And my poached eggs, which is not an easy thing to do, were done quite well, so the fat that I was given steak that was inedible was really shocking. But, after bringing our food, our waiter did not once return to our table until he showed up with the bill, so there wasnt any opportunity for me to explain the situation to because of the lack of service. It was really disappointing, and I wont be going back. read more

I always enjoy my meals here, so I was really excited to visit again for another brunch now that they are opened again. The revamped menus don't have as great of a selection as they did pre-pandemic, but the menu still offers good vegetarian/vegan options, sides, alcoholic drinks, and desserts at reasonable prices. My table got two orders of the Vegan Portabella panini and a Red, White & Green panini. Both turned paninis were really good with great seasoning and complementary sauces/spreads respectively. I'm not vegan or vegetarian, but the Vegan Portabella was definitely my favorite because of how well the avocado chimichurri paired with portobello caps. For dessert, we had tiramisu and their molten lava cake. Both were a good portion size for dessert, and I'd say that the tiramisu was the table favorite because of how great the coffee flavor was. The service experience was exceptional as well. Waiters checked in on us multiple times throughout the meal to ensure that we were happy with our orders, and they were really accommodating with splitting the bill for us. Overall, Nasher is an ideal brunch spot with a good menu and great service! read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - vegan portabella + side salad - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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Scrumptious brunch menu. So many delicious sounding items. We ordered the Steak Benedict and the Italian Hash. Both items were prepared well, and had perfectly blended flavors and generous servings. The Hollandaise sauce was very good with a rich, creamy consistency. Serving staff were friendly and extremely attentive. Very bright, airy and modern setting. Strongly suggest reservations, as it seemed more people came here to eat than to see the art galleries. read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - Steak Benedict with arugula salad - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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Atmosphere: The Nasher Cafe is a clean, modern cafe-restaurant at Duke's Nasher Museum. There is a nice big window that gives the space lots of light. The outdoor seating is also great when the weather is warm! Service: We've had a reservation every time we've been to the Nasher, and we were always seated immediately. The service is pretty decent -- on one occasion, one of the utensils at our table was dirty, but our server identified the issue immediately and was proactive in giving us a new, clean set of utensils. Food: We have been to the Nasher Cafe several times and have tried the Panko Salmon, Frutti di Mare, Lemon Linguine with Shrimp, Southwestern Panini, Rustic Berry Tart with Vanilla Gelato, Molten Lava Cake with Vanilla Gelato, Raspberry Italian Cream Soda, and Iced Latte. Our favorite items are the Panko Salmon and their desserts! The Panko Salmon comes with a delicious mustard lemon sauce that brings the salmon to another level. The desserts are always presented well and are a satisfying end to our meals. However, one thing to note is that their Molten Lava Cake doesn't ooze with chocolate when cut into like other lava cakes, which we were disappointed to discover our first time getting the dessert. The other items we have tried were good but not anything super special. In particular, the Lemon Linguine with Shrimp had a good variety of vegetables and decent shrimp, but the overall dish was pretty bland. Overall: We give The Nasher Cafe a 4 star review given the fact that we have been able to purchase our meals there on food points (Duke's currency for student dining). If we weren't splurging excess food points at the end of the semester, we would say that The Nasher Cafe isn't quite worth the steep prices. The ambiance and service is nice, but the food quality and flavor does not justify spending an average of $25 per person. read more

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Thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Cafe is good, go for the brunch menu on the weekend.

We got there a bit early so we had to wait a few minutes before they seated us. Once we were seated, it took a while for the server to come take or orders. It seemed like he was the only server for all the tables. The manager seemed to be helping as well but there were too many tables for just 2 people. I ordered the veggie Benedict and my mom got the southwestern omelette. It took a really long time for our food to come out too. The salad that both the omelette and Benedict came with was delicious, however, the potatoes were definitely too pepper-y. My eggs were cooked perfectly so that the yolk ran a bit but not too much and the pesto sauce with the mozzarella and spinach was delicious! I thought the English muffin was a bit hard but the rest made up for that. I probably won't rush back here in the future because the service isn't that great and the price is a little high but I'd say it was a good meal overall. read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - Veggie Benedict - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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The food and the service was amazing! The ambiance really see the tone for the creative dishes that were served.

They just reopened after covid and I was so excited to try it out! Make sure that you double check their hours though because they're not open on weekends, I believe. Also not open for dinner. The food was amazing! I couldn't decide what to get so I just got both the turkey and smoked Gouda sandwich and the red, white, and green sandwich. The RWG sandwich was alright, the sauce is really runny though which made the bread soggy. It was just a mess to eat, but the flavors were really good! The turkey and smoked Gouda sandwich, though was on another level: the photo does not do it justice. The flavors just went so well together: the turkey, cheese, green apple, cucumber, sauce, etc. I will definitely be coming back for this sandwich! Service was a little slow as they are understaffed, but it was definitely worth it. I also tried the chocolate lava cake which was great with the gelato! read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - Dark Chocolate Lava Cake - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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I was excited to come here after seeing a lot of good reviews. I had made a reservation for noon on a Saturday, which considering it being spring, would definitely recommend as they were pretty busy. They have great outdoor seating if the weather is nice, but also good amount of indoor as well. We got the brunch menu and I ordered the salmon benedict with homefries. The staff all around (host and waitress) were not very friendly- to the point of being curt. I got a cappuccino which was served in a stained cup and the food was very mediocre. Aside from the ambiance of it being in the Nasher Museum, which I love, and the convenience of being a couple of blocks from the Sarah P Duke Gardens, this was not a good experience and overpriced. read more

I've had several very nice sandwiches here. I think a museum cafe lunch is an excellent way to spend some time talking about an exhibition after you've seen it. Most recently I had what was on the menu as a turkey reuben with arugula. So it wasn't anything like a reuben at all, but it was a very nice and satisfying sandwich anyway. read more

This is my favorite brunch place to go to. Sometimes the menu changes but usually it's just one or two things on the menu. The artisanal cheese platter is a classic to get to share with everyone (I personally go for the Brie, St. Andre and the Chèvre) as it comes with fruits and nuts. Any form of eggs Benedict is a classic here and well worth it (The smoked salmon variant is the best in my opinion). However the omelettes are the game winners in my book. They offer a nice mix of eggs along with veggies and meats such as the southwestern omelette which is finished with a chipotle aioli sauce that tastes amazing. Also get the warm apple tart or molten lava cake to finish off your meal, you won't be disappointed. 8/10 Best Brunch place on Duke Campus read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - Ambiance shot - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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First time here for lunch. I was disappointed that the eggplant Parmesan and turkey Gouda sandwiches weren't on the menu anymore since I was eager to try them. I got the club nasher which was good but not really anything exceptional from what you'd get somewhere else. The mustard aioli was very good though. I also replaced the lettuce with spinach and got mozzarella instead of cheddar which were good modifications. read more

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Well I came back for brunch... ------ TL;DR OK brunch food. Overpriced. +FOOD+ - Chocolate Lava Cake (3.5 stars): Very decadent. A pretty good, warm, chocolatey lava cake. Half a star off because there was actually not a "lava" middle. Most of the cake was pretty moist, although the edges were a tad dry. Cherry brandy sauce adds a nice layer of flavor. Good to share with someone... or not. ;) - Salmon Benedict (3 stars): Standard eggs Benedict with good quality smoked salmon. Poached eggs were unfortunately room temperature and lacking any seasoning (there are no salt shakers on the table!). Side salad had a slightly strange spicy vinaigrette and some of the leaves were going bad. +EXPERIENCE+ Brunch at the Nasher is a thousand times better when there are no students on campus (spring break); the kitchen is definitely able to pay more attention to your food. It is also a much more relaxing and pleasant atmosphere when the dining area is not fully filled. Service was fine. I was a little irked by the price of my meal-- $21 (including automatic 20% gratuity)-- I only ordered 1 entree and half a dessert! I do not think brunch at the Nasher is particularly worth it. Also worth noting: I made a reservation via OpenTable for my brunch. The host apparently did not mark me off for attending my reservation because I received an email from OpenTable saying that I was no-show. This is a little annoying because if you accumulate 4 no-shows in a year, your OpenTable account is deactivated. Now I have to contest this. I would not eat here again (for brunch). Visited 3/10/18 read more

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Excellent food by chef enrique salinas and staff!!! Great coffee!! Excellent table service!!

Nasher? I hardly know her! ...Anyways... While the Nasher is arguably one of the "fancier" options on Duke's campus, I find myself walking away with a sense of disappointment more and more each time I go. Given the busy nature of the cafe, it is understandable that the servers are busy, but service is still abysmally slow. Also, groups larger than 8 are no longer allowed; when I was attending a friend's birthday party in the Nasher recently, we had to be split between two tables on the opposite sides of the cafe. In terms of food, not much has changed. My favorite dish is still the salmon benedict, and I recently tried the cheese plate which was satisfying though rather pricey. They have recently redone the menu and now list the prices for the desserts, which is an improvement. Though it saddens me to do it, it's time to shift away from the Nasher, partly because of the high prices and because of the consistent lack of decent service. read more

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Excellent service and truly a beautiful space. I love being on Duke campus and the cafe is a great place to have a meal. The food selection is limited, but everything is great!!! From the salads to the steak and eggs I enjoy their food. The space is loud and you have to pay for parking are the only down sides to the place. read more

I was a little disappointed with my recent experience at the Nasher Cafe. My Diet Coke was flat (which I mentioned, and got a fresh drink), and there was a hair (too short and dark to be my own) in my coconut gelato (which made me decide to stop eating). I did enjoy the veggie sandwich on whole wheat bread and pasta salad side, which were tasty. The sandwich, soft drink, and gelato set me back $16 plus tip, which was a pricey mid-week lunch. Duke employees can use their employee flex accounts to pay, which is a plus. That being said, I'll probably give the Nasher Cafe another try later I love the idea of a campus museum with its own cafe. read more

Good place for brunch. The wait can be tough so you definitely have to call ahead. This place takes food points which is why I go more often. Love the salmon omelette. Service is more iffy but they're really busy. read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - Salmon omelette! - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

A delicious place to eat, particularly for a Duke student who is looking to get rid of FoodPoints! My parents and younger brother came to Duke for graduation weekend, and I took them here to snag a nice relaxed lunch. The facility is great because it is set inside the Nasher Museum with plenty of skylights and tall windows to give ample natural lighting. The establishment is chic and the service friendly. We decided to splurge on an appetizer and individual drinks on top of our entrees. It was a fabulous meal. The appetizer was the smoked salmon with red onion, egg, capers, dill cream, and cucumber on flatbread crackers. Talk about presentation. Leave it to a museum cafe to have artsy tableware. The salmon was indeed quite smoky and thinly sliced. It was great on top of the crackers. The capers were a nice touch of bursting sourness, and the dill cream complemented the whole appetizer well. I'm not sure how I felt about the eggs - I could've taken them or left them. Everyone enjoyed it though. My mom and brother ordered the Italian cream soda for their drinks. Their pleasant surprise was that the soda actually had cream on top that had to be mixed in. It was a great vanilla flavor. My dad got a large cup of Joe Van Gogh drip coffee with cream and raw sugar crystals on the side to add in. He liked it too. As for the entrees, my brother got the classic club sandwich composed of hand sliced chicken breast, bacon, sharp cheddar, tomato, Romaine lettuce, and mayonnaise on sourdough. His side was a potato salad that none of us particularly liked because of the abundance of mustard seed. My mom got the Asian chicken salad which was mixed greens, red cabbage, carrots, oranges, cashews, and shredded chicken dressed with a ginger miso vinaigrette. It was tastefully tangy. My dad got the Nasher burger which was a large beef patty, sharp cheddar, fried onion threads, tomato, and roasted garlic aioli on a Brioche bun. He really liked the beef used and we all did too! My lunch was their red, white, & green panini which had smoked mozzarella, garlic pesto aioli, oven-roasted tomato, and baby spinach on rustic house bread. It was a bit too buttery on the bread but was overall quite tasty. Definitely better hot than cold/warm (I had leftovers). I added chicken breast to mine and realized that it could've been had without because the other ingredients were quite hearty and heavy. My side was quinoa with a tangy, citrus sauce - I enjoyed it immensely. What a delicious lunch. Nasher never disappoints me. read more

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Always know what to expect from this place! Yummy salads and entrees, and GREAT dessert menu. I love their squash salad and LOVE their lava cake. Also have brunch on weekends!! Great service, good drinks, and the options to both sit inside or outside. read more

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We had reservations for Saturday brunch, so we were seated right away. Service is friendly and fast! I had the mushroom benedict for $13 - the eggs were poached perfectly, though the mushrooms weren't cooked thoroughly. I was satisfied with my meal and would definitely come again to try the citrus infused french toast casserole. It smelled amazing! I parked in a lot on Duke University Rd / Chapel Dr, which is ungated; you can use any valid Duke permit after hours. read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - Mushroom Benedict - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

Came here for lunch with my boyfriend and loved it. We loved the Turkey Smoked Gouda Panini-- the panini had the perfect crisp to it (not too hard and not to soft), it also had a great balance of flavors (there is a contrast of the red onions with the neutral cucumbers, sweet green apples with the salty gouda cheese, and the creamy sauce with the crispy apples and onions), and the panini had the perfect bread to insides ratio making the overall panini enjoyable and easy to munch on. We also ordered the iced chai tea latte and the Nasher Club which had a great amount of meat and veggies in it-- i loved the crispy bacon in the sandwich. The almond bar was also very delicious dessert! Overall great experience. However, the service was a bit slow read more

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This was my second time dining here while visiting my dad and I had another great experience. The waiters and waitresses were very kind and checked on us in a timely manner. Amazing food, great mimosas! read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - Veggie Omelet Mimosa - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

The Nasher café is an amazing casual fun place to go for brunch on the weekends with friends or family. The staff is nice and casual. The food is great and affordable. The only down side is that it gets quite noisy inside on the weekends because of the resonance in the Nasher museum. The café is great when it's nice outside too, as we can have lunch on outside. read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - Warm mushroom salad - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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Took advantage of Nasher's free Thursday museum visit evenings to also enjoy dinner at the cafe. They have a few special activities happening in the summer on Thursdays, and tonight was no exception -- a jazz group entertained us. Unfortunately, the layout of the dining area made for very loud live music; the group was great, but we sort of had to shout at one another (not always the best in a public place when you're getting filled in by a gal pal who has a month's worth of girly gossip). Our waitress was fairly absent. It took a long while to receive menus. Then other tables received bread, but we had to ask for ours (might have been because we ordered a shared plate). We flagged her down to place a wine order. But generally she seemed to be distracted; didn't intro herself or smile... Gradually, she stopped visiting all together and a waiter took over our table. He was actually really pleasant, refilled our waters, offered advice on dessert and made sure he was splitting the checks correctly. I started our table with the salmon shared plate. The $15 price point seemed appropriate for the amount of salmon we received (more than enough for three) dressed with capers and egg and a side of flavored cucumbers that were delightful ... cool, sweet and a touch tart. My entree was the crab bisque -- a hearty version with plentiful crab meat, corn and just a touch of spice. For dessert, we got the key lime cake with toasted coconut. As Erin W put it "the lime in this is aggressive." It was quite a citrusy version of the dessert (due mostly to the sauce that was drizzled on the plate I think, as the icing was actually the perfect blend of sweet and sour in my opinion). I was surprised to find the 20% auto-grat when I received the bill (this is done for parties of 6+ OR any party requesting checks split). It's rare that I don't tip 20% (fresh from the food industry myself!), but I found the policy to be pretty stiff. This is one of Giorgios' restaurants, and the menu items are seasonal and seem to be well thought-out. read more

If you're judging this as a regular restaurant it's going to disappoint. But if you're judging it like a museum cafeteria, and you don't over-order (and thus over-pay, since it's a little spendy for what it is), then you'll make out OK. The charcuterie plate was good enough -- with really nice Marcona almonds, mediocre salami, and a choice of 2 out of 5 decent cheeses -- but overpriced at $15. Most of our food was uncooked and thus should have come out much sooner ... but the hostess noticed, and gave the boys some free ice cream for our trouble (that was literally worth a *). One tip: when we were finally ready to eat, they said it was a 35 minute wait - so if you're checking out the collection, it's a good idea to check the wait BEFORE you start... read more

I had very high expectations for the Nasher Cafe and planned a special morning brunch and slow walking tour on a Saturday morning. After the tour [which was fantastic!] we meandered over the the cafe and I immediately realized I didn't need the reservation. Maybe we were there on an off-day, but this Saturday in early June, there was one other couple seated when we arrived at noon. Service was stellar and we were quickly served coffee and lattes, which were very average. We ordered the huevos rancheros and the ham benedict. Both meals were mediocre and left me feeling disappointed. The huevos rancheros would be easily made at home: black beans, scrambled eggs, sour cream, pico and cheese with corn chips on the side. Flavor was okay, but I wouldn't order again when I could confidently make this at home for much less then $11. The ham benedict was again good, but very light on the hollandaise sauce [possibly even left off]. Better flavor then the huveos rancheros, but still lacking for a dish that i've seen so much talk about. Overall, not a place I'll rush back for brunch, but I wouldn't mind giving their dinner or dessert menu a look. I love the Nasher Museum, I just think the cafe needs to step it up a bit. read more

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First off, apologies ahead of time if this review bypasses some of the previous excellent reviews under the Nasher Museum of Art review page for the cafe, but I felt that the Nasher Cafe deserved it's own review page since they now have a link under OpenTable (http://www.opentable.com/nasher-cafe?rid=33718&restref=33718&intcmp=dcw). I just felt it appropriate to do so, given that all of the info/name ("Nasher Cafe" and not "Nasher Museum Cafe") is listed there. Please correct me, if wrong. Now, onto the review....as mentioned, this review is for the cafe alone not the museum which I think are 2 entirely different beasts and shouldn't be lumped together for fairness! ;-) We arrived there on a busy Sunday (Father's Day, no less) under the yelptastic recommendation and leadership of Mari H. for a UYE brunch. As it turns out, this cafe is run by the Giorgios Hospitality Group (notable for some of their other more well-established restos in the area - Spice Street, Parizade, etc.). What that brings to the table (pun intended) is a class act of service and good food from an area veteran of many years in hospitality and restaurant experience. On our busy Sunday, showing up with no reservations translated into a long wait which wasn't unreasonable. It took basically an hour for the 4 of us to be seated, but we were kept abreast of our standing by the hostess during the whole wait time. No worries, Sunday is Family Day at the museum and we had plenty of other things to talk about. Overall, very professional and never once did we feel like we were being overlooked. The cafe is situated in a small nook on the western side of the museum next to the gift shop. It has outdoor as well as indoor seating. Given the hot sweltering heat outside, it was a no-brainer to unanimously say "yes" to A/C, our friend! This was the first time I had eaten here despite having been to the museum on another occasion. All in all, i was pleasantly surprised by the variety on the brunch menu. Besides, the usual eggs, omelettes and assorted brunch menu items, they also offer sandwiches and salads. According to the seasonal menu, they try to local source as much as they can from area farms and producers (eggs, cheese, etc). Kudos to them! What did we order? I went for the ginormous beet salad on a field of greens which was accompanied by a generous helping of goat cheese and candied pecans. Seriously, this salad had me questioning my manhood more than any salad I'd had in the past! My partner ordered the omelette with fresh spinach and mushrooms with a well-proportioned side of "wet" home fries. First, let me explain why I called them "wet". I'm more used to the "fries" being fried when I see them listed as such on a menu. These were more like sauteed with nice bits of onions. Mind you, they were still delicious, but it took me a whole 3 seconds to adjust my expectations. Just a very minor note, they should really change the name to more accurately reflect that for the diners. The 2 entrees we shared were seasoned and done well. The eggs had that "fluffy" and airy aspect I enjoy in omelettes...and you could tell they actually used **fresh** spinach alongside the succulent mushrooms. We rounded out the brunch by sharing/tasting 3 desserts with our accomplices - a tiramisu, a coffee creme brulee and a chocolate mouse. In order of preferences, I like the chocolate mouse, the coffee creme brulee as a very close second and the slightly "dry" tiramisu in third. Mind you all were fine and definitely at least equal to or much better than your garden variety non-descript coffee shop dessert. The coffee we had complemented everything perfectly. All in all, a great job with good portions, good food and great company make me give this place a solid 4 stars. Even though we were in a large space, the acoustics were not that bad and we didn't feel like we had to engage in "full on" shouting matches to be heard. It was a great environment (in the museum) made even better by the attentive service (which was very good considering the packed Father's Day outing)! read more

The Nasher Café - Durham - From the business website - New American Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

If this review was based solely on the food, it would definitely be a higher star-count, but I'm sorry to report that I had to knock some stars off because the service was just kind of...absent. I'd let it slide if it was just one or two infractions, but there was just a consistent lack of service to our table. We sat 10-15 minutes before receiving menus. Good thing I had a late lunch or I would have been dying! Our waitress wasn't rude, just really 'hands off'. I also was confused by the way some tables would get visited by the bread basket, but not ours. But, when we requested bread they brought it right over. It's a little nit-picky, but when you feel like you're constantly flagging down staff it can be difficult to just relax and enjoy the meal. The food itself was lovely. The crab bisque was the perfect temperature, creamy and crabby. I liked the vegetables in it, especially the corn, which were very fresh and popped between the teeth with a light sweetness. The smoked salmon starter was excellent as well. with just the right balance of capers, creamy sauce and fresh fish. Served with ak-mak-like crackers and a refreshing cucumber salad, this dish was plenty for three and really hit the spot. The 20% gratuity (included because we split the check) left us with a bit of a sour taste after an otherwise yummy dinner. I tip 15-20% all the time, but I prefer having the choice to do so based on my experience. read more