The Broad Street Café

Hi,
My fiancé and I loved your restaurant… so much so that a friend got us a gift certificate to Broad Street for our engagement party in June.
We waited until we were in the throes of wedding planning chaos to redeem it on a much needed date night, and to our great disappointment discovered you are closed!
We are sad for the long term implications that you are no longer in business, and also sad that we cannot use the gift card that was just purchased in June! Is there any chance of getting a refund on the gift card?

Horrible! Service absolutely horrendous. Our food never arrived. We left 1hr 30 mins later.
——
In response to John:
We did not arrive on the last day of your business. We were there on the 28^th of June. The server who served us was Mary Beth, I believe. She took our drinks. They came LATE! Another server took our food order. We ordered butternut squash pizza and carrot ginger soup. That never came. The night we were there, a duo from DC came to play. A gospel rock group played later. Does that ring a bell now? Do you doubt my story now? We left after the duo finished.

I came here to see my lovely friend perform for Open Mic, and I enjoyed this place very much.
I forgot our server’s name, but he was awesome. The fact that he remembered 12 of our orders without a single mistake is admirable even by a fellow server. He refilled our waters when needed, checked on us the perfect amount, and even observed when to hand us all our separate checks without being overbearing at all.
Food-​wise, I only ordered some hummus, so I can’t review much about the food this time around. But I will DEFINITELY come back and try a (veggie) burger or pizza. Although, I must warn you: if you’re debating between their red pepper hummus or edamame hummus, I strongly advise NOT getting the latter. My friend ordered it, and it surprisingly tasted very herby and minty? It was dry and crumbly and did not taste like edamame at all. The red pepper hummus tasted better and had a creamier consistency, but it was strangely sour.
Just don’t bother with the hummuses. Get some sweet potato fries instead! Yummm

The best pizza in Durham.
BSC’s butternut squash gorgonzola pizza is the stuff of dreams. The creaminess of the squash and the gooey-​ness of the cheese is a perfect match. Crispy, slightly smoky thin crust. Affordable too, making it a great place for groups.
Belongs in the list of «Holy cow why am I just trying this just as I’m graduating and leaving Durham?!»

Music has generally been great when I go, but the service is mediocre at best. If you are lucky, your server won’t be high and will actually remember your order, bring things out in a timely manner, check on you, and split the check properly. I was lucky to have a good server only one out of five or six times that I was here.
In terms of food, the edamame hummus is minty and very delicious! I highly recommend it. The butternut squash pizza is also very good, and you can get it with balsamic reduction instead of bacon if you want it vegetarian (or just for a tasty twist).

Oh, Broad St, I’ve been hesitant to downgrade your score – giving you chance after chance – but it’s time.
The last several times I’ve been to BSC, I’ve been really disappointed with the quality of the food. One time, my husband and I split a white pizza that we *swore* had mayo on it instead of (in addition to?) cheese. But we were so hungry, we just powered through it. The last time I got the tuna burger, it was overcooked. And my husband didn’t even eat half of his Portabello burger, reporting that it was soggy and bland.
The mediocre food coupled with the still-​spotty service (requests being partially or entirely forgotten), just doesn’t warrant a three-​star review anymore.
But, it’s still a good option for live music and beer. *ambivalent trombone*

I have been coming to Broad Street Café for years now and it never seems to disappoint. Everything from the drinks, food, and service is stellar. They carry a wide favorite of local brews that I am always happy to try. Here are some dishes that I love.
Edamame Hummus: Very unique but tasty
Lamb Burger: The star of the menu. The lamb has always been cooked perfectly and the add the red pepper aioli is the perfect condiment on the burger.
Pizza: All the pizzas are wood fired which are my favorite. The ones I loved the best are the Turkish Pie & Smoked Chicken.
Sweet Potato Fries: I’m not a big fan of thick cut wedge style fries but if you like them then definitely order these. Else order the regular hand cut fries and make sure to get the chipotle ketchup.
They have a late night menu and always have at least one pizza item on it. They have live bands and the atmosphere is great.

Excellent pizza, attentive wait staff, and laid back live music.

We went on a Friday night with a groupon, and got 2 appetizers, 2 entrees and 2 desserts. Sweet Potato Fries — were awesome! definitely baked and not fried and really good — as other have been saying on here. Artichoke Dip — had way too much garlic flavor that overpowered the artichoke — not even sure how much artichoke was in there! Lamb burger was really good — whatever they use to marinate the patty was delicious, and the regular fries with that were good, just not as good as the sweet potato. Butternut squash pizza — good, cheese is pretty heavy and it could use more butternut squash! but the flavors were very good overall. We got a strawberry shortcake and Chocolate chess pie — by this time i was so full — their portion sizes are huge — (we ended up taking home leftovers) but the shortcake i thought was average, and the chocolate chess pie very rich — if that is what you are into!
Service was really good-​we had a different experience from the others on Unilocal,but we got there around 9pm, and really not too many people eating there, and our waitress was really sweet and attentive. also, seat yourself! it’s weird not to have a hostess, but it worked out okay for us, because I ended up flagging someone down.
The Storytellers band was there that night — and they were fantastic! They had the people in the restaurant dancing the cupid shuffle, and played «let’s get it on» — a song i requested.
Really love the ambiance of the place — cool photos all around the restaurant and really really laid back. Totally would come back here!

We came here for dinner with a $ 30 Groupon. In order to bring our bill up to more than $ 30, we ordered two pizzas (~$ 22) and a Caesar salad ($ 7) with shrimp ($ 4.50, even though the menu says $ 4).
The Caesar salad was ok, though it appeared to be made of iceberg rather than romaine. The amount of grilled shrimp was fairly generous, but the housemade focaccia crostini, as Deborah S. mentioned, was basically dried out melba toast. Our pizzas were decent — I especially enjoyed the butternut squash and leeks — and generously baconed.
The service, however, needs work. The Café didn’t seem especially busy, yet it took a long time for our orders to get taken, and we were more than halfway done with our entrée pizzas before we were checked on or our waters were refilled.
Our biggest issue was when the check came. The Groupon stipulates that it can’t be used on specials. Apparently, adding shrimp (or anything) to the salad counts as a special order, even though the menu says «Add chicken, shrimp, or tuna to any salad (¾/​4)». Similarly, doing the build-​your-​own by adding additional pizza toppings, also listed on the menu, counts as a special order. Thus our additional orders didn’t count towards the Groupon bill, and we weren’t able to get our full $ 30 discount.
We asked to speak to a manager about the unfairness of billing regular menu items as «specials», but none could be produced (or none were willing to come talk to us). Had we known that ordering additional menu items wouldn’t be counted towards our discountable bill, we wouldn’t have ordered them in the first place. We felt like we’d gotten a bait-​and-​switch, and though we explained as such to our waitress, nothing was done. The whole experience left a bad taste in our mouths. We will not be returning.

Broad Street Café is now another one of my favorite underrated places in Durham. The pretty much daily Groupon Now! ($ 5 for $ 10 for lunch) ensures that I can get an extremely cheap, delicious meal. :D
I came here with my roommate on her suggestion (she’s never been here, either) and we were both really pleased :) We got the butternut squash pizza — the combination is just incredible; we didn’t really need Unilocal suggestions to get it: p — and it was even more amazing than it sounded. The toppings aren’t spread evenly, but I decided that it was pretty nice to have a gradient of flavors. It turns out that the cook burned our first pizza, but our (second) pizza still arrived pretty quickly. So I guess service is pretty fast here.
Our server, Lacey, was friendly and helpful. She didn’t think that the pizza would be enough for my roommate and me, and suggested that we order an appetizer, but we stuck by our intuition and we were right. The pizza was definitely really filling for us, though I’m not sure if I can advise that for everyone who comes. Either way, if you’re planning on eating that by yourself, be wary of ordering more food.

I went in here for a late lunch on my last full day in town and after ordering little did I know that they were about to close in 10 minutes. The wait staff reassured me, it’s was no big deal and not to worry. I appreciated that. I like that they made me feel as though I didnt have to rush once my order arrived. I looked over the menu and not knowing what was good, I asked our waitress what she suggested. Her suggestion was one of her favorites, the Butternut squash pizza. So I took her up on her suggestion. And let’s just say my taste buds have never been happier. The combination of the squash, leeks, shallots and gorgonzola cheese was amazing. I did order the sweet potato fries as an appetizer and these were better than anything I can get here in Denver. Nice thick cut fries with a spicy ketchup and a horseradish dip.
I will have to give my sister credit for bringing me here. And more credit for the Broad Street Café for a fine lunch and even better service. Next time I am home, I will make this stop much earlier and not on my last day.

Short version: A little pricey for lunch, but service is fast and it’s quiet enough to talk.
Met a friend here for lunch on a Friday. The tab for a Greek salad w/​grilled chicken and a Diet Coke was $ 13, which is a little much, IMO. However, the food was very tasty – my friend also said that her butternut squash pizza was excellent. The service was prompt and friendly, and we could actually hear ourselves talk, which isn’t always the case during the dinner rush or live music nights.
It’s a solid choice for lunch, but not for folks on a tight budget.

The food: I’ve eaten here 4 times. The favorite is the butternut squash pizza — yummy. I’ve also had some other fairly desent pizzas, and their lamb burger. Straight off the menu the lamb burger is a bit boring, so you really have to try it with blue cheese. Delicious! The fries are pretty good too, as is the beer selection. Overall 3.5 stars on the food.
The atmosphere: Highly variable depending upon when you come. It’s a large open space so if there are more than a few people it can be very difficult to hear the person across from you. I love this place in the middle of the day (free WiFi, tons of space, cool and calm), but I HATE it during their evening shows. The music is always tuned way too loud, and the «talent» can be painful at times. The only redeeming aspect is watching the middle-​aged white folk in their mom jeans, cowboy belts, and too-​small tank tops wriggling around in front of the bar («dancing» is what I imagine they would call it). It’s far more entertaining than the music itself. Overall 2 to 4 stars, depending.
The service: Best part of the place. Every time I’ve been the servers have been extremely friendly, helpful, and even memorable (in the good way). They seem honestly happy, not just trying to smile for the tip, which of course always makes me want to tip them more. In my experiences they’ve been quick on the orders, quick on the bill, and present (without being overbearing) the entire way along. Overall 5 stars.

The grandkids wanted pizza, so we went to Broad Street Café last evening (Sunday Jazz night). The music was an excellent jazz group and we enjoyed it immensely. The pizzas were outstanding — — the butternut squash, Gorgonzola and bacon pizza was amazing. We’re now real pizza fans of this place.
The service — — not so hot. I noted that some of the servers were very attentive; but ours was really not into the task at all. .forgot items, disappeared for long periods (30 minutes or more), left a ticket and never came back for it, then got miffed when I took it to the bar. Guess she had had a bad day and wanted to share it. We’ll return for the music and food, but we’ll avoid this server at all costs!

Have been to Broad Street a few times for musical events and a couple of pint nights. Last night’s Blues & Brews drew us out with the temptation of Southern Tier’s Mokah, which sounded absolutely incredible. We did go with some trepidation in our hearts as the last two experiences were full of lousy service, namely from the bar.
We ended up sitting at the bar and ordering the special beer of the night. Oh my, was it special or what! If you have an opportunity to try Southern Tier’s Mokah, I would highly recommend it. Chocolately goodness in a pint glass (caution: drink slowly because at over 11% ABV, I was chattier than normal by the third sip).
Food-​wise we elected to split the Jamaican Jerk pizza (big fan of the hummus app but that didn’t seem to pair with the beer). The pizza was really, really good! I almost feel surprised typing that. Sometimes fearful of chicken on pizza as it can be super-​salted, the chicken was tasty and plentiful. The jalapenos were fresh and had some heat in them! The crust was crispy; what a winner overall.
Sitting at the bar or at the tables near the restroom, the music doesn’t seem to overwhelm the atmosphere as much as those near the stage. The blues were rocking and so was the experience. I will say that the bar staff still hasn’t won me over (the servers are good) but man, pick up some tips from the folks at Tyler’s or other rockstar bar staff spots in Durham.

AVOID WHEN THEY HAVE LIVE MUSIC! IT IS LOUD LIKE THESE CAPSLOCK!
Srsly, you can’t escape the deafening music and your meal kinda sucks b/​c you can’t talk with your dining companions. Also, my food doesn’t taste as good when I’m surrounded by grotesquely loud music.
Otherwise, they’re changing up their daily drinks specials majorly (don’t trust the website or even their menu). Their lamb burger, ahi tuna burger, and sweet potato fries are FANTASTIC.
But forget about getting salad dressing on the side. I’ve eaten here at least 10 times, not once have they succeeded in remembering to keep dressing on the side. I’ll keep asking b/​c I’m a hopeless optimist. I probably would’ve voted for Obama if I could vote in the US. No, too soon?

Addicted to their pizza. Butternut squash and Bianca are my favorites, but they have great specials sometimes too. Chocolate chess pie is a mighty fine finish.
Don’t bother with the boring pizzas (e.g., cheese, pepperoni). I’ve heard they’re not very good. Go for something interesting.
Great tap selection. Great servers, nice ambience (though I can do without the live music selections sometimes). Wireless shuts off at 6, but free up til then.

Had a
coupon for this place that was about to expire so decided to head over this weekend. Hadn’t dined here before or been back since it was the coffee house, Ooh La Latte, which I loved (not associated with BSC).
Anyway, we started with the artichoke dip, which was quite tasty. Good mix of cheese, artichokes and garlic with the house made crostini to dip into it. Then my partner and I shared a house salad, which is pretty simple with tomatoes, cucumbers and red onions, but all was very fresh. I was surprised that they only have two dressings and we had the balsamic, which was very good. I decided to try a wood fired pizza. I had the butternut squash with leeks, shallots, Gorgonzola and bacon on it, which while very good, the bacon overshadowed everything else on the pizza. My partner had the burger, which she LOVED! She was kinda so-​so on the fries, a mix of some soggy, some crispy. For dessert we had a pumpkin cheesecake that had the be the best I’ve ever had. Amazing!
Our waitress was friendly, prompt, really excellent and she was brand new! Well, she must be a very seasoned waitress cos she was always there right when we needed here.
I would definitely return and probably try a burger next time around.

I went to the Broad Street Café for dinner tonight. The menu includes a wide variety of alcohol along with food items. It’s a cozy place with regular patrons. There is live music and a promotion most nights of the week. Tonight (Wednesday) offered $ 5 well drinks or long island ice tea. For students, there is a 10% discount on your bill so do not forget to bring your student id!
I decided to order the chicken pizza and it was absolutely delicious! The crust is thin and the personal size pizza is a very generous portion. Tonight I was quite hungry and successfully ate the entire pizza.
With good company, good food, and good music, my experience at the Broad Street Café was a truly enjoyable one. I will most certainly come back here!