Toast
Of the many reasons to love Durham, the dining scene is near the top of my list. Durham boasts some wonderful haute cuisine, to be sure, but also some terrific little cafes and neighborhood eateries – places that help make the city a vibrant community in a way that is altogether different from Chapel Hill or Raleigh. I’m thinking of places like Watts Grocery, or Federal, or Toast, a new paninoteca in downtown Durham.
Toast is an Italian style café serving terrific sandwiches (Panini) and soups. The restaurant boasts terrific bread from Rue Cler bakery, located just down the street. The choices are classic and you simply can’t go wrong – think prosciutto with mozzarella and tomato, grilled chicken with roasted peppers, mozzarella, and salsa verde, or kale, ricotta salata, and peppers. My wife chose the portobello, arugula, fontina, and roasted tomato panino. I opted for the choose-three crostini: warm goat cheese with honey and black pepper, peperonata and pecorino, and pesto, tomato, and mozzarella. We both had the lentil soup, which was fabulous with hunks of bacon and onion. In fact, everything we tried was delicious. I enjoyed the casual café ambiance, and they have several tables out front on the sidewalk. At just $8 apiece, I look forward to making frequent visits.
http://www.toast-fivepoints.com
{image by Eric Velarde}
I have only lived in the South (originally from Vancouver, B.C.) for a wee bit and so far only been able to go to Raliegh in that area. We gotta check out Durham over the next weeks. It sounds great, even if we only go to ‘toast’. YUM!