Pour Taproom is a chain of bars which has a great concept - you pour your own beer and drink as much or as little as you want. You don't have to commit to a whole glass. This is a great way to sample multiple beers without drinking too much.
My wife and I are familiar with this chain from its multiple locations in Atlanta (Pour is headquartered in Atlanta) and the self-serve beer concept in general from similar businesses like Pinhouse in Charlotte. They all use individually-assigned electronic wristbands to keep track of consumption. We're fans. At the time of writing this review, there are two Pour locations in North Carolina: Durham and Wilmington.
This location opened in June 2017 on the ground level of Unscripted, a hotel that faces Durham's Main Square in the heart of downtown. This is a great location because there are many excellent restaurants, bars, and other places to go to within short walking distance. For example, I recommend The Parlour across the square for outstanding ice cream.
I don't think this place has dedicated or validated parking. However, there's plenty of street, surface lot, and deck parking nearby. Metered parking is enforced Monday-Friday, 8am-7pm. At the time of writing this review, parking rates are $2.50/hour for street and $2.25/hour for lot/deck. We parked for free in Lot 32 at 111 W Chapel Hill St (free because it was a Saturday).
We had a good time during our Saturday night visit. We were expecting this place to be busier than it was, especially since it was nice out. Pour has a sizable and enjoyable outdoor patio at this location. They did a really nice job with that. Lawn games included cornhole and big Connect Four. The inside was pleasant as well. The staff was really friendly, they had sports playing on the big screens, and the vibe was comfortable. I liked it because it wasn't crowded or loud. So, if you prefer more of a relaxed and relatively-quiet bar atmosphere, this is the place to be.
There were many dozens of beers on tap plus a very limited selection of wine and cocktails. A lot of the beer was local/regional, which is what I think mainly sets the different Pour locations apart (menu). Drinks are individually priced. I enjoyed the Haw River Farmhouse Ales For Restful Death foeder-aged lager ($0.85/oz) and Fullsteam Brewery's Paycheck pilsner ($0.55/oz), both local. My wife's favorite beer was the Lindemans Framboise Raspberry Lambic Beer. She didn't like the cocktails (cosmopolitan, margarita) nor the wines that she got. Our friend tried the old fashioned and described it as "interesting" and about what you'd expect from old fashioned on tap.
The self-rinsing mechanisms don't seem very sanitary, but more power to you if you use them.
Pour in Durham partnered with local restaurant Lula and Sadie's for food. A group near us ordered a Tasting Board ($7.00) and it looked good.
This place gets four stars out of me mainly because of the flexible ordering format, the atmosphere, and the friendly staff. read more