Yum! My boyfriend and I split some dishes at the Federal and thoroughly enjoyed our experience. We chose the classic cheeseburger with Swiss cheese and sauce on the side, a cubano, and the fried artichoke salad. Both the cheeseburger and cubano came with hefty servings of French fries fresh out of the fryer. Despite being a little salt heavy, they were flavorful and complimented the sandwiches well. The cubano and burger were both 3/5 for me but I enjoyed both. I'm not a huge meat fan... My boyfriend said they were excellent though! The fried artichoke salad is where I feel like I found my peace. The olives, tomatoes, salad dressing, and all other salad components were awesome. It tasted fresh and the ingredients complimented each other. The fried artichokes were a nice crunch too! I would be back to the Federal for the hot food and good vibes. Service was excellent here as well. read more

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Bartender tonight was so accommodating. I came to watch the Duke UNC game and it was standing room only. I'm 7 months pregnant and my feet started to hurt. There were customers at the bar who ordered a drink and thought that was enough to sit there the entire time. The bartender nicely asked them that if they weren't going to order more food or drink it would be polite if they gave up their seats to paying customers. I finally got to sit down and rest while I enjoyed the game. Great food and even better service! read more

Ok.. just okay. Salad was overdressed & tough steak. Should be served in a wider bowl. Order a beer., slip the wine. Pleasant service

Ordered take out to enjoy at the pool and to further my mission of finding the best sweet potato fries in town. This one won't be topping the list- the fries lacked flavor and were soggy, only made worse by the terrible syrup they give you with it. It's "dijonaise" but tasted more like liquid syrup. Despite my love of the movie Elf...I'm not up for pouring syrup on my dishes. The chicken on the chicken sandwich was overcooked and the Italian sandwich was underwhelming. We did get the loaded fries and swapped out for sweet potato fries- good but not worth the $3 up-charge. For an extra $6 worth (two separate sweet potato fries...yes I may have a problem) I would skip this place if you are also a fry fan. read more

The Federal - Grilled Chicken Sandwich - Pubs Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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Went for dinner last night. Walked in and out as able to sit down right away. It was a pick your own booth instead of waiting for a host which was nice. The better part was the server was on top of everything. Service was great and quick. Never had to wait long for anything even after placing the order. The food came quickly and was very good. Would recommend and will be back. Thank you for a great first time experience!! read more

Great dive bar with exceptional bar food downtown Durham. Great flavors and eclectic vibes from this small bar with a full bar and big tastes! Only qualm is that sometimes they are limited in staff and the crowds seem to surge to a point where the bar/wait staff can be overwhelmed, but they're still friendly and pretty effective. Fries are a major draw for me, new menu has some good salad and sandwich options. read more

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We stopped in for a late lunch. Two ladies were running the front. They were fast and efficient. We had the fish & chips, Currywurst? I think that's what it was called.. all was delicious. Their homemade fries were outstanding. We also had the pretzel and cheese dip. The dip seems to be homemade, and it was excellent. Very fun place to stop as it's located in the city and the street traffic was interesting to watch. Very relaxed, casual atmosphere. read more

The Federal - Fish & Chips - Pubs Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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Oktoberfest here was stellar. The back patio was open to guests with a fun Polka band. The waitress was so friendly and would check in on us repeatedly. They had a special menu. The sausages were juicy and flavorful! The mustards were delicious, as well. If you are thirsting for a large pint and a big pretzel, this is the place to go! read more

The Federal - Special menu Oktoberfest - Pubs Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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Overall, food was okay. Bartender was rude during the Duke & UNC game, we stopped drinking and he reported it was customer to leave, and didn't allow us to finish the game. read more

I probably haven't been here for 15 years but had a craving and it will definitely not be another 15 years. Shared garlic parm wings with my family, nice sized wings. The true highlight was the steak frites. As I don't eat regular potatoes, subbed sweet potato fries in and turned into a great (and filling) meal. The steak had a nice garlic butter and was a hefty portion itself. The crinkle cut sweet potato fries were great, and sweet potato fries are usually hit or miss. These were as crispy and crunch as regular potato. Sat outside on a nice day, the perfect compliment to the meal. Overall a very nice experience. read more

The Federal - Steak Frites - Pubs Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

It has been a minute since I have visited The Federal. On this most recent visit we dined in before a show. It was a beer and the fish & chips for me and the fish tacos with sweet potato fries for my husband. It is small both inside and out but it is a good dining option in Durham. read more

Our second experience wasn't very good. We ordered takeout again. - Food was not as tasty. - Fed Burger came with cheddar instead of pimento as ordered - Side of ranch for fries was missing. POUTINE I love poutine! Montreal delivers the best poutine. I couldn't finish this poutine. The cheese curds were too large and very bland. The gravy was just average. I enjoyed the fries better without the curds and gravy. FED BURGER Burger pattie was dry. It was a good sized thick burger but tough and not satisfying. It came with mustard. I'd recommend asking for mayo and pickles to be added. CUBAN SANDWICH My wife ordered the Cuban, which is se thing she had on first visit. She reallyiked it the first time but not this time. They seem to have a consistency issue. read more

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Nice local college bar. Good food and friendly service. Very low key vibe. I have been twice and the food was good both times. Will go again when I'm back in the area. read more

I was unfamiliar with the restaurants in the Durham area and chose The Federal because the 5 star review, but was underwhelmed with both the quality of the food and the setting. My wife ordered the chicken sandwich, recommendation of the bartender/waiter, and I ordered the schnitzel sandwich. We both choose the Famous Federal fries because the description sounded delicious, "twice baked, garlic seasoned", and waited for the food to come out. We were initially surprised by how fast we had our food, but then realized why. The food, although wonderfully detailed on the menu, tasted and felt like it was prepared and frozen at a factory and then heated for too long in an air fryer. The "twice baked, garlic seasoned" Federal Fries fries had no flavor. They a mix of overcooked and freezer fresh fries that needed to be seasoned with salt and ketchup, the chicken sandwich was only edible when the chicken was taken out, and the schnitzel was hard and dry. The disappointment of the food led me to focus on the decor of the restaurant/bar. I initially enjoyed the theme and appreciated the post hipster atmosphere, but was put off by the prominent cigarette advertisement on the wall. I understand that Durham owes much of its history to the tobacco industry, but the city has made great strides in distancing itself from a, literally, cancerous market. I feel that this in combination with the "Brooklyn Buds" sticker in the WC (aka bathroom) is in poor taste. The next time I am in the area I will listen to my wife and have lunch at the Ethiopian restaurant next door. read more

There is a bar and seating inside. The bar area looked really nice. It is the middle of November in NC...we sat outside. The view on the street was awesome. I loved the outdoor seating. If you like to socialize, this is the perfect set up. The menu is not extensive so it won't take you a long to ponder your selection. That's a good thing. It keeps things moving along. The waitress was super friendly. I ordered the Fed Burger with fed fries. Let me tell you something, the fries were absolutely everything! They have to be top 3 fries of all time. Add a little ketchup and a dash of malt vinegar...omg Yum! I was gobbling up my fries so fast...I had to refocus on my burger. Let me tell you the burger was also everything. The toppings were fresh. The burger was cooked to order. My friend ordered the beyond burger and she said her meal was excellent. Think I may drive back to Durham just for this meal. Go there... read more

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The poutine....a Canadian fav.... is absolutely delicious.... All parts of it from the fries to the cheese curds to the gravy and mushrooms. My Cuban was equally great with a nice leafy salad to accompany. read more

Incredible. Highly recommend. The food, service, variety, ambiance made for an excellent experience.

Spoiler alert: it's bar food! If you stick with the classics (burgers and chicken), you'll be pretty satisfied. A plus shoutout for their sweet potato waffle fries, trying to show Chick-fil-A how it's done I see you. Try branching out and you might be disappointed. Tried a BBQ pulled pork and got a lukewarm, little-too-reminiscent-of-church-cookout-leftovers, sammy. Also had some flies in the place that were also fairly interested in the food. Big thanks to the staff who were very kind and flexible when a big family came in looking for seat. That's true class right there. read more

absolutely wonderful!!! i was an early diner and had an amazing beet salad. I am from out of town but would definitely recommend this restaurant. Seems like a local place which is always good. read more

The chef had just picked fresh figs and made a heavenly appetizer; straccatella fig and honey bruchetta...as a personal chef, this inspired me to make it for my clients. Chef Zacki Murphy read more

The Federal - Inspired by chef at Federal! - Pubs Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

The Federal is truly a Durham Institution and I am glad that they are still going strong...I have had some great burgers there as well as some other sandwiches as well.....It is definitely a treat here in the Bull City and the staff has always been great when I have gone here...Definitely a place you should check out... read more

Don't have food that is contaminated or wrong because they won't take accountability for it and tell you that Uber is the reason why your food is messed up. read more

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Came for lunch! We had the pimento cheese eggs. They weren't really pimento-y but they had a great kick. I ordered the portobello mushroom sandwich and had their side salad for my side. I asked for a side of the jalapeño aioli and it added so much to the sandwich. Out waitress (missed her name) had a great sense of humor while she learned their new ordering system. The place was pretty quiet for a Saturday lunch, but it was rainy outside. read more

The Federal - Pubs Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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The most racist establishment I've ever been in. My wife and I decided to try this place tonight for dinner along with a group of friends, when we entered into the establishment we were not greeted or seated and once we saw that we had to seat ourselves nobody still approached us. The entire time we were there we were stared down by white people as if we didn't belong so we decided to leave and once we left a gentleman made a remark stating "I'm glad you all could feel the vibes" this is the most disgraceful place that I have ever stepped into and I would never recommend this place to people of African American descent. read more

Best service and friendly workers and shoutouts to Olivia she was super friendly I appreciate the service

Excellent black bean sliders! Onion rings and fries were also great. We ordered to go; fast service. Highly recommend.

I cannot recommend this place enough! We tried the nachos with carnitas and buffalo chicken sandwich with the Grapefruit Radler to drink. The food was delicious and gave HUGE servings which was great for the value. The drinks were super affordable ($3-4) and hit the spot. We sat outside to soak up the nice weather. There was a variety of seating options inside from bar top to booths and tables. By far the best part about this place was the service. Our waiter Haziel was not only incredible at his job, but was also a genuine pleasure to talk to and truly cared about making his customers feel welcome and cared for. It was our first time visiting and we will certainly be back P.S. request the Peach Cobbler to drink, it's delicious! read more

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The food and service were great. The environment was a typical bar. The wings were fried to perfection.

I'm still trying to get over my last visit. It was my birthday and we were heading to a concert. We hadn't been in years and I wanted to get back. The menu was filled with great options. I settled on the schnitzel sandwich. I was shocked by what they delivered. I never send food back (fearing a vengeful chef) but I really should have. Not only couldn't it cover the bun, it was paper thin (even for schnitzel) and just didn't taste great. The rest of the food was OK (not great) but this really ruined the meal. Hard to imagine that at least two people felt ok at serving that plate. read more

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Excellent service, delicious fries, wings, and salad. Thinking about making a trip back just for the fries alone!

This local gem has quickly turned into one of our favorite spots! The food is consistently great and the servers are always very nice. The place is very no frills but some of my favorite French fries in the area! Their portions are generous and prices are super reasonable. It's a great place for a casual bite and a drink downtown. We've tried many things on the menu and haven't been disappointed yet read more

LOVE THE CUBAN, SALAD, FRIES. I can't get enough of it! I get it delivered mostly but sometimes I dine in. Service is great and so is the ambiance. read more

The server was GREAT! But he highly recommended the Irish egg rolls. They were literally dripping with grease from the inside. I got the tuna tostada...nothing good about it except the relish side dish. The tortillas was impossible to chew. My husband got the ribeye sandwich and a pile of what could be described as "French fry debris," although they had great flavor. Not a good experience! read more

Good food. Good service. Plenty of beers on tap. Give it a try. We ate and watched the Olympics.

Quick, efficient, not too expensive and delicious. Not sure what else you need. We had two of their salads and they were nicely dressed and well-prepared. read more

Delicious Caesar salad and I added steak which was plenty and flavorful. Ambience was good and the server was friendly. I would visit again if I ever go back to NC. read more

My food was good, I had chicken wings and an order of onion rings. The onion rings were enough to share with 2 other people $10.00. The service was great and the place has indoor and outdoor dining. I plan to visit again. read more

Great service! Expected run of the mill bar food and was pleasantly surprised to find upscale bar food. The giant pretzel was really good. They had a great cocktail selection. The hubs had a strip steak chimmichuri sauce. I had a great chicken chopped Cobb. Don't miss their fries! read more

Tl;dr: they fed a vegetarian of 20 years meat, so I cannot recommend this place for people with allergies or dietary restrictions. I asked about the ingredients in the soup of the day, was assured that it didn't have meat in it, and told the server when asked that I was a vegetarian. I got partway through eating it before someone else at the table suggested I ask again because it tasted like real meat to them, and the server double-checked with the kitchen and learned that the soup did in fact have meat in it. The server apologized, took the soup off my bill ($3 off a $20 bill), and brought me a ginger ale. I'm giving two stars rather than one because there was at least an effort to rectify this mistake. I understand that miscommunications happen and don't want staff to get in trouble over this. However, I am writing this review because the consequences of misleading patrons about ingredients could be severe for people with allergies. All I had to deal with was queasiness and emotional distress at unwittingly breaking two full decades of vegetarianism, but I have a friend with a meat allergy who would have wound up in the hospital had she eaten the soup. I hope that they address this communication problem in the future but would recommend that others with allergies or dietary restrictions steer clear for now. read more

We were visiting family, and the took us here before a Bulls game. We loved the vibe from the moment we walked in the door and seated ourselves. It's a small place and very laid back. The food was great. We had the buffalo chicken sandwich, the prime rib sandwich, the Cuban sandwich, and fish and chips among the 4 of us. Everyone was very happy with their choices. The portions were generous and the fries were delicious. We also had great service. Highly recommend this place! read more