Date Night at The Streetery in Downtown Durham

While David and I are big fans of Raleigh and all that it has to offer, we love Durham! The downtown area is one of our favorite spots in North Carolina for a date night and now the Streetery has helped kick off part of the Getting Back on the Bull campaign. David and I recently went for a Saturday night progressive date night in Durham to explore some new art galleries and dine at some new-to-us places. Check out our date night itinerary for the Streetery in downtown Durham!

Downtown Durham is opening several streets to pedestrian traffic with festive lights, music, and performers throughout. Join local businesses on Friday and Saturday evenings from 5-9:30 p.m. from September 18 – December 19 to shop, carry out, dine in or dine out. It is an excellent way of exploring and supporting local businesses in a safer, socially distanced, outdoor downtown experience. See more about participating businesses here.

Date Night at the The Streetery in Downtown Durham

PS118 Gallery and Event Space

PS118 Gallery and Event Space is such a unique spot in Durham. It’s located in between the Unscripted Hotel and Chet Miller right on Parrish Street. This gallery features a “trailer park” which is an excellent play on words for trailers of upcoming features that will be parked in the gallery. There are three upcoming exhibits: (Re)Construction: Recent Works by Caitlin Cary and Sean Livingstone; and upfront is Bloom, a suite of photographic works by Heather Evans Smith.

Works from all three exhibits plus a selection of additional works and books can be found in the gallery and also on the website, which is being updated regularly. The stage in the gallery will eventually be host to a variety of salon events, including literary readings, artist and historian talks, acoustic musical performances, and a bi-annual variety show. It’s a great place to start your progressive date night in Durham to learn more about independent artists and makers in the state.

Address: 118 West Parrish St., Durham, NC

Alley Twenty-Six

Alley Twenty-Six has been on my Durham bucket list for quite some time and I am so glad we finally got to go. I love to eat a small meal at each place when possible, so we started with appetizers here. David and I shared Bang Bang Shrimp and Buffalo Chicken Skins and we highly recommend both! While David got a beer and I ordered a glass of wine, they are offering a Toddy Town Pop Up and are featuring NC State Fair food.

All dining is socially distanced outdoors in their gorgeous, market lit alley way.  The next time we go here, I’ll get a shrimp burger because they batter and cook their shrimp in the way that I like it best!

Address: 320 East Chapel Hill Rd., Durham, NC

5 Points Gallery

5 Points Gallery houses some absolutely incredible work all done by local artists. We really enjoyed browsing this gallery and exploring the various works by the artists. There is a small loft with additional art work and we highly recommend getting up there to see all the work. Plus the gallery space is beautiful, too!

Address: 109 East Chapel Hill Rd., Durham, NC

QueenBurger

Y’all… we love Kingfisher. Their space is one of the prettiest, tastiest spots in the Triangle and it’s really hard not to love Sean and Michelle. They are so talented and their personal touches and tastes make you feel right at home. While Kingfisher is closed, QueenBurger is a great space to continue feeling the vibe and community. QueenBurger is in the back parking lot of Kingfisher and features locally sourced smash burgers, veggie burgers, bottled cocktails, beer, and a fun, retro vibe. QueenBurger is open Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays & Sundays from 5pm until they sell out. QueenBurger is first come, first serve. Well-behaved children and pets capable of social distancing are welcome. They offer standing tables only, so just consider that. Get it to go if you prefer to sit somewhere out in the closed off areas.

15% of all profits will be donated to we are, a local organization working to extend anti-racist education.

Address: 321 East Chapel Hill Rd., Durham, NC

Jack Tar

After walking around downtown and taking in the shops and music, head to Jack Tar for dessert. I love Jack Tar so much, so I ordered nachos and sampled their dessert menu. We had their chocolate mousse, their ice cream (which was butter pecan), and their crullers. It was hard to choose a favorite, but I must say that their crullers are my favorite. They have a great pop up menu for their patio dining right now and would be a great spot to grab dinner, too! I’m eyeing the blue tamale for next time! 100% of profits from Otoño will benefit Urban Ministries of Durham. More info at www.umdurham.org/

Address: 202 Corcoran St., Durham, NC

Bonus: If you have time and a reservation, be sure to stop in 21c Museum Hotel to check out the Future is Female exhibit, too!

Everything was well spaced out, the service was great everywhere we went, and we had such a lovely night doing the types of things we loved pre-COVID. It was so nice to feel some sense of those things while still adhering to socially distant protocols and wearing a mask.  I can’t recommend this date night enough!

Thank you to Discover Durham for partnering with I’m Fixin’ To for this experience. As always, all opinions are my own.

My Outfit Details:

Free People Body Suit | J. Crew Skinnies | Vince Camuto Booties | Vote Mask | Tory Burch Tote
David Yurman Bangles 1 2 | Gold Necklace | Mignonne Gavigan Earrings

David’s Outfit Details:

J. Crew T-Shirt | J. Crew Vest | J. Crew Denim | Sneakers

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What are you most interested in trying at The Streetery in Downtown Durham?  Let me know in a comment below!