Linda’s Bar and Grill employee Kaitie Paxton (right) enjoys a quick break alongside Chase McKinney (left) and Elizabeth Rowe on Monday. Linda’s was the first bar Rowe ever went to in Chapel Hill, and she says the “good service, good food, and great environment” keep bringing her back.
chh@heraldsun.com; 918-1035
CHAPEL HILL — Last Thursday, as Franklin Street was filling with scalpers and tailgaters, Dennis Almond ate lunch at the bar, ready for the concentrated rush that comes with a Thursday night football game.
“It’s better for everybody if the game is on Saturday,” said Almond, co-owner of the Chapel Hill institution Linda’s Bar and Grill.
On Saturday, Almond explained, the brats start getting passed around midmorning, and the nearby T-shirt shops sell merchandise all day to fans that traveled across the country for the game.
Thursday, however, Almond expected the football crowd to come in only three hours before the game, and mainly from Raleigh and Greensboro.
Which is not to say that Linda’s was empty till Thursday evening. Locals and graduate students eat lunch at Linda’s regardless of Carolina’s football schedule. Despite being nestled just across the street from UNC, Linda’s has always been more popular with “townies,” Almond said, than with undergrads.
“The daytime lunch crowd is very religious,” said Almond, an understatement that made the bartender laugh. Lunch includes pot roast and Southern vegetables.
Among the “townies,” Almond further divides his clientele between “upstairs people and downstairs people.”
The ground floor serves as a “café-pub,” Almond explained. “It’s for people who want to sit and look out on the world.” Another bar sits downstairs as a much more traditional pub.
Asked why Linda’s has commanded such a strong following since 1976, Almond said, “We do the same thing over and over again pretty well.”
When Almond took over as owner five years ago after managing the bar since 1994, he made few adjustments.
“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” he said. “All we did was tweak the prices and add some liquors. And these TVs were brand new five years ago.”
Almond believes a bar experience is defined by its atmosphere.
“You don’t want to hear Led Zeppelin at noon,” he said.
Among all the bars that crop up on West Franklin, Linda’s stands out for its lack of formality.
“There’s no suit and tie here,” said Almond. “We just let people hang out, play a little trivia and share a pitcher of beer.”
Over the past 15 years, Almond has seen many bars come and go in the area. The recession has made the turnaround especially severe.
“Vacant buildings on Franklin Street are not a pretty sight,” he said.
Business at Linda’s over the past year has been “brisk,” Almond explained, “but not great.” He is thankful not to have lost any money and to still have a job in a climate in which so many do not.
Originally from Charlotte, Almond fell into the bar business after graduating from UNC. He majored in Economics, a decision that has helped him run a business and, as he said, “see through the fog of people talking about the economy.”
Before buying Linda’s, Almond considered returning to school for a law degree, joining the thirsty grad students that come to Linda’s each night.
“It’s funny,” he said, “I’m 38 but grad school is still in the back of my mind.”
Meet Your Merchants
NAME: Linda's Bar and Grill
ADDRESS: 203 E Franklin St., Chapel Hill, NC
PRODUCT: Beer, liquor, American pub-fare
ESTABLISHED: 1976
OWNERS: Dennis Almond, Rutland Tyler
CONTACT: (919) 929-6663
