Franklin Motors
Bar · Chapel Hill
Fuel your night at Franklin Motors, where flavors meet on the iconic Franklin St
Franklin Motors Opening Hours
About Franklin Motors
Nestled at 601 W Franklin St in Chapel Hill, Franklin Motors invites you into a unique blend of bar and dining experience. Since opening its doors, we've been proud to offer a diverse array of dining options that cater to every palate. Our commitment to quality and flavor is reflected in the 4.5/5 r...
Nestled at 601 W Franklin St in Chapel Hill, Franklin Motors invites you into a unique blend of bar and dining experience. Since opening its doors, we've been proud to offer a diverse array of dining options that cater to every palate. Our commitment to quality and flavor is reflected in the 4.5/5 rating from our satisfied patrons, based on 149 reviews. We take pride in curating a menu that showcases a variety of culinary styles, ensuring there's something for everyone at Franklin Motors. From hearty small plates perfect for sharing to more substantial main courses, we aim to create memorable dining experiences that extend beyond just the food. Our space is designed to be versatile—whether you're stopping by for drinks or planning a special occasion, we've got you covered. Join us and discover why Franklin Motors has become a beloved spot in Chapel Hill!
What Customers Say About Franklin Motors
Franklin Motors is a popular spot with a great beer selection, friendly staff, and a unique atmosphere with indoor/outdoor seating. The food quality is inconsistent, with some praising the food truck and others noting a decline since Roquette left. Fries are mentioned frequently.
Popular Dishes
Best For
Tip: Go for the beer and atmosphere; be aware that food quality can vary. Check for daily specials and new menu items.
What to see nearby
Data from Wikidata
Explore the area around Franklin Motors
Franklin Motors is located in Chapel Hill, surrounded by cultural and historical points of interest. Here are some of the most notable places nearby.
Museums
- Kidzu Children's Museum (A 714m) — children's museum in Chapel Hill, NC
- Ackland Art Museum (A 942m) — museum in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Religious Buildings
- St. Paul AME Church (A 135m)
- St. Joseph C.M.E. Church (A 220m) — Christian Methodist Episcopal (C.M.E) Church located in 510 W. Rosemary in Chapel Hill, NC.
Other Points of Interest
- Colonial Drugstore (A 236m) — Colonial Drug Company opened at 450 W. Franklin Street in 1951. The Chapel Hill Nine held a sit-down protest at the segr
Data from Wikidata
Frequently asked questions about Franklin Motors
Franklin Motors Chapel Hill Reviews
Really cute indoor/outdoor bar space… pet friendly… nice beer selection… super friendly staff. Did not eat but looks like the permanent food truck had good food.
That food truck is pumping out excellent bar food. The fish sandwich is the best I’ve ever had.
This is the best place in town to sit out and have a beer hands down. Now have covered heated patio for winter.
Great beer selection and outdoor space. Bartenders are friendly and courteous. Special thanks to Sara For saving us from the rain!
Don’t have a single negative thing to say! Service was great! Beers were great! Ambiance is second to none on Franklin street, super cool concept! The permanent food truck is also fantastic! Spoken with the cook in there a few times and he is also so attentive and trying to perfect his craft (the French fries are insanely good). Well worth a visit!
Changing my review up a bit. The beer is still good, the staff friendly, the place unique, but the permanent food truck there really bombed it last time. The guy cooking did not seem 100% stable and our food arrived over 45 minutes after we placed an order. Go for the beer, maybe not so much for the food truck.
If you read my reviews, don’t typically put five stars on all the elements but this place is for sure 5 stars plus . The atmosphere is great. The food is made from scratch and the service is outstanding. It is a hidden jump for sure. November 15 update. I tried this Thursday. The bistro fries. The meat was on part with any mat Tapa I tried in Barcelona Spain.
This spot ROCKS! Love the upstairs fairy light rustic vibes. The Caesar salad is award winning. Mac n cheese was also impressive. They have a nice selection of beers too. Pretty casual, but in a nice way. Apparently the fries are delightful. Would happily come back. $12-18 for food.
We live in the area and are so happy to have this unique option. Love our beers, so we love the wide selection. The food truck delivers satisfying food, and recently we're happy to see the expanded menu with daily specials. Very simple, but that's all we want!
In three days eating out in the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area, this was was the most fresh, well-seasoned, and best portioned food I’ve had. The fries are second-to-none and there’ll be a lot of em (shareable size). The wings are actual wings - tip, flat, drum - and the sauce is 🤌🏼 (for a lack of a better word). These guys are friendly, service oriented, and very accommodating! I’ll be back. Also for the beer, since they’re serving Boulevard Tank 7 at Franklin Motors, whom they share their outdoor seating with. Also, they’re pet friendly, which another brewery down the road was not. Glad we came here to spend our hard earned money.
The food here is great and the chef is very accommodating. I enjoyed the cheeseburger sliders and fries. It is very evident that they care here about the customer experience. We enjoyed our lunch here. Much more than a popular place down the street. Thank you to the Roquette at Franklin Motors!
I ate here a few weeks back and really loved the vibe! The food was pretty great for bar food. The only thing I might criticize is: when I think beer garden/biergarten, I think it truly necessitates a Bavarian influence. Something like bratwurst and soft pretzels would really keep me coming back!! In my home country, this kind of thing is standard at all beer gardens.
I was visiting Chapel Hill for the day and decided to walk up Franklin and check out a few bars/restaurants. This was my favorite stop. Chill vibes and had 20+ beers on tap. Indoor/outdoor seating with a few people who brought their doggos to hangout. They also had a food truck with basic bar bites like sliders and fries that were delicious. 5 stars!
A routine favorite! The beers and Biergarten are always enjoyable. But... the food quality has dropped tremendously since the original ownership changed hands. Roquette was consistently awesome. A pair of us would happily throw down $70-80 for an evening (beers included), regularly. That's special. It's too bad that that chef walked away, because now we're left with cold, dry fries and sub-standard pub grub offerings. What are they thinking! Nothing good lasts forever.
I don't take this negatively but my son says, "This is the best Gen X bar in town!" Great location, excellent vibe and a great selection of beer. The food has suffered recently and I really miss the old food truck's, but there are plenty other dining options nearby.
It's a food truck with a cocktail bar and picnic style seating. Can watch sports in the cocktail bar area. Somewhat busy area of chapel Hill so a little noisy to sit outside and it's in a gravel area. Food truck offered good sliders and fries. Cocktails were great.
Good atmosphere for a social experience. Lots of outdoor seating. We were there for hours. They have a nice bar with a variety of drinks. They were out of duck tacos but that looked appealing. Tried some fries and they were suuuuper greasy. They have a water station so you don’t need to feel pressured to drink along with sodas.
Ate here for the first time in a few months, and what a disappointment. They no longer have the pineapple chipotle tacos, one of the most delicious dishes I've ever eaten ANYWHERE. The caesar salad was completely devoid of any cheese. Got steak frites and 1/3 of the beef was fat and gristle. I don't know where they went wrong, but it's a crying shame.
The food was good but I gave an average rating because it was pretty overpriced. It was a greasy food truck but the prices were like fine dining in a restaurant. $18 for two small tacos with no sides? Also, they default to 25% tip and they don't even do anything. They literally won't take your order in person (you have to order through a QR code), they won't bring food to you (They asked me to download an app so they wouldn't have to call out my name) and you're expected to bus your own dishes? Seriously?
Hate to say this as this was one of my favorite places in Chapel Hill but the food has suffered tremendously since Roquette left. It’s more expensive and not nearly as tasty ($9 for one slider is a slap in the face when Al’s is directly across the street serving a full size for $10). Like 6 different slider options and none are a simple burger. Venue is great, beer selection is solid but what really made it a destination was the food from roquette. I probably won’t be back unless they promise better food at an actually reasonable price.
Pretty cool vibe, the service at the beer bar is ok, the food service and the food are awful! We ordered a cheese platter and it came with two slices of cheese only, and a few pieces of fruit and a few dry stale pieces of toast (see picture). It should never been called "cheese platter". We also ordered the french fries and it was extremely grease and salty. I wish they would allow outside food and just serve beer, like the super cool one in Carrboro.
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About Franklin Motors
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601 W Franklin St
Chapel Hill, NC 27516
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Christian Methodist Episcopal (C.M.E) Church located in 510 W. Rosemary in Chapel Hill, NC.
Colonial Drug Company opened at 450 W. Franklin Street in 1951. The Chapel Hill Nine held a sit-down protest at the segregated lunch counter, touching off the first of many protests of the store's segregationist policies over the next four years.
children's museum in Chapel Hill, NC
museum in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
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