Enable JavaScript to run this app.
Skip to main content
OpenTable logo
  1. Home
  2. United States
  3. Raleigh / Durham / Chapel Hill
  4. Durham
  5. Durham
Dark Chocolate Mousse Cake - Refectory Cafe, Durham, NC

Refectory Cafe

4.7
4.7
954 Reviews
$30 and under
American

Make a reservation

2 people
SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
7:00 PM
Booked 30 times today
Experiences are available.
  • Neighborhood gem
  • Vegan-friendly
  • Healthy
Established in 2005, The Refectory Cafe was the first “Green” restaurant on the Duke campus and was located at the Duke Divinity and Law Schools. Now located just 2 miles from Duke's West Campus, The award-winning Refectory Cafe continues to be the restaurant where omnivores, vegetarians, vegans, and gluten-free folks happily share a table together in the same facility. Every diet classification can delight in delicious, satisfying, creative food from a common menu, while enjoying the health benefits of consuming clean food, minimally processed.

Appreciate the Award winning flavor and creativity of our Executive Chef Jake Miles & Pastry Chef Rosa Redel.

MOST RECENT AWARDS: 2023-2025
2023 #4 Independent Restaurant in the STATE (Southern Living Magazine)
TripAdvisor #1 / #2
Best Brunch
Best Wine List
Best Pie
Best Vegan
Best Vegetarian
Best Patio Dining

We look forward to serving you! You will love the food and our team!

Restaurants you may also like

View all

Dining areas

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Price
    $30 and under
  • Cuisines
    American, Organic, Farm-to-table
  • Hours of operation
    Mon–Thu 9:00 am–8:30 pm Fri, Sat 9:00 am–9:00 pm Sun 9:00 am–3:00 pm
  • Phone number
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Executive chef
    Jake Miles
  • Catering
    Seven-days a week, Breakfast, lunch & Dinner. Comfortable casual events to full service, you design your perfect event - we will deliver!
  • Private party facilities
    Delicious & Nutritious, serving all diets, always. Cafe can be rented for private parties - indoor and outdoor experiences. Staff fully vaccinated
  • Neighborhood
    Durham
  • Cross street
    Academy Road
  • Parking details
    Plenty of parking in our private lot, right outside the front or side doors. Handicapped parking out front.
  • Public transit
    Bus stop across the street from the cafe
  • Additional
    Beer, Cafe, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Dog Friendly, Full Bar, Gender Neutral Restroom, Gluten-free Options, Non-Smoking, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Takeout, Vegan, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine

Experiences

  • Another Incredible Italian Wine Dinner

    $99.00 per person

    Feb 12, 2025 - Nov 19, 2025
    It's another incredible experience with amazing dishes created by Chef Jake Miles and Pastry Chef Rosa Redel. Laurence Vuelta, Sunrise Wines, is always entertaining and extremely knowledgeable of the beautiful boutique wines from Italy. It is always a night to remember with a fun mixer to kick off the party.
    Another Incredible Italian Wine Dinner Photo

What 954 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.7
4.7 based on recent ratings
  • 4.7Food
  • 4.6Service
  • 4.3Ambience
  • 4.6Value

NoiseModerate

Loved For

  • Raleigh / Durham / Chapel Hill

    Great for brunch

  • Raleigh / Durham / Chapel Hill

    Healthy

  • Raleigh / Durham / Chapel Hill

    American

  • Durham

    Best Value

  • Durham

    Great for brunch

  • Durham

    Healthy

  • Durham

    Neighborhood gem

  • Durham

    Great for outdoor dining

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
Refectory Cafe delights with its "great food" and "friendly staff," offering a variety of vegetarian options and an inviting atmosphere. While some diners experienced longer wait times on busy days, the "delicious" menu keeps patrons returning. The cafe's "casual, classy" vibe and commitment to "fresh, clean" ingredients make it a neighborhood favorite.
954 Reviews
  1. Carol

    Unspecified1 review

    5.0

    Dined 2 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    The arefrectory Cafe is my choice place to dine. The wait staff are excellent. The food is delicious and it is o e of those rare places that I trust because I have Celiac and must have not just gluten-free but my food cannot be cross contaminated with gluten. It is also one of the rare restaurants that offer a large selection of gluten-free choices, not just soup & salad. We have dined there many times and this will continue to be my favourite venue!

    Is this helpful?

  2. Sonia

    San Francisco2 reviews

    5.0

    Dined 7 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    When we arrived, we were welcomed with a smile. We made reservations, so our table was set and personalized with our name on the table tag. The food was amazing; fresh and tasted homemade -- seriously delicious! The menu included many vegan options, which was great for my family. We have meat-eaters, vegetarians and vegans. We each had many options to choose from. We were there from out of town. I would definitely come back.

    Is this helpful?

  3. Andrea VIP

    Raleigh34 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on March 14, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    Always a great experience with our server Cassie. Food was scrumptious. Don’t miss the amazing red velvet chocolate cake.

    Is this helpful?

  4. Kristin VIP

    Washington DC3 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on March 12, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    I will definitely be back! What a pleasant dining experience 😊

    Is this helpful?

  5. Paul

    Raleigh1 review

    5.0

    Dined on February 25, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    While visiting our son and his family, we had an excellent experience at The Refectory. Food and service were exceptional. We will definitely be back! Eric was our server and was one of the best restaurant staff members we have ever encountered!
    Refectory CafeResponded on March 2, 2025
    Thank you Paul! There is nothing that makes our day more than delighting our guests. We appreciate the awesome review and look forward to serving you again soon! Laura Hall

    Is this helpful?

  6. Janet

    Raleigh3 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on February 24, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    Our table was a little too close to the one behind us. Otherwise we enjoyed everything else.
    Refectory CafeResponded on March 2, 2025
    Hello Janet, Thank you for the terrific 5-Star review. Please know we are always happy to move tables for our guests - next time let us know. We are always happy to help. Very happy that you thoroughly enjoyed our food and service. Laura Hall

    Is this helpful?

  7. Denise VIP

    Raleigh57 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on February 23, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    The food is always delicious and delivered to our table quickly and hot. The staff is very nice and accommodating. I LOVE that we can make a reservation and get a table at a good time. So many brunch places have a long wait and less seats than needed. This is a go to place for us.
    Refectory CafeResponded on March 2, 2025
    Hello Denise! We love that you can make a reservation also! We love being your "go to" place. Appreciate the 5-STAR rating and the time you took to share your experience with others. Always grateful, Laura Hall

    Is this helpful?

  8. Joann

    Wilmington2 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on February 22, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Brussel Sprouts are amazing, Dal fantastic, everything we had was exceptional. Excellent dinner!!
    Refectory CafeResponded on March 2, 2025
    Hello JoAnn, Many thanks for the "excellent dinner" and the 5-STARS! These reviews are shared with the team at our weekly meetings and I cannot describe to you how grateful our team is to achieve EXCELLENCE. You are the best for taking the time to share your thoughts. We look forward to serving you again soon. Laura Hall

    Is this helpful?

  9. Jasmine

    Raleigh2 reviews

    3.0

    Dined on February 21, 2025

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 3
    Today was the first time this place disappointed me. The bacon was rock hard, the grits tasted stale, and the pancake was dry. I was informed that they had been closed for two days, which they said was the reason for the poor quality, but that was unacceptable.
    Refectory CafeResponded on March 2, 2025
    Hello Jasmine, I am sorry that you had a less than stellar experience - it is definitely not us. (Everything was fresh - not sure what being closed for 2 days had anything to do with it). I agree, totally unacceptable on the product - please always say something at the cafe - the entire team will be happy to replace any item that you are not 100% pleased with. Thanks for letting us know. Laura Hall

    Is this helpful?

  10. Joan

    Greensboro11 reviews

    3.0

    Dined on February 15, 2025

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 2
    The food was good. The service was nil. I was brought the wrong soup. My friend got her own iced tea twice. Our tiny table for two was filled with plates and glasses and flowers. We both tipped generously when we ordered our food. We usually enjoy our experiences here. Maybe it was just an off day.

    Is this helpful?

FAQs

Refectory Cafe offers takeout which you can order by calling the restaurant at (919) 908-6798.

Refectory Cafe is rated 4.7 stars by 954 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Make a reservation


Booked 30 times today
Experiences are available.
Google Map for Refectory Cafe

2726 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd, Durham, NC 27707

Dining areas

Additional information

  • Cross street
    Academy Road
  • Neighborhood
    Durham
  • Hours of operation
    Mon–Thu 9:00 am–8:30 pm Fri, Sat 9:00 am–9:00 pm Sun 9:00 am–3:00 pm
  • Price
    $30 and under
  • Cuisines
    American, Organic, Farm-to-table
  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    Plenty of parking in our private lot, right outside the front or side doors. Handicapped parking out front.
  • Public transit
    Bus stop across the street from the cafe
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Executive chef
    Jake Miles
  • Additional
    Beer, Cafe, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Dog Friendly, Full Bar, Gender Neutral Restroom, Gluten-free Options, Non-Smoking, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Takeout, Vegan, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine
  • Phone number
  • Catering
    Seven-days a week, Breakfast, lunch & Dinner. Comfortable casual events to full service, you design your perfect event - we will deliver!
  • Private party facilities
    Delicious & Nutritious, serving all diets, always. Cafe can be rented for private parties - indoor and outdoor experiences. Staff fully vaccinated
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Cookies and Interest-Based Ads
  • Cookie Preferences
Copyright © 2024 OpenTable, Inc. 1 Montgomery St Ste 500, San Francisco CA 94104 - All rights reserved.
OpenTable is part of Booking Holdings, the world leader in online travel and related services.
Booking Logo
Priceline Logo
KAYAK Logo
Agoda Logo
OpenTable Logo