A Summer College Tour Weekend + A Restaurant Review

This past July I took a road trip with my parents from Charlotte to Winston-Salem, NC and Durham, NC to visit Wake Forest University and Duke University respectively. I'm in my senior year and most of my free time during my summer was spent touring prospective colleges, researching universities, and overall preparing for this upcoming school year. After the Wake Forest tour, we ended up driving to Durham, NC for lunch before our Duke tour in the afternoon. My parents and I love Korean food, so we ended up googling the best Korean restaurants in the area. Eventually we chose Namu, a Korean restaurant with a creative layout, which was relatively close to Duke.

Namu's layout was particularly interesting, as we walked in, we noticed the large outdoor area scattered with umbrellas and greenery. The entrance was easy to miss, but luckily a small sign near their parking lot provided direction as to where to go. The restaurant itself was divided into a beer hall, coffee bar, and its official restaurant area. Once inside, we were sat very quickly and greeted by the staff accordingly. The restaurant had a self-service, online ordering system with a QR code, where we were able to easily navigate the menu and order quickly.

My mom ordered the Bibimbap, a traditional Korean barbeque dish served with beef, a fried egg, rice, and assorted vegetables. My dad and I both ordered the Bo's Special, a specialized Namu dish with a choice of Korean barbeque meat (we chose pork and beef), fried mandoo (a Korean dumpling), white rice, and a spring mix. The service was extremely fast, which we appreciated as we were under a time crunch. The food was on the warm side rather than hot but was still enjoyable to eat. I loved the fried mandoo and assortment of sauces provided (including sriracha, bibimbap sauce, Korean red pepper paste, spicy aioli, sweet soy sauce, and BBQ soy sauce). My parents also enjoyed their meals, specifically appreciating the portion size, quick service, and decent pricing for lunch.

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Service: 7/10- very fast Cleanliness: 8/10 Food: 8/10 Ambience: 7/10

OVERALL: 7.5/10

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TO SUM IT ALL UP...Namu had an intriguing layout and large variety of food and drinks to offer. This restaurant is perfect for a quick stop if you're craving casual Korean food for a decent price. The service is extremely quick and there is a lot to check out including their specialized beer, craft coffees, and delicious Korean rice bowls.