“There is a scene from the movie The Deer Hunter that I love. It has inspired me in many ways as a barman,” says Gary Crunkleton.
You might be surprised to hear a 1978 war drama touted as inspirational material by a well-known bartender and entrepreneur. If you are, you may not have spent enough time with this particular bartender.
I first met Crunkleton in 2007 when he was behind the bar at Town Hall Grill. Back then, he was already known by regulars for his warm hospitality and wide-ranging knowledge of cocktail history. From the start, I considered him a friend. At the time, I was working on a political campaign, and he provided me with a morale boost alongside each drink order. He was even kind enough to toss political debates up on the Chapel Hill restaurant’s television to the dismay of everyone else in the room.
Crunkleton brought an even-keeled approach to his hospitality. On some evenings, you could see the teacher he had once been when he taught you something about the origin of a certain cocktail. On other evenings, you could see the lawyer he had once planned to be, as he debated the merits of a certain drink.
What I would not have predicted, at the time, is that he would become one of the faces of the bourbon and cocktail boom upon launching The Crunkleton in 2008.
Looking back, Crunkleton says his vision was simple: “The cocktail renaissance was happening in New York, Seattle, Portland, and San Francisco. We wanted to capture the drink-making style that celebrated the cocktail renaissance in those big cities and offer it to North Carolina.”
What seems commonplace now felt a bit bolder 17 years ago.
“It seems hard to believe, but at that time, no one in the South was doing a bar program driven by classic cocktails from the 1870s to the 1950s,” he says.
By keeping a focus trained on this vision, Crunkleton created not just a bar but a well-earned national reputation. Magazine features and profiles followed, and you could count on finding Crunkleton featured in what seemed like every third book published on bourbon during the 2010s.
In 2018, The Crunkleton opened its doors in Charlotte. Crunkleton partnered with 1957 Hospitality, a management/ownership group, to expand the bar’s offerings to include food. The partnership also extended its ambitions as a fuller team came together: chef Greg Balch brought a vision to the kitchen, Hannah Smith developed the front-of-house approach, and Ryan Hart brought creative direction and vision.
One differentiator: The Crunkleton in Charlotte chose live wood fire as its main cooking format.
Hart, one of the owners and a creative director at 1957 Hospitality, emphasizes that the main aspect of the move meant that the core identity needed to remain intact: “While The Crunkleton Charlotte added food, we still look at ourselves as a great neighborhood bar.”
This successful formula would become the blueprint for The Crunkleton’s next stop: Raleigh’s Smoky Hollow development.
A vision that wouldn’t die
The path to opening in Raleigh was not short. Announced several years ago, the project faced hurdles that led some to question whether it would open at all.
“The Crunkleton at Smoky Hollow in Raleigh struggled with raising adequate funding to start the construction. This happened after we had already signed the lease,” Crunkleton says. The combination of skyrocketing costs during the pandemic, market uncertainty, and broader economic headwinds caused significant swirl.
But the team kept pushing, and during a time that saw many restaurants pivoting, the Crunkleton team doubled down on their vision. The decision to persist wasn’t just business; it was personal to the ownership group: “Raleigh is where Hannah, Greg, and I grew up, so opening a concept in Raleigh is a dream come true,” says Hart.
Their resolve found crucial support from their development partners.
“Kane Realty, our landlords, were tremendously supportive,” Crunkleton says. “They considered us one of the premier establishments within the Smoky Hollow development. They worked with us to reach the finish line and get the restaurant opened.”
The location itself was part of the draw.
After touring six different developments throughout Raleigh, Crunkleton says the Smoky Hollow development checked “every box and then some” from the moment they first saw it. The development’s modern buildings and industrial character created the perfect backdrop for the new spot, according to Crunkleton. Hart adds that being “centrally located inside the Beltline and right off Capital Boulevard was extremely attractive,” positioning them to serve the downtown market while remaining accessible to folks across the Triangle.
The contemporary design of the Raleigh Crunkleton represents a deliberate evolution for the brand, and when you walk in, you will immediately sense that this location has its own identity. While the space feels more modern than its Chapel Hill and Charlotte predecessors, the team hopes to maintain the brand’s approachable essence and neighborhood feel.
Hart says he’s excited about what the new space can provide as the team grows into it.
“Raleigh has a lot of bells and whistles in the kitchen that Charlotte does not have the space for, so we are excited to see how the menu develops in this new space,” Hart says. “That will be where the concept evolves over time.”
Fire is the heart of the kitchen.
“Cooking on a live wood fire passes the test of time,” Crunkleton says. “When I pitched the live wood fire cooking idea to my business partners, I mentioned the old wagon trains that explored moving west and how they cooked on campfires.”
This foundational element touches every menu item that Chef Balch has dreamt up, from the absurdly delicious Seventh Street corn (a surprising standout) to the dry-rubbed, charred wings accompanied by Alabama white sauce that steal the show, despite the fact that I do not necessarily love wings.
The Wagyu burger achieves a perfect balance of decadence and comfort, with aged cheddar and truffle aioli complementing caramelized onions. Market fish, hearth-roasted shishito peppers, and the impressive tomahawk steak round out a menu that manages to be both ambitious and approachable, depending on the day.
I also highly recommend saving room for the pecan pie with homemade ice cream. I’ve been trying to be mindful of my choices when eating out, but this is one you can’t skip. The warmth of the pecan pie combined with the salted caramel ice cream will bring a smile to your face.
The cocktails remain key. A perfectly executed Painkiller and the unique mai tai prove ideal companions for the warm evenings we find ourselves in now, while the Bourbon Bramble and Penicillin offer refreshing spins on classic cocktails.
The drink menu will always play the hits, as Crunkleton shares: “The classics have passed the test of time. We may add an ingredient that is symbolic to a particular region, like pawpaws in North Carolina, but the drink is still a derivation from the classics.”
Crunkleton’s expertise with bourbon shines through the classic bourbon drinks the bar offers, although the antique bourbon collection will take time to build, due to North Carolina’s ABC regulations. During my earlier visits, I saw several folks coming in hoping to find the rare bourbons they had seen on the shelves in Chapel Hill or Charlotte without much luck. Over the next few months, the bourbon list will grow.
A philosophy of hospitality
“I have always considered The Crunkleton as a destination,” Crunkleton reflects. “I figured if we create a place that is wonderful, then people will want to come. We all want to be a part of something bigger than ourselves, so why not The Crunkleton?”
This vision is perhaps best captured in Crunkleton’s unexpected cinematic inspiration, The Deer Hunter, that I referenced earlier: “The movie ends with the friends remembering the bonds created from their friendships and how that will endure. This ending scene captures the beauty of what is important in life and the value of friendships and community. The fact that all this happens in a bar is what inspires me.”
For Crunkleton and his team, quality food and drinks are merely a foundation. When pressed about what truly sets them apart in a competitive market, he points to their approach to hospitality.
This “secret sauce,” as he calls it, centers on creating genuine connections and memorable experiences through service they hope will feel both professional and warmly personal.
As downtown Raleigh continues to evolve, The Crunkleton hopes to stand as a testament to the staying power of quality and authenticity in a trend-driven industry.
“We look to reverse engineer what makes a 100-year-old restaurant successful,” Hart explains. “While trends come and go, we try to stay focused on deliciousness and delivering quality and valuation when you visit. Using the best ingredients we can and serving portion sizes that leave you feeling happy about the money you spent matters more to us than chasing fads.”
After multiple visits, I can tell you that they’ve succeeded in my mind. Whether you’re stopping in for happy hour drinks after a long day at the General Assembly, meeting friends for dinner, or celebrating a special occasion with a crowd, The Crunkleton delivers an experience that can feel equal parts comfortable and special occasion. In bringing together craft cocktails, wood-fired cuisine, and Crunkleton’s approach to hospitality, they’ve created something worth the twists and turns.
Like the great neighborhood bars it aspires to one day become, The Crunkleton feels less like a business and more like a natural gathering place—exactly as Gary Crunkleton always intended.
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