Revisiting Chef Rachael Ray’s $40 a Day to Eat in Durham 20 Years Later

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Good morning, readers.

Twenty years ago, Rachael Ray visited Durham to film an episode of her Food Network show $40 a Day, attempting to eat three square meals without blowing her budget. 

When the episode resurfaced earlier this year, I wondered… is that still possible?

To find out, I donned Ray’s early-aughts double denim get-up and set out for a day of local dining. Rather than adjust for inflation ($66 in today’s dollars), I stuck to the original $40 limit, tips included.

My journey took me from Tater Bread Cafe, where owner Walter Sneed serves “Southern ice cream” (grits) from a walk-up window, to Taqueria Los Canarios, where crisp slaw and salsa taquera dress $3.50 tacos.

This story also sent me on a side quest to the Durham Public Library, where I paged through 2004 INDY Week archives until I found the very issue Ray is shown flipping through on camera—all 88 pages of it.

In the two decades since Ray’s visit, Durham’s dining scene has evolved, as have the ways we find places to eat.

Have a good Tuesday.

—Lena

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