Dead Mule Club

Worst drinks ever. The bartender could hardly stand up. Asked for my order 3 times. Made the worst Manhattan I’ve had in my life and charged me $ 15 for it. My fiancé had the sangria… I suggest you don’t. Cool atmosphere… awful drinks/​service.

Best service, best regulars best booze. You will be wasting your time if you go anywhere but here

Great location, cold beer, nice people, can sit outdoors… maybe corporate development will continue to give this cool joint a pass.

If I lived in Chapel Hill, Dead Mule would be my spot. Set back from the street enough to keep that students at bay but angled just right for excellent people watching. Friendly dogs (and people!) abound. Drinks so cheap that I thought the bartender didn’t charge me for my date’s beverage. What’s not to love?

Laid back atmosphere. Great deck for outdoor drinking.

I like the laid-​back atmosphere of this bar, but would recommend it for warmer seasons (which, granted, is the majority of the year in Chapel Hill). We visited in January when it was too cold to sit outside and found the bar way too cramped. But the drink menu is comprehensive and the prices aren’t bad. One of the less annoying places to get a drink in Chapel Hill.

Nestled back behind the alley between Chiptole and the Franklin Hotel, The Dead Mule Club is a hidden treasure in Chapel Hill, NC. In the evenings on a warm spring or summer night, you can sit outside on their front deck porch area and relax with some food and drink, while listening to music. For being a college town, you can go to The Dead Mule, and avoid the crowded bars of Franklin Street up and down Chapel Hill to Carrboro, since it’s tucked away and not overrun by the students of the university. It is charming and very welcoming. Very casual, very relaxed, and a lot of fun.

Perfect chill bar when you actually want to talk to and hang out with your friends. This place is no frills, and each of the rooms has it’s own character.
I like to go here and relax on the porch and people watch. The back room has larger booths and is good for larger groups of friends.

Dead mule club is our Friday stop. We love the atmosphere and people. The owner, David, is very detail oriented and friendly. Moreover, they sell the best peanuts in town. If you wanna feel home you really need to visit Dead Mule.

This is one of my favorite bars on Franklin Street. I like the laid back atmosphere and the outdoor seating. The service has always been friendly and the drinks are reasonably priced.
If you want to grab a casual drink and sit on a porch while watching passerbys this is definitely the place for you.

Small quaint little bar and grill in Chapel Hill set off of Franklin street, while I did not dine here on this particular visit, I did indulge in a few tasty beverages. The staff is great and the outdoor seating is nice and dog friendly! I will definitely be coming back to dine here soon!

A handful of friends of mine – incidentally, Chapel Hill natives – and I were traipsing around Franklin St, enjoying our first night out in a long time. I am a huge fan of a good single malt scotch, but I have grown bored of the triumvirate typically available. At each stop, we would put our drink orders in, and I would ask each bartender, «From what you have, which single malt would you recommend?» Each one sighed, and lamented their limited selection, before asking, «Have you heard of the Dead Mule Club?»
We made our way – a bit too slowly, perhaps – to this legendary house of rumored peaty spectra. I walked through the door and, quickly scanning the shelves, realized the rumors were, in fact, truths. There is ample, cozy yet chic seating – indoors and out – for me and my party? We can hear each other speak? Have another one, you say?
The Dead Mule Club really knows what it’s doing. Why wouldn’t you go to the bartenders’ bar – have you heard of the Dead Mule Club?

Sort of underwhelming. Sat outside here a few nights ago, granted, on a Tuesday evening, but there was no waiter service. Aside from that annoyance, the prices were fine, the bartenders were friendly, and the August Chapel Hill breeze rolling off the Chipotle was sweet. I’m not certain why all the high rankings, however, unless it’s all friends and family (granted, there are only 10 reviews when this was written). Not a bad place by any means… just not special, either (at least based on my one limited experience).

The Dead Mule is a cool little bar with ample outdoor seating and a perfect view of Franklin Street. You want to watch people wander into Chipotle and the Franklin Hotel? You can do that, with a drink in hand! Doesn’t get much better than that.
Again, they have outdoor seating, something that very few places on Franklin have readily available.

This place is one of my favorites. Small, not crazy busy all the time, indoor and outdoor seating. They even have some food options which I appreciate it. If you like scotch they have the best selection in town.

Mediocre little place with a decent porch and the worst bar service in town. I’ve encountered Eastern European baggage checkers with more verve and zest for life than the female bartender here; she seems to think that surly will get her back a couple of years she lost on her way to the service industry.
If you’re looking for «hole in the wall» or dive/​faux dive, there are plenty of much better options on West Rosemary or in Carrboro where you don’t have to deal so directly with the staff’s frustration at the way their lives have turned out.

The Dead Mule Club is a little hole in the wall place that works well for the after-​work drink. It’s not pretentious, it’s not elegant, it’s not even particularly classy — but it’s not a dive, either.
They have a nice selection of hard liquors from the standard well drink crap to the lower levels of the truly high-​quality stuff; the whiskey genre in particular is well-​represented. There are only three beers on tap at any given time, but they have a sufficient selection of bottle beer. Prices are reasonable.
It gets really crowded as it gets later, but for the 5:30−7 timeframe, it’s perfect. On a nice early evening, be sure to sit outside and watch Franklin St go by!

How is this place not more popular? Even as I’m sitting here writing this, I want to go back tonight… it’s been too long.
The Dead Mule’s virtues are its stealth and small size. Most people will walk by it a couple times a week and never even know it’s there (despite it being an actual building of it’s own, unlike the cravenly concealed Goodfellas et al). When you’re frustrated by the heaving, drunken masses of East Franklin, The Dead Mule always has a spot for you. It’s very reliable like that.
People always talk about the whiskey, but I go for the beer, and I’m very happy with it. They only have a few selections, but they’re rather good local brews for the most part.
The ambiance here is second to none, mainly because of the patio. It’s really a large deck with several tables out under the trees. More often than not it’s lit by strings of Christmas tree lights strung along the side and in the tree branches, a nice touch.
The Dead Mule is quiet and small, but excellent at being both those things.

The Mule is a kind of laid back spot– some place to chill with friends for a while. It’s for members and their guest, but sometimes I think they’re a little bit flexible on that.
Some of my friends and I use to frequent this bar on a regular basis. The bartenders are great, they take good care of you. I use the like the way they made this one drink called a «side car”– this was a «sneaky» drink. Just when you think you’re the drink hasn’t hit you– wham! that sucker creeps right up on ya! It’s delicious!
I recently went there with a friend and just chilled on the patio for a while and chatted. I got a wheat beer which is probably the best I can do in the beer department– not much of a beer person. Oh and yes the patio is dog friendly so watch your step!

I managed to go through my entire undergraduate career without ever having heard of this bar. It’s a little set back from Franklin and tiny and cute (in a small white house with lots of outdoor patio space, but only a handful of inside tables). They’re known for their bourbon and whiskey selection, but you can get other stuff as well (well, maybe not sex on the beach, but definitely a stiff gin and tonic). Despite the small size, service is never a problem as the Dead Mule just doesn’t seem to attract (or else manages to make itself unknown to) students. It’s a good place for small-​ish outdoor gatherings. Bonus: the patio is dog-​friendly!