Mellow Mushroom

Calzones were Ok, cheese was great.
Waitress was very nice.
Unfortunately, host misplaced the sign in paper with our name on it and we had to let him know he was seating people who had virtually just got there vs those of us waiting 15 min. Try a spiral notebook. No misplaced pages
And the patio, not pleasant. Heater is extremely loud. They set up 20+ person table, dragging the metal against the concrete making, adding to the heater noise.
To top that off, they left a door to outside open for ten minutes while one guy brought in more tables and chairs, very nice cold breeze, indeed. More dragging noise if course. Try two guys next time, it will go faster.
I know this is not a fancy smancy place, but, there are some basic customer service rules they broke tonight.

Mellow Mushroom is always a good go-​to spot for dinner with friends. They have much more than pizza and a great beer selection, so it’s easy to please a group here. This was actually my first time dining at the Durham location. I was surprised when we did not have to wait for a table on Saturday night. Our server was nice and friendly and brought plates ahead of time, as well as kept up with water refills.
We started with the pretzels, which are always delicious. It is nice that they let you mix and match the types. I shared 2 garlic and parmesan and 1 salt with a friend. I do wish the marinara sauce had a little more flavor though. I ordered «The Freshies» which I expected to have red sauce and fresh mozzarella per the description. It was good, but had so much cheese, not like a standard margherita pizza I was expecting. I should have clarified that with the server. I ate half and took the other half home, its always nice when you can get 2 meals out of a $ 10-​$ 11 pizza!

I love pizza. To be honest, some would say I’m not discerning when it comes to pizza as I love everything from bagel bites, pizza rolls, and pizza hut. I’ve always been happy with whatever pizza I’ve ordered from Mellow Mushroom. My particular favorite is the Holy Shiitake minus the caramelized onions. The crust is great. It is very toothsome, where as some other pizza places the crust is just a vehicle for sauce and cheese.
I’ve only sat in for service at a very random time and was happy with the attention that I my group received.

Ordered s thin crust pizza and was a little thicker than expected. Sat at the bar as it was crowded due to a show at the DPAC. Service was good.

I love me some Mellow Mushroom. I’ve been to about 12 different ones and they are all consistently great. I almost always get the Kosmic Karma with no mozzarella and add anchovies and jerk chicken. Try it with any Belgian style tripel.

This was a weird experience in terms of service. We went on a Sunday around noon. The place was packed with families. I think we (just two of us) scored the last table for awhile. Our server was initially prompt and took our drink orders. I inquired about the soup of the day and was given two options. I thanked our server for answering my question. She said, «So, do you want soup then?»
Uh — not really sure what I want as we are just looking at the menu and not ordering yet.
My date ordered a beer and a glass of water. I requested a soda. The soda and water came out in a timely fashion. I have no idea how long the beer took. Somewhere between five to ten minutes (and it was served in a bottle so why would it take so long?). I don’t think this wait for a beer was due to our server. We were near the bar, and she kept going back to the bar. To me, it looked like she was trying to get the beer. I’m guessing the bartender was a bit slow here.
My date ordered a large pepperoni pizza. I ordered half a Cesar salad and half of a sub (avocado). The salad was the size of what I thought the large should be leaving me no room to eat my sandwich. The salad was excellent. I found the lettuce to be fresh, and there was plenty of cheese and dressing. The cheese was shaved Parmesan — and it was great. The salad was around 5 – 6.00 so it was an excellent value.
The sandwich was also good (I had a few bites) and also an excellent value — about the same price as the salad. I was just to full to eat it. I thought half a sandwich and half a salad would make for a full meal, but they could both be eaten as meals in and of themselves.
My date was very happy with his pizza. It appeared to be perfectly cooked.
I lowered the overall rating because of the service. Service was sometimes prompt and sometimes took forever. I think my server may have had more going on than she could reasonably handle. Once tables started to leave she got a bit better. It happens.
We had to wait a very long time to get the food. I understand that the place was busy, but I had to wait about 15 minutes just to get my salad. That seems a bit much.

Hands down, my favorite thing about Mellow Mushroom is that they have tempeh and it’s delicious. Tempeh, for those not in the know, is a meatless protein made out of soy and sometimes grains, but it’s nothing like tofu (which Mellow Mushroom also carries). It has a nutty flavor, whereas tofu doesn’t have a strong flavor on its own. This has been your veggie lesson for today.
Tempeh can be pretty hard to find in restaurants in this area, but you can try it at Mellow Mushroom. I always get the tempeh hoagie, no mushrooms. There is really not much here that I can eat while trying to lose weight – which is why I’ve never ordered the pizzas – but my tempeh subs aren’t too unhealthy.
This is a good option for veggie-​eaters. In addition to two protein choices – three, if you count mushrooms, which I do not because mushrooms are gross – the bread is vegan and they have Daiya cheese. Lots of menu options can be made vegetarian or vegan.
Being near the ballpark/​American Tobacco, this particular location can be a little slow. Expect to wait if you go at a busy time.

Mellow Mushroom isn’t going to be the best pizza you’ve ever tasted, and it’s probably not going to be on your list of places to bring your friends or rush back to every week. But you know what, they’ve got some great weekly deals, good service, nice beer selection and the pizza’s are consistent. For the ability to meet the needs of a local, Mellow Mushroom is doing it right. This local chain gives off a hippie theme, with their mushroom sculptures and relaxed vibe. They’ve recently added on additional outdoor, patio seating, which makes for a great option pre-​Bulls games.
Come in on a Monday or Tuesday night, when select pints are $ 3.50 and order a salad and small pizza between you and your date. The Greek salad (hold the mushrooms) is a great option and I personally prefer their more basic pizzas. I find the fancier the pizza here, the more «off» the flavors are; for example, the chicken BBQ is really to sweet. They cook their pizzas perfectly here, so simple can be delightful. Overall, Mellow Mushroom makes for a good backup option when you’re looking for get out of the house, get a good meal and a solid pizza/​salad for a decent price. P. S. Don’t miss their beer tap fountain!

This was a tough one for me. I typically enjoy Mellow Mushroom for their food and selection of spirits. Plus, this location is near me and convenient to the DBAP and DPAC.
First, the food was great. Some old friends from out of town and I gathered to grab some food and drinks before they headed back home. I had the Italian sandwich on french bread that I really enjoyed and would definitely order again. It comes with a lot of lettuce so I had to pull a little off to suit my taste. My buddy got the classic calzone and it looked amazing and tasted great according to him.
It was a little busy because of a Bulls game across the street, but we were still seated quickly and service was prompt. Kind of surprised how attentive she was considering the pregame rush. The only thing that was slow was how long it took for drinks to arrive. May want to order a refill before you get to the bottom of your glass to give them some time on game nights.
Here’s where it took a turn and why I have to give them only one star for now. I ordered a bourbon on the rocks after dinner while my friends and I were still catching up. First, it comes out neat rather than on the rocks as ordered. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise. After a sip or two I look down and notice a few foreign objects in my glass. I look closer and realize it appears to be fruit flies. Upon notifying the waitress she takes it back to the bar and returns to me to explain that the bottle they poured from had to be thrown away because it was full of flies. Disgusting! She was nice about it and even asked if I wanted something else, but I would have thought that management would have at least addressed this with us, comped the drink, or at minimum apologized — just some type of acknowledgement from someone in charge and responsible for this. It’s one of those things that happens at the end of a meal and just makes you wonder and cringe about the food safety, cleanliness, food prep, and overall hygienic practices that are in place and what may have been blindly consumed before that.
Listen — I may be back, but it will take a little while to get over this one.

Sure, its a chain. But you can’t argue they have pretty great pizza. And do not even get me started in the cinnamon pretzels. I have eaten here so, so many times over the years and have always had fantastic service. Its good enough that I have chosen to have a couple birthday dinners here (cuz nobody wants drama on their bday!!!). Nonetheless, this occasion was no exception. Our friends love this place cuz they have daiya cheese! And they have a great rotating beer selection including locals brews! I will come here so many more times in the future I am sure.

It’s really slow on a Tuesday afternoon, so our server was attentive and speedy. We got two small pizzas to split and it was more than enough between two of us. A little greasy but very flavorful and interesting specialty pizzas: we got the Holy Shiitake Pie and the Bayou Bleu and both were very tasty.

So I was looking forward to this trip to mellow mushroom bc I’ve heard such good things, but I must say that I was not impressed. We came to the restaurant before going to a baseball game-​I expected it to be busier than it was. So I joined my part and the serve was quick to come and take my drink order. We ordered two pizzas, was very surprised that our server was unable to get the order correct. Our server, Juliette wasn’t the one to bring out our food, so we felt bad having to tell the other girl that the order was wrong! She came with two small pizzas and we one was supposed to be a medium! So we sent the woman back with the one pizza and she returned a few minutes later and gave us the pizza-​just cheese and mushroom-​although we didn’t get very many mushrooms on it for $ 2 extra that we paid for them! We were told that they were making a second pizza with the same toppings and it would be out soon. As for the pizza itself, eh, it was ok. The three of us ate all three of the small pizzas. When the time came for our check to be dropped off, I was kind of surprised at how our server came to check and see if we were ready for her to get the bill-​I was the only person at the table when she came to check and my friend hadn’t even looked at it before he stepped away to use the restroom. Our server approached the table didn’t say anything to me, moved my friends sunglasses off of the check thing and flipped it over at which I finally spoke up and said the bill wasn’t ready. I was not impressed with the service or the food today… here’s hoping for better luck next time!

This is my favorite mellow mushroom location. For some reason everything is ALWAYS perfect… Which is by far from the case in wake forest.
They do it right here.
Try the Holy Shiitake pizza it is amazing.
And the tempeh hero is probably my favorite sandwich in the history of sandwiches!

This was not my first trip to a Mellow Mushroom, but it was to this location. We were passing trough, after 7 hours of driving, and took the opportunity to visit with nearby family over dinner.
We ordered a small and a medium pizza to split between 5 adults and were left with just one slice! We tried the mild wings as an appetizer and weren’t disappointed!
Our waitress was training someone, but she didn’t miss a beat. She was also courteous and kept checking on us even though we had finished our meals.

We came here for lunch on Sunday with a group of 6 people and I appreciated that we were immediately seated at a big spacious table. Parking is convenient and free at the nearby parking garage for the American Tobacco Campus. Apparently it does get much more crowded with a line where there’s a game at the Bulls stadium.
Service was great – our waters were filled frequently and our food came out in about 15 minutes.
My husband and I split the House Special pizza, Medium size, which came out with 6 pieces. Small size pizza comes with 4 slices. The red sauce is super flavorful and not too rich. I’m a fan of thin crust pizza but my husband likes deep dish, so Mellow Mushroom’s pizza was the perfect balance of not too deep but not too thin. It also came loaded with tomatoes, green peppers, onions, mozzarella, pepperoni, sausage, ham, and the best part, applewood BACON. The crust is chewy but not too dense, a bit chunkier than I like, but I’m usually a thin-​crust kind of person. We were both full after 2 slices each so we had leftovers too!
A few people at our table also ordered salads which I’m planning to try next time if I’m not in a pizza mood. I don’t remember the exact price of the Medium sized pizza – around $ 15-​$ 18, but still a pretty good price for pizza that is not Domino’s or Papa John’s.

I used to visit a MM in Florida. When I realized there was one here in Durham I had to go.
Always good pizza, it’s in a great location near the AI and ballpark. The staff has always been nice. Can’t complain at all. :)

First time here, and it was quite good. Went before a 6:30 Sunday night show at DPAC. Couldn’t get in Tyler’s, and couldn’t get in here inside either, but they did have outside tables, so we grabbed that. Not our favorite thing to do (sitting outside while dining), but it was just fine. Had a good Server (Stacey, I think). Loved that she asked if we were going to the show so she would make sure we were okay!
Chardonnay for me (gotta drink it fast outside so it stays cold), and unsweetened tea for Husband. She accidentally switched sweet with unsweetened with the table next to ours, but quickly fixed it.
Pizza came out hot and delicious in a short amount of time. Rich and tasty. We both liked it very much.

Yummy, yummy, yummy good! One of the best meals I have had in quite a time. Server was fantastic.
The Enlightened Spinach Salad was amazing. The texture combinations between the spinach, dried cherries, crisp Granny Smith Apple, candied pecans & blue cheese crumbles then topped with the flavor combinations were moan worthy between each bite. Even the thought of eating this again is drool worthy!
My Purple Haze cocktail was light and refreshing for my taste.
White Gourmet Pizza was the choice for the meal & was yummy and lovely difference to a normal pizza. #nomnom

I’ve been to many Mellow Mushrooms in my days, and I can honestly say this is the worst one I’ve been to. I wish that weren’t the case, because it’s tucked right beside the Durham Bulls Baseball park, and it’s an excellent place to grab a bite to eat before the game. That’s what me & 30 of my colleagues did last Thursday. We called ahead for 35 people, and they scrambled around to get us tables when we arrived. They couldn’t get tables enough for us, so we got one long table for about 15 and the rest had to sit in booths around an area. Not what you’d expect when reserving 2 months in advance for a party of 35…
So the service. Oh, the service. Who really wants to wait 15 minutes on a beer when the baseball game starts in an hour?! Nobody. Everyone was ordering their second drink with the first drink order because it was taking so long to get beer… in fact, someone’s pizza came before their beer. Hmmmm. Luckily the beer was cold and they had several on tap :) I ordered the stout, which was pretty good (can’t remember the brewer but it wasn’t local).
For apps, we got wings & pretzels. You can’t go wrong there :) I ordered the Magical Mystery Tour pizza with sausage, and it was actually pretty good, though the crust was a little chewy. The only downside to it was that I asked for extra jalapenos like 4 times before receiving them. My colleague Chip R. ordered the Special pizza without peppers, and they made it with peppers & without pepperonis. It took them about 30 minutes to bring his correct pizza, and that was after asking 2−3x! It just wasn’t pleasant, let me put it that way.
All in all, Mellow Mushroom usually doesn’t disappoint, but this one was bad. You’d think they’d be able to handle the baseball crowd before a game (since they’re 50 feet from the entrance to the stadium), but that’s not the case. I hope they kick it in gear!

Whenever I go to a Durham Bulls game I pass by here and the pizza smell is fantastic. I always say, next time lets just eat here and skip the ballpark food! I’ve yet to do that!
Once the season ended we made our way over there and ended up getting seated near the door that leads to the outdoor area. I do NOT recommend this! Every time the servers went in & out, which is quite often, the door slams very loudly and hard. I was getting a headache very quickly.
I was looking forward to one of those fantastic smelling pizzas and sadly the waitress misunderstood my order and it came out wrong. To her credit she tried to make good when I confessed what was lacking and it sounded like she was going to bring me another pizza. Instead she brought the missing ingredients in a cup for me to add onto the pizza. It just didn’t work out too well. Oh, well, communication can be the biggest challenge sometimes and the difference between a so-​so experience at a restaurant and a great one.