Merritt's

I try my best not to have any regrets, but here's one from the past four years: I didn't go to Merritt's sooner.

I had definitely heard about it, but it's not really close to anything else so I had never stumbled across it until I finally was introduced in the fall of this year. Merritt's is a total Chapel Hill gem that's been around since 1929 with that southern comfort and occasional bluegrass band. It's casual and simple, with a lot of outdoor seating, bottled sodas, and a totally random bamboo garden out back.They're famous for their BLT's and for good reason. I've never been a huge bacon lover, so I had actually never tried a BLT until I went here for the first time, but I don't think anywhere else could live up to all of Merritt's BLT glory.

Merritt's gets it: the key to a great sandwich is quality ingredients. That's why they offer 7 types of local, artisan breads (Big Sky Three Seed is my favorite but Sour Dough the most traditional) and perfectly crispy bacon. Plus, you can add toppings - I'd recommend avocado or pimento cheese. Don't like bacon? Good news: they have plenty of other sandwiches for you to drool over including a chicken salad sandwich, a grilled pimento cheese (next on my list), or sausage, egg and cheese breakfast sandwiches.

Oh, and let's not forget their incredible desserts. I finally took the plunge and got their banoffee pie that comes in a little cup the other day. Toffee pudding, bananas, graham cracker crust and homemade whipped cream? Yep. That happened.

These pictures are from the multiple times I've been in the past few months. If you're in Chapel Hill, you can't miss Merritt's! It just wouldn't be right.