The Fruit

THE place. great space to dance with lots of little nooks & crannies to take a break from the music if you need a breather. drinks are good & moderately priced. free coatroom, earplugs, and water fountains in the back next to the restrooms. can you ask for more

Absolutely love the space and the vibe they bring to the area. They do some amazing community fundraising & put a lot of thought and care into their events. My main issue is the layout of the bar & the lack of efficiency of service for high capacity events. Only having two bartenders on (who didn’t appear to have proper experience in high-volume atmospheres) really put a damper on the ability to enjoy the event. I arrived around 11:30pm and wasn’t able to get a drink until after midnight (and I spent 30 minutes in line). I work at a nightclub myself and have over 7 years of bartending experience and it’s very clear that the staff either isn’t given the tools to succeed or aren’t experienced enough for this type of setting. I’m sure on slower nights this isn’t an issue, but from the capacity of the bar it seems like if an event is even slightly full, the customer experience is set up to be a nightmare. I’ve talked to others who’ve been to other events (this was my first time going) and they echoed the same sentiments about ordering drinks. It’s a shame because this spot has a lot of potential, but it definitely needs to work out the kinks before I’d pay to go back.

Unique and brilliant gem in Durham. Such an eclectic place with a fabulous DJ and energy.

I produced Brat2Brat at The Fruit and the constant communication prior to the event was great! The work they did behind the scenes day of show was top notch service! They moved many things around in order to make the space totally BRAT for the the party haha. Thank you all for being a great collaborative partner.

Such a cool, funky, and artsy space, involving the remodeling of a fruit and produce warehouse (hence the name)! I have been to two events here and have always loved this venue. Parking is available across the street however can get filled up quickly. However, other parking spaces are also available at a slight distance.

Love the fruit! It has such a good space and the owner and employees are all very kind! They have an upstairs and downstairs, and some parking but not much. Lots of fun stickers and graffiti in the bathrooms! I do really love that they are all gender bathrooms! As a trans man this takes so much stress away when coming here plus they even have a water fountain so you can get a sip of water for free!!! Lynx has been lovely to interact with here, knowledgeable, helpful, and kind employee. Sable was friendly and very helpful with setting up logistics with having an event here. 🤗✨

Truly an amazing place, I’ve been here a dozen times and each event has absolutely rocked, the staff are super nice and friendly, the bar has bartenders that actually know how to make good drinks, 10/10 best spot in Durham I’ve seen in a long time!

The WORST venue ever, I can’t believe the unprofessionalism of the young Burnette girl is RIDICULOUS for Lavern. They did not update us on what was going on FOR AN HOUR. left us standing in the cold and gave so much attitude.

If seeking EDM culture- stay clear. I won't be returning after last night (my first time attending this venue) and it's a shame bc I was really looking forward to it too. We went to see one of our favorite house DJs- Cassian. Extremely underwhelming to say the very least. I genuinely feel embarrassed for him and his team that they had to play a set in front of a half filled warehouse with absolutely ZERO EDM culture- literally sad. Especially bc Cassian typically plays in front of packed crowds all over the world. Durham did not show up for him. Visuals: The light production in this venue was less than mid, literally just one black light on the ceiling, which is super embarrassing for an EDM event. My college fraternity could pull it off better and we were some 18-21 year olds. There was one girl spinning her LED hoop which seriously made my night, I was dancing with her the whole time in the back bc those were the only flashing lights in the damn place. Idk if I had the wrong expectations but that should be a given for an EDM artists. Alchemy in Raleigh gets it. Safety: No metal detector when walking in either- which i was on edge about the entire night (not saying the crowd made me nervous or anything, but that's a huge safety concern). Drinks: Bartender ran out of crown apple when making my drink so she said "wait over here" (to the side) and started making someone else's drink who was in line after me- ok what the actual ****. Never in my life has a bartender stopped mid drink and moved to the next person in line. even worse, she pulled out the crown peach after and finished making my drink with that, and tired to pull it off hoping we wouldn't notice. that's one of the corniest things i've ever seen a bartender do lol.

Could be so much better! Some great acts are booked, but usually not well attended. The space just kinda sucks. It's just a space; no ambiance whatsoever, no visuals or lights. There is a single disco ball, lol! No effort. The only reason it's attended at all is because it's the only show in town with space. Every time I've gone, I've been underwhelmed. I've stopped.

Great time at the Fruit over the weekend seeing Eric Luttrell! He was playing a 3 hour extended set that started at 11. We arrived around 930 and decided to Uber there so I can't say anything about parking even though the lot was not very busy at that time. Showed our IDs to the security men out front who were both very nice and very friendly. The young lady who checked our tickets was also very pleasant and polite. The venue has an underground warehouse vibe to it and there are plenty of little alcoves with couches and seating to which you can actually sit down and relax (without getting yelled at like most nightclubs). We got a couple of sodas at the bar upon arrival; service was friendly and sodas were two dollars apiece. Besides the two bottles of water we purchased at the end of the evening, that was our only experience at the bar. I feel badly for forgetting the guy who opened for Luttrell, but when we walked in he was playing Proff and we were so impressed! We enjoyed his set which was a nice mix of deep and progressive house music. Absolutely perfect for an opening act and he definitely got the crowd pumped up! Eric Luttrell's set was amazing! We danced all night long until the very end. The crowd was a nice mix of everyone and I'm happy to report that there was no pushing, no shoving and no one bothered or harassed us the entire evening (which is a very big thing if you go ahead and look at my review for Achemy Raleigh from last week). When you walk into the venue, there is a large sign to the left by the bathrooms (all gender), indicating no tolerance for touching without consent, pushing, violence etc... so nice that the patrons here actually followed that. We felt safe here at this venue so a big thank you to The Fruit's security! Overall it was a five-star experience, and I would absolutely love to come back! Thank you so much for a wonderful and memorable night out in Durham!

This is an event space in a repurposed building that used to be a fruit market, hence the name. The offerings are eclectic (dance parties, performances, popup markets, etc.) and on our most recent visit, we were there for a Lunar New Year popup market. Looks like there is a regular bar area serving drinks but we did not get any. Love the feel of an old, repurposed building. There's not a ton of parking but people tend to find street parking around the neighborhood.

What a really cool venue! I love the vibe here! Been here twice for 2 different occasions and both times were a totally new experience. The first time was for an underground electronic music event, which was pretty awesome. The ceiling was low but t had a underground vibe that went along with the theme. I was just here for the Paul Van Dyke show, which took place upstairs in the main area. The space is huge! There were lots of space for everyone. What a great venue! When I was here, the bathrooms were gender neutral -- no discrimination. Parking is limited so I would suggest coming early or taking an Uber over. The check-in process is quick. The people at the door has been very professional from my experiences. Just good vibes.

Such a cool venue! We came here for a play a few nights ago. There was plenty of parking, and clear signs as to where to park. The ticket attendant explained that we could mingle around the lobby, sit, get drinks, etc and the play would start at 8. They also told us how long it would run and if we could expect intermission- a nice touch! When we entered the theater there were four sets of seats, all around an open set area. In other words, there wasn't a bad seat in the house and we were incredibly close to the actors. The play we saw was fantastic and I loved how we could congratulate the actors on our way out. I look forward to attending more performances at The Fruit!

We are all entitled to our own opinions, right? Well here's mine: Parking: 3 Location: 5 Decor/ambiance: 5 Customer Service: 5 ( TIM WAS AMAZING) If you were in the Durham North Carolina area and you're looking for a venue to host a event, party or a concert, look no further. I strongly recommend the Durham fruit and produce Company as an amazing place to host your event. There is so many awesome things that are around the establishment as they are dead center downtown Durham. Parking is trouble I will go ahead and admit that so come prepared and ready to park somewhere for a walk. Outside of parking the place is a slim five-star experience. There's this guy that works there that's name is Tim and he is so accommodating. My band and singers came and we did a live recording during Coronavirus for our church. Tim was so accommodating as he allowed us so much access and gave us a great deal. With that being said he did not rush us in any form or fashion as he allowed us to take our time in rehearsing, take our time and setting up and he allowed us to take our time in breaking down. He even assisted us where needed. The establishment was super clean and decked out with loads of eclectic decor. The sound system sounded great. They even have a mini bar. My favorite part of the entire shindig was the blue room. If you're having some pictures taken or if you're a photographer looking to do some cool edgy shooting, take a look at the blue room. Five-star experience and thank you Tim!

GREAT SPACE!!! Live bands, right downtown, diverse people, walking distance from home. What more could I want?

Start To Finish - Didn't Have a Good Time. Parking wasn't very direct it we made it happen. The cover charger to stand on your feet is ridiculous. Drinks with a mandatory 18 % gratuity and they girl and the dread loc dude using cheap liquor and watering down our drinks. Horrible thank god for the sound check guy. He was very sweet and understanding and brought me and my fiancé two stools. Overall I'm never returning and I won't be recommending this place to any of my friends or family. DRAKE NIGHTS EPIC FAIL produce by SOULEDOUTDATES SMH this was the worst experience I've had while going out in Durham. Ambiance was trash it smelled like dirty raw fish and boys locker room in the theater area where the venue took place. This best part was walking out to my car to go home.

This venue has some cool things going for it and over time I think it will become a much better venue. Pros: The layout and vibes are really nice and really help define The Fruit in to a great venue. The layout is very open space and allows people to creatively fill the space. Some people can just be standing, some having a dance circle, some dancing with a group, etc. There is also a really cool area with couches so you can chill for a minute if you've been dancing too much or just a quick minute off your feet. This area is very much a part of the venue so you can still enjoy the show. The overall feel is very industrial and urban but done in a good way. A lot of exposed walls, plywood walls or barriers, and lots of character. Cons: Bar, if you can call it that. The venue is the absolute worst bar I have ever seen at a venue of this size. They have a couple beers, wines, and liquors to choose from each but the selection is absolutely horrid. I am liquor drinker so I'll speak to that in the fact that out of the roughly 10 options two or three of them are Aristocrat brand. This takes cheap liquor to a whole new level by not offering almost anything above something you would see at a college frat party. It's really disappointing that there selection is not better. Most dive bars or music venues have a much better variety to accommodate everybody. 100% Gender Neutral Bathrooms are not for everybody. I could care less but the woman in my group felt very uncomfortable in this setting. I'm all for places being progressive but some people still prefer clear lines for the bathrooms. It would be great if there was a woman only and then also a gender neutral option to make everybody feel comfortable. The sound system is barely adequate for the venue size. I am. I guru in this stuff but you could just feel the lack of power in it during the sets. For a venue that is starting to attract bigger names it will need to upgrade of this venue wants to truly "grow up". All in all a good venue that has the framework to be a great venue and cornerstone of Durham's nightlife. Upgrade the bar = 4 star review Upgrade the bar + audio system = 5 Star Review

I can't say enough good things about this place. Everything about this place is amazing! The blue room has to be one of my favorite! such a creative space for artists! Went for a Photography Meetup and we did light painting. It was fun and the space added to the awesomeness!

Super super cool swanky spot. It's an ART SPACE. Like if Andy Warhol had a cool warehouse Art Factory, and he did, where art of all kinds was made and performed l, like he did, and jazz concerts, interpretive dance, fashion shows and dance parties and, was a little but FLASH DANCE, and a little bit FOOTLOOSE with a swanky chill cocktail bosa nova type chill ness.

Bad experience. 1.) INSANE cover charge. 2.) I ordered a vodka redbull and the bartender (the one with the whack ass emo dated dye job) didn't give me the vodka when the mf cost $10. 3.) takes advantage of queer folks by being the only queer place in Durham. 4.) lame music and lame crowd. Why pay a $20 cover charge PLUS overpriced drinks for a basement with string lights and the worst bar setup I've ever seen plus an inefficient line setup. Just because it's a 'queer space' doesn't make it good. Music was lame, no one danced. Where is there for gays to get down? We really wanted to like it and tried really hard to have a good time, but then the bartender gave me the drink with no vodka and like..... do you think queer trans have money like that? To throw away on nothing? Really expected more solidarity out of a LGBT space. Wish I could give zero stars, wasted like $80. I'm not mad just disappointed (I am mad tho). It's a real let down.

It is a great event place. During the day, they have amazing art exhibitions and during the night they have great dj performances. I highly recommend you to check their events!

Great venue! Much fun! Hard to get a drink. 30 minutes at least. Great do tonight, Darude! Keep that up and we'll be back. The bar, Fix that, then you get 5 stars.

Recently stopped here and saw this place as a venue for the Celebration of the 100th birthday of Thelonious Monk...This place has been a few places, including originally a producer wholesaler in 1926 and then more recently as part of revitalization in downtown both the Anti-Mall and the Nightclub 305 South...It is now a multi use venue, and it makes for a great concert room....as well as a good spot for dance classes and meetings..Can't wait to see all the great uses for this building....The staff is wonderful and of course any venue with flexible seating is a great addition to our community...

Came here for a friends performance and the place was so relaxing and well kept! Could use some upgrades but was great for the show! Everyone loved the atmosphere and art. Would definitely come back

Not happy with this place. Floor seating very limited. Ticket says concert starts at 7, but it didn't start until 7:30. Very disorganized checking folks in. Music and jazz are always appreciated, but I won't come often due to venue. Be aware that the 2 restrooms which used to be designated Men and Women are now Unisex and you will walk in to see a man in the ladies room. I don't like that at all and see no need for it.

Rented out The Fruit for a private party - could not recommend it more! The staff and venue were excellent.