The 2021 Strange Carolinas Best Of NC Awards Winners

For three weeks, readers of Strange Carolinas were invited to nominate their favorites for each of the categories below. From March 1st to March 19th, readers were invited to vote for their favorites from the ten entries that received the most votes for each category during the nomination period.

Here are the winners of the 2021 Strange Carolinas Best Of NC Awards:

MUSIC & ENTERTAINMENT
BEST MUSIC FESTIVAL
Winner: Merlefest
2nd Place: Epicenter
3rd Place: Heavy Rebel Weekender

BEST RADIO STATION
Winner: 95.7 The Ride
2nd Place: Rock 92
3rd Place: 88.5 WFDD

BEST MUSIC VENUE
Winner: The Orange Peel
2nd Place: PNC Music Pavilion
3rd Place: Greenfield Lake Amphitheater

BEST BAR
Winner: The Fat Pelican
2nd Place: The Burger Bar
3rd Place: Lily's Snack Bar

BEST PODCAST
Winner: Old North State Podcast
2nd Place: Cape Fear Unearthed
3rd Place: The P.E.E.P. Podcast

ART
BEST MURALIST
Winner: Kathryn Crawford (@kathryncrawfordart)
2nd Place: JEKS (@jeks_nc)
3rd Place: Alexa Eliana (@misskittentits)

BEST CITY FOR MURALS
Winner: Asheville
2nd Place: Carolina Beach
3rd Place: Greensboro

FOOD & DRINK
BEST BBQ
Winner: Apple City BBQ (Taylorsville)
2nd Place: Lexington Barbecue (Lexington)
3rd Place: 12 Bones (Asheville)

BEST BREWERY
Winner: Booneshine Brewing Company (Boone)
2nd Place: Wilmington Brewing (Wilmington)
3rd Place: NoDa Brewing Company (Charlotte)

BEST BURGER
Winner: The Loaded Goat (Mount Airy)
2nd Place: Island Burgers and Bites (Carolina Beach)
3rd Place: Hops Burger Bar (Multiple locations)

BEST COFFEE SHOP
Winner: Crush And Grind (Carolina Beach)
2nd Place: Bitty & Beau's (Wilmington)
3rd Place: Grind (Asheville)

BEST CUPCAKE
Winner: Liv For Sweets (Pilot Mountain)
2nd Place: The Peppered Cupcake (Wilmington)
3rd Place: Maxie B's Bakery & Dessert Cafe (Greensboro)

BEST DONUT
Winner: Britt's Donut Shop (Carolina Beach)
2nd Place: OMG Donuts & Bakery (Concord)
3rd Place: Duck Donut (Multiple Locations)

BEST FOOD TRUCK
Winner: El Tacorriendo
2nd Place: Rockin' Moroccan Food Truck
3rd Place: Cousins Maine Lobster

BEST FRIED CHICKEN
Winner: Rocky's Hot Chicken Shack (Asheville)
2nd Place: Price's Chicken Coop (Charlotte)
3rd Place: Mama Dip's (Chapel Hill)

BEST HOT DOG
Winner: Nauti Dog (Carolina Beach)
2nd Place: Dairi-O (Multiple Cities)
3rd Place: Zack's Hot Dogs (Burlington)

BEST TACO
Winner: Nollie's Taco Joint (Carolina Beach)
2nd Place: El Taccoriendo (Food Truck)
3rd Place: Crafted (Multiple locations)

BEST VEGAN/VEGETARIAN
Winner: Plant (Asheville)
2nd Place: Sealevel City Vegan Diner (Wilmington)
3rd Place: Sunflower Diner (Asheville)

SHOPPING
BEST BOOK STORE
Winner: Foggy Pine Books (Boone)
2nd Place: Old Books On Front Street (Wilmington)
3rd Place: Scuppernong Books (Greensboro)

BEST ODDITIES STORE
Winner: Major Tomm's (Winston-Salem)
2nd Place: Madame Meerkat's Cabinet of Curiosities (Wilmington)
3rd Place: Fleetwood's (Asheville)

BEST RECORD STORE
Winner: Gravity Records (Wilmington)
2nd Place: Dead Wax Records (Lenoir)
3rd Place: Lunchbox Records (Charlotte)

BEST THRIFT SHOP
Winner: The Groovy Goose (Mount Airy)
2nd Place: Anna Banana's (Boone)
3rd Place: Vintage To Vogue Boutique (Greensboro)

STRANGE NORTH CAROLINA
BEST ROADSIDE ATTRACTION
Winner: Wally's Service Station/Mayberry Courthouse (Mount Airy)
2nd Place: Mystery Hill (Blowing Rock)
3rd Place: The Berry Patch/World's Largest Strawberry (Ellerbe)

BEST GHOST STORY
Winner: USS North Carolina (Wilmington)
2nd Place: Appalachian State East Hall Ghost (Boone)
3rd Place: Lydia's Bridge (Jamestown)

BEST URBAN LEGEND
Winner: Brown Mountain Lights (Brown Mountain)
2nd Place: Devil's Tramping Ground (Bear Creek)
3rd Place: The Seneca Guns

BEST PARANORMAL TEAM
Winner: The Ghost Guild
2nd Place: Charlotte Area Paranormal Society (CAPS)
3rd Place: First in Fright Paranormal


Questions or comments? Please contact us at StrangeCarolinas@gmail.com or 336.907.2393.