Don't Back Down

There aren't too many lunch counters left in this world, and when you manage to find one, it's not always a good thing. Sometimes the place is run down. Sometimes the food just isn't very good. So more often than not, you might just be better off walking on past to the next place that serves food. This isn't the case with Hap's.

According to their web site, the small building (just eight-and-a-half feet wide!) that used to be an alley was the perfect location for what is now virtually an institution in downtown Salisbury, North Carolina. This hole-in-the-wall doesn't have much in the way of a menu - just hamburgers and hot dogs, served with chips or without, and drinks in glass bottles.

That about covers it.

You can get your order with condiments or without, and their chili is some of the best you'll find, but don't expect to find a table to sit down. You can stand at a counter ringing the cubicle-like enclosure, or you can pack it up to take with you, but that's about it for choice.

The good news is that the food is tasty. Sure, it's a bit greasy, but what do you expect? You're eating hot dogs and hamburgers from a quick-serve joint at lunchtime. It's not rocket science, and it's not a gourmet eatery where they give you the food on a fancy plate (or any plate at all for that matter). It is what it is, and at that, they do a bang-up job.