The Players’ Retreat

The Players’ Retreat

Few places capture the everyday soul of Raleigh quite like the Players’ Retreat. Open since 1951 and known to generations simply as “the PR,” this West Raleigh bar and grill sits just off the North Carolina State University campus at 105 Oberlin Road, a low-slung, wood-paneled room where students, professors, lawyers, ballplayers and neighborhood regulars have been rubbing elbows for more than seven decades. In 2026 the PR celebrated its 75th anniversary, and it remains very much open, welcoming and unmistakably itself.

A Raleigh Institution Since 1951

The Players’ Retreat was founded on February 27, 1951, by Bernie and Mickey Hanula, Bernie being a former Wake Forest football player who wanted a friendly gathering spot near campus. What began as a modest tavern grew into one of the city’s most beloved institutions, a place the owners like to describe as “less of a bar and restaurant, and more of a family.” That spirit still defines the room today, where the young and the old and the rich and the poor share the same worn wooden booths.

From Hillsborough Street to Oberlin Road

The PR first opened on Hillsborough Street, the historic artery that runs past NC State, before relocating in 1961 to its current home on Oberlin Road, where it has stayed put ever since. In 2005, with the business at a crossroads, Raleigh attorney and longtime patron Gus Gusler stepped in to take ownership rather than see the landmark close. Under his stewardship the PR has kept its character intact while quietly sharpening the food and drink, proving that a neighborhood classic can be preserved without being frozen in time.

What to Eat and Drink

The kitchen keeps things honest and satisfying. The centerpiece is the burger, made from Certified Choice beef ground fresh on-site and grilled to order, with the six-ounce Bernie Burger and its bacon and provolone leading the lineup. Beyond the burgers you will find baby back ribs glazed in the house PR sauce, fried oysters and a rotating cast of chef’s specials, some of them French-inspired thanks to time in the kitchen from veteran chef Jean Paul Fontaine. It is comfort food with a little more polish than the wood paneling might suggest.

One of the State’s Great Beverage Programs

For all its everyman charm, the Players’ Retreat hides a serious drinks list. The bar holds one of the largest single-malt Scotch whisky collections in North Carolina, alongside more than 100 wines available by the glass from a cellar that has earned recognition from Wine Spectator. Add an extensive draft and microbrew selection and you have a beverage program that would be at home in a far fancier setting, offered here without a hint of pretense. It is entirely in keeping with the house motto: where the keg of kindness never runs dry.

The NC State Connection

You cannot tell the story of the PR without NC State. Sitting a short walk from campus, the bar has been a second living room for Wolfpack students, faculty and athletes since the days of legendary basketball coach Everett Case. The walls are a museum of that history, lined with team photos from the leather-helmet era, vintage beer cans and personalized steins that belong to decades of loyal regulars. On game days the room fills with red, and the PR feels like the beating heart of the neighborhood.

Planning Your Visit

The Players’ Retreat is open daily, from late morning until well past midnight, with the kitchen and bar keeping the kind of hours that suit a college town. It is casual, walk-in friendly and easygoing, though reservations are available for parties up to eight and private events can be arranged for larger groups. Whether you come for a burger and a beer, a rare Scotch or simply a taste of enduring Raleigh, the PR remains one of the city’s most genuine gathering places.