Downtown Durham’s Main Street is home to a handful of beloved and frequented restaurants, bars and cafés that have the advantage of their convenient location to bring in business. The Blue Flame is the newest addition to this clique of bars and restaurants on Main Street. The restaurant was opened by owners Melissa Manseau and her husband, Gregory Lester in March 2025. It joined Libby’s Bar & Grille and Scorpion’s Bar & Grille, both popular institutions among students, especially for weekend outings.
Unique to the Blue Flame was their 18 and over policy that allowed younger students to experience entertainment downtown. However, in November 2025, The Blue Flame changed this policy, requiring that patrons of their entertainment area, ‘The Cave,’ be 21 and over.
This was an effort by The Blue Flame to put a stop to students utilizing fake IDs to drink at their establishment. Although the change came as a bit of a disappointment to the owners because an 18 and over environment was a large part of their mission regarding their entertainment space.
“The 18 plus thing was really because we wanted everyone to be able to come and enjoy the music,” said Manseau, a University of New Hampshire (UNH) alumna. Regarding the Blue Flame’s initial popularity Manseau expressed,“Thanks to our social media person things kind of exploded in, like, two weeks and suddenly we had a line out the door.”
An anonymous UNH student who attended The Blue Flame during their 18 and up policy noted a unique surge in patrons. “People were kind of fighting to get in,” said the student. There was a time where I probably waited in line for over an hour because they just had max capacity. There were other times where I would wait like twenty-five minutes and…it means that there’s people here, it means it's going to be fun and busy.”
Manseau acknowledged that this surge in business, while still keeping up with their 18 and over age policy, created more problems than it did benefits.
“There’s just no way to keep everybody safe,” said Manseau. “Unfortunately, the statistics are that those who are underage drinkers are more irresponsible and destructive. We had a lot of not great things happen at the restaurant, like people shoving stuff down the toilets and causing major plumbing problems and holes in the walls. We didn't really have any fights. It’s kind of a peaceful campus in that way,” she said.
Following in Libby’s footsteps, Blue Flame opened ‘The Cave,’ a basement entertainment space. The space hosts shows featuring local and campus-formed bands, a weekly jazz night, and even speed dating events.
Mia Conti, a second year student at UNH, enjoyed the band series put on in The Cave prior to the age policy change.
“I thought the [Blue Flame] environment was great,” said Conti. “It was a lot different than going to, say, a show at a frat or in a basement. It was a very different crowd…I would say it was more of an alternative crowd. More people were dancing and it felt like a safe space to be expressive.”
Manseau emphasized how important standing out in downtown Durham’s culture is to their business model.
“The intersection of where my partner [Gregory Lester], who’s the chef, and I kind of collaborate is the entertainment and the food. We both share that love, so you know, we started the band series,” Manseau said. A myriad of campus bands including Florence, Chauncey and Saguaro perform in The Cave throughout the week.
While Manseau expressed that she and Lester wanted The Blue Flame to become a part of the fabric of nightlife in Durham, they wanted to move forth with a unique type of space that was different from the other offerings downtown.
“We want to sustain ourselves, but we’re not selfish. We understand that students like bar hopping. I mean, there used to be many more bars in Durham when I was a student here,” Manseau said. “But I think our vibe is just different. We’re more focused on music and socializing, and our environment is maybe just a little more chill. When it gets crowded maybe it doesn't feel that way, but it’s a little bit less frantic.”
Manseau expressed her desire for The Blue Flame to provide a space for UNH students to have access to a diverse array of entertainment.
“We really need those Durham residents to come out and eat dinner, support the food part of the business so we can offer more jazz nights and more band nights and karaoke and comedy, and then it doesn't feel like it's just a drinking bar, right? That was never our mission.”
