Most taprooms in Davie County are built for adults. The Station Tap Room and Pizzeria at 185 N. Main Street in downtown Mocksville is built for a split ticket: a pint for the parents, a dirty soda for the kids, and a table that does not make anyone wait in the car.
That mix is still unusual on a North Carolina Main Street. It is also why the courtyard works. Pizza, cauliflower crust, craft beer, and an all-ages drink list turn a taproom into a family room — inside and out — instead of a bar that happens to allow children until someone complains.
The Station's All-Ages Taproom at a Glance
Who: The Station Tap Room and Pizzeria (The Station Pizzeria & Taproom).
Where: 185 N. Main Street, Mocksville, NC 27028, at the corner of Main Street and Gaither Street in historic downtown Mocksville, Davie County.
What: An all-ages taproom where parents can order a pint and kids can order a dirty soda, with cauliflower-crust pizza and a family-friendly courtyard.
Why it matters: Family dining inside a taproom is still rare in Davie County. The courtyard is the room that makes that model work.
Economic Impact: Longer family dwell time on North Main Street, more weekend covers, and a downtown table that competes with highway chains without copying them.
The Original Pitch: A Beer for Mom and Dad, a Sno-Ball for the Kids
When Bryan and Suzanne Lakey opened The Station, the concept was not a late-night bar. It was a downtown gathering place that was family-friendly, non-age-specific, and pet-friendly — a room where a parent could have a beer, a child could have a sno-ball, and the whole table could stay.
“We wanted to create a place where mom and dad can get a beer, the kids can eat a sno-ball, and they can all enjoy being together.”
— Suzanne Lakey, on the original Station
That sentence is still the operating logic at 185 N. Main. The products changed. The split ticket did not. Dirty sodas and cauliflower-crust pizza are the current version of the sno-ball-and-a-pint idea: something for the kids that is not an afterthought, and something for the adults that is still a taproom.
Dirty Sodas, Cauliflower Crust, and a Taproom That Does Not Card the Table
A dirty soda — soda dressed up with cream, syrups, and flavor — gives kids and teetotalers a drink with as much ceremony as a pint. It keeps the all-ages table from defaulting to water and a bored wait. Cauliflower crust does the same job on the pizza side: a gluten-sensitive kid or parent can eat in the same courtyard as the 16-inch Station Sensation or War Eagle Buffalo Chicken pie.
None of that works if the room feels like a bar that tolerated a high chair. The Station's courtyard — picnic tables, umbrellas, a fire pit, a rock pit for kids, pets allowed — is the physical argument. Parents can watch a child and still hold a local lager. Kids have somewhere to be that is not a barstool. Live music on most Friday and Saturday nights fills the patio without turning the night into an adults-only show.
Family dining inside a taproom is still unusual in Davie County. Highway restaurants do families. Downtown bars do pints. The Station is trying to do both on the same ticket, in historic downtown Mocksville, a short walk north of the square.
Parents: Local craft beer, ciders, and a taproom pour on North Main Street.
Kids: Dirty sodas, pizza, cauliflower-crust options, and courtyard space to move.
The room: An all-ages, pet-friendly patio where the table does not have to split up.
The nights: Live music most Friday and Saturday nights, plus Sunday and Monday hours when many downtown kitchens are dark.
Why the Courtyard Is the Whole Model
Indoor taprooms leak kids. Outdoor seating holds them. That is the hospitality reason The Station's courtyard is not decoration. It is how an all-ages taproom survives a Friday night without becoming either a playground or a pub.
Expanded outdoor seating in a growing Mocksville gives that model more chairs. Neighboring spots such as Scoop's On Main, O'Callahan's Publick House, and Miller's Diner still cover dessert, pub fare, and diner plates. The Station's job is the mixed table: pint, dirty soda, pizza, courtyard.
As long as downtown Mocksville wants families to stay after the Fairy Walk crowd goes home — and as long as Davie County has more bars that are not built for children than taprooms that are — that split ticket is the product.
Related Carolina Wire coverage: The Station's outdoor seating expansion as Mocksville grows, and The Station's record Fairy Walk crowd in downtown Mocksville.
Visit The Station Tap Room and Pizzeria
Business Name: The Station Tap Room and Pizzeria (The Station Pizzeria & Taproom)
Address: 185 N. Main Street, Mocksville, NC 27028
Location: Corner of Main Street and Gaither Street, Historic Downtown Mocksville, Davie County
Phone: (336) 753-8008
Hours: Sunday, 1–9 p.m.; Monday and Thursday, 11 a.m.–9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.–10 p.m.; closed Tuesday and Wednesday
Live music: Most Friday and Saturday nights
All-ages menu: Dirty sodas, artisan pizza, cauliflower-crust options, local craft beer
Outdoor seating: Family- and pet-friendly courtyard and patio
Frequently Asked Questions
Does The Station in Mocksville serve dirty sodas?
Yes. The Station Tap Room and Pizzeria at 185 N. Main Street in downtown Mocksville serves dirty sodas alongside pizza and a craft-beer taproom, so kids and parents can order from the same table.
Is The Station a kid-friendly taproom in Davie County?
Yes. The Station is an all-ages taproom with a family- and pet-friendly courtyard. Parents can have a pint while kids have a dirty soda or pizza — a setup that is still uncommon in Davie County.
Does The Station in Mocksville have cauliflower-crust pizza?
Yes. The Station offers cauliflower-crust pizza options along with 16-inch artisan pies, including courtyard favorites such as The Station Sensation and The War Eagle Buffalo Chicken Pizza.
Why does The Station's courtyard work for families?
The courtyard gives kids space to move and parents a place to sit with a drink. Dirty sodas, cauliflower crust, and outdoor seating are what make family dining inside a taproom work on North Main Street in Mocksville.