Triangle Restaurant News
Triangle restaurant news…that not everyone knows. Impress your co-workers at the water cooler.
Featured Restaurant News
- Alright folks, it is time to step up and help one of our own. On March 9th a drunk driver struck the side of the MamaDukes food truck and took them out of business. The insurance deemed the truck a total loss and the settlement was not enough to rebuild. They need our help to reopen for business. Visit their GoFundMe website for the details and to contribute to their effort to reopen. They are just under $1,800 from meeting their goal. Every little bit will help.
Wake County Restaurant News
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Triangle Business Journal reported the latest details of Raleigh restaurateur Lou Moshakos’ plans for a new restaurant in downtown Raleigh expected to open this fall. Vidrio will be a Mediterranean small plate concept that will be located on the ground floor of his recently opened Glenwood South location of Carolina Ale House (it is a 3 story building at 500 Glenwood Avenue). Also of note, Moshakos is bringing in George Bakatsias to help in the development of Vidrio’s menu design and brand. This is gonna be good!
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I was tipped off to this tidbit from my good friend Jo Smith. The Triangle is just a few months away from getting its first gluten free / non-gmo restaurant. Called Fresh Levant Bistro, they are planning to open this summer in Lafayette Village in North Raleigh. For now, check them out on Facebook here.
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We got word this week that June 13th is the day for the opening of the Triangle’s second location of City Barbeque. There will be lots of activities all day that day. The new restaurant is in Garner in the Cabela’s shopping center (White Oak Crossing) sitting alongside Highway 70 at 110 Cabela Drive. Get all the details here.
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New neighborhood communities don’t normally make my blog. But when the community includes a new coffee shop they do! And that is the case with Wendell Falls in Wendell that will have its very own coffee shop as of May 16th. As part of the café (and neighborhood) grand opening, they’ll also have a “barn raising” celebration feature southern dishes by Farmers Table, Big Boss craft beer and new gourmet coffees from Grounds Café. Stop by on May 16th from 12 – 6 p.m. Get all the details here.
- This is sweet. The Triangle Business Journal reported this week that Nothing Bundt Cakes is now open in Morrisville’s Park West Village near the street roundabout at Gander Mountain. The dessert specialty franchise is the first in the Triangle. A ribbon-cutting ceremony is scheduled for May 20 at 10 a.m., and grand opening festivities will take place on May 23 – with free samples and kid-friendly activities from noon to 2 p.m. Get a peek at them here.
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Congratulations to the good folks over at Sassool Mediterranean Café in North Raleigh as they celebrate the 1 year anniversary of the rebranding of Neomonde North Raleigh in honor of Mounir’s mother. And on Sunday, May 10 (Mother’s Day) they will have a special Mother’s Day menu and a carnation for moms. Also 10% of sales that day will go to the Susan G. Komen NC Triangle to the Coast! Get all the details here.
Durham, Orange & Chatham County Restaurant News
- I got a tip from John Huisman (aka Triangle Explorer) that the folks over at Big Bundts Bakery are planning to open BrewMoo Café in the former Straw Valley Café location in Durham. They will specialize in cold- and hot-brew coffee drinks made with fresh dairy and homemade mix-ins. No date yet, but we’ll keep an eye on it. Check out Big Bundts Bakery here.
- Also, happened to notice on the Facebook page for Rise Biscuits & Donuts that they are looking for restaurant space in downtown Durham for their first corporate store. They also hinted that it would be a “two restaurant thing” paired with their latest concept (stay tuned). Wow, talking about whetting ones appetite. Stay tuned! In the meantime, check out Rise’s web site here.
- The official opening date for the much-anticipated Tom+Chee restaurant in Carrboro was announced this week. They will hold their ribbon cutting ceremony at 10:15 a.m. on May 15th. They are located at 370 E. Main Street in the Hampton Inn complex. Visit their website here or their Facebook page here.
- One of our readers fed us the information that Charros Mexican Restaurant has opened in the old Los Comales at 3511 Witherspoon Boulevard in southwest Durham. We were unable to locate a website.
- The Herald-Sun reported this week that Luna, a restaurant focused on South American cuisine, will open at 112 W. Main St. this summer. Chef Shawn Stokes, who has worked in restaurants across the country, owns the restaurant. We will keep an eye on it.
- If you like good beer and good food and are in the Durham area on Saturdays this summer, you might want to know that the folks over at G2B Restaurant and Brewery will open up their patio from 12-3 p.m. every Saturday this summer to offer their house-made and favorite beers along with small bites from executive chef Travis Robinson. Get all the details here.
Closings
- It is with much sadness that I report that my good friends Lisa & Jimmy Schmid have decided to close The Food Factory at Devil’s Bistro over on Duke’s campus. My very best to both of them in wherever life takes them next!
- And reader Michelle Fleer informed me that Slice of NY Pizza in Beaver Creek Crossings has closed.
Food Trucks
- With a little divine intervention, it looks like Chapel Hill is going to have a food truck rodeo of its own – and to benefit a great cause. On Saturday, May 16th from 3 to 7 p.m. Orange United Methodist Church on MLK Blvd (at the intersection with Homestead Road) is going to have at least 10 food trucks and tons of other events all to benefit TABLE, which provides healthy, emergency food to hungry children in Chapel Hill and Carrboro. Get all the details here.
- The next Wake Forest Food Truck Rodeo is coming up on May 17th. It is located at 419 Brooks Street at the Over The Falls Shopping Center and runs from 12 to 4 p.m. Check out their Facebook page here.
- Food Trucks and Flowers – sounds like a great, and fun, combination. The third annual Fairview Garden Center Flora and Food Trucks series will feature the Triangle’s most popular and delicious food trucks. These events will take place on spring Saturdays, March 28 through May 23, 11:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. at 8224 Holly Springs Rd. in Raleigh, North Carolina. Get all the details here.
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For a listing of ALL food truck events, head over to Art’s page, The Wandering Sheppard, to get all things food truck related – rodeos, truck lists, features, etc. Check it out here.
Events
- Thanks to a tip from James Barnett, I got word that the inaugural Read Local Book Festival (with the tag line: Shop Local. Eat Local. Read Local) is coming up May 15-17, and features several food-related activities. The Friday night event (6-8 p.m.) features James Beard Award Semi-Finalist Chef Lionel Vatinet. And the Saturday night event features 4-5 course dinners at The Pit, Little Dipper and Basan. Get all the details and tickets here.
- The Town of Morrisville is hosting their popular East Meets West food festival on Saturday, May 16th from 11 a.m. ’til 4 p.m. along Town Hall Drive in Morrisville. Over 15 participating restaurants and lots of entertainment. Get all the details here.
- Also on May 16th, the folks over at Six Plates in Durham are holding their 8th annual Txakolifest. It is a two-part event, with a fundraiser from 12-3 for Urban Ministries featuring wine as well as food from Watts Grocery, Gocciolina, Pizzeria Toro, Blu Seafood, Vin Rouge, Toast, G2B and Juju. That session is $75. The general admission session begins at 3 and lasts until closing. Get tickets and all the details here.
- The good folks over at Ninth Street Bakery are bringing back their extremely popular Vegan Brunch. It kicks off again on Saturday, May 24th from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at their downtown Durham location. Get all the details and menu here.
- Tickets went on sale recently for one of my favorite events of the year (a weekend of events really) – Farm to Fork – which will take place this year Friday, June 5th through Sunday, June 7th. Get tickets and all the details here.
- The dates are set for one of my other favorite food events of the year – the TerraVita Food & Drink Festival held in Chapel Hill every year. It simply can’t be missed. Go ahead and start setting aside your money for the tickets – they go on sale the middle of this month. Take a look at all the initial details here.
Food Bank Corner
- Probably the easiest way to help families in need is happening tomorrow – and you need to participate! All you need to do is fill a bag with food, place it by your mail box…and you are done. It is that simple. It is taking place TOMORROW – May 9. Want to know more? Want to know what kind of foods are most needed? Get all the details here.
