Triangle Restaurant News
Triangle restaurant news…that not everyone knows. Impress your co-workers at the water cooler.
Featured Restaurant News
- The News & Observer’s Andrea Weigl announced this week what we’ve all been waiting 18 months to announce – Ashley Christensen’s long awaited Death & Taxes in downtown Raleigh will open “sometime” next week! Beyond the 60-seat restaurant, the Hargett Street building also holds an event space called The Bridge Club, a basement bar and wine cellar. Get a peek at it here.
Wake County Restaurant News
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Big news was announced last Friday (on National Donut Day nonetheless) that Rise Biscuits and Donuts will be opening a new franchise location in Raleigh’s Cameron Village in the fall of 2015! They also announced that the Morrisville location (Park West Village) is looking at a late summer opening. Check out Rise here.
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The Triangle Business Journal announced this week that MOD Pizza, a Seattle-based build-your-own-pizza concept, is opening its first Triangle restaurant at 2071 Millbrook Road, in the new Harris Teeter-anchored shopping center at the corner of Millbrook and Creedmoor roads in Raleigh. Look for them to open in July. Get a peek at them here.
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No more just movies and popcorn. Cobb Theaters announced this week that construction is underway at its newest CinéBistro location at Waverly Place in Cary. CinéBistro offers a world-class “dinner-and-a-movie” experience featuring a chef-run kitchen offering creative American bistro cuisine and full in-theatre service. You can also “wine and dine” there even if you aren’t coming to the movie. Look for them to open late summer. Get a look at them here.
Durham, Orange & Chatham County Restaurant News
- The guys over at Mateo Tapas (Matt Kelly and Josh Decarolis) announced this week their newest project – Mothers & Sons, an Italian trattoria located right next to Mateo at 107 West Chapel Hill Street – will open this fall. Follow them on Twitter here. In the meantime, you can also check out Mateo here.
- This week my friends over at Bean Trader’s in Durham provided an update on their expansion. While it has been slow to unfold, things are starting to roll and it will be well worth the wait (think made-from-scratch waffles, a large centrally located bar, an alternative brew bar, new gender neutral bathrooms (and a family room) and two new registers for quicker check out and shorter lines). All very exciting. You can get all the details on their expansion here.
- We had already told you that the folks behind the food truck Porchetta have opened a “brick and mortar” location at the food court at the Streets at Southpoint in Durham. Now, the News & Observer’s Andrea Weigl has informed me that the food truck American Meltdown will move in “a few doors down” from that location. Look for them to open in early September. Check them out here.
- A quick shout out to Allen & Son Barbecue in Chapel Hill. They were named the best barbecue joint in the South by Southern Living magazine, putting them at the top of an impressive list of 50 of the best Southern barbecue restaurants. See the full list here.
- The Triangle Business Journal reported this week that Jersey Mike’s Subs has opened its third Durham location, this one at 7005 Fayetteville Road in the Renaissance Center at Southpoint. This marks the 27th Jersey Mike’s in the Triangle, according to the company’s website.
- Chowhounder Durhamois tipped me off to the fact that a new pho restaurant has opened (apparently it has been open for a number of months) at 2806 S Miami Blvd in Durham. It is called Bowl of Pho. Check them out here.
- Just a reminder that Il Palio restaurant in Chapel Hill’s Siena Hotel will close for major renovations this summer. They plan to close on June 15 and reopen on August 15th after close to $700,000 in renovations.
Closings
- None to report this week! Keep eating local, folks!
Food Trucks
- A couple of upcoming food truck events to highlight. The next Downtown Raleigh Food Truck Rodeo is this Sunday (June 14th) from 1-6 p.m. Get all the details here.
- The next Durham Central Park Food Truck Rodeo is the extremely popular (aren’t they all popular?) Father’s Day edition on Sunday, June 21 from 12-4 p.m. Get all the details here.
- Got word this week that the Triangle is getting a new Mediterranean food truck called Nebo Cousin’s Food Truck. They will introduce themselves this weekend as they are set up at XL Soccer World all weekend from 4 pm until midnight on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. You can check them out on Facebook here.
- This is kind of fun. Next Saturday (June 20), the North Carolina Museum of Art will show the movie Chef as part of their outdoor movie series. The movie will begin at 9 p.m., but get there early for a mini-food truck rodeo featuring six (really, really good) trucks – American Meltdown, Chirba Chirba Dumpling, Only Burger, Cousins Maine Lobster, Citizen Pops and newcomer Two Roosters Ice Cream. Get ticketing information and all the details here.
- For a listing of ALL food truck events, head over to Art’s page, The Wandering Sheppard on all things food truck related here.
Events
- This is the final weekend of this version of Triangle Restaurant Week, so get out and take advantage of it this weekend. Participating restaurants offer special three-course menu options and fixed pricing, where meals are $15 for a 3-course lunch, and $20, $25 or $30 for a 3-course dinner. Price is for each person and does not include beverages, tax or gratuity. Get a list of participating restaurants and all the details here.
- Heard from John Huisman (aka Triangle Explorer) that Slingshot Coffee Co. is having their Birthday Celebration & Pop-Up Shop to celebrate 3 years of making their delicious cold brew coffee. It will be at their headquarters this Saturday from 10am-2pm. Look for an appearance from new ice cream truck Two Roosters – can you say free affogatos? You can get all the details on their Facebook event page here.
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The 4th Annual Peak City Pig Fest is next Friday and Saturday (June 19 & 20) in downtown Apex. Cook teams from all over the country will come to compete against each other for prize money while cooking chicken, ribs, beef brisket and pork. 48 professional BBQ cook teams are expected to enter and compete for a total of more than $10,000 in prize money. Get all the details here. Please note, the Peak City Pig Fest is the only Kansas City Barbecue Society-sanctioned event in the Triangle.
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June 20th is the date for the 3rd annual Fresh Catch Festival that will be held in downtown Raleigh’s Moore Square from 1-9pm. Enjoy fresh cooked seafood, BBQ and more from local chefs and restaurants from 1-6 in the park and food trucks from 5-9 in the street. Tickets are $8 in advance, and $10 at the door (food and drinks are separate). Get all the details here.
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Also on June 20th, Village Lanes, one of the oldest bowling alleys in Durham, is holding their Spring Fling featuring live music, cold beer, an art fair/craft market, and a diverse lineup of food trucks. The event runs from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Get all the details on Facebook here.
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Clear your schedule for June 25-28, 2015 for the inaugural Raleigh Food and Wine Festival – taking place Thursday through Sunday at multiple restaurants throughout downtown Raleigh. On Sunday, the four-day program wraps up with food and beverage tasting event at the historical Melrose Knitting Mill and Babylon restaurant in Downtown Raleigh from 1 p.m. until 5 p.m. Get all the details at the event’s website here.
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The dates are set (October 8-10) for one of my favorite food events of the year – the TerraVita Food & Drink Festival held in Chapel Hill every year. It simply can’t be missed. Tickets are set to go on sale soon! Take a look at all the initial details here.
Food Bank Corner
Part of a letter from Peter Werbicki, President & CEO of the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina:
In just a few short weeks, school will be ending. Most kids will be headed to camp or going on family vacations. Unfortunately, over 300,000 children will not be focused on activities of fun and relaxation. These kids will be focused on one thing: an empty stomach.
When schools close for summer break, cafeterias close. Children who have relied on free and reduced-cost breakfast and lunch go without these meals during the summer. The loss of this vital resource puts an additional strain on family food budgets that are already tight.
But together, we can help.
The Food Bank’s Stop Summer Hunger Campaign aims to provide meals and groceries to children and their families over the summer months. Through July 31, we are committed to providing 3.2 million meals.
Click the link above to see how you can help!
