Triangle Restaurant News
Triangle restaurant news…that not everyone knows. Impress your co-workers at the water cooler.
Featured Restaurant News
- If you are a fan of Giorgios Bakatsias and his concepts, you’ll want to follow along for his schedule of openings for his Triangle area restaurants. They are as follows: Vin Rouge opened back on June 3rd; The Gatehouse Tavern reopened Monday, June 8th – and is celebrating 10 years this month; Parizade, which originally opened 27 years ago, opened again yesterday (June 11); Rosewater over in North Hills will reopen on June 15th; and Local 22 will be open for dinner starting June 19th. Farm Table, City Kitchen, Nasher Museum Café and Village Burger are not yet ready to announce opening dates. Kipos will be announcing it’s new location soon. Check in on any of his restaurants here.
Wake County Restaurant News
- Chubby’s Tacos opened their THIRD Triangle-area location this past Wednesday in the Heritage Publix Shopping Center at 1000 Forestville Rd. Mention TFG while placing your order, and receive 20% off! Visit Chubby’s here.
- And speaking of tacos, learned this week that Calavera Taqueria has opened in the former Calavera space at 615 West Morgan Street. They are under new ownership and while they kept the name, they now have a focus on tacos and barbacoa (but will still offer a selection of four empanadas, including papa con chorizo). Congrats to chef Oscar Vargas! Check them out on Facebook here.
- Neal DePersia with National Restaurant Properties shared with me that Barrel Culture Brewing and Blending has opened their second location – a taproom in Raleigh at 13100 Falls Of Neuse Road in North Raleigh. The original location, which opened in 2017, is located on Alston Avenue in Durham. Get familiar with them here.
- Fuquay-Varina just got a little bit more worldly as it is now home to a Portugese restaurant called Little Portugal that opened this past week at 736 N. Main Street. It looks amazing! Probably the best information on the restaurant is on their Facebook page here.
- Over in Holly Springs, Neal DePersia with National Restaurant Properties, shared with me that an American/Italian restaurant and bar called Vieni Ristobar has opened in the Town Hall Commons Shopping Center at 242 S. Main Street. Congratulations to owner Gianni Cinelli. Get to know them on their Facebook page here.
- And got word from reader Jennifer Buccholz that a Tropical Smoothie Cafe is coming to The Corners at Brier Creek (Harris Teeter) at 4221 Corners Pkwy. No word yet on an open date. And apparently we will also get a new one in Apex at 1264 W. Williams Street. No word yet on an open date for that one either. Visit Tropical Smoothie here.
Durham, Orange & Chatham Restaurant News
- Australia’s Zambrero will open in Durham at University Hill (3109 Shannon Rd.) tomorrow, June 13th. Guests can enjoy an opening offer of bowls and burritos starting at $5 on June 13-15, 2020. This will be their second Triangle location with the original location in Raleigh (temporarily closed due to the current uncertain climate and government restrictions). They offer a healthy superfood menu along with their Plate 4 Plate program in partnership with Rise Against Hunger, where with each purchase a meal is donated to someone in need. Visit them here.
- Da Kine’s Kava, owned by husband and wife team Brent Waffle and Zoey Best, will open in the Joe Van Gogh space in the West End area at 1114 W. Chapel Hill St. The store will be a non-alcoholic bar featuring cocktails made from kava and other herbal alternatives, coffee, kombucha, and teas. According to Bites of Bull City, they will open this summer. Get to know them here.
- WRAL reported this week that Jackie Morin and her husband, Rem, started gourmet cotton candy company, Wonderpuff, several years ago. The business will open its first permanent location this fall at Boxyard RTP, a concept that will repurpose shipping containers into business spaces. Wonderpuff cotton candy is colorless, but the flavors are bold like lavender, orange, cardamom, salted caramel, mango and campfire s’more. You can follow them on Instagram here.
Closings / Cancellations
- Saw on Ashton Mae Smith’s weekly newsletter that Jose & Sons on Davie Street in downtown Raleigh has closed. But they did indicate that they would soon share future plans. In the meantime, visit their sister restaurant, Cortez on Glenwood South for dine-in or takeout.
- Learned from Twitter friend @BurgeoningBaker that DeeLuxe Chicken in Durham has closed.
Food Trucks
Events
- Boxyard RTP, the new food, entertainment and shopping complex coming to Research Triangle Park, is hosting a “Cruise Thru” tonight, June 12, from 5-9 p.m. to allow you to “see and taste” prior to their official fall opening. Some vendors require pre-orders (and some have sold out), so check before you drive out. The list of vendors are: Blossom and Bone; Buzzy Bakes; Fullsteam Brewery; Lawrence Barbecue; RTP Uncorked; Wonderpuff; and Bulkogi. Get all the details here.
- Drive Through Brewgaloo is happening this Saturday, June 13th from 2 to 6 pm at the Lincoln Theater in downtown Raleigh. It is a pop-up event to support the NC craft beer industry. Help keep NC breweries going by purchasing a 6 pack of your favorite style of beer or try a Taste of NC mix pack featuring 24 different beers for curbside pickup. All beers sourced are 100% NC made, owned and operated. This event is featuring beer from around the state! View their Facebook event page here.
- Taste Carolina is curating and assembling downtown dishes, tastes and treats, all in one box in Raleigh and Durham. Support 7+ businesses in one easy purchase with contactless pickup. Durham orders feature: Alley Twenty Six, COPA, Jeddah’s Tea, Rose’s, Mad Popper, Toast, and Luna. Raleigh orders feature: Garland, Bittersweet, Raleigh Provisions, Che Empanadas, Umma Dumpling, Cheenie, Crude Bitters, lucettegrace, and Michael’s English Muffins. Order by Friday at noon, for pickup on Saturday afternoon. You can begin ordering for the next Saturday anytime after noon on Friday. Get all the details and place your order here.
- The 5th Annual Raleigh International Food Festival has decided to move their event to Saturday, August 8th from noon until 10 p.m. in the 100-200 block of Fayetteville Street in downtown Raleigh. While there you will be able to try authentic international food, desserts as well as imported beer and wine! There will also be lots of music and entertainment at this child and pet friendly event. Admission is free and parking on the street is as well. Obviously, keep up with their Facebook event page for any announcements and/or rescheduling. Get all the details on their Facebook event page here.
- Brewgaloo has been rescheduled for August 14 and 15, 2020. It is a 2 day festival featuring over 110 craft breweries from around NC and partnering with local food trucks, local vendors, and local bands to bring you North Carolina’s largest craft beer festival! The fun begins Friday night with a sampler event from 6-10pm featuring limited releases, barrel aged, and sour beers. Saturday’s street festival spans the length of Fayetteville Street and fills Downtown Raleigh from 2-10pm with more than 110 NC craft breweries, local food trucks, and local vendors with 2 stages featuring local bands all day long. Get all the details on the Shop Local Raleigh website here.
- The Fest in the West is back for its fifth year on Saturday, November 7 from 11 am- 5 pm at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary. The event features food & beer, music, arts & crafts, a KidZone, contests and a petting zoo. A great way to spend time with 7,000 of your closest friends. Admission is free! Get all the details here.
- Thanks to Triangle On The Cheap, here are some updates on event cancellations and rescheduling: PeakFest in Apex was rescheduled to September 19; Meet in the Street Festival in Wake Forest was rescheduled to September 5; Artsplosure in downtown Raleigh was rescheduled to October 10 and 11; and the Pimento Cheese Festival in Cary has been canceled.
Food Bank Corner
- The Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina is providing free Grab-&-Go Meals for Kids & Teens Monday through Friday 11am – 1pm at the K&W Cafeteria located at 3620 Bastion Lane, Raleigh NC 27604. Children do not have to be present with you to pick up meals, and you will not be required to show ID. Food will be distributed by volunteers at curbside and social distancing will be practiced. There are also 30 other free meal sites across 15 counties! View a full list of sites here. #noonegoeshungry
