Friday Fun Food Facts – October 29, 2021

Tomorrow is the day. The day that Raleigh finally gets to walk through the doors at Ashley Christensen’s latest venture – BB’s Crispy Chicken, featuring incredibly crispy chicken breasts on a locally-made fresh brioche bun. But don’t stop there, check out the salads, wraps, sea-salt brined french fries, pickled cabbage slaw and the crunchy cheese curds. Be sure to choose the sauce or sauces that fit your taste – 13 homemade sauces to choose from (good luck settling on just one…or three!). And did I mention the shakes? Be sure to check out the seasonal Pumpkin Maple shake! Beginning tomorrow (Saturday, October 30), the doors will be open every day (including Sunday) from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m. It is located on Wake Forest Road in front of the Wegman’s. They hope to have the Durham location open next, followed shortly thereafter by the Cary location. Expect those two by March, 2022. Get familiar with BB’s here.

Wake County Restaurant News

Thanks to a tip from blogger EatRaleigh, we learned that Gym Tacos is opening their sports bar concept in Bedford (space formerly occupied by the Public House) next Monday, November 1st. Can see from their Instagram posts that a “nacho tower” and hamburgers are on the menu. Check them out on Instagram here.

Need more taco news? Raleigh Convergence shared the news that Tacos El Patron 323 will be opening a location in the former Peking Duck & Dumplings spot on Hillsborough Street (2873 Hillsborough Street). They are looking to open in December. The Tijuana-style red tacos concept out of Los Angeles first “entered” the market with the announcement that they were opening in the former Donatos Pizza location at Seaboard Station, which is still in the works. Follow their progress on their Instagram here.

The crew down at Union Special (two locations now to serve you – Gateway and downtown), just released their new fall menu featuring a fall salad, a tomato soup/grill cheese combo, and a hot vegan sandwich featuring roasted sweet potatoes. Check out their fall menu here.

Looking for a reason to trek over to Garner? I’ve got one reason you won’t be able to pass up. Daily Donut. Got your attention? They just opened this month and are getting everyone’s attention. Thanks to Rich Girard at the Clayton Bakery & Cafe (another great reason to head that way) for letting me know about this. Daily Donut is located at 106 Bratton Dr. in Garner. I can’t find an online presence, but there is simply no reason not to get in your car and head that way now. Like, right now. Seriously…what are you waiting on?

Also down that way, David McCreary brought it to my attention that Fuquay Spice and Tea, a locally-owned purveyor of spices and loose leaf teas, is coming soon to 503 East Broad Street in Fuquay-Varina. Visit their Facebook page for all the details as they get closer and closer to opening.

Durham, Orange & Chatham Restaurant News

WRAL reported that Durham’s first Black-owned winery, Melanated Wines & Spirits, opened on Wednesday in the Southside Industrial Park of Durham (4608 Industry Lane). Congratulations to owner Lashonda Modest. Get by and visit her here.

Closings / Cancellations

Food Trucks

Thanks to a post on the Chapel Hill Carrboro Foodies Facebook page, we saw that on November 21st the Chapel Hill Community Arts & Culture and Chapel Hill Parks & Recreation will host the first-ever THANKS + GIVING FOOD TRUCK RODEO from 12 – 4 pm at Legion Road. There will be about 15 food trucks, about 15 local non-profits, a DJ, and good community vibes. Get ready to give, grub, and be grateful! Get all the details here.

Looking to find your favorite food truck (or stalking them and simply don’t want to have to admit it)? We understand. Find them on Street Food Finder here.

Events

Voting is open in the WRAL Voters’ Choice Awards, presented by M&F Bank. Finalists have been announced in over 130 categories. Vote now on for the Triangle’s best businesses through Nov. 21. There is an entire section on Food & Drink, so vote for your favorites!

Along with the crisp fall weather, sweet potato season has arrived, and Empire Eats is joining the North Carolina Sweet Potato Commission’s 2021 Eat Sweet Restaurant Week to celebrate! Visit Empire Eats restaurants (Gravy, Sitti, The Pit, The Raleigh Times, The Morning Times, and Square Burger) starting now (October 29 – November 7) to enjoy a limited time only sweet potato recipe unique to each cuisine. See all of Empire Eats menu items here. In addition to these, a total of about 18 Triangle-area restaurants are participating so far. Get all the details and see which restaurants are participating here.

LouElla in Durham will be hosting a natural wine tasting event on October 29th from 6-8 p.m. to benefit Duke Cancer Institute’s Sarcoma Disease Center. It is a $25 tasting fee with all proceeds going towards the center. There will also be raffles with some great prizes. Get all the details on Facebook here.

Drink Durham. Ok, I’m on board with that – give me more details. The Drink Durham Festival will take place this Saturday, October 30 from 2-11 p.m and combines beer, live music, food trucks, and local vendors to raise money for the CNOTE Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit, which provides scholarship funds to HBCUs in North Carolina. 100% of the proceeds will go directly to the CNOTE Foundation. Get all the details here.

Our friends over at RalToday reminded us that Raleigh Veg Fest 2021 originally scheduled for April 4 has moved to October 31 in downtown Raleigh’s Moore Square. Details here.

After having to cancel the 2019 and 2020 events, the Town of Cary will hold Fest in the West on November 6th from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. The event will take place at the USA Baseball National Training Complex and will feature food and beer vendors, entertainment, a kids’ zone as well as arts and crafts. Get all the details here.

And there is a new event in the works for the Triangle – our first Triangle Vegan Restaurant Week which is scheduled for November 1-7 this year. Organizer Karen Pullen has lined up 16 participating restaurants so far and is looking for more. So if your restaurant is interested in participating (a special menu for that week–at least two creative vegan options, or a three-course fixed price meal) reach out to her at [email protected] or visit the site here for more details.

This week the Downtown Raleigh Alliance announced that this year’s Downtown Raleigh Restaurant Week will run from November 5th through 14th. During the week, local restaurants will offer pre-fixe menus at special prices. Visit their event site here.

Food Bank Corner

Cheers to an easy way to support the Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina, as they continue serving an 11% higher need, due to COVID-19. Island Brands USA is a premium beer brand with a mission to bring better, cleaner beer to the world. By downloading their new Loyalty app, Island Passport, you can select the Food Bank and they’ll donate $10 when you redeem 800 points in their App. For more information, visit them here.

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