Friday Fun Food Facts – June 24, 2016

Triangle Restaurant News

Amber Watson’s Bites of Bull City blog broke the exciting news this week that the owners of Pizzeria Toro have quietly opened downtown Durham’s newest spot, Littler, in the former Monuts spot on Parrish Street. It is aptly named, as it has a small bar and only about a dozen tables. While the menu will change frequently, it includes a few permanent items, like oysters and a lamb burger. It is open for dinner, except Tuesdays. Check them out here.

Just four months after taking over The Borough in downtown Raleigh and converting it to Hadley’s, the Indy is reporting that the owners have listed it on Craigslist for $120k. Co-owners Drew Schenck and Kevin Barrett are interested in putting Hadley’s behind them and focusing on their new venture, Dram & Draught opening soon on Hillsborough Street. Check out the listing here.

We told you about this back in December, but now an open date has been set for The Capital Grille restaurant in the newly opened Bank of America Tower at North Hills. Looks like Monday, July 11 is the official opening date. The Capital Grille is is an elegant steakhouse known for their dry-aged steaks, seafood, freshest ingredients, and award-winning wines. In the meantime, check them out here.

Thanks to a tip on Yelp, we learned that Five Guys Burgers and Fries is opening their next location in Raleigh in the new shopping center at the intersection of Oak Forest Drive and Capital Boulevard (5501 Capital Boulevard to be exact). No word on the exact date, just “opening soon.” We’ll keep an eye on it. Check them out here.

Got word this week that Cary’s The Daily Grind (Highhouse and Davis) is no more, and has been replaced by Elixir Coffee in the Stonecreek Village shopping center. They serve coffee and pastries (from LucetteGrace!) all day, and offer lunch service featuring soup and gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches. Check out their website here and their Facebook page here.

Also in Cary, the developers of the (currently under construction) Alston Town Center retail center near the intersection of N.C. 55 and the N.C. 540 Triangle Expressway announced this week that Moe’s Southwest Grill will occupy one of the ancillary retail buildings which will be anchored by Whole Foods (opening in early 2017). We will keep an eye on this. Check out Moe’s here.

And just south of Raleigh (in Harnett County), WRAL reported this week that Ed’s Family Restaurant & Catering has opened in the former Rebecca’s Restaurant space at 43 East Depot Street.

This is kind of cool. The recent opening of Boheme restaurant in Durham is getting rave reviews. Now, the next component of that property is coming online – in the form of their Bohemian Garden. Open on Thursday and Sunday nights from 8 p.m. onwards, the lush garden will host live music and drink specials, not to mention dogs are encouraged. Calling this their “soft” opening, the grand opening is Sunday, July 10th with a Luau BBQ featuring traditional Caribbean dishes, drink specials and live from 5 p.m. onwards. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased here.

Also in Durham, WRAL reported this week that Bruster’s Real Ice Cream is now being served on Renaissance Parkway near Southpoint Mall (just a few doors down from Rise Biscuits & Donuts). Check them out here.

And over in Chapel Hill, things are about to get a lot sweeter, as WRAL reported that Tonya Council (of the family that brought us Mama Dip’s) is about to open Tonya’s Cookies. Can’t exactly tell where it is from the storefront photo she just posted, but we’ll keep an eye on it. In the meantime, check them out here.

After a 23 year run, we are sad to report that Durham’s Spartacus Restaurant will be closing their doors on June 26. Our best to the family on their next venture!

The latest installment of the Chatham Street Chowdown series in beautiful downtown Cary happens this Sunday (June 26). The weather this weekend looks perfect, and the fun starts at 5 p.m. and goes until 9:30 p.m. and will include food trucks, local breweries and live music. Get a full listing of trucks (and map) and all the details here.

Every Friday through August 5, Raleigh’s Triangle Town Center will host food trucks at its new “Creekside Wind Down” event series. Stop by the mall’s Creekside Cafe food court entrance from 5:30 – 8:30 p.m. to grab a bite, listen to live music and enjoy a local brew from Compass Rose brewery. Get 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.

Carolina Ale House in downtown Raleigh is hosting their 2nd Annual The Spirited Pig Summer Shindig event this Saturday (June 25th). It is a Spirits, Beer and BBQ event featuring 6 local breweries, a variety of spirits including TOPO distillery and live music. Tickets are $35 and guests will receive a souvenir tasting glass on the day of the event. Event proceeds will go to Stop Hunger Now. Get all the details and tickets here.

The good folks over at the Downtown Raleigh Alliance announced this week the dates for the Downtown Raleigh Restaurant week – it will be held this year August 15-21. Go ahead and mark your calendar. Get all the details here.

Arguably the area’s biggest “foodie” event, TerraVita, recently announced the dates for this year’s festival – September 28th through October 1st. The Chapel Hill-based festival, now in its seventh year, offers exceptional dinners, tasting events, after parties, chef demos as well as the “Sustainable Classroom” – educational experiences featuring renowned chefs, authors & national media. TerraVita concludes with a Grand Tasting on the Green featuring over 65 chefs, artisans and beverage producers for tastings, live chef demonstrations and cookbook signings. TerraVita’s ticket launch and full schedule will be released in mid-June. More details here.

For many of us, summertime means family vacations and cookouts with friends and neighbors. But instead of trying to decide where to go on your next trip, imagine having to decide between putting gas in your car to go to work or buying groceries for dinner. Instead of getting supplies for the barbecue, imagine standing in line at the food pantry because your paycheck didn’t last through the end of the month. For the families of nearly 300,000 children in our service area, this is the difficult situation they will face this summer when school is closed. 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, they are committed to providing 3.3 million meals. Visit their website to learn more about how you can get involved.