Friday Fun Food Facts – March 9, 2018

Triangle Restaurant News

Triangle restaurant news…that not everyone knows. Impress your co-workers at the water cooler.

Featured Restaurant News

•  Award-winning Oakleaf restaurant has successfully completed their move (after a temporary stint with their sister restaurant, Alberello) from quaint Pittsboro to hip downtown Carrboro. They opened this past Monday in their new spot adjacent to the Cats Cradle and in the same building as Fleet Feet and Rise Donuts. Check out their new space here.

Wake County Restaurant News

• Congratulations to Ranbir Bakshi and his family as they announced this week that they will open their sixth location of Alpaca Peruvian Chicken in Brier Creek Commons by the middle of next month. They will take over the space formerly occupied by Positalia Italian Eatery. Check out Alpaca here.

• WRAL reported this week that CO, offering a modern take on traditional Southeast Asian cuisine, is moving into the AC Hotel at North Hills later this month. The restaurant also has locations in Charleston, Charlotte, Atlanta, Savannah and Myrtle Beach. CO will be at 101 Park at North Hills Street on the ground level of the AC Hotel. Get familiar with them here.

• WRAL reported last week that the Lynwood Brewing Concern brewery production brewery at 1053 E. Whitaker Mill Road will add a small restaurant in the building across the lot called Wilson by late summer or early fall where they will be serving up flatbread pizzas, sandwiches and more. Keep up with them here.

• Penn Station East Coast Subs, the fast-casual restaurant known for its grilled, made-to-order sub sandwiches, opened their sixth Triangle-area location this past Wednesday at 3001 Hillsborough Street in Raleigh. Owner Jeff Martyn plans to open two additional restaurants in the Raleigh area over the next year. Check out Penn Station here.

Durham, Orange & Chatham Restaurant News

• The brother and sister team of Susan and Eddie Tu are bringing their Raleigh concept Spring Rolls to Durham’s Chesterfield building by early August. They currently have two locations in Raleigh and this will be their first concept in Durham. Their “Chinese fusion” features a variety of culinary traditions including ramen, homemade pork belly, pho (soup) and sushi. Get familiar with Spring Rolls here.

• Bites of Bull City’s Amber Watson posted on Twitter this week a picture of a new concept coming to the former Dame’s Chicken and Waffles location at 317 W. Main Street. Called Thai @ Main Street, it notes that it is Thai cuisine with a twist. But at this point, not much else is known. Stay tuned.

• Also in Durham, Amber Watson also pointed out that the recently reopened Glass Jug Beer Lab (they just moved a few doors down) will begin their Food Truck Fridays TODAY (March 9). Part of the reason they moved was for more outdoor space (Brewery & Beer Garden) and the opportunity to host food trucks. Get all the details here on their Facebook events page.

• Down in Chatham County, got word from the Chatham County Visitors Bureau that Circle City Grill has opened at 517 West Street in Pittsboro. Serving up hamburgers, hot dogs, barbecue and fish tacos, they are open for lunch and dinner six days a week (closed on Mondays). Check them out here.

• And here is something really cool. Carrboro’s Glasshalfull, a Mediterranean-inspired restaurant and bar, started donating 10% of sales each Tuesday to the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. In 2017, they donated $17,854. They are now adding Wednesday and will rotate donations to 5 different organizations in the community. With all the craziness in our world, it is great to see things like this. Kudos to Glasshalfull. Get all the details here.

Closings

• Reader Spencer Brown notified us that Positalia Italian Eatery in Brier Creek closed at the end of February. He did note, however, they still have a location in Wilmington.

• Wes Mays notified us that the Tijuana Flats in Cary’s Bradford Shops (corner of Davis and High House) has closed. They still have two other Cary locations.

Food Trucks

• The next Wake Forest Food Truck Rodeo will be held on Sunday, April 8th from 12-4 at the Over the Falls shopping center located at 405 S. Brooks St. If you can’t make that, future rodeo dates are June 24th and October 28^th. Check in with them on Facebook here.

• The Knightdale Food Truck Thursdays will be back in full swing come April 19th. Trucks will be on hand for lunch and dinner each Thursday at the Knightdale Station Park. Get a full schedule and truck listing on their website here. Thanks to Mark Ginsberg for the heads up.

• The dates have been set (first one is THIS Sunday, March 11) for the Durham Central Park Food Truck Rodeo and Downtown Raleigh Food Truck Rodeos. Check out Durham here and Raleigh here.

• Art Sheppard, the Wandering Sheppard, noted that the date has been set for the next edition of Rodeo on Rosemary over in Chapel Hill. This year it will take place on April 22 at 12 noon featuring 15 of the best trucks in the Triangle. Get all the details on their Facebook event page here.

• Two great sites to keep up with your favorite food trucks. Street Food Finder is one – find it here. And another, aptly named, is Roaming Hunger – find it here.

Events

• Saturday, March 10^th will be the date of the White Street BBQ Experience brought to us by the folks over at White Street Brewing Company. At the heart of the all day (11-5) street festival will be a BBQ contest featuring 20 teams competing for the coveted People’s Choice award. In addition to tasting a sampling of several styles, varieties and flavors of barbecue, festivalgoers will experience hands-on demonstrations, equipment showcases, recipe formulations, technique discussions and unmatched interaction with the cooks. And of course music and beer. Get all the details and/or enter your team here.

• March 17^th is the date for the second annual Food Shuttle Garden Gallop 5K to benefit the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle’s Growing School Gardens program (better known as the Sean is Faster Than Gordon race). Put it this way, if I can do it, you can do it! Come on out and support a great cause. Register and get all the details here.

• Durham Magazine, Chapel Hill Magazine and Chatham Magazine return with their popular culinary event, Taste to take place April 18-22 highlighting the culinary talents along the Durham/Chapel Hill corridor. The event will feature over 30 of the area’s top chefs at four unique events throughout the week. Keep up with the latest and get tickets here.

•  Tickets have gone on sale for Thrive NC set to take place at downtown Raleigh’s City Market on May 10-11. All ticket sale proceeds will be donated to North Carolina nonprofits that address issues related to food insecurity. Attendees will help determine which nonprofits receive funding from ticket sales. The two-day event will highlight the fact that 1.5 million people in the state struggle to buy affordable and fresh foods. A highlight of the event will be a two-day food festival featuring top chefs from 50 North Carolina restaurants serving food and drink samples against a backdrop of live music each night. Tickets will go on sale in February. Keep up with the details as they unfold here.

• And the 2018 version of Farm to Fork expanded to three events over several seasons and tickets to all three just went on sale. The fun begins with the first event on June 3, the perennial favorite Farm to Fork Picnic, where the area’s best farmers and chefs are paired. Then on September 16 they’ll host a pop-up dinner featuring Jacob Boehm of Snap Pea Underground & Catering. And the series will conclude on December 6th with John T. Edge and a celebration of Southern food on Chapel Hill’s Lavender Oak Farm. You can buy ticket to each individual event, or all three. Get tickets and all the details on their site here.

• The 2018 version of Chefs for Change, a fundraising dinner series that pairs the burgeoning Durham food scene with the needs of families experiencing homelessness, is well underway. The first two events (featuring Charlie Deal on March 12 and Scott Howell on May 14) have sold out. And if last year is any indication, the next two dinners will sell out quickly. The July 9th event features Phoebe Lawless (The Lakewood and Scratch) and the September 10^th event features Gocciolina’s Aaron Benjamin. Each night the chef will serve three or more courses at a ticketed dinner with the proceeds benefiting Families Moving Forward. The dinners are held at the Rickhouse and limited to 125 people. Get all the details and tickets here.

Food Bank Corner

•  Go ahead and mark your calendars and get your tickets for the Food Bank’s Chef’s Feast at Fearrington Village coming up on March 22. Four renowned chefs will prepare, and serve favorite recipes through four courses in an intimate environment. Guests will enjoy beverage pairings, an opportunity to bid on unique auction items, and learn more about what the Food Bank and its partner agencies are doing in the community for those facing food insecurity. Get more information and tickets here.