{"id":721,"date":"2018-01-19T07:37:38","date_gmt":"2018-01-19T12:37:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trianglefoodblog.com\/?p=721"},"modified":"2018-01-19T07:37:38","modified_gmt":"2018-01-19T12:37:38","slug":"friday-fun-food-facts-january-19-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trianglefoodblog.com\/?p=721","title":{"rendered":"Friday Fun Food Facts &#8211; January 19, 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Triangle Restaurant News<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Triangle restaurant news&#8230;that not everyone knows. Impress your co-workers at the water cooler.<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Featured Restaurant News<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>With 65,000 votes cast in his year&#8217;s <strong>WRAL.COM Voters&#8217; Choice Awards<\/strong>, the winners were announced this past Tuesday at <strong>Level 7<\/strong> at <strong>AC Hotels in North Hills<\/strong>. I am humbled to share that yours truly, <strong>Triangle Food Guy<\/strong>, was voted <strong>Best Blogger<\/strong> &#8211; so a huge thank you to the readers for throwing a little kudos my way. Lots of great people, programs and businesses were recognized &#8211; including some great restaurants throughout the Triangle. The highlight of the night was <strong>Ashley Christensen<\/strong> hauling in the <strong>Woman of the Year<\/strong> award! <a href=\"http:\/\/contests.wral.com\/2017-Voters-Choice-Awards\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Get a full list of winners here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Wake County Restaurant News<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Two years after a fire completely destroyed their restaurant, <strong>Sushi Nine<\/strong> on Western Blvd. in Raleigh has reopened according to <strong>WRAL<\/strong>. Located at 3812 Western Boulevard the building is certainly new, but the menu will be just like their customers will remember &#8211; nothing changed there! <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sushinine.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Check them out here<\/b><\/span><\/a>,<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>John Huisman<\/strong>, aka <a href=\"https:\/\/triangleexplorer.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Triangle Explorer<\/b><\/span><\/a>, shared this week that <strong>Michael\u2019s English Muffins<\/strong> announced that the new store will swing open their doors on <strong>January 30<sup>th<\/sup> <\/strong>in a space at the <strong>Towne Square shopping center<\/strong> (corner of Capital Blvd. and Spring Forest Rd.). <a href=\"http:\/\/michaelsenglishmuffins.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Learn more about Michael&#8217;s and their store here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>The <strong>North Ridge<\/strong> location of <strong>Zoes Kitchen<\/strong> on Falls of the Neuse Road (6004 Falls of the Neuse Road) opened this past week. Apparently this new store will be the prototype for all future locations. <a href=\"https:\/\/zoeskitchen.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Check out Zoes here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>And if you were eagerly anticipating a location of <strong>Ed Mitchell\u2019s<\/strong> barbecue in <strong>Brier Creek<\/strong>, the <strong>News &amp; Observer<\/strong> reported this week that that project has stalled. <strong>Ed<\/strong> and his son have redirected their focus to online endeavors. He did leave the door open that at some point there would be another <strong>Ed Mitchell<\/strong> barbecue joint. The truck concept has been parked as well.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Durham, Orange &amp; Chatham Restaurant News<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>WRAL\u2019s Sarah Krueger<\/strong> reported that the <strong>Liberty Warehouse Apartments<\/strong> will not only have the <strong>Durham Food Hall<\/strong> locating in their first floor retail space, as well as <strong>Dame\u2019s Chicken &amp; Waffles<\/strong>, but apparently there is also a coffee shop in the works &#8211; <strong>Foster Street Coffee<\/strong>. Lots of exciting things happening there, just across from <strong>Durham Central Park<\/strong>. The Durham <strong>Dame\u2019s<\/strong> location is closed in January for the move. <strong>Foster Street<\/strong> looks to open in February as well. And the <strong>Food Hall<\/strong> will open later in 2018. <a href=\"http:\/\/durhamfoodhall.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Check out the Durham Food Hall here<\/b><\/span><\/a>. <a href=\"http:\/\/dameschickenwaffles.com\/web\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Dame&#8217;s Chicken and Waffles here<\/b><\/span><\/a>. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.fosterstreetcoffee.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>And Foster Street Coffee here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Also in Durham, <strong>WRAL<\/strong> reported this week that <strong>Vegan Flava Caf\u00e9<\/strong> recently opened on Guess Road in Durham, near <strong>Northgate Mall<\/strong>. The menu has all kinds of comfort food, from curried lentils and rice to red beans and rice. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.veganflavacafe.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Check them out here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>A quick update on Chapel Hill&#8217;s <strong>Monterrey Mexican Restaurant<\/strong> from reader <strong>Cassie Spracklen<\/strong>&#8230;she learned a little more about the move from the current restaurant to the <strong>Rams Plaza<\/strong> location in the former <strong>Bailey\u2019s<\/strong> spot, but this is more to do with the current location. During a recent visit, she learned that the current location will be converted to a more casual \u201cgrab and go\u201d concept (similar to <strong>Chipotle<\/strong>) which will have a completely different menu and will feature empanadas. Sounds great! Stay tuned and thanks <strong>Cassie<\/strong> for the updates! <a href=\"http:\/\/monterreychapelhill.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Check out Monterrey here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Closings<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Got word from reader <strong>Chris Creighton<\/strong> that the <strong>Bob Evans<\/strong> on Walnut Street in Cary has closed.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Also in Cary, got word from reader <strong>Rachel Goer<\/strong> that <strong>Uncle Maddio\u2019s<\/strong> in <strong>Parkside Town Commons<\/strong> closed in December.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Food Trucks<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>\u00a0Two great sites to keep up with your favorite food trucks. <strong>Street Food Finder<\/strong> is one &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/streetfoodfinder.com\/c\/nc\/raleigh\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>find it here<\/b><\/span><\/a>. And another, aptly named, is <strong>Roaming Hunger<\/strong> &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/roaminghunger.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>find it here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Events<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Here&#8217;s a great time. I mean a really great time. The guys behind the <strong>NC Food &amp; Beverage Podcast<\/strong> (<strong>Max<\/strong> and <strong>Matt<\/strong>) have teamed up with <strong>John May<\/strong> over at <strong>Piedmont<\/strong> in Durham to offer up their first dinner called <strong>&#8220;Pork &amp; Rum&#8221;<\/strong> on <strong>Sunday, January 28<sup>th<\/sup><\/strong>. They will be pairing rums from <strong>Lassiter Distilling<\/strong> with a menu by <strong>May<\/strong> &#8211; think Caribbean-meets-Hawaiian-meets-North Carolina. And for the best part, it&#8217;s family-style, i.e. big tables, big plates and flowing cocktails. Tickets are $65. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eventbrite.com\/e\/nc-fbs-pork-rum-family-meal-tickets-41716824144\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Get your tickets and all the details here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Also, the dates for the <strong>Lucy Daniels Center<\/strong> 2018 version of their popular <strong>Cooking for a Classic<\/strong> have been set. This year&#8217;s event consists of three rounds and eight chefs vying to win a restored &#8217;49 truck. It is gorgeous! The first round kicks off on <strong>Monday, January 22<\/strong> and continues through the week. The semifinals are the following week and the final showdown will be on <strong>Wednesday, February 7th<\/strong>. This year&#8217;s competing chefs are <strong>Trey Cleveland<\/strong> of <strong>Top of the Hill<\/strong>, Chapel Hill; <strong>Matt Hannon<\/strong> of <strong>Ironwoods Cafe<\/strong>, Southern Pines; <strong>Jonathan Ballard<\/strong> of <strong>Dean&#8217;s Kitchen and Bar<\/strong>, Cary; <strong>James Patterson<\/strong>, <strong>McConnell Golf Dining<\/strong>; <strong>Troy Stauffer<\/strong>, <strong>City Club<\/strong>, Raleigh; <strong>Aaron Matyac<\/strong>, <strong>Whiskey Kitchen<\/strong>, Raleigh; <strong>Dean Thompson<\/strong>, <strong>Raleigh Renaissance Hotel<\/strong>; and <strong>Nick Fay<\/strong>, <strong>Coquette<\/strong>, Raleigh. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lucydanielscenter.org\/special-events\/cooking-for-a-classic\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Get a peek at the truck and all the details here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Mark your calendars for the return of <strong>Triangle Restaurant Week<\/strong> &#8211; <strong>January 22-28, 2018<\/strong>. During <strong>TRW<\/strong>, participating restaurants offer special three-course menu options and fixed pricing, a great opportunity to try places you&#8217;ve never been before &#8211; or to enjoy your old reliables with a new twist. No reservations, tickets or passes required. <a href=\"https:\/\/trirestaurantweek.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Get all the details and a list of participating restaurants here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>The <strong>Cary Rotary Club<\/strong> is hosting its <strong>15<sup>th<\/sup> annual Chili Dinner<\/strong> fund-raiser to <strong>Stop Hunger<\/strong> on <strong>Friday, January 26<\/strong> at <strong>Kirk of Kildare Presbyterian Church<\/strong> (200 High Meadow Drive in Cary) between the hours of <strong>12 and 2 p.m.<\/strong> and <strong>5 and 7 p.m.<\/strong> This year they are working toward providing 94,000+ meals internationally and generating $11,000+ to support local hunger relief efforts. Each $8 ticket purchased will send ~19 meals internationally and $2.40 to relieve hunger in our own neighborhoods.\u00a0 International meals are typically served in schools. Doing so encourages attendance and supports education\/literacy. Delicious meals prepared by <strong>Whole Foods Market<\/strong> will be served at lunch and dinner. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/events\/1774303596206318\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Get details on their Facebook event page here<\/b><\/span><\/a><strong>.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Tyler\u2019s Restaurant &amp; Taproom<\/strong> and <strong>Sam\u2019s Quik Shop<\/strong> will host the <strong>6th Annual Bull City Food and Beer Experience<\/strong> on Sunday, <strong>February 25<\/strong>. The event features 30 restaurants paired with 30 breweries spread throughout all three <strong>DPAC<\/strong> floors featuring unlimited samplings and the Harris On Stage Experience showcasing local food trucks with the help of <strong>County Fare<\/strong>, a daily food truck rodeo opening soon. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bullcityexperience.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Get all the details and tickets here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>March 17<sup>th<\/sup><\/strong> is the date for the second annual <strong>Food Shuttle Garden Gallop 5K<\/strong> to benefit the <strong>Inter-Faith Food Shuttle&#8217;s Growing School Gardens program<\/strong> (better known as the <strong>Sean is Faster Than Gordon race<\/strong>). Put it this way, if I can do it, you can do it! Come on out and support a great cause. <a href=\"https:\/\/app.racereach.com\/event\/food-shuttle-garden-gallop-5k-run-walk\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Register and get all the details here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Durham Magazine<\/strong>, <strong>Chapel Hill Magazine<\/strong> and <strong>Chatham Magazine<\/strong> return with their popular culinary event, <strong>Taste<\/strong> to take place <strong>April 18-22<\/strong> highlighting the culinary talents along the Durham\/Chapel Hill corridor. The event will feature over 30 of the area\u2019s top chefs at four unique events throughout the week. <a href=\"http:\/\/tastetheevent.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Keep up with the latest and get tickets here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>And looking ahead a bit, it was announced this week that <strong>Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina<\/strong> will host a culinary event called <strong>Thrive NC<\/strong> set to take place at downtown Raleigh&#8217;s <strong>City Market<\/strong> on <strong>May 10-11<\/strong>. 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 <strong>two-day food festival<\/strong> 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. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.gothrivenc.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Keep up with the details as they unfold here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Food Bank Corner<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>\u00a0Looking to get your company involved (in a very easy way) in fighting hunger in our community? <strong>Virtual Food Drives<\/strong> increase the impact of your donations! For every $1 donated, the <strong>Food Bank<\/strong> can provide $10 worth of food, thanks to their partnerships and buying power! Create a personal page and invite your friends and family to browse through our virtual grocery aisles, add items to a shopping cart, and check-out by making a monetary donation. Consider making it a team effort by organizing a competition between your neighbors, within your company, or among your community by easily setting up a team page. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.foodbankcenc.org\/site\/TR?fr_id=1122&amp;pg=entry\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><b>Find out how to set up a Virtual Food Drive here<\/b><\/span><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Triangle Restaurant News Triangle restaurant news&#8230;that not everyone knows. Impress your co-workers at the water cooler. Featured Restaurant News With 65,000 votes cast in his year&#8217;s WRAL.COM Voters&#8217; Choice Awards, the winners were announced this past Tuesday at Level 7 &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/trianglefoodblog.com\/?p=721\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-721","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/trianglefoodblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/721","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/trianglefoodblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/trianglefoodblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trianglefoodblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trianglefoodblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=721"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/trianglefoodblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/721\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":722,"href":"https:\/\/trianglefoodblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/721\/revisions\/722"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/trianglefoodblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=721"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trianglefoodblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=721"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trianglefoodblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=721"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}