TRIANGLE FOOD BLOG

Triangle Restaurant News

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

Featured Restaurant News

• The News & Observer reported last week that chef Mike Lee, who operates M Sushi and M Kokko, has plans for 5 more restaurants. Next up, M Kogi and M Taco which he hopes to open in the 4^th quarter of this year. Lee likes the model of his restaurants opening adjacent to each other and sharing a kitchen. Once Kogi and Taco are up and running, Lee will shift to his next projects: one built around Buddhist cuisine and offering a vegan menu and another that’s essentially a permanent pop-up spot, with the menu and chef changing often, but the space staying the same. And finally, Lee ultimately plans to launch a non-profit fast-casual concept. This is going to be fun to watch (and enjoy!). Check our M Sushi here and M Kokko here.

Wake County Restaurant News

• In downtown Raleigh it was announced this week that O-Ku Sushi, an Asian restaurant with locations in Charleston, Atlanta and Charlotte, will open at The Dillon this summer. They were named “Top 20 Best New Restaurant” by Esquire in 2010 and “Best Sushi Restaurant in the U.S.” by Travel + Leisure in 2013. Go ahead and get familiar with them here.

• And rejoice…WRAL reported this week that Smashed Waffles (all waffles, all the time) opened this week at 2304 Hillsborough Street, directly across from NC State. Check out the Greenville-based concept here.

• Last week the folks over at Zen Fish on Durham’s Ninth Street announced that they had officially started construction on their second location – this one in the Weston Corners Plaza on Chapel Hill Road in Cary/Morrisville (next to Guasaca and Famous Toastery. Check them out here. Thanks to Jenny Bengen Albert for the tip.

• Up in North Raleigh John Huisman, aka Triangle Explorer, brought it to our attention that Kwench Juice Bar is opening soon in the Falls Point shopping center. They will be serving up Acai bowls, salads, juices and smoothies. Check them out here.

• And I’m happy to report that North Hill’s Vivace Italian restaurant has reopened after taking on extensive damage due to a burst water pipe in early January. Get by and welcome them back! Check them out here.

Durham, Orange & Chatham Restaurant News

• This is going to be big! Monday, February 19^th will be the grand opening of a new fast-casual restaurant called Sushiōki (“Oki” means big in Japanese) at 4900 Highway 55 (near the intersection with Highway 54, next to Brigs restaurant). The concept features large, burrito-sized sushi rolls, both traditional (raw tuna, raw salmon, tempura shrimp) and non-traditional (double fried chicken, southern pork BBQ, Korean bulgogi, and veggie). Can’t wait to check this place out. Find them here.

• And this is exciting. A viewer on WRAL shared the news that a ‘coming soon’ sign appeared for Duck Donuts over at Patterson Place in Durham. No word on a timeline, but we will definitely keep an eye on this. Check out Duck Donuts here.

• Considering my daughter’s name and the fact I love cheesecake, I was excited to learn from Bites of Bull City’s Amber Watson that Lily’s Cheesecake Bakery & Cafe held their grand opening this past week. They are located at 5504 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd. Check them out here.

• In downtown Durham, the owners of the popular restaurant Old Havana are in the process of transitioning into a new concept, Copa (a farm to table tapas and cocktails of old Cuba), in the old Revolution. They are looking to open the new venture in March. However, to complete that dream, they are asking for community support to make renovations/furnishings possible. If you are inclined to help, click here.

• Amber Watson at Bites of Bull City tweeted this week that it looks like Khaja’s Curry on 9th Street is open, where Chubby’s used to be at 748 Ninth Street. We could not find an online presence for them. Will have to just go by and check it out!

• Glen Gillen notified me that the Amante Pizza in the Hope Valley Shopping Center in Durham (3825 S. Roxboro Road) has closed and has been replaced by a Subway. He also pointed out that there is a new outparcel across the street with signage that says “New Tokyo” but it appears to still be under construction.

• Over in Chapel Hill, things are starting to become a little clearer as to what is happening with the former One space in Meadowmont. It will become Fusion Fish, a global Asian fusion restaurant featuring sushi and spirits and cocktails. They won’t commit to anything more definite than “opening soon” so we will just have to keep peeking in the windows for now. Keep up with them on Facebook here.

• Also in Chapel Hill, we are not certain if this is a move or a second location, but we do know for sure that the Korean restaurant MinGa is moving into the former Captain Poncho  (and before that, Mixed) space on Franklin Street, near the intersection with Estes Drive. Look for them to open the new space in March. Check them out here. Thanks to Matthew, the Burgeoning Baker, for the tip.

• Chapel Hill’s Franklin Street will get another pizza joint soon. The Pizza Press, a create your own pizza concept, will be located just down from Target in Carolina Square (formerly University Square) at 123 W. Franklin Street. And snooping around their site, it looks like they will also open a location in Raleigh, just don’t know where just yet (guessing Hillsborough Street??). Check them out here.

• And while on the subject of Carolina Square on Franklin Street, signage went up recently for the next location of B.Good. They already have locations in Morrisville, downtown Raleigh and Raleigh’s North Hills. No word on a timeline for the Chapel Hill location. Check out B.Good here.

Closings

• And this is a hard one to report, but Indy Week was the first to report that Scratch will be closing their 8-year-old location in downtown Durham to focus on their newest ventures – “Baby Scratch” and the Lakewood on Chapel Hill Street. They will close at the end of this month, so there is still time to get by!

• Got word from reader Scott Eaton that SiP Bistro in Holly Springs (once featured on Restaurant Impossible)has closed.

Food Trucks

• 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.

• For those that live in and/or frequent North Raleigh, you will be happy to know that Mr. Sticky’s Sticky Buns food truck has opened and can be found at 9229 Capital Blvd. next to Pro Tire. Check them out on Facebook here. Congrats to Ed Hall!

• 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

•  The 2018 version of the Lucy Daniels Center Cooking for a Classic is coming to a conclusion as chef Matt Hannon of Ironwood Cafe goes up against chef Dean Thompson of Raleigh Renaissance Hotel on February 7^th. Tickets are still available. Get a peek at the truck and tickets here.

• The Cary Rotary Club is hosting its 15^th annual Chili Dinner fund-raiser to Stop Hunger on Friday, January 26 at Kirk of Kildare Presbyterian Church (200 High Meadow Drive in Cary) between the hours of 12 and 2 p.m. and 5 and 7 p.m. 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.  International meals are typically served in schools. Doing so encourages attendance and supports education/literacy. Delicious meals prepared by Whole Foods Market will be served at lunch and dinner. Get details on their Facebook event page here.

• Tyler’s Restaurant & Taproom and Sam’s Quik Shop will host the 6th Annual Bull City Food and Beer Experience on Sunday, February 25. The event features 30 restaurants paired with 30 breweries spread throughout all three DPAC floors featuring unlimited samplings and the Harris On Stage Experience showcasing local food trucks with the help of County Fare, a daily food truck rodeo opening soon. Get all the details and tickets 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.

• And looking ahead a bit, it was announced this week that Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina will host a culinary event called Thrive NC set to take place at downtown Raleigh’s City Market on May 10-11. 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.

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.

Triangle Restaurant News

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

Featured Restaurant News

• And let the water cooler debates begin. The much-anticipated “Restaurant of the Year” list has been released by the News & Observer’s Greg Cox. The annual release of the areas best restaurants was unveiled this week and a huge kudos (and much deserved nod) goes to Scott Crawford and his Crawford & Son restaurant as this year’s top restaurant. Lots of other restaurants also earned Cox’s praise. Check out this year’s list in the News & Observer here.

Wake County Restaurant News

• It is time for pizza. More specifically, The Pizza Times. That’s right, The Pizza Times joins downtown favorites The Raleigh Times Bar and The Morning Times and is serving up pizzas by the pie and by the slice. They are open 11 am – 2 am around the corner from The Raleigh Times at 210 Wilmington Street in downtown Raleigh. Check them out here.

• Over on Wake Forest Road in Raleigh in the same shopping center as Trader Joe’s, the Jersey Mike’s location has closed to make way for the first North Carolina location of a healthy fast casual restaurant concept called Gusto which seems to feature hand-crafted, fast-fired pizzas and yummy salads. Look for a late spring, early summer opening. Find out more about Gusto here.

• Got word from reader Michelle Hillison that a location of Pastries “N” Chaat is coming to Cary at 2711 Highway 55 in the space formerly occupied by La Carreta near the intersection with High House Road. The Indian franchise has locations in Arizona, Utah, California, Florida and Colorado. This is the first in North Carolina. Check them out here.

• Plates Neighborhood Kitchen is celebrating their 4^th year with some exciting changes, beginning with bringing back chef Sam Bradford as chef and Stephanie Schenck as general manager. Additionally, they are now open for lunch and have refreshed and renovated their dining space and outdoor patio. Congrats on 4 years and the new changes. Check out Plates here.

• Over in Morrisville, Michael DePersia of National Restaurant Properties notified me that they recently sold The Red Dragon Chinese Restaurant (4051 Davis Drive) to the group that also recently purchased David’s Dumpling and Noodle Bar on Hillsborough Street. They plan on keeping things the same and not making any changes. Check out Red Dragon here.

• And how do you make Taco Bell tasty? Booze, lots of booze. And that is exactly what is happening with a new Taco Bell coming to the ground floor of Raleigh’s 2304 Hillsborough Apartments according to the folks over at ITB Insider. They noted this week that a Taco Bell Cantina is set to open later this year and will offer, in addition to their normal fare, Sangria, wine and draft beers.

Durham, Orange & Chatham Restaurant News

• Over on Chapel Hill’s Franklin Street, my twitter colleague Burgeoning Baker brought it to my attention that Bonchon Chicken has opened in the former McAlister’s location. Bonchon is a franchise specializing in Korean-style fried chicken and a variety of savory Asian fusion dishes. They have 236 restaurants in nine countries with more than 63 in the United States. Get familiar with them here.

• Also on Franklin Street, got a note from Michael DePersia of National Restaurant Properties that they sold Artisan Pizza to a local restaurant group that will be converting it to a Hibachi style quick service restaurant. They plan to open in the next few weeks after completing a nice remodel. Stay tuned for additional information on that.

• In Durham, the folks over at Taste Carolina brought it to my attention that The Bullpen on Blackwell Street, adjacent to the Durham Bulls Athletic Park, recently had a grand re-opening of their kitchen. Their new kitchen is serving up a brand new expanded menu that highlights the beer offerings by Bull Durham Beer Co, and food items that include veggie melts, grain bowl salads, and beer infused chicken chili verde. Check them out here.

• And a quick kudos to owner and chef Bret Jennings of Elaine’s on Franklin in Chapel Hill as they celebrate 18 years! To commemorate the occasion, chef will hold a special anniversary dinner on January 28^th. Get a look at the menu and all the details here.

 

Closings

• Got word from reader Katie Zimmerman that Tarbouch on Creedmoor Road in Raleigh has closed.

• And it looks like Menchie’s at Sutton Square in Raleigh has closed.

Food Trucks

• 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

• Here’s a great time. I mean a really great time. The guys behind the NC Food & Beverage Podcast (Max and Matt) have teamed up with John May over at Piedmont in Durham to offer up their first dinner called “Pork & Rum” on Sunday, January 28^th. They will be pairing rums from Lassiter Distilling with a menu by May – think Caribbean-meets-Hawaiian-meets-North Carolina. And for the best part, it’s family-style, i.e. big tables, big plates and flowing cocktails. Tickets are $65. Get your tickets and all the details here.

• Also, the dates for the Lucy Daniels Center 2018 version of their popular Cooking for a Classic have been set. This year’s event consists of three rounds and eight chefs vying to win a restored ’49 truck. It is gorgeous! The first round kicks off on Monday, January 22 and continues through the week. The semifinals are the following week and the final showdown will be on Wednesday, February 7th. This year’s competing chefs are Trey Cleveland of Top of the Hill, Chapel Hill; Matt Hannon of Ironwoods Cafe, Southern Pines; Jonathan Ballard of Dean’s Kitchen and Bar, Cary; James Patterson, McConnell Golf Dining; Troy Stauffer, City Club, Raleigh; Aaron Matyac, Whiskey Kitchen, Raleigh; Dean Thompson, Raleigh Renaissance Hotel; and Nick Fay, Coquette, Raleigh. Get a peek at the truck and all the details here.

• Triangle Restaurant Week runs through this weekend ending on January 28. During TRW, participating restaurants offer special three-course menu options and fixed pricing, a great opportunity to try places you’ve never been before – or to enjoy your old reliables with a new twist. No reservations, tickets or passes required. Get all the details and a list of participating restaurants here.

• The Cary Rotary Club is hosting its 15^th annual Chili Dinner fund-raiser to Stop Hunger on Friday, January 26 at Kirk of Kildare Presbyterian Church (200 High Meadow Drive in Cary) between the hours of 12 and 2 p.m. and 5 and 7 p.m. 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.  International meals are typically served in schools. Doing so encourages attendance and supports education/literacy. Delicious meals prepared by Whole Foods Market will be served at lunch and dinner. Get details on their Facebook event page here.

• Tyler’s Restaurant & Taproom and Sam’s Quik Shop will host the 6th Annual Bull City Food and Beer Experience on Sunday, February 25. The event features 30 restaurants paired with 30 breweries spread throughout all three DPAC floors featuring unlimited samplings and the Harris On Stage Experience showcasing local food trucks with the help of County Fare, a daily food truck rodeo opening soon. Get all the details and tickets 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.

• And looking ahead a bit, it was announced this week that Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina will host a culinary event called Thrive NC set to take place at downtown Raleigh’s City Market on May 10-11. 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.

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.