TRIANGLE FOOD BLOG

Wake County Restaurant News

• Big news was announced last Friday (on National Donut Day nonetheless) that Rise Biscuits and Donuts will be opening a new franchise location in Raleigh’s Cameron Village in the fall of 2015! They also announced that the Morrisville location (Park West Village) is looking at a late summer opening. Check out Rise here.

• The Triangle Business Journal announced this week that MOD Pizza, a Seattle-based build-your-own-pizza concept, is opening its first Triangle restaurant at 2071 Millbrook Road, in the new Harris Teeter-anchored shopping center at the corner of Millbrook and Creedmoor roads in Raleigh. Look for them to open in July. Get a peek at them here.

• No more just movies and popcorn. Cobb Theaters announced this week that construction is underway at its newest CinéBistro location at Waverly Place in Cary. CinéBistro offers a world-class “dinner-and-a-movie” experience featuring a chef-run kitchen offering creative American bistro cuisine and full in-theatre service. You can also “wine and dine” there even if you aren’t coming to the movie. Look for them to open late summer. Get a look at them here.

Durham, Orange & Chatham County Restaurant News 

• The guys over at Mateo Tapas (Matt Kelly and Josh Decarolis) announced this week their newest project – Mothers & Sons, an Italian trattoria located right next to Mateo at 107 West Chapel Hill Street – will open this fall. Follow them on Twitter here. In the meantime, you can also check out Mateo here.

• This week my friends over at Bean Trader’s in Durham provided an update on their expansion. While it has been slow to unfold, things are starting to roll and it will be well worth the wait (think made-from-scratch waffles, a large centrally located bar, an alternative brew bar, new gender neutral bathrooms (and a family room) and two new registers for quicker check out and shorter lines). All very exciting. You can get all the details on their expansion here.

• We had already told you that the folks behind the food truck Porchetta have opened a “brick and mortar” location at the food court at the Streets at Southpoint in Durham. Now, the News & Observer’s Andrea Weigl has informed me that the food truck American Meltdown will move in “a few doors down” from that location. Look for them to open in early September. Check them out here.

• A quick shout out to Allen & Son Barbecue in Chapel Hill. They were named the best barbecue joint in the South by Southern Living magazine, putting them at the top of an impressive list of 50 of the best Southern barbecue restaurants. See the full list here.

• The Triangle Business Journal reported this week that Jersey Mike’s Subs has opened its third Durham location, this one at 7005 Fayetteville Road in the Renaissance Center at Southpoint. This marks the 27th Jersey Mike’s in the Triangle, according to the company’s website.

• Chowhounder Durhamois tipped me off to the fact that a new pho restaurant has opened (apparently it has been open for a number of months) at 2806 S Miami Blvd in Durham. It is called Bowl of Pho. Check them out here.

• Just a reminder that Il Palio restaurant in Chapel Hill’s Siena Hotel will close for major renovations this summer. They plan to close on June 15 and reopen on August 15th after close to $700,000 in renovations.

Closings 

• None to report this week! Keep eating local, folks!

Food Trucks 

Food Bank Corner

Part of a letter from Peter Werbicki, President & CEO of the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina:

In just a few short weeks, school will be ending. Most kids will be headed to camp or going on family vacations. Unfortunately, over 300,000 children will not be focused on activities of fun and relaxation. These kids will be focused on one thing: an empty stomach.

When schools close for summer break, cafeterias close. Children who have relied on free and reduced-cost breakfast and lunch go without these meals during the summer. The loss of this vital resource puts an additional strain on family food budgets that are already tight.

But together, we can help.

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, we are committed to providing 3.2 million meals.

Click the link above to see how you can help!

Wake County Restaurant News

• Taverna Agora Greek Kitchen & Bar has nearly completed its move from Glenwood Avenue to its new digs at 326 Hillsborough Street (between Holiday Inn and Second Empire). They are slated to open their doors next Tuesday, June 9th. It is a really cool space and I’ll have the pleasure of checking it out prior to their opening. But, put it on your calendar to visit next week! Get a sneak peak here.

• Got a tip from my friend John Huisman (aka Triangle Explorer) that he was in Lafayette Village recently and saw a banner at the former taqueria space announcing Top Dawgs Gourmet Hot Dog Company “Coming Soon.” The targeted opening date is the July 4 weekend. We will keep an eye on that.

• We told you about this last month, but the News & Observer shed a few more details on the expansion about to take place at Jason Smith’s Cantina 18 in Cameron Village. Basically they have outgrown their space so they are closing on June 14th (reopening in the fall) for a major expansion that includes the addition of a second story with an upstairs bar, covered balcony, glass elevator and private dining room that can accommodate large groups. Large windows capable of being opened on both floors will give the dining rooms an open-air feeling. In the meantime, visit one of Jason’s other restaurants.

•  Got word this week that Burger 21, a fast casual franchise, just announced its first Triangle location (second location in North Carolina) will be opening in Cary on Monday, June 8 at 14220 Bradford Green Square in the Bradford Shopping Center. The other location is in Charlotte. Check them out here.

• New Raleigh was the first to report that downtown Raleigh is getting a taco bike (and hopefully a fleet of bikes) later this month called El Taco Cartel. After inspections in July, they hope to be rolling around the streets sometime this summer. Not much to see yet, but here is their website.

Durham, Orange & Chatham County Restaurant News 

• It was announced this week that Joe Van Gogh Coffee will open its third Durham coffee house (the 4th is in Chapel Hill) in the Woodcroft Shopping Center at 4711 Hope Valley Road this fall. You can check out Joe Van Gogh here.

• I saw on a Yelp discussion board that a new restaurant called Epa Chamo, featuring Venezuelan areapas and cuisine, has opened on Ninth Street in the space that used to house Mitch’s. Couldn’t locate a web site for them.

• Saw in Triangle Business Journal that the owners of the Siena Hotel and its four-diamond rated Il Palio restaurant in Chapel Hill will be shutting down the dining room for two months this summer for what will be the first major renovation of the Italian-style restaurant in 23 years. They plan to close on June 15 and reopen on August 15th after close to $700,000 in renovations.

• Also in Chapel Hill, The Daily Tar Heel reported that Crepe Culture, a cafe serving a variety of crepes and coffee drinks, is set to open the first weekend in July and will replace Gigi’s Cupcakes, which closed its doors in November 2014 in the 140 West complex. Check them out here.

• Saw on WRAL last week that Greek Gussy’s food truck has officially opened its new restaurant Gussy’s Place at 2945 S. Miami Blvd. in Durham. Check them out here.

• The Triangle Business Journal reported this week that A Beaver Bog’s Ice Cream, a new pop-up ice cream shop, is open in Durham’s Northgate Mall. Their grand opening is tomorrow (June 6) and they be open through August 31. You can visit them on Facebook here.

Closings 

• None to report this week! Keep eating local, folks!

Food Trucks 

Food Bank Corner   

Part of a letter from Peter Werbicki, President & CEO of the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina:

In just a few short weeks, school will be ending. Most kids will be headed to camp or going on family vacations. Unfortunately, over 300,000 children will not be focused on activities of fun and relaxation. These kids will be focused on one thing: an empty stomach.

When schools close for summer break, cafeterias close. Children who have relied on free and reduced-cost breakfast and lunch go without these meals during the summer. The loss of this vital resource puts an additional strain on family food budgets that are already tight.

But together, we can help.

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, we are committed to providing 3.2 million meals. Click the link above to see how you can help!