Triangle Foodie News: Durham chefs team up to open deli

RALEIGH, N.C. —

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The News & Observer reported that two well known Durham chefs are teaming up to open a new deli in downtown Durham. Matt Kelly, who owns Mateo Tapas and Vin Rouge, is partnering with Drew Brown, former co-owner of Piedmont restaurant and staff chef at Firsthand Foods, to open Lucky’s Deli on West Chapel Hill Street. Lucky’s will be located at 105 W. Chapel Hill Street, two doors down from Mateo’s. It will share dining room space and bathrooms with Mothers & Sons Trattoria, an Italian restaurant that Kelly is opening in early spring 2016 with chef Josh DeCarolis. Look for an early spring 2016 opening.

A new tavern is heading to Raleigh’s Hillsborough Street in a former auto body shop located directly across from Char-Grill. Dram & Draught is being developed by Drew Schenck, owner of the RallyPoint Sport Grill in Cary. As for the name of the new place, Dram is apparently a slang term for a small drink of whiskey, and Draught is the English spelling of draft, an adjective that describes beer served from a barrel or a tank as opposed to a bottle or a can. Thanks to James Borden at Raleigh Public Record for breaking this news.

Both New Raleigh and GoGoRaleigh are reporting that a new burger joint is coming to Glenwood South in the spot formerly occupied by Bruegger’s Bagels. We are a bit short on details at this point, but we do know it is being brought to us by the owners of SushiO Bistro & Sushi Bar, also located at 222 Glenwood Ave. No word yet on a timeline.

Tomorrow (Oct. 17), Smallcakes, A Cupcakery will have their grand opening at their new location at Parkside Town Commons. The event will feature face painting, a photo booth, giveaways and deals on cupcakes. It’s at 1132 Parkside Main St. in Cary.

This might be a little early to report, but it is worth watching. The Triangle Business Journal reported that Moshakos Real Estate, which is owned by LM Restaurants owner Lou Moshakos, recently purchased a 1.9-acre lot at the Publix-anchored Bradford retail center on High House Road in Cary. No word yet on which of the company’s brands would be featured on the site. We will keep an eye on it.

We told you about it last week, but the Triangle Business Journal reported this week that Noodles & Company in the Beaver Creek Commons shopping center in Apex is now open. This is their 8th Triangle-area location.

The latest trend of movies and dinner is coming to Chapel Hill beginning with a VIP screening event on Thursday, Oct. 22 at the much anticipated Silverspot Cinema in University Place (formerly University Mall). Tickets for the event are $25 and will benefit the Ronald McDonald House of Chapel Hill. The 13-screen theater will include a full-service restaurant and bar, plush leather seats and the screenings of independent and foreign films along with Hollywood blockbusters. Look for it to open to the public later this month.

Looks like next Saturday, Oct. 24 is the opening date of the newest location of Carolina Ale House. This will be their 9th location here in the Triangle. The location is on West Franklin Street in the former Chrysler building. Ten percent of the proceeds from the first seven days of business will go to the Ronald McDonald House of Chapel Hill. And as it is with all openings, particularly in Chapel Hill, please check in before heading out.

We told you about this last week, but Crepe Traditions, serving savory and sweet crepes at 140 W. Franklin Street in Chapel Hill, will celebrate its grand opening next Friday, Oct. 23 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. There will be an official ribbon cutting, free samples and five percent of proceeds from the day’s sales will benefit the NC Children’s Hospital.

The News & Observer reported this week that Durham-based Counter Culture Coffee is moving out of the place it has called home for 14 years on the Durham-Morrisville border to a 25,000-square-foot warehouse in east Durham. The location will be at 812 Mallard Ave., across the street from Triangle Brewing, and they are set to open in the spring of 2016. The new facility will allow Counter Culture to more than double its output from the 2 million pounds of coffee it currently roasts each year.

After over a year of brewing in the unique nanobrewery housed above The Cookery’s Front Room entrance, the Ponysaurus Brewing Co. brewery and taproom is opening its garage doors at 219 Hood Street. A Grand Opening celebration, featuring food trucks, live music, and local breweries will take place on Oct. 24 from 4 to 8 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

Triangle Food Blog friend Mike Brown tipped us off to the fact that Aladdin’s in Sutton Square in North Raleigh has closed. Reaching out to their corporate office, there are no immediate plans to open another location. Also in Sutton Square, got word this morning from Trish W. on Twitter that Rise Donuts will be opening soon in the old Brueggers spot.

Also, John Huisman (aka Triangle Explorer) informed me about the fact that every Thursday from September through November, the Town of Knightdale is hosting "Food Truck Thursdays" with a new food truck scheduled each week. The weekly truck will be parked at Knightdale Station Park near the amphitheater each Thursday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

For a listing of ALL food truck events, head over to Art Sheppard's page, The Wandering Sheppard on all things food truck related here.

Downtown Raleigh artisan gift store The Green Monkey (located at 1217 Hillsborough St.) is celebrating their two year anniversary in a very unique way - they have added a craft beer bar! Beginning this weekend they will be offering three selections of beers on tap in addition to their 35 + selections in bottles and cans. Now that is my kind of shopping!

The annual Downtown Raleigh Oktoberfest is this Saturday (1-8 p.m.) and Sunday (1-7 p.m.) at Mordecai Historic Park. The event centers around a 4,000 square foot tent, bounce houses for the kids, live music, German food and beer steins! Day of event tickets will be $7 and free for kids.

The 2015 Triangle Vegfest will be held at Moore Square and City Market in downtown Raleigh on Saturday, Oct. 17 from noon until 5 p.m.

Also this Saturday is Knightdale's Drafts & Carafes Festival. This event will be held at the Knightdale Station Park and feature local wineries, breweries, vendors selling beer/wine related crafts/artwork, music and food trucks.

Durham’s SEEDS announced a new chef dinner series called “The Fork Less Traveled” where they pair Durham chefs with local farms and beverage purveyors while supporting the Durham garden-based programming. While these will continue through the spring with a line-up of uber-talented chefs, the next one is this Sunday, Oct. 18, featuring Piedmont’s Greg Gettles.

The Root Cellar Cafe & Catering announced that their fourth annual Porkapalooza will be held this year on Oct. 23 at 6:30 p.m. The dinner will feature nine courses celebrating local pork: wood-fired suckling pigs; five-spice, beer-braised pork belly slider with pickled ginger; fried ravioli stuffed with Southern-style BBQ pork and macaroni and cheese, country-fried pork tenderloin pumpkin biscuit slider with bacon mayo and apple slaw, and more. The cost is $55 per person, including beer or wine pairing.

Chickenwire is holding their next “pop-up” dinner on Sunday, Oct. 25 in Raleigh (exact location is a secret until just before the event). This dinner has an Oktoberfest theme where you’ll grab your complimentary beer stein at the door, and enjoy German-inspired foods - passed hors d'oeuvres, a carving station and a smorgasbord featuring sausages and other culinary surprises. $90 gets you unlimited food and 2 drinks. Get your tickets and see a complete list of all the chefs and collaborators involved here. Thanks to Felicia Perry-Trujillo for the tip on this event.

The town of Garner will hold their second Downtown Garner Trick or Eat Food Truck Rodeo on Oct. 25 from 12-5 on Main Street. They’ll have 14 food trucks, 3 craft brewers, and some activities for children. You can find more details here or on their Facebook event page here.

Barbecue expert and personality, Roland Dickey, Sr., will be in Raleigh Thursday, Oct. 29 hosting a guest appreciation event at Dickey’s Barbecue Pit, located at 6552 Glenwood Ave. from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The store will offer $1 pulled pork sandwiches during the event, and Mr. Dickey will autograph and give away cookbooks to the first 100 guests. One guest will win free barbecue for a year! Dickey’s has 6 Triangle-area locations.

The folks over at Triangle Foodie Adventures have announced their next two dinners. The first is on Tuesday, Nov. 3 at The Rockford on Glenwood Avenue in Raleigh. The Rockford has put together a 6 course menu (including a glass of wine) that will delight your tastebuds. They will do it again on Nov.14 , this time at The Refectory Cafe in Durham.

And finally, this event isn’t until November, but I’m here to tell you if you wait much longer you won’t be able to get a ticket. Acme Restaurant in downtown Carrboro will host its 3rd Annual Salt and Smoke event on Sunday, Nov. 8. They describe it as “oysters and barbecue, music and friends."

Also on Nov. 8, another pop-up dinner is being held by the folks over at The Familiar Supper Club over in Durham. The dinner is at 6:30 p.m. The theme is Pumpk(hen) and will feature all that is bountiful in North Carolina in the fall. Join chefs John Childers, Evan Sheridan and Greg Gettles. Cost is $80. Thanks to Felicia Perry-Trujillo for the tip on this event.

And thanks to a tip from Felicia Perry-Trujillo, we learned that The Wine Feed is partnering with Stop Hunger Now and Green Button Farm to bring you Pork & Vine - a pork and wine festival. On Nov. 8, from 12-4 p.m. our 5 restaurant partners will be preparing their pork-inspired dishes in small plates for you to enjoy - all of the pork is provided by Green Button Farm, a humane, certified organic, non-GMO farm. Each small plate will have a sample of wine to match that will be specifically chosen by The Wine Feed. The cost ranges from $40-$50.

Expressions V. A Celebration of Food and Art will bring together philanthropists, food and wine enthusiasts and lovers of the arts. The annual event will be held on Friday, November 20 at The Umstead Hotel and Spa in Cary, N.C., and will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Lucy Daniels Center. The featured artist for this year’s event is Beverly McIver.

Hunger Relief Day is next Thursday, Oct. 22 at the NC State Fair! Nothing could be finer... than getting free admission to the NC State Fair! All you have to do is bring 5 cans of Food Lion brand food to our volunteers and staff members at any gate on Thursday, Oct. 22 in exchange for a free admission ticket to the fair. That's right! More than 400 Food Bank volunteers and staff members will be waiting at the gates to collect your cans. Food Lion Hunger Relief Day is one of the largest one-day canned food drives in the state. Since 1993, more than 4.3 million pounds of food have been donated.