Friday Fun Food Facts - July 23, 2010

Triangle Restaurant News

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

• They are rounding up the food trucks again in Durham - this Sunday, July 25 from 5-7:30 pm at the Durham Central Park pavilion (where the farmers market meets). The vendors include Only Burger, Daisy Cakes, Mom's Delicious Dishes, Parlez-Vous Crepe, Joe's Diner (hot dogs), Fired Flour (pizza), Indian Food on Wheels, Bulkogi Korean BBQ To Go and Locopops. Deejay Piddy Pat will play music. This is well worth the trip!
  
  
• If you've ever wanted the feeling of eating in a cook's kitchen, well hop on over to Chapel Hill where Kitchen just opened their doors. The small restaurant has taken shape in the former home of Ba-Da Wings next to Foster's on MLK Blvd. The restaurant boasts a menu that includes duck confit ($12 or $18 depending on the portion), seared salmon ($17) and four styles of mussels (all $12). Though not your everyday cookhouse, Kitchen has a laid-back, pleasant feel. It's open Tuesday through Sunday for dinner. Visit their site here.
  
  
• Tickets are on sale now for the Beer, Bourbon, and BBQ Festival (www.beerandbourbon.com) on Aug. 6 and 7 at Koka Booth Amphitheatre at Regency Park. The menu features 60 varieties of beers, 40 types of bourbon and 10 styles of barbecue. Tickets to the event allow unlimited access to tastes of beer and bourbon; barbecue costs extra, except at the Friday Night Pig Pickin'. At 3 p.m. on Saturday, catch up on a bit of bourbon history with Nikki Smith of Maker's Mark Distillery or see who's up for the title of Ms. Bar-B-Q-Babe or the Triangle's Best Beer Belly.
  

• With all this heat, who is thinking what I'm thinking? Yep, time for a skinny dip...That's right, The Skinny Dip frozen yogurt shop has opened its first Triangle area location beside Trader Joe's in Cary. They also will open a Quail Corners location in Raleigh soon. Check out their website here.
  
  
• Since we're talking about the heat, and cold refreshments... Everyone's favorite ice cream spot made a big change this past week for your convenience. This past Monday, Locopops started accepting credit cards at three of their Triangle area locations: 231 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill; 2600 Hillsborough Rd, Durham; 1908 Hillsborough St, Raleigh.
  
  
• Quizno's is back at it again, but this time they have sweetened the deal. Their coupon now is any small sub, chip and a fountain drink for $2.99. Yes, you read that right. You can't pack a lunch that cheap! But hurry, the coupon expires 7/30/2010 (OK, if you've been reading this newsletter, you know they'll have a new coupon next week, but everyone loves a little urgency!)
  
  
• The next downtown Cary Walking Food Tour is coming up on Saturday, July 31st at 1:30 p.m. The cost is $28 per person and includes tastings at 6-8 restaurants. Hurry, as space is limited. More details here.
  
  
• On Thursday, I noticed the finishing touches being put on the new Firehouse Subs in Chapel Hill's Meadowmont Village. As I got in my car, they were carrying the chairs in. Probably just a matter of days now!
  

• The Busy Bee Café in downtown Raleigh at 225 South Wilmington Street is offering weekly coffee tastings that are free and open to the public. Every Saturday at 10 a.m. featuring Counter Culture Coffee. Yummmmm!
  

• McDonald's Corp., which had planned a nationwide fruit smoothie sampling event July 22-24, called off the promotion due to unprecedented demand. Nice move MickeyD's.
  
  
• Here's a great site for coupons - especially under their Restaurant listings (a lot of BOGO offers). Visit here.
  

• If you're looking for the business spot to wheel and deal, you may want to hit the Angus Barn's Wild Turkey Bar & Lounge. The long-standing watering hole of Raleigh is featured in the July issue of Entrepreneur Magazine as one of 15 top bars in which to do business.
  
  
• The Raleigh restaurant community is coming together to aid one of its own. Hamid Mohajer, one of the owners of Mo's Diner in downtown Raleigh, has been diagnosed with Stage IV Cancer. The community is rallying around Hamid and his wife to help fight the disease and the mounting medical bills. If you feel compelled, please visit this link to learn more about some of the fundraisers that are being planned. Thanks!
  

• We've told you about these sites before, but they are worth mentioning on a regular basis as you really should check them out. Twongo, Groupon and Living Social feature a great deal here in the Triangle every day (typically 50-70% off) based on the general concept that the more people that buy, the more money everyone saves. The deals have become very popular here in the Triangle and have quite a following. If you haven't visited these sites (you'll want to sign-up for the daily e-mail), you really should. There are some GREAT deals on restaurants as well as other things like spas, facials, events, etc.
  

Kudos for Snapfinger Catering
We typically don't like to pat ourselves on the back, but this e-mail from a client that uses our site for her catering made us grin from ear to ear, so we thought we'd share it with you. Thanks Cindy!

Dear Sean:
Everything was perfect! The ordering process is super simple! Moe's arrived on time with my order exactly as I requested. The meeting attendees appreciated having something different for lunch. Snapfinger Catering made me look like a superstar! I look forward to tomorrow's lunch delivery ;-) Thanks for taking the hassle out of catering!

Extremely pleased customer,
Cindy Stoll, Square 1 Bank

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