Friday Fun Food Facts - August 19, 2011

Triangle Restaurant News

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

• One open, two to go. Downtown Raleigh's much anticipated Beasely's Chicken + Honey, the creation of Poole's Diner owner Ashley Christensen, opened this week. And there are two more establishments on the way for Christensen - Chuck's, a burger joint next door, will open in about two weeks. And that will be followed by Fox Liquor Bar - aiming to open the 2nd weekend in September. Keep up with all of Ashley's restaurants here.  

• The Jack Astor's in Cary has closed - it did so at the end of last month. However, on their facebook page, they direct you to pay attention to the October opening of a JD's Tavern in Apex at 800 W Williams St. Apparently there will be some familiar faces from Jack Astor's. We'll keep you posted. 

• Last week we told you about the "re-opening" of Hectors in Chapel Hill. Well, it is actually The Thrill at Hectors and the "bar side" of it opened this week. But you can't get a Greek Grilled Cheese just yet. The "kitchen side" of the Chapel Hill legend, won't open until the end of this month. Keep up with the latest on their Facebook page.   

• Speaking of Chapel Hill legends, the rumors are circulating again about the rebirth of The Rathskeller. While it appears that there is more "activity" happening with these latest rumors, there is still a lot that has to happen in order to bring back "The Rat." We'll continue to watch it...and keep our fingers crossed!

• And speaking of rumors, here's a good one. It was "tweeted" last week that Jimmy Stubbs, from the Pittsboro "version" of Allen & Son Barbecue, is bringing his operation to Raleigh with the planned opening of Five Points BBQ. While this hasn't been confirmed and there are conflicting stories out of Pittsboro, there is a Twitter feed (@5PointsBBQ), and there is renovation work taking place at the corner of Oberlin and Fairview. We'll continue to watch this. 

• The original El Rodeo on Hillsborough Street (now 18 years old) is getting a new name and a new feel. With a planned opening of next Tuesday, Chile Bomba will be a "funkier" and "bolder" version of El Rodeo. The restaurant, across the street from NC State at 2400 Hillsborough Street, remains in the Ibarra family. Keep up with the latest here. 

• We told you about this last week, but Joel Lane's Public House, located in Raleigh's Glenwood South behind The Diner, is now open. The chef is William Thornton, who most recently worked at Gravy. Check out their website here.   

• According to the N&O, brothers Eddy and Galo Andrade are opening the Latin Grill in Clayton today at 876 Gulley Drive off of Highway 70. The 49-seat restaurant will serve Portuguese and Argentinian food, including grilled steaks, ribs and chicken. It will be open for lunch and dinner every day from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.  

• If you're looking for a new place to enjoy wings (that isn't a sports bar) we've got good news for you. East Coast Wings & Grill has opened in the Cornerstone Village Shopping Center at the corner of  Davis and High House Roads in Cary. There are plans to open three to five additional locations here in the Triangle area over the next few years. The restaurant features over 75 flavors of wings. Visit them here.

• The Tasty Beverage Company will open its doors this Monday (Aug. 22) at 6 p.m. They are located in the Raleigh Depot district in downtown Raleigh adjacent to the Union Tavern, Tuscan Blu and Jibarra (and across from Spy). At the opening, there will be tons of vendors providing free samples and their shelves will be stocked with over 500 different beers available for purchase.

• It is official...the latest version of Raleigh's Q Shack is now open at the food court in Crabtree Valley Mall. They opened to huge crowds this past Saturday. Congratulations to Tom Meyer and his team and partners.

• Want to take a tour of Larry's Beans? They have scheduled another of their extremely popular tours on Saturday, September 24th. These fill up quick, so email them soon if you are interested - tours@larrysbeans.com. Let them know how many people are in your group (6 max) and your contact information. This is limited to 150 people.

• Congratulations to Martin's Curry Rice on their one-year anniversary. To celebrate, join them this Sunday (Aug. 21) from 12 to 5 p.m. with festivities including live music, games and kids' activities.  

• The Western Wake Farmers' Market is holding an old-fashioned pig pickin' with live music, kids' entertainment and raffle prizes on Saturday, Sept. 10 from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. Tickets are $8 in advance, $10 beginning on Sept. 1. Tickets for kids are just $5. Visit their home page for more information.   

• Acme restaurant over in Carrboro is hosting another wine dinner this Sunday (Aug. 21). It will feature the spectacular wines of importer Rudi Weist. The cost is $58 per person and will get started at 6:30. Reservations are required by calling 919-929-2263.

• Downtown Raleigh Restaurant week is next week! Over 30 downtown Raleigh restaurants will be offering special prix fixe menus from Aug. 22-28 offering three-course meals for either $20 or $30. And this year, for the first time, many restaurants will offer beer or wine pairings for an additional $10. To see menus and the complete list of restaurants, go here.

• Tickets for the 2011 World Beer Festival in Durham (October 8, 2011) are now on sale to ther general public. If you want to go, better buy them now. They tend to go fast!