Triangle Foodie News: Bolt to become pizza restaurant

RALEIGH, N.C. —

Featured Restaurant News

Well, you heard it here first. David Sadeghi is bringing another new and exciting concept to the Triangle food scene. Oct. 1 will be the last day of his downtown Raleigh restaurant Bolt. Beginning Oct. 2, he, along with Rudy Theale, will convert the space into Pizza La Stella. Look for them to re-open in mid-November. Theale will oversee the operations at La Stella. The two will also bring the pizza concept to the space next to Sadeghi’s Durham location of Town Hall Burger and Beer.

Recently while walking through Raleigh’s City Market, reader Chad Barringer noticed that Troy Mezze had closed and that there were signs in the window saying "City Market Sushi Coming Soon." No word yet on who is behind the new concept or when they plan on opening. We will keep an eye on it. Thanks Chad!

We must be getting close to the opening of the new location of Tobacco Road Sports Cafe which is moving into the former Natty Greene’s space at 505 West Jones St We saw an announcement about a “hiring fair” that is taking place today.

Also in Raleigh, friend Ashton Mae Smith brought attention to the fact that The Players’ Retreat has reopened their “new” kitchen and their full menu is back along with chef Beth Littlejohn’s features!

James Borden’s blog, Raleigh Public Record, noted this week that Crabtree Valley Mall will become the home to the first North Carolina location of of the chain restaurant Seasons 52. Seasons 52 is one of seven brands operated by Darden Restaurants. Five of these brands currently have Raleigh locations: Bahama Breeze, The Capital Grille, LongHorn Steakhouse, Olive Garden and The Yardhouse.

The Raleigh Public Record also noted that Ba-Da Wings! is set to open a second Raleigh location, this one at the Creedmoor Crossing shopping center at 6300 Creedmoor Road. The restaurant currently has a space at the Mission Valley Shopping Center on Avent Ferry Road. The new space should be opening pretty shortly, as it was an ABC Permit, not a construction permit, that was issued for the restaurant last week..

And the Raleigh Public Record also noted that on Aug. 17 permits were issued for the newest location of healthy-food chain Clean Eatz at the Celebration at Six Forks shopping center in North Raleigh. Clean Eatz is both a cafe/restaurant and a business that offers pre-prepared meals and meal plans.

The FoodCary blog noted this week that things are moving along again for the addition of Annelore’s German Bakery coming to 308 West Chatham St. The building on that site was demolished, making way for the brand new store. Annalore’s German Bakery currently has one store in Raleigh on Agriculture Street.

The Daily Tar Heel reported this week that the Franklin Street building where Fitzgerald’s used to be is getting a new resident - Might as Well Bar and Grill. Might as Well, which opened in Wilmington in 2012, is a college-town neighborhood sports bar. This will be the restaurant’s second and they haven’t set an open date as of yet.

Got word from Neal DePersia that after 18 years, partners Linda Bourne and Karin Mills sold their award winning restaurant Spotted Dog Restaurant & Bar in historic downtown Carrboro to Ed Corbell, a Carrboro resident and former assistant general manager at Maggiano’s at Southpoint.

While they have been open for a number of weeks now, Chapel Hill’s Chronic Tacos, located in Meadowmont Village, will hold their grand opening celebration from noon until 4 p.m. on Sunday, Sept.18. They will be giving away free tacos to the first guests, hosting a taco eating contest, live music - and a chance to meet professional skateboarder and television personality Jason “Wee Man” Acuña.

After reporting last week that Boheme was closed for “extensive renovations,” WRAL reported this week that they have closed and are converting the space to a catering kitchen.

It was announced this week that Pogo, the cafe operating at Marbles in downtown Raleigh, has closed and will be replaced by a new cafe in mid-September under new management. Stay tuned.

Beericana, a craft beer & music festival, is this Saturday, Sept. 10 at Sugg Farm Park in Holly Springs. Beericana features 70 breweries from across North Carolina and beyond, 20 food trucks and three live bands. Entry to the festival gets you unlimited tastings from the breweries. Food will be available for purchase from the many food trucks. . Thanks to Triangle Explorer for the reminder.

Also this weekend is the annual Raleigh Greek Festival, held in the Jim Graham Building at the NC State Fairgrounds. The festival runs today from 5-10 p.m., tomorrow from 11 a.m. until 10 p.m., and again on Sunday from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. Get by.

Black Twig Cider House in Durham will host their inaugural TxotxFest (pronounced “choach”) on Saturday, Sept. 10 from noon to 4 p.m. This event will bring regional and national cider producers and chefs together. It will feature tastings from the top cider houses on the east coast as well as food from chefs at Bona Fide, Durham Catering, Mateo, Oval Park Grille, PICNIC and Rise. They will also serve a whole de-boned, sausage – stuffed local pig from Firsthand Foods.

Dinner in the Meadow, a benefit for small farms, will take place on Sunday, Sept.11th from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. on a farm in Louisburg. Join them for farm-fresh local food and refreshments, prepared by the Triangle’s most talented chefs, served in the bucolic meadow of one of North Carolina’s oldest continually operating farms. WUNC’s Frank Stasio is your host for this special evening.

You don’t want to miss this event! Relish Cafe & Bar is holding a charity Mac and Cheese Throwdown and Bartender Showdown benefiting the Hope Center at Pullen on Saturday October 1st from 6pm to 11pm. Visit the website to get all the details and ticket information.

Not to be outdone by Durham, Raleigh is going to have their very own vegan cook-off between Sept.12 and Oct. 1. The Oak City Vegan Challenge will feature six restaurants offering special vegan dishes that diners can cast votes for their favorites. The event is modeled after the Bull City Vegan Challenge, which has been extremely successful over in Durham.

Hibernian Hospitality Group and Ed Mitchell are proud to announce Ed Mitchell’s Brews & ‘Cue event featuring Ed’s food truck “Q On Wheels” to be held at the Raleigh Beer Garden in downtown Raleigh on Saturday, September 17 from 5 p.m. until the food runs out. The renown pitmaster’s truck will feature his highly sought after signature barbecue offering a wide array of platters and sides.

The Third Annual Triangle Oktoberfest will take place at Cary’s Koka Booth Amphitheatre on September 23 and 24. Enjoy family-friendly activities such as music from the Little German Band, dancing, traditional Bavarian food and fare, wiener dog races, “Rock-toberfest” concerts by Four Founders and West Street Band, children’s play area and prizes for German attire. Children 16 and younger are free. Friday tickets: $15 in advance, or $20 at the door. Saturday tickets: $20 in advance, or $25 at the door.

Tickets to TerraVita are now on sale. And you better jump fast, as many of these events will sell out soon. Trust me. If you aren’t familiar with TerraVita, it is arguably the premier “foodie event” in the southeast, and it will take place September 28 through October 1 right here in Chapel Hill. In a nutshell, it is a multi-day celebration that brings together top chefs, food artisans, sommeliers, baristas, brewers, educators, distillers, cookbook authors and industry luminaries from across the Southeast to celebrate culinary excellence and sustainability in food and drink.

The 9th Annual Pepperfest taking place Sunday, Oct. 2 from 2-7 p.m. at Brier Chapel in Chatham County. The event features super delicious pepper-themed dishes and beverages, live music and children’s activities. It's a great outdoor event for this time of the year.

The Root Cellar Cafe & Catering in Chapel Hill is holding its fifth annual Porkapalooza on Friday, Oct. 14 at 6:30 p.m. The event will feature 12 small plate courses celebrating local pork, including roasted suckling pigs; beer cheese fondue with local sausages; fried green tomatoes topped with pimento cheese, beer-braised crispy pork belly and tomato jam; poutine with sweet potato fries, Seven Springs country gravy and Ashe County cheese; and bacon marshmallow s’mores. The dinner also includes Fullsteam beer pairings. Save $10 by ordering tickets by August 31.

Jennifer Noble Kelly sent me information this week about PICNIC, North Carolina’s newest whole hog barbecue joint, and its farm partner, Green Button Farm, hosting their inaugural NC Barbecue Revival at the farm this fall, October 28-30. The three-day weekend will be chock full of classes, discussions, feasts and pig pickins’.

Hunger Action Month is your opportunity to join a movement that has a real and lasting impact on our effort to feed more North Carolinians than ever before. Whether it’s by advocating and raising awareness, making donations, or volunteering, you can find the way that’s right for you to make a difference during Hunger Action Month.