Foodie News: Trophy Brewing is expanding

RALEIGH, N.C. — Who doesn't like big trophies - the bigger the better, right? Such is the case with the news this week that the Morgan Street location of Trophy Brewing Co. will build a new brewing system that focuses on expanding its sour and barrel-aged program while also adding more outdoor seats along the front of the building. Congrats to David Meeker, Chris Powers and David "Woody" Lockwood on their continued success.

Over in Cary, the News & Observer reported this week that after months of selling bagels, biscuits and doughnuts at pop-ups on weekends, the owners of downtown Cary's Pizzeria Faulisi, Amber and Zach Faulisi, will open Big Dom's Bagel Shop in the recently closed Little Caesar's pizza spot out in front of Pizzeria Faulisi. They signed a lease this week. They are aiming to open in 2018 and will also be using the drive-thru window to dole out the breakfast goods.

We told you about this last October, but it was recently announced that next month will see the opening of Viva in the former McAlister's Deli location in North Hills. With multiple locations in and around Charlotte, this will be the first Triangle-area location for the rotisserie joint that specializes in pollo a la brasa.

In coffee news, John Huisman, aka Triangle Explorer, shared via Twitter that Benelux will soon open another location in downtown Raleigh. They currently have a location in Cameron Village as well as in the Alexander Family YMCA on Hillsborough Street. No word yet on the exact location or the timing. Stay tuned.

Got word from the folks over at North Hills that Raleigh's sixth location of Chipotle will open this fall in the Lassiter District, between Panera Bread and Verizon Wireless.

Up in north Raleigh, reader Paul Prause notified us that Jasmin & Olivz Mediterranean restaurant will open another location in the old NY Pizza spot in Falls Village next to Tropical Smoothie and Smashburger (6679 Falls of Neuse Road to be exact). This will be their 7th Triangle-area location. No word yet on an open date.

In Morrisville, Peppers' owners Jess and Missy Fowler announced that as of June 1st their long time general manager Rebekah Rhodes will be assuming her new role as the owner of Peppers. There is no doubt the 9-year-old sandwich shop is in great hands having personally worked with Rebekah for many years! Stop by to wish Jess and Missy well in their next chapter as they will be around for a bit longer to help with the transition.

Earlier this month Will Pettis, owner of The Kitchen Archive, a commercial kitchen where business owners in the food and beverage industry can rent shared or private kitchen spaces, has opened a second location in Raleigh (the first one is in Durham and has a waitlist). Raleigh is larger and already has 17 tenants, with room for about 40 more.

And down in Fuquay-Varina buddy David McCreary notified me that Abbey Road Bar & Grill plans to open it's third Triangle location. The newest Abbey Road will be located at 7711 N. Main Street in Fuquay-Varina in the former Cooley's Restaurant & Pub spot. No word yet on a timeline.

Amber Watson at Bites of Bull City reported this week that the vacant warehouses and garages on Geer and Foster Street will fill quickly this summer with the announcement that Hutchins Garage, a full-service bar serving Grandma-style pizza, salads, and sandwiches, will be moving in.

A brief update, as we haven't heard much regarding the newest location of Neomonde in Durham. We reached out to them this week and learned that after a few construction delays, they are moving along and planning to open next month.

Over on Duke's campus, the JB Duke Hotel announced a new executive chef this week - Troy Stauffer, who has served the past three years as the sous chef as sister property, Washington Duke Inn & Golf Club. Prior to that he was executive chef over at City Club Raleigh.

And we cannot go without paying our respect to an amazing woman and leader in the industry that we lost this week. Our prayers are with the family and friends of Mildred Council, aka Mama Dip. She was 89. She opened Mama Dips in 1976. Services are this Sunday.

Reader Dave Scocca reported that Spice and Curry, near the intersection of Highways 54 and 55 in Durham, has closed.

And the folks over at EatRaleigh reported that the Freshii on Hillsborough Street in Raleigh has a sign stating it's permanently closed.

The Knightdale Food Truck Thursdays went back into full swing this month. Trucks will be on hand for lunch and dinner each Thursday at the Knightdale Station Park. Thanks to Mark Ginsberg for the heads up.

NC Sugar Rush. Sign me up! Seriously, check this out. Its Raleigh's first all-dessert food truck rodeo, taking place Memorial Day weekend, Sunday, May 27th from 1-5pm in downtown Raleigh's City Market. More than 20 local dessert vendors will be there to serve you. Come and enjoy a dessert bouquet like no other featuring ice cream, Italian ice, pies, cakes, cupcakes, cheesecake, popcorn, cotton candy, beignets, donuts and much more. Get all the details on their Facebook event page here.

Sunday, June 24 is the date for the next Wake Forest Food Truck Rodeo being held from 12 to 4 p.m. at the Over the Falls shopping center located at 405 S. Brooks St.

The dates have been set for the Durham Central Park Food Truck Rodeo and Downtown Raleigh Food Truck Rodeos. Check out Durham here and Raleigh here.

Two great sites to keep up with your favorite food trucks. Street Food Finder is one, and another, aptly named, is Roaming Hunger.

June 1 is National Donut Day. You know what to do. What to look for. Be prepared. Plan accordingly. Enough said.

The 2018 version of Farm to Fork expanded to three events over several seasons and tickets to all three just went on sale. The fun begins with the first event on June 3, the perennial favorite Farm to Fork Picnic, where the area’s best farmers and chefs are paired. Then on September 16 they’ll host a pop-up dinner featuring Jacob Boehm of Snap Pea Underground & Catering. And the series will conclude on December 6t with John T. Edge and a celebration of Southern food on Chapel Hill’s Lavender Oak Farm. You can buy ticket to each individual event or all three.

Also on June 3, PORCH, an all-volunteer, grassroots nonprofit organization that distributes food to hundreds of at-risk families in Chapel Hill and Carrboro, will host its first-ever PORCHfest from 5 to 8 p.m. on the Lawn at Southern Village. The free event will feature rhythm-and-blues band Too Much Fun along with goodies available from Al’s Burger Shack, Maple View Farms and Carolina Brewery as well as several Southern Village-located businesses including Pazzo – with proceeds benefiting PORCH’s fresh food program.

On June 11, Mandolin chef Sean Fowler welcomes author Debbie Moose, an award-winning journalist and author of many cookbooks, for a dinner celebrating the debut of her newest book, “Carolina Catch,” a 96-recipe cookbook highlighting North Carolina seafood. Joining Fowler for this summer celebration of N.C. seafood and beer are Ryan Speckman and Lin Peterson from Locals Seafood Market & Oyster Bar, Ricky Moore of Saltbox Seafood, Nate Garyantes of Mateo bar de tapas, and Jake Wood of 18 Seaboard for a five-course, beer-paired dinner featuring seasonal beers from Bond Brothers Beer Company, Fullsteam Brewery, Brewery Bhavana and more.

The 2018 version of Chefs for Change, a fundraising dinner series that pairs the burgeoning Durham food scene with the needs of families experiencing homelessness, is well underway. The first two events (featuring Charlie Deal on March 12 and Scott Howell on May 14) have sold out. And if last year is any indication, the next two dinners will sell out quickly. The July 9 event features Phoebe Lawless (The Lakewoodand Scratch) and the September 10 event features Gocciolina’s Aaron Benjamin. Each night the chef will serve three or more courses at a ticketed dinner with the proceeds benefiting Families Moving Forward. The dinners are held at the Rickhouse and limited to 125 people.

And finally, listen up chefs! The NCRLA Chef Showdown is an annual statewide culinary competition sponsored by the NC Department of Ag. It’s a culinary competition open to chefs (savory and pastry) across the state. There are three regional semi-finalist rounds (New Bern May 22, Hickory June 4 and Raleigh, June 25) that will result in a final competition on Monday, Aug 27 in Charlotte. The final event is in conjunction with the first night of the industry’s Restaurant & Hotel Expo.

May is Older Americans Month. Although food insecurity affects people of all ages, seniors are particularly vulnerable. The folks at the Food Bank of Eastern and Central North Carolina know that reaching seniors with nutritious, dependable sources of food leads to amazing outcomes for families and communities. They have a fresh video here, as well as a blogpost here that highlights how they are working to solve senior hunger. #SolveSeniorHunger