WEB EXCLUSIVE If you have plans to spend time at home with your mother or a mother figure this holiday, consider ordering her a delicious meal to go from one of these local restaurants.
STIR
Brunch and dinner meals are available for pickup on Mother’s Day between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. Each meal serves five people and includes sides and a matcha green tea cheesecake with whipped cream and macerated berries. Preorder by 2 p.m. on Thursday, May 7. stirraleigh.com/mothers-day-brunch-dinner
Driftwood Kitchen & Bar
Driftwood’s Mother’s Day Feast includes a pre-cooked beef brisket with gravy, mashed potatoes and roasted vegetables. Place orders by April 7 to pick up on Saturday, May 9. driftwoodraleigh.com/mothersday
Mandolin
Find your mother’s favorite foods at Mandolin, including Southern tomato pie, baked ziti, mac and cheese and shrimp and grits, along with special treats such as strawberry shortcake. Place orders between Tuesday, May 5 at 3 p.m. and Thursday, May 7 at 3 p.m. for pick-up or delivery on Saturday, May 9. mandolinfarmhouse.com/collections/mothers-day-features
Mandolin’s Shrimp & Grits
The Capital Grille
Make Mother’s Day memorable with Capital Grille’s three-course prix fixe dinner, consisting of lemon blueberry bread, seeded French rolls, spring greens salad, mashed potatoes, French green beans, roasted whole beef tenderloin, your choice of butter poached North Atlantic lobster tails or jumbo shrimp scampi, and flourless chocolate espresso cake for dessert. Pick up orders curbside from Friday, May 8 through Sunday, May 10. thecapitalgrille.com/events/mothers-day-brunch
Margaux’s Restaurant
Choose your own Mother’s Day meal adventure with Margaux’s divine selection of salads, entrees, vegetables and dessert, including filet mignon, parmesan crusted salmon, grilled squash and key lime pie. Place orders by May 7 to be picked up on Mother’s Day between 9 and 11:30 a.m. margauxsrestaurant.com/margaux-menus/mothers-day-menu
Mia Francesca
This Mother’s Day, Mia Francesca is offering an exquisite roasted chateaubriand dinner complete with your choice of three salads and/or sides and cheesecake for dessert. A mimosa kit with prosecco, fresh squeezed orange juice and strawberries is also available. Place your order by 2 p.m. on May 7 for curbside pickup on Mother’s Day. miafrancesca.com/location/mia-francesca-north-carolina
Sullivan’s Steakhouse
Sullivan’s Mother’s Day feast includes your choice of entree—beef tenderloin, prime rib or rib racks; side—mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, asparagus or creamed spinach; and dessert—key lime pie or New York-style cheesecake to make a meal your mom won’t soon forget. Pre-order before Saturday, May 9, 9 p.m., for pickup or delivery. sullivanssteakhouse.com/promotions/mothers-day-2020-to-go
kō•än
Create a lavish dinner for mom with the help of kō•än’s Mother’s Day meal kit. Pick from items such as fresh day boat scallops, filet mignon, potato puree and goat cheese risotto. Each order also comes with a flour-less chocolate cake and a half pint of vanilla ice cream for dessert. Instructions for re-heating and serving are included. koancary.com/kommunity-hub/mothers-day-meal-kit
WEB EXCLUSIVE Bring the vibes of some of your favorite Raleigh businesses into your own home! These specially curated playlists bumped from the speakers of some of our favorite local spots before COVID-19 forced them to shut their doors.
Transfer Co. Food Hall
Transfer Co.‘s general manager Nick Neptune DJs occasionally, so you can trust him to deliver all the feel-good tunes. Neptune debuted a Transfer Co. playlist—titled “Tunes with Neptune”—on Spotify last week; it includes an initial selection of albums you may have had occasion to hear while drinking and dining at the food hall, including Al Green’s “Call Me,” Vanilla’s “Sweet Talk” and The Rolling Stones’ “In Concert (40th Anniversary Edition)” from Madison Square Garden. Every Wednesday at 5 p.m., Neptune will update the playlist with a variety of genres—from jazz to disco to electro pop—along with pairing notes for food, drink and atmosphere. Wes Montgomery with Bul Box, anyone? transfercofoodhall.com/now-playing
Lady Luck
Although Lady Luck was only open for a few days before COVID-19 forced its owners to close their dining room, the restaurant quickly made its mark on Glenwood South for its laid back vibe, delicious food and drinks and a killer DJ—Rodney Goodword (also known as Oak City Slums)—who spun tunes into the wee hours of the night. Goodword has created a variety of public playlists on Spotify that Lady Luck’s employees are currently bumping to while maintaining takeout and delivery services, ranging from funky pop to chill beats to hip-hop and rap. Play the one that fits your mood best and recreate Lady Luck’s vibrant energy at home. open.spotify.com/playlist/6IoJM0XsuoqA2jyZD9dErV; open.spotify.com/playlist/1Sw0ZfEMyF2duiZjjnARLX; open.spotify.com/playlist/13p0spucnqJeuLn9DXaPBr; open.spotify.com/playlist/0n8OlJpk3FxSQWVVDjsUNQ
Taverna Agora
Whip up some hummus and a refreshing Greek lemonade, then play Taverna Agora’s preferred Pandora playlist—Nicos radio—on a sun-soaked patio to try to recreate the restaurant’s rooftop vibes. Nicos Xatzopoulos is an Athens-born violinist who specializes in traditional Mediterranean music and is one of the most popular musicians in Greece. “Since we are an authentic Greek restaurant, our music has to be the real deal, too,” says Katherine Costa Goldfaden, the senior director of brands for LM Restaurants.pandora.com/station/play/4480430204710445533
Brewery Bhavana
A delightfully well-crafted playlist sets the mood for one of the most gorgeous restaurants in Raleigh—and, arguably, the country. Complementing Bhavana’s beloved dim sum are classic tunes from Isaac Hayes, Al Green, James Brown, Stevie Wonder and more. Until Bhavana opens again, let this playlist remind you of nights spent downing delicious dumplings and beer. spotify.com/playlist/4LTgMauvW8ipF1XiTZK44q
Plates Neighborhood Kitchen
A diverse playlist of alt-country, folk, indie, soul and bluegrass music accompanies Plates’ eclectic dinner menu. The source? Pandora’s My Morning Jacket radio. “We think it fits our well-traveled-Southern vibe as a modern mix of different genres, without sounding pretentious,” says owner Justin Gallus. For brunch, Gallus switches to Tears for Fears radio, a mix of New Wave 80’s jams which includes artists such as Duran Duran, The Cure and A Flock of Seagulls. pandora.com/station/4479455083888555158; pandora.com/station/4479455938587047062
CycleBar
Amp up your workout with CycleBar‘s playlist of motivating tunes, ranging from electronic beat-filled remixes to trending pop songs to old school rap. Whether your at-home workout consists of running, biking, strength training or a hardcore ab routine, this playlist will push you to go for that extra mile or rep. open.spotify.com/playlist/5ghlgcU1Zlysld6DmWcKlE
Venture outside of Raleigh (while practicing social distancing!) this month.
Brandwein’s Bagels CHAPEL HILL Saturdays, 8 a.m. – 11 a.m. Get your bagel fix every Saturday morning at Brandwein’s Bagels, opening soon in Chapel Hill at 505 West Rosemary Street. Alex Brandwein, a New York native who came to UNC Chapel Hill in 2018 to get his MBA, launched the concept after he began making bagels from scratch to supplement the lack of local bagel shops located near campus. Brandwein sold his bagels at pop-up shops around town until he decided to open up a brick-and-mortar shop. As part of Brandwein’s “Saturdays Are For Bagels” campaign, Brandwein’s Bagels will offer plain, everything, sesame or cinnamon-raisin New York-style bagels and containers of cream cheese for contactless pickup or delivery. Place all orders by the Thursday evening before the Saturday you would like to pick them up or have them delivered. brandweinsbagels.com
Pie Pushers DURHAM Take pizza night to a creative new level with Pie Pushers’ “push your own pie” (PYOP) program where they provide the dough, sauce and cheese to make your own personalized pizza at home. If you’re not feeling creative (or don’t want to do all the work yourself), you can also order specialty pies, appetizers, salads and wings for takeout or delivery. Unique slices include the Skillet with basil pesto, broccoli, artichokes, roasted potato and feta, and the 1243 with salami, caramelized red onions, bell peppers, pistachios and smoked gouda. (919) 294-8408; piepushers.com
Hemlock Bluffs Nature Preserve CARY Surround yourself with hemlock trees and the birds and wildlife of Swift Creek at Hemlock Bluffs Nature Preserve. One of the only nature preserves left in the state, Hemlock Bluffs is a protected environment due to its unique flora and fauna that’s more often found in the mountains, including the hemlock trees and galax, or beetleweed. The preserve contains four different walking trails that range from 0.7 miles to 1.2 miles and all include breathtaking overlooks. Come spring, the trails are flooded with wildflowers. townofcary.org/recreation-enjoyment/parks-greenways-environment/parks/stevens-nature-center-at-hemlock-bluffs-nature-preserve/trails-at-hemlock-bluffs
Craftboro CARRBORO The more COVID-19-related emails that flood your inbox, the more stressed out you get and, therefore, the more beer you need to relax! Luckily, Craftboro has you covered with curbside pickup from its bottle shop. Choose from more than 50 local, national and international bottles and cans, or opt for a bottle of wine. You’ll recognize Raleigh’s Brewery Bhavana Grove DIPA, Gizmo Peppermint Stiletto Stout and Burial Beer Ulfberht Baltic Porter. Grab a few brews before virtual happy hour with the gang! (919) 240-4400; craftborobrewing.com
Carolina Yoga Company CARRBORO, HILLSBOROUGH AND DURHAM Bend, stretch and release all the stress you have building up through live yoga classes with Carolina Yoga Company’s knowledgeable instructors. Flow yoga, gentle yoga, yoga and pilates combination classes and more are offered at various times throughout the week with different instructors to ensure you can relax and take your mind off things while you’re stuck at home during the day. You can also stream online yoga classes through Yoga Vibes with a membership or small fee for each class. Say “om”! carolinayogacompany.com/online-classes
When was the last time you changed your air filter?
If you don’t remember, odds are it’s probably time you did. According to entrepreneur and former NC State student Kevin Barry, around half of all homeowners forget to change their air filters on time. But it wasn’t until Barry went to the store to buy an air filter for his own apartment back in 2012 that he realized how annoying the whole process could be.
Barry’s bad experience sparked an idea for an air filter delivery service and soon after, he and his friend, Thad Tarkington, started Second Nature (initially known as Filter Easy).
Signing up for the Raleigh-based service is simple, Barry says. Subscribers go to Second Nature’s website and input how many filters they have in their house, what size the filters are and how often they’d like to change them out. Then, the appropriately sized filters the subscribers need are delivered exactly when they need to change them.
“The box arriving is essentially a reminder to do the swap-out and then you don’t have to worry about your filters again until the next delivery shows up,” Barry adds.
There’s definitely a convenience factor that goes along with the service.
“Everyone’s day-to-day life is so busy and there are a lot better things that people can be doing—spending time with family, going to sporting events, going out on a date and whatnot—but changing air filters is out of sight and out of mind,” Barry says.
Filter Easy co-founders Kevin Barry and Thad Tarkington.
Still, not changing your air filters can take a toll on your home and on your personal health. Changing filters regularly lowers your energy bill because your home HVAC system isn’t working as hard to heat or cool your house to the right temperature, putting less strain on your HVAC system and prolonging its lifespan. Additionally, fresh air filters improve the air quality in your home and ensure that you’re living in a safe environment.
“These filters are picking up everything from lint particles all the way down to virus-carrying particles, bacterias and molds,” Barry explains.
Second Nature’s air filters are all American-made and high quality, but you have the option to choose whether you’d like to catch “some” stuff, such as basic household dust and pollen, catch “more” with an additional level of filtration or catch “all,” including small particles of smoke.
This past summer, Barry and Tarkington rebranded their service from Filter Easy to Second Nature and will soon deliver even more out-of-sight, out-of-mind home maintenance-related products, including refrigerator water filters, later this year.
Barry and Tarkington have grown Second Nature to include hundreds of thousands of customers from all over the country and now serve industrial partners in addition to homeowners.
More recently, Second Nature worked with the FDA to produce 800,000 masks that meet federal regulations to sell to local and non-local medical facilities during the coronavirus pandemic.
We can all agree, it’s a weird time. Restaurants, bars, movie theaters, stores and other businesses were forced to close and, for the past month or so, we’ve had to entertain ourselves at home. But things will return to normal, and, when they do, there are some fun, new local businesses for Raleighites to look forward to.
Purr Cup Cafe 210 Prospect Avenue Projected opening: Spring 2020
Sarah Newton and Arthur Hailey got the idea to open a cat cafe in the City of Oaks following a visit to Kawaii Kitty Cafe in Philadelphia.
“From the moment we entered the cat lounge there, we felt something special,” Newton says. “It feels like an escape from normal life. Sitting in a room full of cats is peaceful and fun at the same time.”
The couple wants to help others experience the joy of being around cats and kittens and help get cats adopted into forever homes where they’ll be cared for and loved. All adoptable cats will come from SAFE Haven for Cats, a no-kill shelter and low-cost clinic that rescues cats from harmful situations.
“The more cats we can get adopted, the more cats they can pull out of shelters and save,” Newtown says.
Newton and Hailey say Purr Cup Cafe will be a place where they hope all will feel welcome, with a Drag Queen Story Hour, events for Raleigh Pride and collaborations with other local organizations. Groups can host meet-ups and events and cafe visitors can choose to come in for a cup of coffee, hang out with adoptable cats, enjoy an event or do all three—though there is a $10 fee to enter the cat room.
“We are super excited to open our doors,” Newton says. “People have been supporting us since day one and we can’t wait to welcome them for a magical experience.”
OnPoint 3501 Spring Forest Road Projected opening: Early summer 2020
OnPoint CEO Houck Reed grew up shooting guns as a social activity with his friends and family. He says he noticed the gun ranges he’d been to over the years felt intimidating, especially to women and young people, and thought there had to be a better way to approach the business. With OnPoint, Reed says he hopes to establish a space that will make all people feel comfortable, whether or not they’re serious shooters.
“The sport of shooting, it’s a fun thing to do,” Reed says. “[At OnPoint, people] can feel safe and they can have fun.”
OnPoint will consist of two main experiences—a live-fire range and “challenge house” that will offer world-class training and entertaining shooting experiences, including games and mission and drill scenarios, that guests can participate in individually or as groups.
The interactive, laser-based, live-gaming environments are similar to laser tag or indoor paintball. OnPoint’s state-of-the-art technology makes it the most advanced shooting range in the world, Reed says.
Additionally, OnPoint will offer a firearms training curriculum for beginners through advanced shooters so guests can learn basic gun safety and develop their skills. OnPoint’s first Raleigh location will also feature a lounge with a cafe and bar.
“We’ve created an environment where you can just enjoy being there,” Reed says. “We took out the dark and scary [atmosphere] of a lot of ranges and made [the sport of shooting] a fun and inviting experience.”
Hunky Dory 111 Seaboard Avenue, Suite 116 Projected opening: 2020
Former journalist Michael Bell launched the original Hunky Dory, a combo bar, lounge and music store, in Durham in 2010. For Raleigh, Bell says he envisions Hunky Dory as a more polished space located in the original home of BREW Coffee Bar in Seaboard Station.
Bell repurposed the coffee shop’s bench seats into record shelves and will showcase more records on the walls. Additionally, Bell saved BREW’s bar to house 12 taps for North Carolina-sourced beers including, mainly, IPAs—Bell’s favorite—but also local sours, ciders, pilsners and lagers.
Bell says Hunky Dory’s Raleigh record collection will grow around what Raleigh customers bring in to sell.
“[Raleigh and Durham] are 30 miles apart but they have a very different taste in music,” Bell says. “In Durham, they’ve got jazz, blues, rock and roll. What’s it going to be in Raleigh? What are they passionate about?”
Aside from beer and music, Hunky Dory’s existing store is known for its quirky T-shirts with Durham’s signature bull incorporated into different music-themed designs—think of Ziggy Stardust’s lighting bolt superimposed on a bull image. The Raleigh store will also sell T-shirts with the City of Oaks’ acorn instead.
As in Durham, Bell says the Raleigh location will evolve with what customers want.
“Raleigh has a lot of potential and I think [Hunky Dory] will be well received,” Bell says. “Records and beer—it’s a good combo. Adding another place with a really great vibe is going to be good.”
