W H AT WE’RE EATING NEWS FROM OUR RESTAURANT COMMUNITY, PLUS A DISH WE LOVE
NEWS BITES COMING SOON • Raleigh casual eatery and bar Bru’s Public House is opening its second location in Carrboro in the former Hickory Tavern spot at 370 E. Main St. It is anticipated to open March 1. • Polish and German street food truck The Flying Pierogi will be opening a brick-and-mortar location at 101 Two Hills Dr. in the South Green shopping center in Carrboro. At press time, owner Jaysen Wilson planned to open on Feb. 15.
B
en Woodward and Dawnya Bohager started
HAW RIVER TAP + TABLE 300 E. Main St. Unit C, Carrboro hawrivercarrboro.com
out home brewing and even showcased a few favorites at an early occurrence of the NC Rare & Vintage Beer Tasting. “People took note,” Ben says. “That’s when everybody really wanted to get their hands on our beer.” After moving their family to Saxapahaw, they launched Haw River Farmhouse Ales in a snug spot in the restored mill. For a decade, the husband-and-wife coowners ran the small brewery, making saisons and stouts with locally sourced ingredients and distributing the cans featuring distinctive illustrations, far and wide. Then the couple seized the opportunity to expand their local footprint into the space that the Vecino Brewing owners were vacating in East Main Square. “We were lucky that we had a little bit of a test phase where they allowed us to come in, and we ran it as Vecino for almost a year,” Ben says. “So we were able to make some changes with less risk, because we knew that they didn’t need to stick.” It was a quiet transition, “and then July 1, we put our name on the door,” he recalls. While the Saxapahaw location is more intimate with 10 seats inside and a giant patio, the Carrboro taproom has more brews on tap, batch cocktails like a gin and tonic and plenty of events from game-watching to trivia nights. And best of all, there’s a full kitchen for offerings like the crispy chicken sandwich – a meal so good that if I knew how to recreate at home, I’d never leave the house. The fried chicken thigh is brined in buttermilk and teams up with applewood-smoked bacon and Gruyere cheese for a killer combo. Pair it with Livin’ the Low Life, their take on an American light lager brewed with jasmine rice. “It’s got a little bit of grain sweetness to it, but it’s nice and dry, super crisp and 4.2% ABV,” Ben says. Crispy Chicken Sandwich, $13 – By Jessica Stringer 30
chapelhillmagazine.com
March/April 2024
CLOSINGS • Basecamp, the East Franklin Street Asian fusion bar and grill, announced via a Dec. 28 Instagram post that it was closing its doors. Owner Ramesh Dahal says that patrons can still “explore their incredible flavors and keep the culinary journey alive” at its sister restaurant, Momo’s Master. • At press time, Craftboro Brewing Depot was due to close its doors on Feb. 17 after a long struggle to maintain business after the pandemic hit, which happened only a few months after the brewery opened. “Thank you all for being a part of our journey, characters in our book and the memories we will hold onto,” wrote owners Jason McCarter and Amy McCarter on Instagram. • Flight Tea Bar & Lounge closed its holiday pop-up shop, and at press time, had announced on Instagram its plans to migrate upstairs on the second floor of Carr Mill Mall mid-February. IN OTHER NEWS • Big Spoon Roasters created a new limited edition batch of nut butter: Cowgirl Cookie Peanut Butter. The nut butter combines peanuts and pecans, toasted coconut, Big Spoon granola,