W H AT WE’RE EATING NEWS FROM OUR RESTAURANT COMMUNITY, PLUS A DISH WE LOVE
NEWS BITES Michelle Webb and Stevie Webb of Carrborro’s The Cheese Shop will open Wedgewood Cheese Bar this fall. The 2,000-square-foot “fancy-ish” cheese bar will be located inside the historic Carolina Car Wash Building at Brewer Lane with wines curated by Paula de Pano of Rocks + Acid Wine Shop. The Purple Bowl is relocating from its 306 W. Franklin St. home to a larger space at 505 W. Franklin St. in midSeptember. “We will have all of the menu items that the Chapel Hill community has come to love and will be adding several salads to our menu options,” says event manager Lauren Sacks. “The new location will have expanded seating, dedicated parking and a great outdoor space for everyone to enjoy.” Munchilove opened its very first storefront in Governors Village in early August, after operating primarily as a mobile espresso and dessert business the last three years. “Customers can look forward to a full-service espresso bar with an expansion on our bakery offerings,” CEO and founder Amanda Damon says. Munchilove serves coffee and a small selection of savory bites in addition to its brownies filled with toppings.
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ou know when an experience is so good that you never want it Market and Moss to end? Like a summer vacation 700 Market St., Chapel Hill or that TV show that you can’t marketandmoss.com stop binging? Well, Danny Vacca and Chuck Jones – the new executive chef duo at Market and Moss – have fully encapsulated that feeling in their summer menu, specifically the crispy duck breast. It’s so popular that they’re keeping it on their upcoming fall menu. The dish is a feast for the eyes. Sliced duck breast, grilled bok choy and crispy turnip cakes are layered on a bright carrot and ginger puree. Then another puree – with black garlic and lime – and chili crisps are also swirled into the mix. Every ingredient could uniquely stand on its own, but the “flavors and textures and even colors amplify one another and come together really nicely,” says owner Annie Johnston. The dish is a balancing act that is largely representative of the restaurant’s new kitchen dynamic – one that focuses on collaboration and work-life balance, two points that ultimately brought Danny and Chuck to the restaurant in April. Since then, the two have leaned fully into the flexibility and playfulness they love about cooking – and the dishes that have resulted, like the crispy duck, only affirm those ideals. “The inspiration now? We’re really just cooking food that we want to eat,” Danny says. “And this is a dish that we really, really want to eat.” – By Hannah Lee 28
chapelhillmagazine.com
September/October 2024
Drift Coffee & Kitchen, at press time, plans to open in late August or early September in Village Plaza. The fullservice cafe offers a wide range of breakfast and lunch options plus coffee, beer, wine and cocktails. Founders Michael Powell and Ben Powell opened the first Drift in Ocean Isle Beach. VooDoo Wing Company took over the Dame’s Chicken & Waffles space in late July – its first storefront in North Carolina. The Las Vegas-based restaurant has a menu that features wings, sliders, Southern-style sides and more. New Jersey-based acai bowl chain Playa Bowls opened in August at 104 E. Franklin St. featuring bowls, smoothies, cold brews and more. Big Spoon Roasters released its new limited-batch Bananas Foster Peanut & Cashew Butter in July, inspired by the classic New Orleans dessert. The nut butter is a blend of high oleic runner peanuts, cashews, bananas and Kill Devil Rum and is available until the end of September. – Compiled by Shea McIntyre CHM