Bull City Rising

This week's new, new plan for Five Points Cafe: now FM Bistro?

The weird tale of Five Points Cafe -- which closed a couple of weeks ago in advance of what was described as a forthcoming grand opening -- has taken another odd turn.

First, the Steve Matherly joint was expected to reopen on July 12, with a day of celebration to include community theater. Then, we had the reopening set for July 19, per the Five Points Cafe web site (see at right.) Or perhaps Monday, July 21, as the construction paper on the windows said for a while.

As of this weekend, the construction paper's still there, but the gig's different. Signs now herald the coming of F.M. Bistro. F.M. stands for "Farm to Market," and the plan's described as a "warm embrace of locally-owned food, art and culture."

Matherly is still involved, and according to the signs in the windows has engaged one Boo Kaufman as a chef. Kaufman is best known of late on the local scene as a music man, having booked shows at The Basement (a club at what became Ooh La Latte, and which is now Broad Street Cafe) and at his eponymous Boo's Hideaway in Raleigh.

A source notes Kaufman, who'd also been involved in the old Fowler's restaurant (predating Parker & Otis) has moved back to the Triangle and will be connecting with Matherly on the new, new plan for the restaurant. Kaufman does bring kitchen experience to the table, something that may not have been a strength in the first at-bat for the establishment.

No word yet on opening plans or dates. The sign in the window does note that new employment listings will be posted this week, and that current Five Points Cafe applicants will need to "re-apply" for jobs, with "skilled and experienced kitchen and barista" staff being hired by appointment only.

Starbucks closures dodge Durham

Starbucks isn't everyone's favorite coffee shop, but hey, we serve all comers here at BCR, right? (Including Mrs. BCR, for whom the Starbucks on NC 55 down by the Park is, in fairness, just about the only caffeine option available on very early mornings in the office.)

To that end, it's worth noting that the Bull City has emerged unscathed from Starbucks' announcement it will be closing 600 underperforming stores in the US.

Although the corporate office mentioned that the vast majority of SBUX to close would be outlets open less than a couple of years -- a rubric that applies to the Indigo Commons, North Durham, NC 55 and Page Road locations, and possibly one of the two Southpoint outlets -- no Durham stores are slated for closing, according to this PDF from Starbucks corporate.

One Chapel Hill store at Chatham Downs is the only Triangle casualty expected. Five Charlotte and one Winston-Salem stores hit the casualty list, along with such locales as Hickory, Wilson, Hickory and Greenville.

Voters -- and the Durham Committee -- the next stop for the civic/cultural prepared foods tax

After a long week of legislative machinations and parliamentary procedures led by state Sen. Floyd "Here on Geer" McKissick Jr., the General Assembly completed the passage of the proposed 1% prepared foods tax yesterday by a 22-19 vote.

This sets the stage for a November referendum in which Durham voters will have the chance to approve or turn back the sales tax, the proceeds of which are largely earmarked to fund civic and cultural amenities such as the Civic Center, Carolina Theatre -- and the proposed Durham history museum and Minor League Baseball fan experience/museum center.

So where does this issue go from here? Barry hit the nail on the head in terms of the key issue at stake for its passage:

Here's where it gets interesting. By all accounts, Sen. Floyd McKissick did the heavy lifting getting this bill through the Senate. What happens next when the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People opposes it in the fall?

The referendum, after all, comes at a point where the Committee is enjoying a timely bit of political power, driven largely by the tremendous voter turnout in the black community for Sen. Barack Obama's historic presidential bid. That turnout appeared to make a key difference in leading Joe Bowser to a seat on the Durham County Commission and in forcing a run-off between usual also-ran Jonathan Alston and Leigh Bordley for the open school board seat.

And the Committee has certainly been willing to use that power. (A persistent and well-sourced rumor holds that the Committee held court with at least one elected official four days between the contentious budget vote, presenting data that suggested Durham's AAA bond rating would not be at risk even if the City Council backed Mayor Bill Bell's 54-cent property tax rate line in the sand.)

Which is where things get interesting for Bell, who's been one of the leading champions of this tax initiative.

Rockwood Filling Station turns the pumps on

Wednesday night marked the grand opening of Rockwood Filling Station, Scott Howell's new wood-fired Neapolitan pizzeria in Rockwood, next to his Q-Shack and Nana's ventures.

We here at BCR had suspected an opening might be in the offing, having seen a gentleman in a Rockwood Filling Station t-shirt hurrying into a Brightleaf Square business recently (the t-shirt back reads, "Come Get Your Wood On"), and indeed, the new eatery opened up Wednesday -- to no less than a packed house.

Impressive, particularly for what appears to have been a quietly-announced or unannounced launch. Driving by at 6pm, there were a few cars in the lot -- by 8pm, the house was full.

And despite the expected first-night jitters, the pizzas are really terrific. The restaurant adds another local eatery with character to the quickly-improving Rockwood district, adding life to the intersection of University and 15-501 Business.

Inside and outside dining are available, with roll-up glass garage doors (a la Alivia's Durham Bistro) providing both the opportunity for outside exposure in good weather and a fitting tribute to the old gas station that once existed on the site. (Joe's got more history on the place at his food blog.)

Pizzas naturally predominate the menu, with Italian-themed sandwiches, appetizers and salads rounding out the options. Wine by the bottle and glass are also available, as are what looked to be a decent selection of craft beers.

American Tobacco Saladelia to open Monday, July 21

Folks working in the Ambacco complex who've been sipping from the free coffee three hours a day will have full-time coffee -- and quick-service dining -- back on the plate on Monday, July 21.

Local outfit Saladelia, which has been rehabbing the ATC Starbucks franchise shop under their own aegis, is targeting that date for the re-opening of the outlet in American Tobacco's Crowe Building.

A new bamboo-style finishing and violet tones now cover the old Starbucks furniture, and a new menu proclaims hot and cold coffee drinks, smoothies and more. A refrigerated cabinet will store to-go sandwiches, salads, wraps and the like, filling a niche that's been missing at the ATC (for quick lunch at the desk and the like) since the complex opened.

Edit: They have indeed opened. Hours of operation are Monday through Friday, 7:30am until 5:30pm.

Char-Grill to invade Durham, challenging Cook-Out for burger supremacy

Char-Grill is one of those old Raleigh institutions that our friends in the City of Oaks just can't seem to stop talking about. (Literally -- just get a Raleighite to try to shut up about the place. I've tried; it's hard; you probably can't do it.)

Of course, here in Durham, we've had Cook-Out for many years, a Piedmont tradition in which tiny opaque buildings manage to push out an ungodly quantity of cheap, good-quality hamburgers in very fast succession. No, we have no idea how they do it, and we don't really want to.

Yet Durham has remained free from the influence of our Wake County neighbors' institution, with the nearest Char-Grill being a trip to the Beltline away. And, really, who wants to deal with driving there?

Well, the N&O's Sue Stock is reporting that Char-Grill will be coming to the Bull City; her Saturday article reported it was arriving at New Hope Commons, but according to some SoDur watchers, the Char-Grill is actually coming to Hope Valley Commons, the new Harris Teeter-helmed center at the corner of NC 751 and NC 54. (Yeah, we know, the names are confusing. Couldn't someone think of a more original name?)

According to the N&O, the fast-food restaurant will open there in the fall.

We haven't seen the designs of the Durham Char-Grill, but here's hoping to an addition to Durham's architectural inventory that's a little less, er, distinct than the International Style monstrosity over to our southeast:

Durham Farmers Market weekly update

Heading over to the Farmers Market this morning? Don't miss Four Square's Shane Ingram, who'll be cooking a corn pepper and tomato salad as part of the Chef in the Market series this week. Also up: the Blue Tailed Skinks perform "Old-Time songs" on the fiddle, banjo, accordion and more.

Up this week at the Market (new items noted in italics):

Arugula, Asian Greens, Beans (Green, Yellow, Purple, Roma, French Filet), Beets, Blackberries, Blueberries, Cabbage, Cantaloupe, Chard, Cherry Tomatoes, Collards, Corn, Cucumbers - Slicing & Pickling, Cut Flowers, Eggplant, Figs, Garlic, Green Onion, Herbs ( Basil, Dill, Chives, Mint, Parsley, Rosemary, Sage, Thyme), Honeydew Melons, Kale, Lettuce, Okra, Onions, Pecans, Peaches, Peppers - Sweet & Hot, Potatoes (Red, White, Yellow, Purple and Fingerling varieties), Purple Hull Peas, Radish, Salad Mix, Shallots, Squash, Sweet Potatoes, Tomatillos, Tomatoes, Turnips, Turnip Greens, Watermelon, Zucchini

Baked Goods, Fresh and Aged Goats and Cows, Milk Cheeses, Handmade Chocolates, Eggs, Honey, Meats (Beef, Bison, Chicken, Chevon/Goat, Lamb, Pork), Wines, Bedding Plants (Annuals, Perennials, Vegetables), Crafts - Stained Glass, Clothes, Pottery, Photographs, Handmade Baskets, Soaps and much more...

All this and more, 8am to noon downtown at Central Park.

Five Points Cafe closes (briefly?) in advance of "grand re-opening"

As Barry noted at his place yesterday, the saga of downtown's Five Points Cafe took another turn last week when construction paper went up over the windows:

The message on the paper notes a "grand opening celebration" this coming Saturday from 10am-5pm, with activities for the kids and 'community theater.' We'll drive by and check things out this weekend.

I ate there a couple of weeks ago and the sandwiches aren't bad. It was curious that all but a couple of the soda fountain options were marked out of order, and there were some credit card machine hiccups, but FPC still seemed to be doing a bit of business. We'll see what this weekend brings.

H-S gets Royal Ice Cream owner's sons' perspective on sit-in

Ah, the media obsession with the satanic-cult-assault story continues to reach new heights, getting top coverage in the H-S, the N&O ("He never showed me any kind of devil-worshipping stuff...." "You'd see him wear black pants and a T-shirt with weird stuff on it, but it wasn't that different."), and all the local TV stations. Heck, WTVD was out front of the Durham County Courthouse at 5:30am this morning to report on the case. (What, are there some kind of magic pentagrams that only come out in morning's early light?)

Still, the best read in this morning's paper lies in Herald-Sun newcomer Lisa Rossi's exclusive interview with Joe and Andy Porcelli, sons of the late owner of Royal Ice Cream, who reflect back on the difficult time in Durham's history and their take on the Jim Crow days:

On one hand, they said they were proud Royal Ice Cream would always live on in a highway marker.

But they stung from descriptions of their father's ice cream store that emerged as part of the publicity around the commemoration....

"I'm glad segregation is over with," Andy Porcelli said. "It was a painful experience for both parties: Black and white."

Kudos to the H-S for finding room on the front page for a story that sheds a new perspective on the now-infamous event at Royal Ice Cream. It would have been too bad to see the salacious always outmuscle the sublime.

Eno Restaurant & Market to open at Greenfire's Rogers Alley

Foodies used to celebrating the opening of so many new dining options in and around the heart of the Bull City have another reason to rejoice: there's one more to add to the stable.

Eno Restaurant & Market is slated to open this winter at Greenfire's Rogers Alley development near City Hall, joining Dos Perros to bring a second dining option to the project. The Eno is the brainchild of software entrepreneur and Coon Rock Farm owner Richard Holcomb, Chef Sarig Agasi of Holcomb's popular Raleigh restaurant Zely & Ritz, and Jamie DeMent, a "foodie farmer" enthusiast.

As with Zely & Ritz -- named one of the top 20 organic restaurants in America by Organic Style magazine -- Eno Restaurant & Market will focus on local, sustainable food, particularly those grown at Coon Rock Farm but also including a number of others (including Chapel Hill Creamery, Harris Acres, Cane Creek Farm, and Celebrity Dairy.)