Month: January 2016

Locally Notable

Business Insider picks Bida Manda as best in NC

For Business Insider’s Best Restaurant in Every State write-up, contributor Emmie Martin selects Raleigh’s Bida Manda as North Carolina’s best. No arguments here. The BI piece is short on details, so if you have any reservations about checking out Bida Manda, check out Walter Magazine’s 2013 profile of the restaurant. Here’s a taste:

With one of the few true Laotian restaurants in the United States, these two twenty-somethings are introducing Raleighites to the fresh and unexpected cuisine of their tiny native country. They’re doing it with the help of a local community rooted at N.C. State that has risen up to make their dream a reality. And they’re doing it in tribute to their parents, who have been prevented by post–9/11 visa restrictions from traveling here to witness their children’s achievement.

…

With ingredients common to the food of its neighbors in China, Vietnam, and Thailand, and with techniques inherited from its years as a French protectorate, Laos’s food is a tantalizing hybrid. Flavors are refined but surprising; dishes are familiar but refreshing, and always beautiful.

The accolades for Bida Manda are well-deserved and are a great testament to Raleigh’s ever-evolving culinary scene.

Quoted

Collards

“It wasn’t going to be instant grits. It was going to be like long, slow-cooked collard greens.”

— Cam Newton
Short Cuts

Autoblog: The last Land Rover Defender has rolled off the line ↬

I’m not as ardent a fan of the Defender series as some of my fellow O&F contributors, but this caught my attention nonetheless:

It’s worth remembering that while the original Series I was in many ways ingenious, it was also to some decree dictated by its post-war circumstances. A massive shortage of steel led to the adoption of an aluminum body, not any sort of worry about corrosion or concern for lightweighting. And it wasn’t yet the status symbol seen at luxury hotel valet lots, but rather an agricultural vehicle halfway between a tractor and an old farm truck, useful for innumerable tasks around the farm but also capable of a (slow) jaunt to town.

It will be interesting to see what Land Rover has in store for us next.

O&F
Brief

Is Growth Bad for Business?

Are Raleigh’s growing pains causing problems for downtown businesses? WTVD 11 says yes. Indy Week says no.

Indy Week’s argument is more convincing, but I’ve also always been on the side that found the sharp criticism of Raleigh’s ordinances to be a bit over-dramatic.

Locally Notable

Poole’s Diner makes The National Eater 38 ↬

More accolades and notoriety for Poole’s Diner in Downtown Raleigh:

Christensen has firmly planted herself at the crossroads of high-low dining: beyond the macaroni, her menu changes nightly, offering dishes homey in flavor and meticulous in execution. During a spectacular spring meal, that meant delicate flounder filet over turnip greens creamed with pureed turnips, and fried soft-shell crab over early tomatoes with Brussels sprouts slaw.

Via Indy Week

O&F
Stitches

Need Vol 3.2

I’ve been a member of Need almost since the beginning, and while I do find most of their offerings interesting, I rarely find myself itching to open up the wallet on an entire volume of goods. But Vol 3.2: Forward got me really wishing one of my New Years resolutions hadn’t been to spend less money.

Personal favorites are: Thermal Henley; The Weekender Bag (oh that bag!); Techloom shoes; Thermal Bottle; Element Tee (oh that tee! In black AND white); the 1/4 Zip Running Hoodie and I even considered the Pomade Mixer Kit.

Yes, I did just reel off almost half the items offered in the latest volume. Go check it out for some great workout or casual gear to start off the new year!

Locally Notable

WSJ Discovers 11foot8 ↬

A height sensor on the street detected impending doom here last month. Yellow lights began flashing a block away. The danger: A Budget rental truck barging down the road wasn’t going to get under the railroad overpass.

The truck ignored the warning. It rumbled underneath. Its roof did not.

I stumbled upon 11foot8 a couple of years ago and spent the next couple of days obsessed with it. So good.

If you like this story, you might also like: @PeaceStBridge

O&F
Locally Notable

H-Street Kitchen

Just the rich Raleigh and NC State heritage alone of the people involved piqued my interest when I first heard initial whispers about the restaurant concept coming to the vacant Varsity Theatre space on Hillsborough Street. And now that we know more, I can’t wait to get a chance to explore the space. Construction is only just beginning, but the renderings and description of H-Street Kitchen look and sound fantastic:

The 240-seat restaurant will feature an open kitchen serving up an American menu developed by executive chef Adam Rose, formerly of Il Palio and Straw Valley Cafe. Offerings will include sandwiches, burgers, entrees and a rotating selection of “Red Plate” specials. Bryant said dishes will run $8 to $17.

I love what they hope to accomplish and I hope they do it. This is the most excited I’ve been about an upcoming project in the Triangle in a long time.