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BEST PLACE FOR CUSTOM JEWELRY

DIAMOND

AWARD

BEST PLACE TO BUY DESIGNER JEWELRY

2019

DIAMOND

2019

CERTIFIED DIAMONDS | ENGAGEMENT RINGS | BRIDAL SETS | WEDDING BANDS | JEWELRY DESIGN

DIAMOND

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(919) 725-3444 | www.RaleighDiamond.com 5925 Glenwood Ave | 1 Mile West of Crabtree Valley Mall

PUBLISHER’S LETTER held each winter. (See story on page 102.) On the other end of the spectrum— when all you want to do is Netflix binge with a bag of Doritos (but your pantry is bare)—you’ll have to try the new app that’s redefining convenience deliveries. Read about it on page 26.

t’s a Midtown tradition to start the year with a celebration of Raleigh’s best, and our annual Diamond Awards have become a coveted win among local businesses. Not to diminish in any way the significance of winning, but the optimum word here is local. We’re all about giving a shout-out to the local entrepreneurs, service providers, and venues that are excelling at what they do. And, the best part about the Diamond Awards is that they’re based on votes cast by our readers and hometown audience. If you’re among the thousands (yes, thousands) of folks who cast votes for this year’s winners, then you know it was a completely unscripted process. There were more than 80 categories, and voters had to fill in their pick for best in class—no prompts or lists to choose from. You’ll find a complete list of the Diamond Award winners starting on page 75. The beginning of a new year is a perfect time to check out these winners, and it’s also a good opportunity to explore new concepts and the exciting things coming to our area. Like the many wineries coming to town for the ultra posh Triangle Wine Experience that’s

Sometimes the best new thing is a reinvention of something older. In November, my husband and I escaped to the recently remodeled Hilton Raleigh North Hills for an overnight reprieve. It was a splendid spot for a staycation. It’s conveniently located to shopping and dining, but we chose to stay in relaxation mode and enjoyed a scrumptious dinner at the 88 Oaks Carolina Kitchen and Bar. Sunday brunch was equally impressive, so I have to say: Come next year’s voting for Diamond Awards, there may be a new contender in the staycation category. There are so many options for fun all around Raleigh, but for some of us there’s also that pressure to make a resolution. To do something, or change something, or somehow get around to that one thing that’s needed doing for ages. Before you sign up for another diet or commit to a habit you’ll abhor, take a few minutes to read “The Accidental Environmentalist” (page 114). Arrin Widmayer, a young mother of two, spins a delightful tale that—even if it doesn’t convince you to start composting—is both entertaining and educational. Whether you kick off 2019 by visiting a Diamond winner or by committing to a new resolution, here’s to a Happy New Year!

Connie Gentry Editor / Publisher

Your opinions matter to us. Let us know what you think of this issue of Midtown magazine. Please email connie@midtownmag.com with your comments. 6 | MidtownMag.com

2017

DIAMOND

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2019

BEST DENTIST

DIAMOND

AWARD BEST DENTIST

Publisher/Editor Connie Gentr y Creative Director Lori Lay Graphic Design Jennifer Heinser Cindy Huntley Fran Sherman Social Media & Community Engagement Brittany Murdock Account Executives Charis Painter Meredith Mills Amy Tucker Maddi Blanchard Copy Editor Cindy Huntley Editorial Contributors Alex Dixon, Kurt Dusterberg, Sean Lennard John Lowe, Darin Meyer, Beth Peterson Br yan Reed, Lipsa Shah, Valerie Troupe Arrin D. Widmayer, Ruhama Wolle

THE MONTESSORI SCHOOL OF RALEIGH

• An independent college-preparatory day school 18 months to 12th Grade • Dually accredited Montessori program Pre-K through Grade 8 • Fully accredited college-preparatory program Grades 9 through 12 • Certified International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program—Grades 11 and 12* *The only independent school in the Triangle offering the prestigious IB Diploma Program, the gold standard for college admission.

45 years of excellence in education 1974-2019

Visit msr.org today! 10 | MidtownMag.com

Contributing Photographers Blaine Butler, F8 Photo Studios Amy Hill / 627 Photography Limitless Photography by Anastasia Josh Manning / Jericho 7 Films MASH Photography, Warren McCormack Darin Meyer, Raleigh Food Pics, Joe Reale Nathan Richards, Mick Schulte Distribution Manager Joe Lizana

Midtown magazine is published six times annually. Any reproduction in part or in whole of any part of this publication is prohibited without the express written consent of the publisher. Midtown magazine is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, photography, or art. Unsolicited material is welcome and is considered intended for publication. Such material will become the property of the magazine and will be subject to editing. Material will be returned if accompanied by a self-addressed stamped envelope. Midtown magazine will not knowingly accept any real estate advertising in violation of U.S. equal opportunity law.

SUBSCRIPTIONS 6 print issues (1 year) Available online at midtownmag.com 4818-204 Six Forks Road Raleigh, NC 27609 Ph: 919.782.4710 F: 919.782.4763

CONTENTS JA NUA RY

features 75

F E BRUA RY

2 0 1 9

David and Bethany Morgan. (Photo by Josh Manning / Jericho 7 Films)

The 2019 Diamond Awards Readers choose Raleigh’s best of the best.

What Makes Our City Great Why we love calling Raleigh home.

Comfort Foods Hearty signature dishes from Braise, Brewery Bhavana, and Saint Jacques.

102

A World of Wine Local chefs and wineries from around the world come together for the annual Triangle Wine Experience.

114

An Accidental Environmentalist One woman’s resolution to live greener.

118

Local Nonprofit Makes Global Impact Love Abounds is building connections and community with Zambia.

on the scene 18

Food: A variety of vegan options.

22 Music: Soloist Matt Douglas owns the stage. 26

Convenience: Home deliveries get affordable.

Driftwood (Photo by Kate Lewis)

Chef’s Recipes Local Chefs share signature comfort food dishes.

DIAMOND

AWARD BEST DENTIST

2018

AWARD BEST DENTIST

2017

2018

DIAMOND

AWARD

FRIENDLIEST CUSTOMER SERVICE

CONTENTS JA NUA RY

F E BRUA RY

2 0 1 9

departments 30

Candid Conversation Brenda Gibson on the important connections between business and philanthropy.

Chef’s Table Nunzio Scordo takes Southern to new levels—and a new location.

Living Well

Brewery Bhavana (Photo by Julia Wade)

It’s not a high, but CBD oil is high on the list of restorative products.

in every issue

Style Up-cycled jewlery.

Home Fashion Interior designer Louise Gaskill illuminates homes with artistic glass fixtures.

Treasures Around Town That Bailey’s box is waiting to be found.

The Art of Change Designed for Joy creates artisan jobs with living wages.

128

Storytelling helps every generation.

Once Upon a Life

What’s on tap in Durham and the NBA All-Star weekend in Charlotte.

Foodie Focus Tastes of the City Dining Guide Out & About Top Events in Raleigh

Mingles

Cultural Diversity

New Around Town

Latino Life in N.C.

162 Kaleidoscope Living

128 Puppy Love

On the Social Scene

Pet owners and pet sitters are loyal to this business.

130 Childcare Connections

Sister Cities

17 70 72 143 149

Juggle is a game-changer.

sponsored content 68 86 100 112 133

ON THE COVER: Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming. (Photo by Joe Reale)

Homestyler Healthy You Raising the Bar Polished Impressions Special Report: Wellness Q&A

CONTENTS

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On The SOCIAL Scene You can find many of our staff members headed to Happy + Hale in North Hills for lunch. Our favorite item on the menu? That’s easy—their Ahi Poké Bowl, of course.

Let’s Connect! BY BRITTANY MURDOCK

(Photo courtesy of Urban Ministries of Wake County)

Our Midtown and Cary Living team— along with our partners from the Frankie Lemmon School, Midtown Raleigh Alliance, and Tabletop Media Group—participated in a Women Build project for Habitat for Humanity.

Urban Ministries of Wake County’s annual Stone Soup Supper event raised $92,000 for our neighbors in need. Our very own Connie Gentry joined Kristen Baughman, Lisa Prince, Brian Shrader, Nancy Thapa, and Leigh Hines as celebrity judges. Congratulations to Chef Alex Cordova from Tonbo Ramen and Chef Aaron Matyac from Whiskey Kitchen for being crowned the Soup-erior Chefs of the evening.

Get Social With Us!

midtownmag.com

Sommer Snyder won our 2019 Diamond Awards Giveaway. She won a $500 gift card to North Hills, a night’s stay at the Renaissance Raleigh North Hills Hotel with breakfast for two at 41Hundred, and a $50 gift card to Urban Food Group.

MidtownMagazine

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On The FOOD Scene

Vegan Menus Abound Finding a vegan meal in the land of barbecue is not as hard as you think.

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BY LIPSA SHAH

Photo courtesy of NOFO @ the Pig

The rise of Raleigh as a true foodie town has made it easy to find a satiating meal for vegans in an area where carnivores thrive. To clarify, a vegan diet totally eliminates any animal products. This means no eggs, no dairy, no animal byproducts. Did you know beer isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t vegan? Along with white sugar, boxed cake mix, and Jello, to name a few. LIVING KITCHEN Nestled at 555 Fayetteville Street in downtown Raleigh, Living Kitchen welcomes anyone for allvegan and some raw cuisine. The natural lighting underscores the freshness of the food, and you honestly cannot go wrong with anything on the menu. From the Mexican bowl to the salads, everything on the menu is tasty and healthconscious. I would suggest Living Kitchen for someone who is new to the vegan diet. HAPPY + HALE A true gem. With locations in Raleigh and Durham, Happy + Hale is easily accessible. I look forward to the weekends for their brunch menu. Sometimes, there is simply nothing better than a delicious avocado toast paired with a smoothie, or one of their cold-pressed juices. My favorites: the City of Oats smoothie or Beet It juice. The best part is that this breakfast is totally guilt-free.

2019

RALEIGH RAW The trendiest spot in downtown Raleigh, Raleigh Raw strives to provide healthy grab-and-go options as well as offering a variety of smoothies, juices, and coffees. Crack coffee, anyone? The owners are committed to a life of living well and making that lifestyle easy for all. They make most of their products in-house and provide exceptionally friendly service.

DIAMOND

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BEST SPOT FOR A BUSINESS LUNCH

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HUMMINGBIRD Tucked away on the outskirts of downtown, Hummingbird may be the most Instagrammable brunch spot in Raleigh. They aren’t open on Sundays; however, it is definitely worth the Saturday morning wait. Four words: Coconut chia seed pudding. You are so welcome. The farm-to-table menu changes frequently so I suggest going there immediately for this, although I’m sure anything else they offer will be exceptional as well. They serve tapas-style plates that you can enjoy solo or with a group. IRREGARDLESS Irregardless is a Raleigh staple for diets of all persuasions, and the restaurant has been doing this since 1975. They offer an array of classics, such as paella and briskets for the carnivores in your life, but they also have an inventive menu for vegans and vegetarians. They’ve been setting the table for contemporary standards and food diversity across the ages, and they’ve built their menu with all diets in mind to ensure a sense of community is brought to their tables. FICTION KITCHEN Fiction Kitchen focuses on locally grown produce, only relying on what is in season. Their dishes surpass any culinary boundaries, bringing healthy, meat-free interpretations to all manner of dishes—ranging from sushi and tacos to the Southern staple, “chicken” and waffles. Fiction Kitchen is 100 percent vegetarian, with many vegan options. I’m beyond impressed with the food scene down here in Raleigh. I only scratched the surface with these gems, but I’m so excited to fill my belly with more delicious spots throughout the city!

(Photo courtesy of Gothic Theatre)

On The MUSIC Scene

Living His

Best Life BY BRYAN C. REED

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A slow, steady path to success has made Raleighâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Matt Douglas an acclaimed soloist and session musician.

One supposes that Matt Douglas doesn’t often have the free time to reflect on his life and career. The multi-instrumentalist is prolific as a soloist and sideman, and has enlivened shows and recordings from the likes of Sylvan Esso, Hiss Golden Messenger, and Josh Ritter, in addition to touring and recording as a full-time member of The Mountain Goats. Oh, and he’s also a father of three who operates a recording studio in his backyard. To say Douglas keeps busy is an understatement. Given a brief break from home duties for an interview, Douglas offers this: “It’s pretty much the best life ever.” It is not, however, a story of overnight success. “It’s just been a slow progress over the years,” Douglas says. “It’s one of those things, when something would stop working or would just sort of end, I would just ease into something else.” That journey has taken him from New York University, where he studied jazz and contemporary composition, to a sojourn to Hungary where he gigged and studied European folk music on a Fulbright scholarship, and finally to North Carolina, where he’d initially bunked on his sister and brother-in-law’s couch while submitting graduate school applications. “I had a more romantic idea of what I thought my life was gonna be like,” Douglas says of his early academic ambitions. “I mean, my life has turned out to be a pretty romantic version of what I thought it was going to

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be anyway. But at the time, I wasn’t sure. So I ended up deferring and then didn’t come back to it. I just got more and more entrenched into the music scene in North Carolina, which I didn’t really think was going to happen. I just started playing more and writing.” That led to his first major local outfit, The Proclivities—a jazzy indie-pop outfit Douglas formed with guitarist Chris Boerner and drummer Matt McCaughan. From there, Douglas formed The Small Ponds, a duo with alt-country icon Caitlin Cary of Whiskeytown and Tres Chicas. He also joined the jazz-fusion trio The Hot At Nights, with Boerner and drummer Nick Baglio. Finally, after working with the band as a session player and touring member, Douglas joined The Mountain Goats full-time in 2016. In the midst of all that, Douglas also became an in-demand session player and arranger, working with acts ranging from alt-country (American Aquarium, Six String Drag) to pure pop (Sylvan Esso, Brett Harris). He became a regular feature in Hiss Golden Messenger, performed with singer/ songwriter Josh Ritter, and collaborated with Mount Moriah, The Rosebuds, Erin McKeown, and Nicolay. He also got married and started a family, with a 5-year-old daughter and 2-year-old twin boys now competing for time and attention, as well. And still, in early 2017, Douglas found time to release his first proper solo album, Affirmation (with Discomfort) —a collection of layered instrumentals, recorded entirely with woodwind instruments, that ties together ambient composition and melodic jazz. “When I’m making my own music, I don’t think too much about editing or censoring my aesthetic view of what I’m trying to do or the way I’m trying to do it,” he says. “But when I work with other people, I’m not trying to bulldoze it with Matt Douglas. I’m trying to find a way to serve the music and serve the song, and do it in a way that is not sacrificing any of my own creative integrity.”

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It’s the variety of opportunities Douglas is afforded that fuels the creativity, which in turn builds the aesthetics he brings both to session work and his own projects. Lately, he’s been collaborating with his former bandmate McCaughan on layered and manipulated recordings— beds of found sound and ambient passages—on which Douglas will soon start adding saxophone melodies. “I think this one rides the line a little bit more,” he says. “It’s still going to be tonal. There will still be melodies. But there’s going to be some interesting, uncomfortable stuff mixed in there with it. So it’s been fun to see how far you want to push that.” Working without a deadline and at the whims of his own creative impulses gives Douglas a freedom he doesn’t often get in his sideman roles. But, at the same time, he’s not aiming to define his solo work in a realm of avant-garde experimentation or let his session work remain wholly separate and disparate. “I don’t want it to be a total black-and-white, yin and yang thing,” he says. “I feel like I’m starting to blur the lines a little bit on both ends of it.” Indeed, balance is a vital component of what Douglas aims to achieve, within and without the music itself. Juggling his roles as composer, performer, husband, father, and so on presents its own demand for creative problem solving. “It’s been a pretty wild last few years, trying to manage all that stuff,” he says. “Sometimes it feels like I’m not doing a great job and sometimes it feels like we’re just making it work, just getting by. But overall, it’s been killer.”

“I’m trying to find a way to serve the music and serve the song, and do it in a way that is not sacrificing any of my own creative integrity.”

On The CONVENIENCE Scene CONVENIENCE

Millennial Magic Convenience Redefined

This app could be the genie in the bottle for delivering all your late-night cravings. BY LIPSA SHAH

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(Photos courtesy of goPuff)

Winter, the season of Netflix and Hulu binging, is the time we often find ourselves curled up on the couch, decked out in pajamas, only to realize that our favorite snack is not to be found. No worries: goPuff, the delivery startup that recently introduced itself to Raleigh, promises to bring snacks and other convenience products to your doorstep within an hour. The goPuff service was founded by Yakir Gola and Rafael Ilishayev, two former students of Drexel University, during their junior year. Gola was the only one among his group with a car and, after countless late-night drives to convenience stores to pick up necessities for his friends, he decided to take matters into his own hands. The startup began in 2013 when Gola and Ilishayev would personally deliver products throughout West Philadelphia to the Drexel community. Now headquartered in Philadelphia, goPuff is on track to serve 60 markets by the beginning of 2019, including Atlanta; Austin, Texas; Denver; Pittsburgh; and now, Raleigh.

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The best part is that goPuff owns the entire customer experience, with a warehouse in each market where they house all of the toiletries, snacks, and miscellaneous items—think some 3,000 necessities and craveables at your beck and call. The goPuff business model totally eliminates the middleman that you would find with Uber Eats or Postmates, enabling the transaction to occur between your order and the deliverer. Also, goPuff does not surprise you with unexpected delivery fees that you would often find on competing services. (Many of us, myself included, would decide against an order if the delivery fee was more than the items purchased.) With goPuff, there is a flat $1.95 delivery fee for every order, regardless of how much you purchase. The delivery service runs seven days a week from noon to 4:30 am. Some of the most popular products throughout the country, including in the Raleigh market, have included Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, Takis, Nerds Rope, Laffy Taffy (my favorite being the yellow one), and, of course, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. Can you guess the most popular time your community is requesting delivery? If you guessed between 9 pm and midnight, you are correct. This timeframe is universally popular

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across the board, and particularly on Sundays, which makes sense—the “Sunday scaries” have taken a real hold of us, and the last thing we could muster any energy for would be going outside in the cold for a bag of Doritos. While they do not currently deliver alcohol in Raleigh, it is definitely something goPuff would like to offer soon. If you haven’t downloaded the app, get with it. This convenience app was made by millennials, for millennials—and goPuff has truly restructured the meaning of convenience. Check it out: goPuff.com.

CANDID CONVERSATION

Brenda Gibson, a longtime community leader and current chair of the WakeMed Board of Directors, received the Excellence in Philanthropy Award from the Triangle Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals in November. In fall of 2018, Gibson was named Humanitarian of the Year by the N.C. Black Women’s Empowerment Network. (Photo: Heba Salama Photography)

The

Humanitarian Executive

A life of leadership and service—for Brenda Gibson, it’s as simple as connecting the dots between causes and contributors. BY KURT DUSTERBERG

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Brenda Gibson has a talent for bringing in money. She enjoyed a successful career, first in banking, then later in commercial real estate. But after years of cultivating business skills and contacts, she turned her attention to causes that could use a helping hand. She has played a role in countless local fundraising campaigns, but two causes are especially close to her heart. She has served on the WakeMed Health and Hospitals Board of Directors for 10 years, chairing it for the last four. Prior to that, she served on the WakeMed Foundation Board for 10 years and chaired that board for four years. Her other passion is Transitions LifeCare (formerly Hospice of Wake County), where she has served in various capacities for 20 years. Her work at Transitions resulted in the administrative building being named the Brenda C. Gibson Community and Education Center. And she’s still going strong, helping people in her community with important contributions that touch people’s lives. I understand this area has always been home for you. I grew up on a farm in North Raleigh. My first job was in 1970, when I was 14 and worked as a candy striper at WakeMed. My parents instilled a very strong work ethic in me. My mother grew up in Durham and had always wanted to be a nurse, but couldn’t get her nursing degree because she was working to help her family. She worked at Duke Medical Center for 17 years before moving to Raleigh to marry my dad. That may be where my interest in healthcare and helping others came from.

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Your early career started in the business world—with positions at Wachovia, BB&T, and Highwoods, which was led and cofounded by your future husband, Ron Gibson. After Ron and I were married, I remained at Highwoods until 2003, when I started a commercial real estate consulting business. In March 2016, I joined CBRE as a senior vice president in the brokerage division doing business development. But you ended up changing the focus of your working life, right? Since 2003, my life has really switched. I wanted to do more in the nonprofit world, giving back and raising money for different charities. I felt such reward from doing the charity work, and that’s something that was instilled in me young. When I left [my career], I had the freedom that I could do other things. I think it was realizing there is more to life than commercial real estate every day. You’ve been working on behalf of Transitions LifeCare for 20 years. What kind of work have you been doing? Most of the time you’re out raising money, so the first thing you’ve got to do is feel good about the organization and support it yourself. I am very proud of the hospice work Transitions does for the members of our community. Their leadership and commitment to people has made me want to be involved. I have served on the board, and worked on the first Capital Campaign, where we built the administrative building and the

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“Since 2003, my life has really switched. I wanted to do more in the nonprofit world, giving back and raising money for different charities.” hospice home on Trinity Road. I co-chaired the second campaign to raise $6 million to add 10 beds to the hospice home. In September of 2017, they named their administrative building for me for all the work I had done for 20 years. Your other main focus has been WakeMed. Tell me about that. WakeMed has been an even bigger commitment, and one that I am extremely passionate about. I’ve been on the hospital board for 10 years and chaired it the last four. I co-chaired the campaign to build the first children’s hospital in Wake County. We raised about $20 million. I moved to the hospital board in 2009. It’s a big time commitment, but also very rewarding as I see how well the health system is doing operationally and in serving those in need. WakeMed offers the people of Wake County services not available anywhere else. It is the only Level I trauma center in Wake County, the only children’s hospital, rehab hospital, and more. We get the sickest patients, the accident victims, a large majority of the behavioral health patients, and we do the majority of the charity care in this community. In May, I will retire from all of my WakeMed responsibilities. What is the secret to getting commitments for that kind of financial support?

Most people give to a charity they are passionate about or they are experienced with. With Transitions, there are a lot of people who have experienced hospice care in the home or at the hospice home. In 2012, my mother needed hospice care, and I became more passionate about it because I experienced it firsthand. I may meet with community leaders, wealthy individuals, people who can give; usually you want to meet with them face-toface, especially if you’re asking for a significant gift. I do try to narrow my asking to one charity a year. My husband’s friends would say, “Don’t answer the phone if Brenda calls!” Why is it so necessary to have people like you and the people whose support you seek? Because there are huge needs in our community that aren’t being met, and I know there are many in our community who have the ability to give. Having access to healthcare is a huge issue for many in the Triangle area and beyond. Health insurance costs are so high and people who purchase their insurance will sometimes choose a plan with a high deductible, and when they have a healthcare crisis they have a hard time paying that deductible. There are needs for hospice care, and some insurance companies do not have a hospice benefit. In the last couple of years I helped raise the money to start the first pediatric hospice in the

HELPING MIDTOWN & YOUR BUSINESS THRIVE The Midtown Raleigh Alliance is the driving force pulling businesses, community and elected leaders together to make things happen in Midtown! GET INVOLVED. GET CONNECTED. JOIN US! LEARN MORE AND JOIN ONLINE AT MIDTOWNRALEIGHALLIANCE.ORG January 24th from 5 - 6:30 pm Quail Ridge Books will host us for a talk and tour, light appetizers and drinks. More details at midtownraleighalliance.org/registration

Triangle area. Most children aren’t covered by a hospice benefit. A lot of these programs wouldn’t exist without fundraising. A lot of people think WakeMed is still the county hospital, that we still get money from the county—but we don’t, and haven’t for more than two decades. There are so many services—like a behavior health initiative that I am working on—that we wouldn’t have if it weren’t for philanthropy. You’re involved with another enterprise that is a success story, both for an individual and for the community. You and your husband, Ron, opened Marta’s, a luxury women’s boutique, in North Hills. How did this come about? I shopped with Marta Dziekanowska when she worked in Chapel Hill. I was one of her customers. My husband went to see her to buy me something at Christmas, and he was very impressed with her drive and initiative. She had immigrated here from Poland several years ago, and he just saw a real future with her. She wanted to have her own business, so she manages the store. Marta’s will be open two years on March 1st, but for me, the fun in this is not helping Marta in the store. The interest for me is how I can use Marta’s as a tool to give back. So, we have Marta’s Matters, which takes place on several shopping days each year, and during those events 15 percent of sales are donated to charity. We may have up to 100 people in the store across a four-hour time

frame, and we provide the wine and hors d’oeuvres. Women enjoy the shopping experience while we are able to support several charities throughout the year. It is just one way we are able to give back. The focus at Marta’s is on the lady over 35 who wants to be trendy, comfortable, and stylish. We have clothing and accessories, including handbags and scarves, and we have jewelry. The women who shop in our store love shopping during the charity events, when they know they’re helping a worthwhile cause as well. What do you do to relax when you’re not raising money? I have way too much energy. I don’t sleep much. I work out a lot, I do Pilates at least two days a week and try to get in a personal training session or some kickboxing another day or two. I have two yellow Labradors—they are my babies! They get me up about 5 am every morning. I’m in a book club and an investment club. I like to oil paint and actually have a studio at home, but lately that has taken a back burner. I go until at least 10 o’clock every night, always thinking about something. My husband says, “Your mind works too much, you need to calm down. (Laughs) I am extremely organized. That probably helps me the most. I feel great. A lot of that is because I stay so busy and positive-minded; I love helping others, I don’t watch the news, I don’t worry about things out of my control, and I work out. That’s the key.

There are so many services— like a behavior health initiative that I am working on— that we wouldn’t have if it weren’t for philanthropy.

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CHEF’S TABLE

Southern Cooking Steps Up

With a new concept opening in Wake Forest and a revamp of Driftwood Southern Kitchen’s menu in North Raleigh, Chef Nunzio Scordo is constantly refining his cuisine. BY ALEX DIXON

Chef Nunzio Scordo (Photo: Stacy Sprenz, Tabletop Media Group)

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“There’s been an explosion of Southern food across the country, and I don’t want to risk the chance of it getting too old.” When Chef Nunzio Scordo first came to Raleigh nearly a decade ago, there wasn’t a plethora of Southern restaurants. Since his resume included stints at some of the most acclaimed restaurants in Alabama and the country, Scordo saw an opportunity in North Raleigh’s Lafayette Village. Scordo opened Driftwood Southern Kitchen there in 2014, putting his spin on classic regional dishes from boiled peanuts to “country caprese”—fried green tomatoes with goat cheese and basil. But since Driftwood opened, the landscape has changed. “There’s been an explosion of Southern food across the country, and I don’t want to risk the chance of it getting too old,” Scordo says. “You can only do so much with certain ingredients that people are using all the time and you’re seeing pop up on every menu.” As the restaurant enters its fifth year, Scordo thinks it’s important for the menu to keep evolving and reinventing itself. He says the restaurant has grown from being “strictly Southern” to encompassing a variety of American cuisine. A newly unveiled menu highlights the broadened scope of the restaurant, from a crispy braised pork shank, with cauliflower-potato purée and an apple and honey chutney, to edamame hummus and Maine lobster rolls. Scordo trained with California chefs who were taking the farm-to-table approach before it became ubiquitous. He says his cooking has always revolved around access to fresh food due to his father’s Italian influences. He honed this technique with a focus on Southern cuisine at two famed restaurants in Birmingham, Alabama: Highlands Bar & Grill and the Hot and Hot Fish Club. The former, led by Chef Frank Stitt, won the prestigious James Beard Award for America’s most outstanding restaurant in 2018 after 10 nominations.

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“I want people to be able to come in there three times a week and eat as much or as little as they want.” At Driftwood, Scordo recently hired Doug Seeley, a chef from Napa Valley, who he says has the same culinary mindset. “For me, the menu is the easiest part of my job and always has been. With this menu, [Seeley] and I sat down at a table just rattling off ideas to each other, and it was over,” Scordo says. “That’s what’s awesome about having someone who thinks like you do. Not only can you bounce ideas back and forth, but you’ve got the same style of cooking. I don’t have to worry about trying to keep the food simple and then someone wants to run all the way to left field with it. We’re both already on the same page.” Seeley’s new position at Driftwood comes as Scordo is devoting time to debuting a new concept in Wake Forest, a tapas and wine bar called Bodega. Scordo says Bodega has an international approach to its food, taking inspiration from the cooking in wine regions across the world but with a primary focus on California, Spain, Italy, and France. One of the main tenets of Bodega is making high-end wines accessible and affordable. “I want people to be able to come in there three times a week and eat as much or as little as they want,” Scordo says. “We’re going to be able to offer high-end, $100 bottles of wines for three-ounce tastings. People are going to be able to get a small glass of something and not have to spend a ton of money.” Scordo’s approach to Bodega may even make its way back to Driftwood, including adapting a bigger proportion of Driftwood’s menu to tapas-style cuisine. “I’ve been trying to go in that direction; I just haven’t pulled the trigger on it yet,” Scordo says. “But once I start getting going with [Bodega], I think that will push me to do it.” At press time, Bodega was expected to open by the beginning of 2019.

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CHEF’S TABLE

Driftwood Southern Kitchen’s Shrimp and Grits Serves: 3 to 4

Ingredients

2 dozen medium shrimp, peeled and deveined Grits 2 cups water 4 cups milk 1 cup cream ¼ Tbsp thyme, chopped ¼ Tbsp granulated garlic 2 cups dry grits, preferably local stone-ground ½ Tbsp salt ¼ Tbsp pepper 1 cup cheddar, shredded ¼ lb unsalted butter Tomato-Andouille Beurre Blanc 3 8 / cup cream ½ lb butter ½ cup white wine ¼ cup shallot ¾ Tbsp thyme ¼ cup Roma tomato, diced ¼ cup Andouille sausage, diced Juice of 2 lemon slices

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Instructions For grits: 1. Bring water, cream, and milk to a boil. 2. Add thyme, garlic, salt, and pepper. 3. Turn heat to low. Whisk in grits and cook for about 30 minutes, mixing constantly. 4. Turn off heat and stir in the cheese. For beurre blanc: 1. In a sauté pan, add wine, shallot, and thyme until reduced. 2. Add heavy cream and allow to reduce again. 3. Add butter, and stir until melted. 4. Turn off heat and add remaining ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste. For beurre blanc: 1. Season the shrimp on each side with salt and pepper. 2. Add to a skillet with heated olive oil. 3. Cook 2 minutes per side and finish with the beurre blanc butter sauce. 4. Pour over the grits and serve.

(Photo: Kate Lewis)

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LIVING WELL

Controversy Aside BY LIPSA SHAH

CBD Oil Works

One writer’s take on the benefits of using CBD products.

“So it gets you high?” That’s the first question everyone asks after they learn about my love affair with CBD products. Let’s start with the basics—CBD, or cannabidiol, is a chemical compound extracted from hemp or marijuana plants. It’s completely nonpsychotropic, which means, no, it won’t get you high. Human bodies actually produce their own cannabinoids, which means our body already knows what to do with CBD once you’ve applied it. I replaced parts of my daily routine with CBD products for one month because I was fascinated by its rumored benefits. The topical benefits of CBD range from reducing inflammation and soreness to relieving pain, and even fighting wrinkles. Consuming CBD combats anxiety and helps promote sleep and a healthy weight. If something claims to calm my skin and mind at the same time, you better believe I’m going to drench my face and body with it— which is exactly what I did. To my surprise, it was even better than I anticipated. 1. IT’S NOT POT CHOCOLATES I have the biggest sweet tooth, so I get a two-inone effect after consuming these heart-shaped treats. Not Pot chocolates are made with raw cacao, CBD via hemp oil, and herbs such as ashwagandha. Raw cacao provides a boost of antioxidants, while Ashwagandha is known for a variety of benefits. I pop one of these before a long work day to keep my stress levels at bay, or before bed for a sweet, peaceful slumber.

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2. LORD JONES PAIN AND WELLNESS PURE CBD BODY LOTION I used this body lotion to relieve severe cramps that sometimes keep me bedridden for days, and after rubbing this over my belly I was able to get out of bed and enjoy a nice dinner. I also rubbed this on my shoulders after a particularly grueling upper body day at the gym, and felt less tense. Lord Jones also claims to help with dryness, so I plan to keep this on my shelf to save my skin during the winter months. 3. ORIGINS’ HELLO, CALM FACE MASK The change of seasons has been causing breakouts more often than not lately. Origins’ claims this mask can be used to instantly calm skin and reduce visible irritation, so I applied it daily before my shower and let it absorb into my skin for 15 minutes. After the second day, I noticed my breakouts reduce substantially, and by the third day they were practically gone. 4. VERTLY NATURAL LIP & SKIN BALM This was an easy addition to my collection considering my lips are always dry. Each layer I applied brought with it a whiff of sweet and earthy aromas. Thanks to CBD’s anti-inflammatory properties, my lips were left soft and smooth with no signs of chapping or flaking. The lip balm ingredients also include peppermint, jojoba oil, coconut oil, and cacao butter—the perfect recipe for undeniably smooth and soft lips. 5. CANNUKA CBD CALMING EYE BALM Our eyes are the hardest-working part of our bodies. Between the constant changes in light and darkness, the blue light our computer screens give off, and the demands of our visual world, our eyes are always exhausted. Cool to touch then warm on contact, Cannuka’s eyebalm treats fine lines, puffiness, and dark circles. After applying a small bit around my eyes first thing in the morning and again before bed, I noticed a smoother eye area.

STYLE

Up-Cycled

Eco- Conscious Jewelry From Glenwood to Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue, Zass Design is making its mark. BY RUHAMA WOLLE

(Photo: Amber Robinson)

In our disposable culture, fast-changing trends and cheap manufacturing means we throw things away without a second thought. The result is a waste crisis as plastics clog the ocean and landfill sites expand. Yet an inventive mother-daughter team from North Carolina is changing the rules for style by designing jewelry with a focus on sustainability. Zulay and Stephanie Smith, the founders of Raleigh-based Zass Design, are creating positive stories of transformation and making a real impact. Both graphic designers by trade, Zulay began making earrings from a collection of printed magazine materials while daughter Steph used football tickets from her alma mater, East Carolina University, as the basis for her first originals. In 2009, with the support of family and friends, the two jumped into the idea with intense optimism—and they haven’t paused since.

(Pho

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(Photo: Amber Robinson)

“Our inspiration comes from the natural habitat and using those materials in our earth and turning them into something that would not be thrown out— a piece that would be worth something,” Steph says. “It’s very different now than when we started in that sustainability and [living] eco-friendly were not at the forefront in 2008 and 2009.” Zass Design has continually evolved by using different materials to create its beautiful bold, geometric-style jewelry. A range of materials—from aluminum cans to Formica samples, vinyl records, laminate countertops, and acrylic—have become the foundation for unique jewelry collections. Meanwhile, mother and daughter are linking up with industrial companies, such as architecture and interior design firms, to purchase their obsolete scraps and sample booklets. “Now, we are trying to build a bigger momentum,” says Steph. “Our dream is to one day set up a recycling center—the first place people would think of to throw away their cans, paper, and plastics. In the meantime, we are currently in discussions with the Guggenheim, which is one of our new accounts.” (Yes, that Guggenheim— the esteemed Manhattan art museum.) When asked what her favorite part of this journey has been, Steph had many answers, but says, “Being able to work with my mom has been the best part; it’s fun and it doesn’t feel like work— and it still doesn’t after 10 years. When you land an account like the Guggenheim and they recognize your work as art and want it in their museum stores— that’s the climax of any artist’s career. I want people to feel like they are wearing a unique piece while simultaneously helping the environment.” The future of fashion is unpredictable, but the industry’s traditionally unsustainable practices have had an extremely negative effect on our earth’s resources, a dark side that’s now impossible to ignore. Steph says she knows one thing is for sure: “Fashion has a new wave of heightened selfawareness—pops of individualism as people are more open to being bold and to being the only one who is being bold.” Everyone plays a part in keeping the momentum going, and the Zass Design collection reminds us that we can change the world together, starting with ourselves. “It’s great to be in a hub like Raleigh, with a sea of entrepreneurs doing the same thing,” Steph says. “Even brewery and wineries are blowing up their cans with cool designs that we can work with.”

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HOME FASHION

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An Artistic

Illumination Louise Gaskill is leaving her mark on the world of interior design with her passion for lamping, a process of building creative lighting from an assortment of pieces. STORY AND PHOTOS BY DARIN MEYER

t’s the way her sky blue eyes catch the window light in her studio no matter where she is in the room, or how her nonstop smile makes you smile while you listen to her talk about her work. Louise Gaskill, a North Carolina native and current Raleigh resident, is reworking vintage German and Italian glass items and newly gilded metal components into inspired and unique lighting creations. Once you see her lighting, you can’t stop thinking about how it is not only different, but also quite inviting. And like her eyes finding the light in the room, her creative mind is finding new ways to blossom, namely as an abstract painter and creator of gilded draper y finials and hardware.

Gaskill has an ongoing project for one of her clients, whose home now contains more than 80 lighting fixtures, paintings, and finials that she’s created.

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Our two-hour inter view and photo session in her busy studio is much more of an ongoing conversation than a question-and-answer session as we explore her expectations, approach, and methods to her creations. “It’s all about making the shapes work together and bringing the pieces together that really aren’t supposed to go together—but they do if you layer them right,” Louise says about her lighting pieces. It’s because of this ability to find the right path for a piece that her reputation is soaring, and demand for her work is steadily growing. Surrounded by many of her signature chandeliers hanging overhead, a few of her abstract paintings leaning against the walls, and gilded finials on a tabletop, she explains that her building technique allows her to take her own path or take direction from a client by mixing and matching the hundreds of available items in her studio. “Clients will come in here and a piece of glass will speak to them,” Gaskill

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says. “They don’t know how to use it, but I’ll start pulling components. It’s amazing how one or two parts can change the whole feel of the piece.” But that is only part of the satisfaction for both Gaskill and the client. The whole experience of working with her gives you something more. “It makes clients so happy because they were involved in the process, and now they have a stor y. People love to have a stor y.” The resulting chandeliers, sconces, lamps, and pendant lights are curious and inviting. After seeing her work for the first time, you begin to re-think what’s possible. I find the open and air y structures of her lighting to be my favorite aspect. For example, her studio ceiling is crowded with chandeliers, and yet you can easily see through the entire space. Unlike many of the trendy industrial lights that are the current rage, her chandeliers do not block

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your view or demand your attention because of their size. Gaskill and her work are nuanced and thoughtful rather than imposing and exhaustive. She and her work are the refreshing breeze on a hot summer day, and not the heat itself. Speaking about her creative methods and their intentions, Gaskill says she often “sees” the finished piece before starting a lighting project, and she is using her nearly nonexistent spare time to produce an entire line of gilded finials, rods, and hardware for drapery. She paints on the weekends to take a break from the weekday workload of fulfilling lighting orders, and her paintings are dear to her, as they offer both a break from client orders and a chance to express herself without restraint. Gaskill prefers oil paints because they are—as she lovingly puts it—“forgiving,” and can take many days to dry. That protracted drying process has become an integral part of her technique in which she scrapes off the semi-dry paint. “And then I put it back on, scrape it off, put it back on, and then the shapes start to emerge from all the layers of paint, and the shapes behind come to the front,” she explains with a smile. Louise Gaskill and her lighting, paintings, and drapery finials will be moving to a permanent showroom in the Market Square building in High Point starting with the spring designers’ and artists’ market show.

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GIVING BACK

(Photo by Designed for Joy) (Photo by Designed for Joy)

The Art of

Change

Designed for Joy provides Raleigh women with artisan jobs that pay living wages. BY BRITTANY MURDOCK

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2019

The beginning of a new year brings chilling temperatures and the feeling of those winter blues. But it’s a rather different atmosphere at Designed for Joy in the Boylan Heights neighborhood in downtown Raleigh. Make your way through their vibrant pink doors into a room full of hardworking artisans, trendy jewelr y, and the everlasting feeling of faith and change. Designed for Joy (DFJ) is a local nonprofit organization providing women in the community with artisan jobs that pay a living wage, and in an environment that values Christian faith. On a mission trip to Rwanda back in May of 2017, owner Car y Heise witnessed the impact that artisan work was having on women. “It was keeping women off the streets,” Heise says. “It created a community that ever yone relied on and wanted to be part of. They were producing products together, and making it ver y well.” And within two months after returning from her trip—and with the help of her longtime friend and textiles guru Kristen Sydow—DFJ was born. The company has been changing the lives of women ever since. The DFJ artisans are women who have been living at high risk for housing insecurities, sex or labor trafficking, generational poverty, and many other debilitating circumstances. All of the women are referred to DFJ through the nonprofit’s partnerships with ministries and other organizations in the community. Workshops take place in the beginning of the week, with women gathering around the community table ready for the day’s tasks. “We start each workshop with a devotion and prayer,” Heise says. “That’s the most precious time to hear what’s really on ever ybody’s hearts and what they’re going through.” Then the work begins, and they focus on cutting leather, sewing, and working on hardware. The end result becomes fashionable leather earrings, buckle cuffs, antler necklaces, and a variety of colorful and textured clutches. Some women participate for several months, while others stay for just a few weeks until they can find a full-time job. “We never set out to be a full-time job, but we wanted to be somewhere that paid well in the in-between time. [We wanted to] help build their confidence, and give them some marketable skills,” Heise explains, adding

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(Photo: Brittany Murdock)

that it’s important to be able to see the women progress and make these accomplishments so that they can give them a solid job reference. So far, they’ve helped change the lives of 22 women. And with each woman who finds success beyond the pink doors, another seat opens. “We celebrate when we have an empty chair, because that means someone got a fulltime job. It means we have space for another girl to come in,” Heise says. There are many ways to get your hands on their beautiful work. Stop by during shop hours, order online, or visit a handful of local shops and boutiques that carr y their products. Local merchants offering the DFJ products include Swagger, Little Details, Monroe.26, Carolina Roots Boutique, and The Local Squirrel. The sign in the shop’s front window reads “Your Purchase Matters,” and it couldn’t be more true than here at DFJ. “Ever y $12 you spend is equal to a living-wage hour that we can give to someone,” Heise notes. And for someone like Pamela, an artisan who is reaping the benefits of DJF, it’s so much more than a monetar y gift. “I’m just so grateful,” she shares. “You don’t know how coming here helps me. When I’m weak and I can’t make it, I sit at this table and somehow I get strength to carr y on another day. I’m just grateful that I’m here.” Looking to volunteer with DFJ? Visit DesignedForJoy.com to learn how you can get involved.

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ON THE TOWN

Treasures Around Town

Bailey’s Fine Jewelry celebrates its 70th anniversary with even more “Finders Keepers” boxes hidden around Raleigh. BY LIPSA SHAH

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Imagine going about your day, working late, running by the grocer y to pick up dinner—and there, nestled among the greens, you stumble upon a jewelr y box. A diamond inside, with no strings attached—this box is simply for the finder to keep as a gift. It’s instant gratification on your end as well as gratification on Trey Bailey’s end, just knowing that he made someone’s day. This was exactly what Trey Bailey (whose surname has been synonomous with fine jewelr y since the family opened its first store in 1948) envisioned about 10 years ago when he was discussing the idea with his wife during a stroll in the park. The concept Bailey imagined was meant to be unique and authentic. As he explains it, discovering a gift of jewelry is an experience that is always surprising and delighting to the recipients. The first ever box was hidden at Cafe Carolina and Bakery in Cameron Village, where a woman found it. The owner of Cafe Carolina told Bailey the entire restaurant stopped and watched as this woman opened up the box and was brought to tears. The event ended up making its way to The News & Observer front cover in the most organic way possible: word of mouth. Today, Bailey’s Fine Jewelr y hides boxes around town throughout the year, but always leaves a few extra on special holidays such as Mother’s Day and Christmas. Even someone who has never shopped at Bailey’s will recognize the box and, no doubt, feel a tingle of excitement. Since this is the jeweler’s 70th year of business, the 2018 holiday season was particularly celebrator y: Bailey’s scattered 70 boxes throughout the market between Thanksgiving and Christmas, with a variety of jewelr y from earrings to rings and necklaces, ranging in price from $25 to $250. Ever y so often, the value of the surprise packages will exceed $1,000. As Valentines and Mother’s Day approaches, you might look for these treasures at all manner of public places—grocer y stores, restaurants, coffee shops, parks, etc. Hints about the places where boxes are hidden can be found on social media @baileysfinejewelr y.

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SISTER CITIES

Short Drives,

Easy Day Trips Check out what’s on tap in Durham and the NBA All-Star weekend in Charlotte.

A circus-themed grand opening celebration on December 1st highlighted 40 Hi-Wire brews and brought roving circus acts, a spinning wheel, and aerial artists to the Bull City.

HI-WIRE BREWING COMES TO BULL CITY Asheville’s award-winning brewer y recently opened the first taproom outside of its hometown market. Located at 800 Taylor Street in Durham, the new 10,522-square-foot taproom and outdoor patio is ser ving 24 taps of Hi-Wire’s trademark lagers and rare sour and wild ales, plus guest wines and ciders on tap. The label’s most popular beers include Hi-Wire Lager, Bed of Nails Brown, and Hi-Pitch Mosaic IPA.

THE QUEEN CITY HOSTS NBA ALL-STARS Perfect prelude to the March Madness season will be the NBA’s exhibition basketball game on Februar y 17th in Charlotte’s Spectrum Center. It will be the 68th edition of the NBA All-Stars, but only the second time it has been held close to home. (It was in Charlotte in 1991 and scheduled to be held there in 2017 but was moved to New Orleans that year because of the controversy surrounding North Carolina’s bathroom bill.) Like last year, when the NBA switched the format to one where the fans decide the team captains, the fans will choose the 2019 captains and the highly anticipated draft will be televised as well as the game. The weekend of fun kicks off on Friday the 15th with the All-Star Celebrity Game, when stars from film, television, music, and sports will take the court at 7 pm. The Celebrity Game will be followed by a “Rising Stars” Game, when the NBA’s best rookies and sophomores will compete in a U.S. vs. World format. On Saturday, the NBA All-Star Game players will participate in the NBA All-Star Practice & Media Day. The 2019 NBA All-Star Game will be on Sunday at 8 pm.

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GENERATIONS

Life Once Upon a

Storytelling enriches the lives of seniorsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and their younger audiences. BY JOHN LOWE

uman beings are hardwired to love storiesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;from stories drawn on walls in prehistoric days to the stories of biblical times to the stories our elders tell at family reunions. If you think about it, you tell stories almost ever y day. Perhaps about something that happened at work, or about a conversation you had with a friend. We love to hear them, and we love to tell them. There is a growing body of evidence that suggests storytelling can be not only enjoyable, but also therapeutic for senior citizens. In countries around the world, family elders are held in high esteem, and their stories are meaningful for the younger family members. Seniors feel respected by being able to share their knowledge and experience. Here in the States, however, many seniors find themselves living in a senior home or community, and their memories and history are, unfortunately, not in such high demand.

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That’s changing: Through stor ytelling, researchers are finding that the lives of senior citizens can be greatly enhanced. Dr. Wendy Scheinberg-Elliott of California State University Fullerton says that her research affirms: “It is ver y important for seniors to retell their stories. Seniors are empowered when they realize they have wisdom to share.” Hope Levy, a San Francisco–based geriatric consultant concurs, noting, “For seniors, the chance to tell their stories improves selfesteem, and enhances feelings of control and master y over life.” Similarly, James Birren, the founder of the Birren Center for Autobiographical Studies in Laguna, California, found that “telling stories improves the confidence of older adults. By recalling how they overcame past struggles, they are better prepared to confront new challenges.” Even

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seniors facing end-of-life situations find that telling stories helps them better manage that experience. Dr. Har vey Chochinov at the University of Manitoba studied the impact of stor ytelling on terminally ill patients, and his results showed a renewed sense of purpose and meaning among those who participated. Storytelling even has a positive effect on seniors with early stage dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. “Storytelling opens the rules to imagination” says Anne Basting, founder of the TimeSlips Project. For someone suffering from dementia, it allows them “to create something new that accepts who they are and where they are in the moment.” Stor ytelling also enhances the relationship between the teller and the listener. Caregivers have reported that listening to seniors tell stories about their lives gives them a better understanding and

appreciation for the person they are caring for, and by listening, that person is showing the senior that they truly are interested in them, and not simply doing their job. The stories themselves can be remarkably entertaining and educational. This is what I experienced as I inter viewed North Carolinians, like the great artist and Lexington native Bob Timberlake, now in his 80s. He shared an incredible stor y about how his family, and the families of his wife and best friend, were all indelibly linked together during the Revolutionar y War. Another of my inter views was with the legendar y North Carolina politician and Raleigh resident Rufus Edmisten. Mr. Edmisten shared the stor y of his invaluable tutelage under Senator Sam Er vin during the Watergate hearings. As research and anecdotal evidence grows supporting the

2019

therapeutic advantages of stor ytelling, senior citizen communities and facilities around the countr y have begun to introduce stor ytelling programs for their residents. That movement has found its way to Raleigh. At Atria Oakridge, an independent living community in North Raleigh, residents can participate in a program called Stor yWise. The community has developed its own Stor yWise card deck, with each card containing a topic for the reader to tell a stor y about. When the community comes together for stor y time, residents can volunteer to tell their stor y to their neighbors. Alison Donnelly, community sales director at Atria Oakridge, has seen the positive effects of Stor yWise firsthand: “Our community has really embraced this program,” she says. “Our residents use their stories to find common interests with their neighbors, and they seem to enjoy both telling and listening. One of our residents told us about being the first person to sail around the world without navigation, and he became quite a celebrity in the community. Another woman used stor ytelling to recover from the loss of her husband, and she now inter views other residents to help them tell their stories.” According to AssistedLivingToday.com, the benefits of stor ytelling for seniors include improved memor y, relief from boredom, decreased feelings of depression, improved self-esteem, and improved quality of life. Seniors have a lifetime of experience, histor y, and stories to share. We owe it to them and to our future generations to provide opportunities where seniors can share those stories.

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CULTURAL DIVERSITY

Al Norte al Norte:

Latino Life in North Carolina This traveling exhibition organized by the North Carolina Museum of History features the work of Pulitzer Prize–winning photojournalist and Triangle resident José Galvez. It chronicles the diversity and strength of the state’s growing Latino community— from business owners and farm laborers to grandparents and kindergarten graduates. 66 | MidtownMag.com

Durham, 2005

Spring Hope, 2001 Kinston, 2005

Ashe County, 2007

January 4–March 10 N.C. Museum of History 220 Fayetteville Street CityofRaleighMusuem.org José Galvez

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HOME STYLER

STYLED BY VALERIE TROUPE ValerieTroupe.com

WINTERrelaxing We spend the most time inside during the winter. Our homes are a place of refuge from the coldâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; a place to warm ourselves by the fire and fill our bellies with comfort food. A place to reconnect during the long winter nights, spending quality time with friends and family. Make sure your home is warm and welcoming. Use cozy throws on the couch for curling up after a long day. Have plenty of bowls and mugs at the ready for hearty soups and hot cocoa. Organize scarves, hats, and gloves by the door so you will always be ready to brave the cold. Make your home a great place to ride out the cold winter by making warm memories.

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Door Country chandelier (shown in Chantilly), $1,227.80 Steven Shell Living

BDI Eileen Blanc shelves, $799 each | Ambiente

Three-piece sectional in P. Kaufman fabric, $3,695 | Cocktail ottoman, $399 | English-arm club chair, $944 | Dexter Furniture

Ekornes Stressless Skyline medium recliner and ottoman with a signature base in Paloma leather, $3,995 | Ambiente

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FOODIE FOCUS FOUNT COFFEE + KITCHEN , PHOTO BY JENNIFER HEINSER

CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION: 2019’s installment of an annual favorite, Cooking for a Classic, is just around the corner. All proceeds benefit the Lucy Daniels Center and its mental health programs for children in the Triangle. The first round is Monday through Thursday, February 25th to 28th; second round is March 4th and 5th; and the finale is March 11th. Tickets start at $75 for the first round, $100 for the second round, and $125 for the finale. The venue is 1705 East in Raleigh, and each evening features six plated courses. Round one features Teddy Diggs from Coronato’s in Chapel Hill vs. Ryan Grimm from WatersView Restaurant in Lake Gaston; Matt Hannon from Ashten’s in Southern Pines vs. Bo Peterson from Primal Food & Spirits in Durham; Jake Wood from 18 Seaboard vs. Jonathan Blackley from Prestonwood Country Club in Cary; and Andrew Smith from buku vs. Orlando Jinzo from The Leadmine in Southern Pines. The prize for 2019 is a restored 1981 JEEP Scrambler.

Come Hungry! B Y S E A N L E N N A R D , T R I A N G L E F O O D G U Y, T R I A N G L E F O O D B L O G . C O M

Triangle restaurant news NEW IN TOWN: Tenedor, which opened at the end of November, is a neighborhood taqueria that focuses on fast, fresh Latin fare consisting of family recipes mated with secret sauces and seasonings (owner Lee Cordova was born in Veracruz, Mexico and moved to the United States early in life). The restaurant is located just outside of 440 at the intersection of New Bern Avenue and U.S. Highway 64.

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You’ll find lots of changes on Raleigh’s Hillsborough Street: Marco’s Pizza was replaced by a new place called Hot Tomato. Waba closed and was replaced by a Peruvian/ Colombian/Venezuelan place called Pisco Mar, although—interestingly enough— they still have a few Korean items on the menu. And finally, Mama Jee is gone and in its place is a sushi bar called Sushi Mon.

Over in Brier Creek, Poke Bros. is opening at 780 Alexander Place, Suite 110. They offer fast, fresh, fit: High-quality, sushi-grade fish and farm-fresh veggies in an authentic Hawaiian poké bowl. In Morrisville, Fount Coffee + Kitchen opened in the Marketplace at Perimeter Park (corner of Chapel Hill Road and Carrington Mill Boulevard). They offer coffee and teas, smoothie bowls, salads, stacks, and small plates. Down in Holly Springs, signage is up for a concept called Harvest Moon in the former SiP Bistro location at 128 Bass Lake Road. We’re waiting with great anticipation! And in downtown Fuquay-Varina, Vicious Fishes Taproom & Kitchen opened in December at 132 S. Fuquay Avenue in the former Rock Harbor Grill space. The new spot will combine a craft brewery already known for its location in Angier with a gastropub featuring wood-fired cuisine.

Sean Lennard has been catering in the Triangle for more than 15 years, and his blog is a go-to foodie hotspot. He taps into local restaurant partners and his online catering business, Triangle Food Guy, serves events of all sizes. Check out TriangleFoodBlog.com for weekly news.

Raleigh 4209-114 Lassiter Mill Rd (919) 782-0808

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TASTES of the CITY 1

(1) Winstonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Grille: Chicken & Biscuits with honey drizzle (2) Salt & Lime Cabo Grill: Sugar Churros with whipped cream and caramel dipping sauce (3) Clouds Brewing: Chicken Nachos with beer cheese, pico de gallo, and fresh avocado + sides of salsa verde and sour cream (4) Kings Bowl: Oreo Cookie Mega Shake with vanilla ice cream, crushed Oreos, chocolate sauce, Oreo cookie truffles, and a giant Oreo cookie (5) Pizza La Stella: Margherita La Stella with San Marzano tomato sauce, fontina and mozzarella blend, and basil

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Start the year off right. Let Go 2 Girls help you regain more of your time so you can focus on the important things in life this year! We offer: Recurring Service Weekly Bi-weekly Monthly One Time Cleans Special Occasions Move-in/Move Outs Deep Cleans In-Home Laundry

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North Hills Shopping Center

BEST PLACE FOR DRINKS AFTER WORK GOLD: Level7 Rooftop Bar SILVER: Vita Vite BRONZE: Vivace BEST SPOT FOR A BUSINESS LUNCH GOLD: Winston’s Grille SILVER: Vivace BRONZE: Glenwood Grill BEST PLACE TO GRAB A GLASS OF WINE GOLD: Vita Vite SILVER: Vivace BRONZE: Vidrio BEST PLACE TO HAVE A GIRLS NIGHT OUT GOLD: Vita Vite SILVER: Vidrio BRONZE: Vivace BEST LOCAL BEER GOLD: Trophy Brewing Co. SILVER: Lynwood Brewing Concern BRONZE: Lonerider Brewing Company BEST SPOT FOR A CRAFT COCKTAIL GOLD: Watts & Ward SILVER: Fox Liquor Bar BRONZE: Vidrio 78 | MidtownMag.com

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BEST PLACE TO BUY DESIGNER JEWELRY GOLD: Bailey’s Fine Jewelry SILVER: Diamonds Direct BRONZE: Raleigh Diamond BEST PLACE FOR CUSTOM JEWELRY GOLD: Bailey’s Fine Jewelry SILVER: Diamonds Direct BRONZE: Raleigh Diamond BEST PLACE TO BUY WEDDING RINGS GOLD: Bailey’s Fine Jewelry SILVER: Diamonds Direct BRONZE: Raleigh Diamond BEST FURNITURE STORE GOLD: Nadeau SILVER: Green Front Furniture BRONZE: Furnish BEST GARDEN CENTER GOLD: Logan’s One Stop Garden Shop SILVER: Homewood Nursery & Garden Center BRONZE: Atlantic Gardening Company BEST STORE FOR VINTAGE OR ANTIQUES GOLD: Father & Son Antiques SILVER: Bailey’s Fine Jewelry BRONZE: Hunt & Gather BEST HOME DECOR GOLD: Inspirations Home Decor & More SILVER: DECO Raleigh BRONZE TIE: Nadeau | Steven Shell Living

Services BEST LOCAL PET STORE GOLD: Phydeaux SILVER: Unleashed BRONZE: Woof Gang Bakery

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Triangle’s Only Veterinary Practice of Excellence The SPCA of Wake County turns to us for their veterinary needs and so can you. We proudly donate over 1/4 million dollars in veterinary services to the SPCA annually. In addition to preventative care, we are also here when YOU need us most by offering same day sick pet visits. State-of-the-art surgical and diagnostic equipment along with doctor’s rounds ensure the best care for your family’s pets.

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BEST DRY CLEANER GOLD: Brothers Cleaners SILVER: Medlin-Davis Cleaners BRONZE: Capstone Cleaners BEST PRIVATE SCHOOL GOLD: Ravenscroft SILVER: Trinity Academy BRONZE TIE: Cardinal Gibbons High School | Saint Mary’s School | St. David’s School FRIENDLIEST CUSTOMER SERVICE GOLD: Renaissance Dental Center SILVER: Mark Christopher Salon BRONZE: Von Kekel Aveda Lifestyle Salon Spa BEST PLACE TO DE-AGE GOLD: Synergy Face & Body SILVER: Skin Raleigh at Davis & Pyle Plastic Surgery BRONZE: Von Kekel Aveda Lifestyle Salon Spa BEST MED SPA GOLD TIE: Blue Water Spa | Synergy Face & Body SILVER: Skin Raleigh at Davis & Pyle Plastic Surgery BRONZE: The MedSpa at Raleigh Plastic Surgery Center

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BEST SPA EXPERIENCE GOLD: The Umstead Hotel & Spa SILVER: Synergy Face & Body BRONZE TIE: Blue Water Spa | Von Kekel Aveda Lifestyle Salon Spa BEST MASSAGE GOLD: The Umstead Hotel & Spa SILVER: Synergy Face & Body BRONZE: Von Kekel Aveda Lifestyle Salon Spa BEST PLACE TO GET A MANI/PEDI GOLD: Synergy Face & Body SILVER: Paintbase BRONZE: HighPark Nail Spa BEST SALON FOR A HAIRCUT GOLD: Mark Christopher Salon SILVER: Von Kekel Aveda Lifestyle Salon Spa BRONZE: Salon Blu BEST SALON FOR COLOR GOLD: Mark Christopher Salon SILVER: Von Kekel Aveda Lifestyle Salon Spa BRONZE: The Sky Parlor Salon BEST YOGA/PILATES STUDIO GOLD: Midtown Yoga SILVER: Barre-Up BRONZE: YoBa Studio

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SPONSORED CONTENT

Top Five Ways to Help Your Children Through a Separation BY VICTORIA BENDER VICTORIA BENDER IS A BOARD-CERTIFIED SPECIALIST IN FAMILY LAW AND A PRINCIPAL WITH BENDER LEFANTE LAW OFFICES, A BOUTIQUE FIRM WITH A PRACTICE DEDICATED TO FAMILY BENDER LEFANTE LAW OFFICES BENDERLEFANTELAW.COM

Most parents love their children and want them to grow up to be happy, healthy, well-balanced adults; chances are that your child’s other parent is no exception to that generality. But somewhere in the process of divorce and separation, parents make mistakes that end up hurting their children. While you may not agree with the other parent’s childrearing practices, the way they do things, or the choices they have made, it is the best practice to treat the other parent with kindness and respect. Why? Well, if the fact that your children don’t want to hear you fighting isn’t enough, how about, judges really like it? When you have children, you need to be careful to consider them and their needs in everything you do. Even if the other parent has issues that will prevent or limit their custodial time with the children, you can still treat the other parent with courtesy and good manners.

Here are the top five ways you can help your children through the separation: 1. Tell your children you love them, every day. 2. Your divorce issues should not become your children’s problems. Be careful not to let your children overhear arguments or negotiations about legal or personal matters between or about you and the other parent. Do not make or allow others to make negative comments about the other parent that can be overheard by your child. 3. Each parent should feel free to participate with the child in afterschool and extracurricular events, as well as in special events at school. If you can’t get along with the other parent, choose a seat where you will not have to interact with them.

4. No child should ever be forced to take sides between the parents. You should never physically or psychologically attempt to pressure or influence the children concerning the legal proceedings between the parents. And let your child have good memories; if he brings up a happy moment in the past or present which involves the other parent, allow him his happiness. 5. Do not use the children as a “go-between” to communicate with the other parent or provide adult documents (including child support checks) to the other parent. If you are speaking on the phone with your child, do not then ask to speak to the other parent. Keep adult matters in separate phone calls at separate times.

THIS IS PAID LEGAL ADVERTISEMENT. THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS ARTICLE IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE. NO ATTORNEY CLIENT RELATIONSHIP IS CREATED BY THE PUBLICATION AND READING OF THIS ARTICLE. ALL DOMESTIC MATTERS ARE DIFFERENT AND ALL SPECIFIC QUESTIONS SHOULD BE DIRECTED TO AN ATTORNEY WHO CAN ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS AND PROVIDE LEGAL ADVICE BASED ON YOUR UNIQUE CIRCUMSTANCES.

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Philanthropy

a world of BY ALEX DIXON

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For more than a quarter century, the Triangle Wine Experience has brought renowned wineries to the area for a good cause.

Wine W

hen the Triangle Wine Experience tickets go on sale each year, a majority are sold within mere hours. What started as a relatively small event in 1992 that raised $50,000 has grown into a nationally renowned gathering that raised more than $2 million in 2018. The annual celebration includes winery dinners at local restaurants and a gala and auction event. Proceeds from the Triangle Wine Experience benefit the Frankie Lemmon School and Developmental Center, a Raleigh child development center that is open to all but is primarily for children with disabilities.

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Triangle Wine Experience Gala (Photo: Kate Pope Photography)

Achieving the scale and reputation that the Triangle Wine Experience has accomplished after 26 years has not been an easy task; it has required coordination among the dozens of participating wineries—including many esteemed California producers—and local restaurants. Even the event setup is a challenge each year, as the location of the main gala (which draws more than 600 people) is unknown until about a month before. Fortunately, event planners from the RaleighDurham chapter of the International Live Events Association (ILEA) make quick work of turning vacated stores into black-tie affairs. In 2017, the gala was held in the former Morrisville Field & Stream building. In 2018, it was held in the former Gander Mountain space. “Triangle Wine Experience (TWE) has it all. Each year, the unexpected décor and entertainment add to the exciting [food and wine] experience that the TWE guests are expecting,” says Angie Wright, co-chair of ILEA’s Triangle Wine Experience

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Committee and owner of Chic Details Weddings & Events. “Many of the guests have been attending this event from the beginning, and wouldn’t consider missing it.” In addition to wines and food from local chefs such as Ashley Christensen and Scott Crawford, the gala on February 2nd offers the opportunity for attendees to bid for unique experiences, like a seven-day trip to southern Africa, planned by wine tourism company Travel Sommelier, and exclusive items, like large-format bottles from the acclaimed Cirq winery. “It’s an inspiring, energizing weekend that demonstrates how powerful we can be when we band together to do good,” says Chef Christensen, who serves as co-chair of the event. The event will pair more than 40 local restaurants in Cary, Chapel Hill, Durham, Raleigh, and Wake Forest with visiting wineries for the wine dinners that will be held on Thursday, January 31st. And for chefs like Serge Falcoz-Vigne at North

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Raleigh’s St. Jacques French Cuisine, the dinners create camaraderie that lasts longer than the single night of the event and beyond the scope of a single beneficiary. Chef Falcoz-Vigne says funds have also been raised to benefit California vineyards destroyed by wildfires. “There’s solidarity. There’s people from California, people from France, people from everywhere,” he says of the wine dinners. “You can be sure [guests] will leave with so much love in their hearts. It’s a moment we all have together to raise money, so I want to make sure they understand we are proud and appreciate their support.” For its previous wine dinner, St. Jacques, which features nearly all French wines on its menu, was paired with California’s Davis Family vineyards. Dishes included a pan-fried local lamb belly with Merguez sausage, parsnip purée, and ratatouille paired with Davis’ Zinfandel, and sautéed shrimp, polenta with a French duck confit, and

chestnut foie gras sauce paired with a Pinot Noir. “They love to come to North Carolina because it’s one of their biggest markets besides California, and I just love these guys,” Falcoz-Vigne says. “I’m French, so you understand I usually think French wines are better, but what Davis Family Vineyards does is impressive. What I like is when people make wine like artisans. They don’t try to make volume; they try to make quality.” Chef Scott Crawford’s eponymous Crawford and Son cuisine will be paired this year with the Jackson Family Wines’ Spire Collection, which includes wineries ranging from Napa Valley to Tuscany. “The Triangle Wine Experience has given us a way to connect as a community through our love of food and wine—and do so in support of the Frankie Lemmon School,” Crawford says. “It’s incredible to know that we’ve been able to make a difference in these children’s lives just by sharing our passion.”

Vintages from Reynolds Family Winery (Photo: Reynolds Family Winery)

Here’s a look at several California winemakers returning for another year at Triangle Wine Experience: REYNOLDS FAMILY WINERY Reynolds Family Winery has been involved with Triangle Wine Experience since husband-and-wife team Steve and Suzie Reynolds launched their first wines nearly 20 years ago. “There are many charities, and this is one you feel you truly can make a difference with,” Steve Reynolds says. “As parents of three wonderful children, it’s the least we can do. North Carolina has supported us for a long time, and this is one way we can give back.” With a 9.5-acre estate in Napa Valley and ideal growing conditions for big, rich, and complex wines, Reynolds Family Winery produces just one wine from the vineyard on its property: Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. But the sourcing of grapes from other vineyards have allowed it to produce acclaimed wines that span varietals, such as Sauvignon Blanc and Merlot.

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Vintages from Davis Family Vineyards (Photo: Davis Family Vineyards)

K. LAZ WINE COLLECTION AND LAZ WINE Kerrin Laz’s wine career began in 2003 when she joined Dean & Deluca as wine buyer for its store in Washington, D.C. But her interest in food and wine began long before. Laz grew up around parents who loved food; she attended UNC– Chapel Hill, where she landed a job at the historic Southern restaurant Crook’s Corner. In 2015, Laz launched her own wine shop, tasting room, and store—K. Laz Wine Collection— in Yountville, California. Just a year later, Laz then started her own wine label, Laz Wine. In addition to her involvement with Triangle Wine Experience, Laz also founded Inspire Napa Valley in 2017, which has raised more than $1 million through wine-centered events to advance Alzheimer’s research and enhance care for those living with the disease. DAVIS FAMILY VINEYARDS Davis Family Vineyards lives up to its name. Since Guy and Judy Davis founded the winery in 1997 in Healdsburg, K. Laz Wine Collection and Laz Wine California, their two sons have already jumped into the (Photo: Isabelle Straka) family business. Oldest son Cole is the cellar master and assistant winemaker at the winery, and youngest son Cooper is pursuing a wine marketing degree at Sonoma State University. Guy’s passion for wine began in Seattle, where he worked at a French restaurant while attending the University of Washington. Tasting French wine at the end of his shift with the owner and chef of the restaurant blossomed into a love of the taste and production of the beverage. Now, Davis Family Vineyards produces a variety of wines, from its estate grown Syrah to its sparkling Rose de Noir, made entirely with Pinot Noir.

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2018

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Sam Kaplan (Photo: Matt Morris Photography)

SAM KAPLAN Sam Kaplan says winemaking has always been in his blood. His family lived on a farm in Oklahoma, so he grew up with an appreciation of agriculture. And it didn’t hurt that his father made wine in the garage. Kaplan originally wanted to be a doctor, but realized wine was his calling when he was offered a winemaking internship after college. Since then he’s been involved with and founded a number of brands, from Memento Mori and Arkenstone to his latest venture, Maxem. This latest brand was started by Kaplan and his wife, Nancy, and is named after their two kids, Max and Emma. “As winemakers, we’re asked to do charity events all the time for a host of causes,” Kaplan says. “Watching [Triangle Wine Experience] evolve, seeing what they’re doing for the kids and what the Frankie Lemmon School has turned into, is really touching.” KEPLINGER WINES More than a decade ago, Helen Keplinger moved to Spain to start a winery for a group of investors who purchased a vineyard. Her husband, DJ Warner, visited her often as they traveled throughout famed wine regions of Europe, becoming steeped in the Mediterranean way of life. This culture made its way back to Napa Valley when Keplinger and Warner started their own venture, Keplinger Wines, where they select specific vineyards and grapes to create soughtafter wines.

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MODERN SOLUTIONS FOR MODERN FAMILIES

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POLISHED IMPRESSIONS

FILLERS VS. SURGERY: Which is right for you? Many women and men have discovered the amazing benefits of Botox and other injectables, such as Juvederm and Restylane. And it shows! Botox is the wonder drug that can shape eyebrows and remove forehead lines, “elevens” between the eyebrows, and crow’s feet—the tell-tale sign of age around the eyes. Fillers can give youthful fullness to the face, especially the cheeks, jawline, and lips—all areas that significantly lose volume as we age. But how long can these products continue to work their magic? The answer: Not forever. Surgery is a more permanent way to add youthful volume back to the face and remove excess skin and fat. Most often, people have their first cosmetic surgery in the eye area. As we age, the changes that occur around the

eyes—low, flat eyebrows, excess upper eyelid skin, and lower eyelid bags— make you look tired even when you are rested. When makeup no longer hides these changes, eyelid and eyebrow procedures (such as blepharoplasty and browlifts) can give you back that youthful, well-rested look. Once the eyes are taken care of, the next surgery many patients choose is fat grafting, a newer procedure that adds youthful volume to the face. Fat grafting transitions the benefits of fillers to a more permanent solution. Your fat cells— harvested with liposuction and processed for injection—are alive, and will live on in your face for more long-lasting volume. Fat grafting also provides beneficial changes to the facial skin, as these grafts have stem

cells with natural growth factors. And there is no “rejection,” because the cells are all yours! If you have lost definition in your neck and jawline and have deep folds around your mouth and chin, it may be time for a facelift. This procedure will give you back the youthful features of yesteryear—a defined neck, a smooth jawline, full cheeks, and beautiful lips. Done well, the results are soft, youthful, and natural. That end result is in the hands of your surgeon, so do not settle for anyone but the best! Look for experience with face and eye surgery, and board certification by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Dr. Michael Zenn is the former Vice Chief of Plastic Surgery at Duke. His private practice, Zenn Plastic Surgery, is located in Brier Creek.

The information on this page is provided by the advertiser mentioned above to the public.

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BY MICHAEL ZENN Zenn Plastic Surgery 919.480.3885 zennplasticsurgery.com

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SUSTAINABILITY

One womanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s resolution to live greener. B Y A R R I N D . W I D M AY E R

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(Photo: Arrin D. Widmayer)

hen my husband found me picking wet paper towels out of the trash and tossing them into our new countertop compost bin, I’m almost sure he thought I was taking this New Year’s resolution thing too far. That was last year. Now as we head into 2019, I’ve been mulling over resolutions, trying to stay within the realm of reality this time. I’m great at setting high-minded resolutions—I’ll cook seven well-balanced dinners for my family each week! I’ll respond to every email with a thoughtful reply within 12 hours!—and falling short by February. My past resolutions often failed because I overestimated my motivation to truly make a change. My resolutions only really affected me, making it easy to justify quitting, while pledging to do better next year. I needed to link my actions to a larger outcome that would hold my interest and keep me motivated to stick with it—and, at the start of 2018, I did just this! I hit upon an issue that I think any household with kids can identify with: the amount of food we waste. I was shocked to learn how much food Americans throw away:

Chris, Arrin, Cooper, and Dixon Widmayer

40 percent of food in the U.S. is never eaten. Each year, we literally toss $165 million in food waste into landfills, where it creates tons of methane. Methane, a greenhouse gas 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide, has devastating effects on our environment. Though I’m ashamed to admit it, I’ve had my share of ground beef that turned grayish in the fridge before I had the chance to make burgers, and bananas that turned mushy before anyone ate them. Add the leftover food from each meal that goes into the trash, and perhaps I shouldn’t have been shocked by the statistics after all. My resolution was staring me in the face: composting our food waste. I don’t mean creating a compost pile in my backyard and learning the ins and outs of oxygenating soil. That sounds great for some, but I was determined to be realistic in this process and I’m not that person. Thankfully, I don’t have to be. Kat Nigro is the head of marketing and engagement at CompostNow, the only composting service in the Triangle. CompostNow is a Raleigh collection service that helps community residents and local businesses divert their compostables from the landfill, instead

using those nutrients to build healthy soil in local gardens. “Composting is the single most important thing you can do to fight climate change and ensure your children have healthy food in the future,” Nigro tells me. “It makes a bigger impact on a local level than just about any other environmental conservation measure out there.” A mound of food scraps doesn’t automatically compost itself; it must go through a process of heating, turning, and hydration over the course of six weeks. It takes people and resources to make composting work. With the service’s 4,000 local members providing the raw material, Nigro says the company has diverted almost 8 million pounds of compostables from the landfill since 2011, and created 3.1 million pounds of nutrient-rich compost for local use. And I’m happy to be a resource in this process. CompostNow gave me two large sealed buckets and a surprisingly long list of items that can be composted. They accept all food scraps (including meat), paper towels, paper plates, pet food, and a ton of other things I would never have considered. My family fills

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Winter greens sprout at the Interfaith Food Shuttle community garden, helped along by fresh compost.

Kat Nigro, head of marketing and engagement at CompostNow, leads a group of UNC–Chapel Hill students on a tour of the Interfaith Food Shuttle garden, where compost is created and used onsite. (Photo: Arrin D. Widmayer)

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those buckets up, and each week the service takes them and leaves two empties. The first few weeks we spent a lot of time holding things up and asking each other if they were compostable. Wine corks? Yes. Dental floss? Definitely not. It was fascinating to watch my family take on this project. My husband, who has sincere intentions but not a lot of time, took awhile to come around. It’s easier to toss everything in the garbage than take time to separate out the compostable items. In the end, what brought him around is the thought that our children, as adults, won’t be able to enjoy the outdoors if we don’t make changes now. The kids surprised me. They’re much smarter than I was at their age, and they’ve already been exposed to big, important ideas and global issues. They took to composting like ducks to water. I knew we were onto something when I overheard my son say to a friend, “Dude. My mom will be so mad if you put that in the trash. It’s compostable.” Here’s the part where my family’s small actions take on bigger meaning: CompostNow delivers the newly created compost to one of its 21 local garden

partners, including Raleigh’s Interfaith Food Shuttle and Raleigh City Farm. These partners use the compost in their efforts to provide community members with education and tools necessary to improve health and nutrition. We also have the option of having our compost delivered back to us— but, as we’ve already established, I’m not that kind of girl. Composting sounds hard and more than a little gross, what with the old bones and leftover veggies, but it turned out to be surprisingly easy and sanitary. It takes minimal effort to separate food waste from garbage, and now it’s second nature. I was stunned to see how much we reduced our trash output: Now my family of four needs two weeks to fill a City of Raleigh garbage can. This resolution was different because it wasn’t about me. It’s about a global issue that I see play out every day in my own home. Nigro at CompostNow would call me a “soil ambassador.” I can make that title stick this year and beyond.

Composting is easy and simple.

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BUILDING COMMUNITY

Africa Connections From Fuquay-Varina to Zambia, Love Abounds is changing lives.

David and Bethany Morgan believe in the impor tance of cultivating community. In fact, building strong communities with acts of love is a touchstone of ever ything they do.

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B Y C H E RY L C A PA L D O T R AY L O R PHOTOS BY JOSH MANNING / JERICHO 7 FILMS

The children in front of their Life Okendewa home (the Love Abounds home for orphaned and abandoned children). L to R: Esther, Hope, Sharon, Frieda, Godfrey, Evans, Josephine, Juliette, and JoJo. JAN/FEB 2019

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CANDID CONVERSATION

David, an attorney by trade and self-described entrepreneur by heart, is a partner at Morgan & Perry Law in Fuquay-Varina, his hometown. The Morgans are also cofounders and executive directors of Love Abounds, a nonprofit that is working to change lives in Zambia. To hear them tell it, the law practice and nonprofit share the same founding principles and community-based vision. “We want to have a good relationship with the community,” David says. That holds true regardless of whether it’s a community in North Carolina or a remote Zambian village. In late 2013, the newly married couple listened in church as the pastor mentioned a project to build wells and provide clean drinking water in rural Zambia. When the pastor asked if anyone was interested the Morgans remember looking at each other and saying, “Let’s go for it!” After successfully raising money for three wells, they traveled to the village of Kunchubwi, eager to see the results. They met the people and saw a crucial need, and they immediately began plans to provide more aid.

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The children love to play outside all afternoon.

Life Okendewaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s private tutor, Ida, teaches the children three afternoons a week.

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They spent the summer of 2015 in Zambia, while David was still in law school. “It made absolutely no sense to do this,” Bethany says. “But it taught us a lot about pursuing your dream despite all the risks.” Today, with help from Tony and Carol Curl, the in-country directors who manage the day-to-day activities in Kunchubwi, Love Abounds is growing. “Love Abounds is the culmination of a desire that we had in our hearts for years,” David says.

CULTURALLY AWARE Not wanting to assume they had the best ideas for a country and culture they had never lived in, the Morgans were sensitive in their approach. They met with the village headman—similar to a mayor—and asked his thoughts on a successful project to help the women become more financially stable. Like many remote villages in Zambia, the men often travel to find work and the women bear the sole responsibility for the upbringing of children. Bethany explains the women are more likely to spend money for the benefit of the children and community.

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Bethany holding baby Stephen, grandson of Headman Stephen and Chicks Empowered manager, Jennifer.

David and Bethany Morgan

Longtime supporter, Carson Matthews, and Kunchubwi friend, Andrew, get ready for a braai (cookout).

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Together, the headman and the Morgans decided that chicken farming would be a profitable enterprise. A program they named Chicks Empowered was launched, which enabled the women to generate income year-round and more than quadrupled their monthly income. David says the ability to provide for their families creates a sense of pride in the women that ripples out to the community. The Morgans are also committed to respecting cultural differences in their future endeavor of partnering with Zambian coffee farmers to help them increase their profits. On a recent trip to the village, the Morgans brought a coffee-growing expert with them to meet with farmers and discuss plans for a venture that would enable local farmers to grow a high-yield bean and increase the selling price, essentially creating a more sustainable system and connecting them directly with the FuquayVarina community. The plan will unfold in stages, starting with exporting the coffee beans to Fuquay-Varina to be roasted and sold locally. Future plans include opening a coffee shop in Fuquay-Varina, complete with roaster, and serving single-origin Zambian coffee. Love Abounds will be part of that coffee

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Village children wait for an afterschool program at the Love Abounds community playground and picnic shelter.

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from the time it’s grown in Zambia until it’s poured in a customer’s cup. The profit from coffee sales will provide ongoing revenue to fund more Love Abounds projects. The coffee project directly connects the two communities that are so close to the Morgans’ hearts, and their vision to serve Kunchubwi villagers comes home to benefit the local community as well: Reciprocity in action. Running a nonprofit in an impoverished Zambian village comes with challenges, especially building trust in relationships and navigating the government red tape that an outsider may not anticipate. For a small organization, Love Abounds has been able to accomplish so much. The majority of funding comes from the Morgans’ church, friends, family, and social media connections. “It’s pretty much all bootstrap financing,” Bethany explains, and they believe their success comes from staying true to their original vision of focusing on one community and changing it from the inside out. Amid the daily hardships in Kunchubwi, love and happiness thrive. Because, more than a charity, Love Abounds is a labor of love. To learn more about Love Abounds and all of its projects, visit AboundInLove.org.

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LOCAL BUSINESS

A LASTING

PUPPY LOVE BY BETH PETERSON

Pet owners and pet sitters remain loyal to this thriving 10-year-old business.

Sometimes in life it’s more polite to greet a dog first, then its human. Lead dog walker and pet sitter for Peak City Puppy, Karen Parrish freely admits she’s often quicker to recognize a dog out for a walk in her east Apex community than the person holding the leash. And the dogs’ owners don’t mind the unintentional snub; after all, Karen and Fido go way back. Karen has been with Peak City Puppy, an in-home petcare company, since 2014, making friends with and caring for dogs all over east Apex. “It’s nice to be a part of the community that way. I love being counted on and trusted to take care of [clients’] precious furbabies,” Karen says.

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Denise S. has been a Peak City Puppy dog walker and pet sitter in the Holly Springs area since 2016. She echoes Karen’s sentiment. “Nothing is more rewarding than running into a client unexpectedly, and it’s the best feeling when that puppy recognizes you,” Denise says. Lesley White, cofounder of Peak City Puppy, left behind a successful career in biotechnology in order to be more available to her growing family. When considering career paths that would be more family friendly, this dog lover kept thinking how nice it would be to “just be around dogs all day.” But she didn’t stop there—Lesley has put a lot of thought into what good, reliable pet care should look like. And it’s paid off:

Owner Lesley White with Paw Prints adoptable puppy, Brewster (who got adopted from the event!).

Since the business launched in 2008, local pet owners have trusted Peak City Puppy with more than 25,000 walks and 8,000 pet sitting visits each year, and the business has employed more than 100 local residents. To achieve the level of care she would want for her own pets, Lesley knew she had to start by providing care for the team she was building. And as much as Peak City Puppy team members Karen and Denise enjoy caring for local pups (and, by extension, their humans), both women express feeling valued as employees. Denise’s priority, for example, is to be at home with her daughter. Cofounder Lesleyhas always honored that desire, ensuring that Denise’s work schedule matches her daughter’s school schedule. As for Karen, she came onto the Peak City Puppy team thinking it would be temporary. Five years later, she’s still part of the team. “Lesley takes employees, looks at their financial goals, and works with them to reach that goal,” Karen says. Lesley’s commitment to her team has resulted in committed team members. “We don’t even remember

Apex Team Member Karen Parrish (left) and Cary Team Member Carol Davilla (right).

what we did for our dogs before [Peak City Puppy],” client Andi H. muses. She and her husband, Paul, have been faithful clients of Peak City Puppy since 2010, and it’s easy to see why, with dog walkers and sitters like Karen and Denise providing such excellent care to their pooch. Cliff, dog-dad to two bulldogs, counts on Peak City Puppy when he’s out of town. As a transplant without family nearby, he’s grateful for the extra help. Between bringing in his mail, walking the dogs, and keeping a journal of his dogs’ activities, the team at Peak City Puppy ensures that Cliff doesn’t worry about his dogs when he’s away. Peak City Puppy’s business model makes dog owners feel that their dogs are the priority. And you might think the reason is simply that Lesley loves dogs—which she does. (As if you needed more proof of that, Lesley donates 1 percent of her profits to local rescue organizations.) But, Lesley says, “I’m not selling as much as aiming to create a relationship with people.” By prioritizing her employees, Lesley has created relationships all over the community. That mentality, by design, has trickled down, enabling Peak City Puppy to build relationships with happy dogs and their happy owners. Editor’s note: Last names have been omitted from pet sitters and clients at their request.

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PARENTING

L to R: Annie Kentris Arthur–Chief Executive Officer, Amber Lear Nolan–Chief Recruiting Officer, Ashlee Lear Giannetti–Chief Operations Officer, Emily Kentris Music–Chief Communications Officer. (Photo: courtesy of Juggle)

CHILDCARE

CONNECTIONS For parents and college-age sitters, Juggle is a game-changer.

If you’re a mom or dad whose kids are finally old enough to be home alone or babysit their siblings, congratulations. You have arrived. Now, do yourself a favor: Turn the page and move along to the next article. This next bit is going to make you pea-green with envy for Raleigh-area moms currently raising younger kids. Readers with small children, this is for you: The mad scramble for safe, reliable, friend-recommended babysitting could be over for good. New to the Raleigh area, Juggle is one of those rare, new parenting ‘things’ that makes a seasoned mama shake her head and think, “If only that had been around when my kids were small.” Except Juggle is less of a “thing,” and more of an idea. In fact, it is the brilliant idea of four Columbus, Ohio, moms who put their heads together to come up with a better way to handle childcare needs. It has been called the Uber for babysitting, and it is a game-changer. Like many care websites and apps, once you download the Juggle app to your phone, you have access to a slew of babysitters in your area. And like those other

BY BETH PETERSON

websites, you can either post jobs or browse available sitters for the childcare help you need. But Juggle doesn’t simply connect busy moms to available sitters. The app begins with a core team of sitters who have been recruited on local college campuses—a network of background-checked (primarily college-age, female) babysitters is created in each area. After a comprehensive vetting process, the sitters are hand-selected to become part of the Juggle team, and each must attend a webinar-style training. Once this core team is established, the Juggle network expands by word-of-mouth, so the pool of sitters is always growing. Parents can view sitters’ profiles, read reviews, and see whether any of their friends have employed any given sitter. Furthermore, Juggle employs a local “Mom Boss” to manage relationships between sitters and families. The sitters and the families who hire them are cross-reviewed, meaning families can leave reviews for sitters, and sitters can also review families. JAN/FEB 2019

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“I was introduced [to Juggle] a year ago,” says Raleigh-area mom, Julie. “It’s been a saving grace. I have a son and a golden retriever, so I needed someone comfortable with children and dogs.” Another busy mom, Allison, says she was a little nervous the first time she used the app, but her fears were relieved upon seeing which sitters were recommended by her own friends. In Allison’s experience, the Juggle sitter she hired not only watched her two active boys, but also taught them to play lacrosse. Both Julie and Allison found sitters through Juggle who became regular, beloved fixtures in the lives of their children. Both moms have the option, when using Juggle, to specify exactly what other type of help they might need—anything from household chores and errands to gift wrapping and assistance with parties. Ella, a Juggle sitter in her junior year at N.C. State University, was recruited by her freshman-year roommate. Through Juggle, Ella is able to babysit as much or as little as her school schedule allows, and she says, “I have one family that I just love.” On top of the regular hours this family books with her each week, Ella has become a recruiter herself, helping to facilitate Juggle’s expansion into the Winston-Salem area. When asked what it is about Juggle that sets it apart from other care websites, cofounder Emily Coleman raves about the sitters themselves. The decision to focus recruiting efforts on primarily female college students has resulted in consistently reliable, energetic, and engaged caregivers. Emily also cites the safety for users on both ends of the app—moms and sitters. The fact that families must have a referral code in order to use the app safeguards against false family profiles, thus protecting the sitters, and moms can see which sitters have been hired by people they know and trust. Emily laughs about the improbability of herself and three other “moms with no tech experience making an app.” But it’s really no surprise to learn that a parenting app as helpful as Juggle was created by moms, for moms. Editor’s note: Last names have been omitted from sitters and families at their request.

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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

WELLNESS

& QA PROFESSIONALS SHARE OPINIONS O N T H E L AT E S T BREAKTHROUGHS, SERVICES, AND TECHNIQUES IN THEIR AREA OF EXPERTISE. ALL TO HELP YOU MAKE E D U C AT E D C H O I C E S FOR A HAPPIER, H E A LT H I E R L I F E S T Y L E .

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WELLNESS Q&A |

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

HOW CAN YOU LOOK AND FEEL YOUR BEST AT ANY AGE?

Board certified in anesthesia and pain management, Dr. Thomas Weber is highly proficient at a myriad of interventional procedures that successfully treat pain but also slow the quite painful aging process. Dr. Weber founded Midtown Pain and Spine in 2017 to create a pain clinic unlike all others. As the only â&#x20AC;&#x153;boutique pain clinic in the area, we offer a collaborative, comprehensive, and patientcentered approach to caring about patients living with pain-whether it be chronic, acute, or complex. In addition to our non-surgical and interventional pain treatments, we are now offering anti-aging therapy, using cutting-edge technology that includes platelet rich plasma (PRP), stem cell therapy, Botox injections, and hormone replacement therapy (HRT). As part of his comprehensive treatment plan, he is now including use of Botox injections to not only treat cosmetic appearance of wrinkles but to relieve pain from conditions such as migraines, TMJ, and excessive sweating. By Thomas J. Weber Jr, D.O. Midtown Pain and Spine Clinic

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Dr. Weber also employs the use of PRP and stem cell therapy as regenerative medicines for joint pain. These cellular therapies, which are effective in treating muscle and tendon injuries and other joint problems, work by modulating the repair and regeneration process which promotes the healing of bone and soft tissue. In addition to chronic pain conditions, Midtown patients often present with chemical imbalances. By offering hormone replacement therapy, Dr. Weber benefits patients who have low libido, decreased energy levels, night sweats, hot flashes, and sleep disturbance. HRT can be effective for both women and men to support reproductive function, build muscle bulk, and maintain hormone levels. With Dr. Weberâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s extensive background and skill, he and his team offer patients innovative, personalized treatment plans that are transformative. Allow us to put you on the road to new ventures, young and pain-free, by calling for an appointment today.

Midtown Pain and Spine Clinic | 2605 Blue Ridge Road, Suite 240 919.626.3691 | MidtownPainSpine.com

Raleigh, NC 27607

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WELLNESS Q&A |

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO WHITEN YOUR TEETH?

By Anna Abernethy, DDS Renaissance Dental Center

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The best way to whiten your teeth professionally is still a “low and slow” technique. Professionally made bleaching trays, worn with a low strength gel for a few weeks, are one of the safest and most effective ways to bleach your teeth. Our favorite option is Opalesence Boost by Ultradent—a power bleaching gel that offers a brighter smile after just 40 minutes in the dental chair, and requires no lights or lasers. If you are looking for an option with no impressions or lab time required, Opalescence Go is the professional alternative to over-the-counter options, and is an excellent introduction to whitening. Dispensed in prefilled, disposable trays, this professional whitening gel can deliver results in as a little as 15 minutes per day. The UltraFit tray sets Opalescence Go apart with its unique material that warms with the temperature of the body, so it comfortably molds to any patient’s smile.

WELLNESS Q&A |

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

HOW CAN I STRAIGHTEN MY SMILE BEFORE I WALK DOWN THE AISLE?

If you are looking for one of the best ways to straighten your teeth, consider Invisalign. This is a system of trays, aligners, and occasionally tooth-colored buttons or brackets that gradually put pressure on your teeth, moving them into their ideal alignment without having to use metal brackets or wires. If you start Invisalign 12–18 months before your wedding, you will likely have plenty of time to finish your treatment before your big day. And you can also use your trays to whiten your teeth with professional bleaching gel, accomplishing two things at once! Even if your treatment is not completely finished by your wedding day, you will have significantly straighter teeth and can have your buttons removed (if needed) so that you can have your wedding photos taken with confidence. Just plan on having the buttons replaced, and you can finish your treatment after you say “I Do”!

Rennaisance Dental Center | 919.786.6766 | 3803-A Computer Drive, Suite 200 R a l e i g h , N C 2 7 6 0 9 | R e n a i s s a n c e D e n t a l C e n t e r. c o m JAN/FEB 2019

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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

IS THERE A VIRTUALLY INVISIBLE WAY TO STRAIGHTEN TEETH?

By Dr. Jason Gladwell Gladwell Orthodontics

Yes! Invisalign is a comfortable, easy-to-wear approach to straightening teeth. Using a series of custom-made clear aligners, Invisalign will gradually and gently shift your teeth into place. The aligners, made of smooth, comfortable plastic, are virtually invisible and are simply worn over your teeth, day and night. Invisalign can be used to treat a broad range of issues, such as crowding, spacing, overbite, underbite, deep bite, and open bite. After an initial consultation and digital scan, you are generally seen every 10 to 12 weeks to get a new series of aligners. In addition to giving you a beautiful smile, Invisalign also provides health benefits: Properly positioned teeth are easier to brush and floss, and properly aligned teeth can help gums fit more tightly around them, leading to better periodontal health. Contact our office today to schedule a complimentary consultation, and take the first step toward a confident smile.

WELLNESS Q&A |

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Should You See a Periodontist?

Dr. Macon Singletary Diplomate of The American Board of Periodontology

Bleeding or swollen gum tissue is often a sign of inflammation that needs attention. In addition, if you have a consistent bad taste, this can indicate harmful bacteria growing in your mouth. If left untreated, bacteria can cause bone loss around your teeth, which can then result in gum recession, shifting or mobile teeth, and eventual loss of teeth. Periodontists are specialists trained in treating the surrounding structures of the teeth. In short, they improve gum tissue health, helping you maintain your teeth

in comfort and function. Though treating gum disease is easy if caught early, periodontal health can also be improved at advanced stages. Getting a periodontal exam can determine the degree of involvement and treatment necessary, and will get your gums on the road to good health. When seeking a periodontist, attempt to find one who is a Diplomate in the American Academy of Periodontology; they have gone the extra mile to be proficient in their practice.

North Raleigh Periodontics North Raleigh Periodontics | 7805 Fiesta Way | Raleigh, NC 27615 | 919.518.8222 | NorthRaleighPerio.com

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WELLNESS Q&A |

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

HOW DO YOU DETOX YOUR CURRENT BEAUTY ROUTINE FOR 2019? By Melissa Flowers, Founder E.A. Wells Hair Design

This year, leave harsh chemicals behind and visit E.A. Wells Hair Design for a complimentary consultation to restart your journey to clean beauty. Let us renew and revive your fixed beauty ritual by raising the bar through a cleaner, healthier, and more natural lifestyle. Our color, skin, hair, and beauty products are all free of ammonia, parabens, sulfates, and formaldehyde. At E.A. Wells, we take health seriously, and offer Raleigh the purest elite products on the market.

E.A. Wells Hair Design 4040 Ed Drive #117 | Raleigh, NC 27612 9 1 9 . 7 8 7 . 7 7 9 7 | E AW e l l s H a i r. c o m

Created by Abbey Walton, Advanced Designer

the

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M Dining Guide Our directory of where to eat in Raleigh.

AFRICAN Abyssinia Ethopian Restaurant 2109-146 Avent Ferry Rd. 919.664.8151 abyssiniarestaurant.net

AMERICAN 18 Seaboard 18 Seaboard Ave. 919.861.4318 18restaurantgroup.com

Carroll’s Kitchen 19 E. Martin St. 919.670.3622 carrollskitchen.org Clockwork 519 W. North St. 919.307.3215 clockworkraleigh.com Crawford and Son 618 N. Person St. 919.307.4647 crawfordandson restaurant.com Death & Taxes 105 W. Hargett St. 984.242.0218 ac-restaurants.com/ death-taxes

41Hundred 4100 Main at North Hills St. 919.278.1478 41hundredrestaurant.com

Edwards Mill Bar & Grill 3201 Edwards Mill Rd. 919.783.5447 edwardsmillbarandgrill.com

Ba-Da Wings 2161 Avent Ferry Rd. 919.832.3902 badawings.com Berkeley Cafe 217 W. Martin St. 919.828.9190 facebook.com/ berkeleyraleigh/

Glenwood Grill 2603 Glenwood Ave. #151 919.782.3102 glenwoodgrill.com

Bloomsbury Bistro 509-101 W. Whitaker Mill Rd. 919.834.9011 bloomsburybistro.com

Hayes Barton Cafe 2000 Fairview Rd. 919.856.8551 imaginarystudioonline.com/ hayes

Trophy Tap + Table 225 S. Wilmington St. 919.424.7817 trophybrewing.com Cameron Bar and Grill 2018 Clark Ave. 919.755.2231 cameronbarandgrill.com Capital Club 16 16 W. Martin St. 919.747.9345 capitalclub16.com

Iris Restaurant 2110 Blue Ridge Rd. 919.664.6838 ncartmuseum.org/visit/dining

Kings 141 Park at North Hills St. 919.600.5700 kingsbowlamerica.com

Lynnwood Grill & Brewing Concern 4821 Grove Barton Rd. 919.785.0043 lynnwoodgrill.com

Midtown Grille 4421 Six Forks Rd. 919.782.9463 themidtowngrille.com

North Ridge North Ridge Pub 6010 Falls of Neuse Rd. 919.790.9125 northridgepub.com Oak City Meatball Shoppe 180 E. Davie St. 919.714.9014 oakcitymeatball.com

Second Empire Restaurant and Tavern 330 Hillsborough St. 919.829.3663 second-empire.com Stanbury 938 N. Blount St. 919.977.4321 stanburyrestaurant.com Taste 3048 Medlin Dr. 919.322.0568 1912 Bernard St. 919.948.7815 jmrkitchens.com/taste the Oak 4035 Lake Boone Tr. 919.787.9100 jmrkitchens.com/oak

The Players’ Retreat 105 Oberlin Rd. 919.755.9589 playersretreat.net

Chai’s Asian Bistro 8347 Creedmoor Rd. 919.341.3715 chaisasianbistro.com

The Raleigh Times Bar 14 E. Hargett St. 919.833.0999 raleightimesbar.com

Champa Thai & Sushi 8521 Brier Creek Pkwy. 919.806.0078 champathaisushi.com

The Rockford 320 ½ Glenwood Ave. 919.821.9020 therockfordrestaurant.com

Chopstix 5607 Creedmoor Rd. 919.781.6268 chopstix.com

The Station 701 N. Person St. 919.977.1567 stationraleigh.com The Twisted Fork 3751 Sumner Blvd. 919.792.2535 thetwistedfork.com Village Grill 8470 Honeycut Rd. 919.890.5340 villagegrillraleigh.com Winston’s Grille 6401 Falls of Neuse Rd. 919.790.0700 winstonsgrille.com Zest Cafe & Home Art 8831 Six Forks Rd. 919.848.4792 zestcafehomeart.com

CO Inside AC Hotel Raleigh North Hills eatatco.com David’s Dumpling & Noodle Bar 1900 Hillsborough St. 919.239.4536 ddandnb.com Five Star Restaurant 511 W. Hargett St. 919.833.3311 fivestarraleigh.com Hako Sushi 2603-155 Glenwood Ave. 919.235.0589 hakosushinc.com

ASIAN

Imperial Garden 7713 Lead Mine Rd. 919.846.1988 imperialgardenrestaurant.com

Bida Manda 222 S. Blount St. 919.829.9999 bidamanda.com

Lemongrass Thai Restaurant 8320 Litchford Rd. #142 919.954.0377 lemongrassthairestaurant.net

Brewery Bhavana 218 S. Blount St. 919.829.9998 brewerybhavana.com

Mura 4121 Main at North Hills 919.781.7887 muranorthhills.com

bu•ku 1228 Heritage Links Dr. Wake Forest 919.435.1595 bukuwakeforest.com

Neo-Asia 6602 Glenwood Ave. 919.783.8383 neo-china.com

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Ni Asian Kitchen 8817 Six Forks Rd. 919.916.5106 niasiankitchen.com

Thaiphoon Bistro 301 Glenwood Ave. #190 919.720.4034 thaiphoonbistro.com

Orchid Japanese Restaurant 7432 Creedmoor Rd. 919.890.5345 orchidjapanesebuffet.com

Waraji Japanese Restaurant 5910 Duraleigh Rd. 919.783.1883 warajijapaneserestaurant.com

Pho Pho Pho 510 Glenwood Ave. #103 phophophonc.com Pho Far East 4011 Capital Blvd. #133 919.876.8621 Pearl Chinese Restaurant 3215 Avent Ferry Rd. 919.233.8776 pearlchinesenc.com Red Dragon Chinese Restaurant 2513 Fairview Rd. 919.782.1102 reddragonraleigh.com Red Pepper Asian 4121-109 New Bern Ave. 919.594.1006 redpepperasiannc.com Seoul Garden 4701 Atlantic Ave. 919.850.9984 raleighseoulgarden.com ShabaShabu 3080 Wake Forest Rd. 919.501.7755 shabashabu.net

BAKERY & DESSERTS Anisette 209 Bickett Blvd. 919.758.3565 sweetanisette.com Annelore’s German Bakery 1249 Farmers Market Dr. 919.294.8040 facebook.com/ anneloresgermanbakery Bittersweet 16 E. Martin St. 919.977.3829 bittersweetraleigh.com Boulted Bread 614 W. South St. 919.999.3984 boultedbread.com

Spring Rolls Restaurant 4361 Lassiter at North Hills 919.783.8180 5433 Wade Park Blvd. 919.803.1118 springrollsrestaurant.com Sushi O Bistro + Sushi Bar 222 Glenwood Ave. 919.838.8868 sushioraleighnc.com 144 | MidtownMag.com

2042 Clark Ave. 919.833.9998 goodberrys.com Groovy Duck Bakery 3434 Edwards Mill Rd. 919.787.9233 groovyduckbakeryllc.com Hayes Barton Cafe 2000 Fairview Rd. 919.856.8551 https://goo.gl/2aXSqM lucettegrace 235 S. Salisbury St. 919.307.4950 lucettegrace.com Premier Cakes 6617 Falls of Neuse Rd. #105 919.703.0095 premier-cakes.com Yellow Dog Bread Company 219 E. Franklin St. 984.232.0291 facebook.com/yellowdogbread Videri Chocolate Factory 327 W. Davie St. 919.755.5053 viderichocolatefactory.com

BBQ Duck Donuts 8323 Creedmoor Rd. 919.847.3800 duckdonuts.com

Big Al’s BBQ 2920 Forestville Rd. 919.217.0653 bigalsbbqandcatering.com Clyde Cooper’s BBQ 327 S. Wilmington St. 919.832.7614 clydecoopersbbq.com

Sono 319 Fayetteville St. 919.521.5328 sonoraleigh.com Sushi Blues Cafe 301 Glenwood Ave. 919.664.8061 sushibluescafe.com

9700 Strickland Rd. 919.676.8580

Edible Art Bakery & Dessert Café 4351-115 The Circle at North Hills 919.856.0604 edibleartnc.com Escazú Artisan Chocolates 936 N. Blount St. 919.832.3433 escazuchocolates.com Goodberry’s Frozen Custard 2421 Spring Forest Rd. 919.878.8159

Ole Time Barbecue 6309 Hillsborough St. 919.859.2544 oletimebarbecue.com The Pit Authentic Barbecue 328 W. Davie St. 919.890.4500 thepit-raleigh.com

BREAKFAST SPECIALTY

CAFÉ

Another Broken Egg Cafe 160 Park at North Hills St. 919.307.8195 anotherbrokenegg.com

Benelux Coffee 402 Oberlin Rd. 919.900.8294 beneluxcoffee.com

Brigs 8111 Creedmoor Rd. 919.870.0994 brigs.com

Despina’s Café 8369 Creedmoor Rd. 919.848.5007 despinascafe.com

Jubala Coffee 8450 Honeycutt Rd. 919.758.8330 jubalacoffee.com The Morning Times 10 E. Hargett St. 919.836.1204 morningtimes-raleigh.com New World Cafe 4112 Pleasant Valley Rd. 919.786.0091 newworldcoffeehouse.com

Sola Coffee 7705 Lead Mine Rd. 919.803.8983 solacoffee.com Sosta Cafe 130 E. Davie St. 919.833.1006 sostacafe.com

BURGER & HOT DOG

Chow 8311 Creedmoor Rd. 919.841.4995 chowraleigh.com

Chuck’s 237 S. Wilmington St. 919.322.0126 ac-restaurants.com/chucks Cloos’ Coney Island 2233 Avent Ferry Rd. 919.834.3354 Jerry’s Grill 813 E. Whitaker Mill Rd. 919.832.7561 MoJoe’s Burger Joint 620 Glenwood Ave. 919.832.6799 mojoesburgerjoint.com Pharaoh’s Grill at North Hills 4421 Six Forks Rd. 919.420.0840

The Q Shack 4120 Main at North Hills 919.786.4381 theqshack.com

Manhattan Cafe 320 S. Wilmington St. 919.833.6105 manhattancafenc.com

Snoopy’s Hot Dogs 600 Hillsborough St. 919.839.2176 snoopys.com

The Daily Planet Cafe 121 W. Jones St. 919.707.8060 thedailyplanetcafe.com The Pharmacy Cafe 702 N. Person St. 919.832.6432 personstreetrx.com Sir Walter Coffee 145 E Davie Street 919.322.0019 sirwaltercoffee.com Sunflowers Cafe 8 W. Peace St. 919.833.4676 sunflowersraleigh.com

CARIBBEAN Caribbean Café 2645 E. Millbrook Rd. 919.872.4858 caribbeancafenc.com Jamaican Grille 5500 Atlantic Springs Rd. 919.873.0200 Lee’s Kitchen 4638 Capital Blvd. 919.872.7422 leeskitchenjamaican.com

Mum’s Jamaican Restaurant 3901 Capital Blvd. 919.615.2332 mumsjamaicanfood.com

CATERING

Linus & Pepper’s 126 S. Salisbury St. 919.833.3866 Lunch Box Deli 2816 Trawick Rd. 919.872.7882 Poppyseed Market 8801 Lead Mine Rd. 919.870.4997 poppyseedmkt.com

Catering Works 2319 Laurelbrook St. 919.828.5932 cateringworks.com Donovan’s Dish 10251 Little Brier Creek Ln. #107 | 919.651.8309 donovansdish.com

Rocky Top Catering 1705 E. Millbrook Rd. 919.850.2340 rockytopcatering.com

Village Deli & Grill 500 Daniels St. 919.828.1428 villagedeli.net

ECLECTIC 41Hundred 4100 Main at North Hills St. 919.278.1478 41hundredrestaurant.com ORO Restaurant & Lounge 18 E. Martin St. 919.239.4010 ororaleigh.com Plates Neighborhood Kitchen 301 Glenwood Ave. 919.828.0018 plateskitchen.com

FRENCH Southland BBQ Catering 5000 Departure Dr. 919.757.4972 southlandbbqcatering.com

The Glenwood 3300 Woman’s Club Dr. 919.610.0872 theglenwoodvenue.com

DELI/SANDWICHES The Community Deli 901 Oberlin Rd. 919.896.6810 thecommunitydeli.com Groucho’s Deli 10 Horne St. 919.977.7747 grouchos.com

Crepe Traditions 141 Park at North Hills St. 919.977.3425 crepetraditions.com

Coquette Brasserie 4531 The Circle at North Hills 919.789.0606 coquetteraleigh.com Royale 200 E. Martin St. 919.977.3043 Saint Jacques 6112 Falls of Neuse Rd. 919.862.2770 saintjacquesfrench cuisine.com Simply Crêpes 8470 Honeycutt Rd. 919.322.2327 simplycrepes.com

GERMAN

ITALIAN

J. Betski’s 10 W. Franklin St. 919.833.7999 jbetskis.com

Amedeo’s Italian Restaurant 3905 Western Blvd. 919.851.0473 amedeosrestaurant.com

INDIAN Azitra 8411 Brier Creek Pkwy. 919.484.3939 azitra.com Garland 14 W. Martin St. 919.833.6886 garlandraleigh.com Godavari 9650 Strickland Rd. 919.847.1984 godavarius.com Kabab and Curry 2418 Hillsborough St. 919.977.6974 kababcurryraleigh.com Kadhai the Indian Wok 6260-112 Glenwood Ave. 919.785.2864 theindianexpresskadhai.com Royal India 3901 Capital Blvd. 919.981.0849 royalindiannc.com Taj Mahal Indian Cuisine 6611 Falls of Neuse Rd. 919.848.2262 tajmahalindianraleigh.com The Wild Cook’s Indian Grill 3212 Hillsborough St. 984.232.8530 wildcooksgrill.com Zayka Indian Cuisine 10410 Moncreiffe Rd. Ste 103 919.361.5370 zaykaraleigh.com

IRISH Saints & Scholars Irish Pub 909 Spring Forest Rd. 919.878.8828 saintsandscholarspub.com The Hibernian 311 Glenwood Ave. 919.833.2258 8021 Falls Of Neuse Rd. 919.803.0290 hibernianpub.com

Assaggio Italian Restuarant 3501 W. Millbrook Rd. 919.785.2088 assaggios-nc.com Bella Monica 3121 Edwards Mill Rd. 919.881.9778 bellamonica.com Bruno Seafood & Steaks 11211 Galleria Ave. 919.435.6640 brunoraleigh.com

Cafe Tiramasu Cafe Tiramisu 6008 Falls of Neuse Rd. 919.790.1006 cafetiramisu.net Caffé Luna 136 E. Hargett St. 919.832.6090 cafeluna.com Capri Restaurant 6325 Falls of Neuse Rd. 919.878.4424 caprirest.com Casa Carbone Ristorante Italiano 6019 Glenwood Ave. 919.781.8750 casacarbone.com Farina Neighborhood Italian 8450 Honeycutt Rd. 919.890.0143 farinaraleigh.com Mulino Italian Kitchen & Bar 309 N. Dawson St. 919.838.8595 mulinoraleigh.com Piccola Italia 423 Woodburn Rd. 919.833.6888 piccolaitalianc.com Gravy 135 S. Wilmington St. 919.896.8513 gravyraleigh.com

Jimmy V’s Osteria + Bar 420 Fayetteville St. 919.256.1451 jimmyvsraleigh.com Nina’s Ristorante 8801 Lead Mine Rd. 919.845.1122 ninasrestaurant.com Pulcinella’s Italian Restaurant 4711 Hope Valley Rd. 919.490.1172 pulcinellasitalianrestaurant.com Roma Pizzeria & Italian Restaurant 3805 Brentwood Rd. 919.876.2818 Tuscan Blu 327 W. Davie St. 919.834.5707 tuscanblu.com Vic’s Italian Restaurant & Pizzeria 331 Blake St. 919.829.7090 4035 Lake Boone Tr. 984.200.9292 vicsitalianrestaurant.com

Vivace 4209 Lassiter Mill Rd. 919.787.7747 vivaceraleigh.com

MEDITERRANEAN / MIDDLE EASTERN Aladdin’s Eatery 8201 Brier Creek Pkwy. 919.806.5700 aladdinseatery.com Fresh Levant Bistro 8450 Honeycutt Rd. 984.200.3999 freshlevant.com Jasmin Mediterranean Bistro 424 E. Six Forks Rd. 919.743.3336 jasminbistro.com Mona Pita Mediterranean Grill 5260 Capital Blvd. 919.431.6500 monapita.com JAN/FEB 2019

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Neomonde 3817 Beryl Rd. 919.828.1628 neomonde.com Nur Mediterranean Deli & Market 2233 Avent Ferry Rd. 919.828.1523 nurdeli.com Petra Grill 6091 Capital Blvd. 919.599.4959 Sassool 9650 Strickland Rd. 919.847.2700 sassool.com Sitti 137 S. Wilmington St. 919.239.4070 sitti-raleigh.com Taverna Agora 326 Hillsborough St. 919.881.8333 tavernaagora.com Taza Grill 6325 Falls of Neuse Rd. 919.872.7161 tazagrill.com

El Dorado 2811 Brentwood Rd. 919.872.8440 8111 Creedmoor Rd. 919.848.0788 eldoradomexicanrestaurant.com

Fogata Brava Grill & Tequila 3351 Cypress Plantation Tr. 919.977.0168 fogatabrava.com Gallo Pelón Mezcaleria 106 S. Wilmington St. 919.835.3593 gallopelon.com Gonza Tacos y Tequila 7713 Lead Mine Rd. 919.846.5478 2100 Hillsborough St. 919.268.8965 gonzatacosytequila.com

MEXICAN

Jose and Sons 327 W. Davie St. 919.755.0556 joseandsons.com

Cantina 18 433 Daniels St. 919.835.9911 18restaurantgroup.com Centro 106 S. Wilmington St. 919.835.3593 centroraleigh.com Dos Taquitos 410 Glenwood Ave. 919.835.9010 dostaquitosnorth.com 146 | MidtownMag.com

Saltwater Seafood Market and Fry Shack 4 Fenton St. 919.834.1813 saltwaterseafoodnc.com

El Tapatio 4511 New Bern Ave. 919.255.9161

Gringo A Go Go 100 N. Person St. 919.977.1438 gringoraleigh.com

Cafe Capistrano 8471 Garvey Dr. 919.872.1127 cafecapistrano.com

Margaux’s Restaurant 8111 Creedmoor Rd. 919.846.9846 margauxsrestaurant.com

El Rodeo 4112 Pleasant Valley Rd. 919.571.1188 elrodeoraleigh.com

Vidrio 500 Glenwood Ave. #100 919.803.6033 vidrioraleigh.com

Baja Burrito 2109 Avent Ferry Rd. #108 919.834.3431 bajaburrito.net

Dean’s Kitchen + Bar 1080 Darrington Dr. | Cary 919.459.5875 deanskitchenandbar.com

La Carreta 1028 Oberlin Rd. 919.977.3271 lacarretaavl.com La Rancherita 2400 Hillsborough St. 919.755.9697 rancheritamex.com

San Jose Mexican Restaurant 5811 Poyner Village Pkwy. 919.790.1919 The Original Flying Burrito 4800 Grove Barton Rd. 919.785.2734 originalflyingburrito.com Torero’s 4721 Atlantic Ave. 919.873.9116 torerosmexicanrestaurants.com Virgil’s Original Taqueria 126 S. Salisbury St. 919.833.3866 facebook.com/virgilstacos

PIZZERIA Cristo’s NY Style Pizza 1302 E. Milbrook Rd. 919.872.6797 cristospizza.com DeMo’s Pizzeria & Deli 222 Glenwood Ave. 919.754.1050 demospizzeriadeli.com Donatos 111 Seaboard Ave. 919.828.5111 donatos.com

Los Cuates 4524 Old Wake Forest Rd. 919.872.6012 goo.gl/KHvrQe Los Tres Magueyes 10410 Moncreiffe Rd. 919.484.9258 lostresnc.com

Moonlight Pizza Company 615 W. Morgan St. 919.755.9133 moonlightpizza.com

Lilly’s Pizza 1813 Glenwood Ave. 919.833.0226 lillyspizza.com

Pizza La Stella 219 Fayetteville St. 984.200.2441 pizzalastella.com Stromboli’s Express 2900 Spring Forest Rd. 919.876.4222 strombolisexpress.com The Pizza Times 210 S. Wilmington St. 919.832.4411 raleightimespizza.com

Trophy Brewing + Pizza 827 W. Morgan St. 919.803.4849 trophybrewing.com

The Cowfish Sushi Burger Bar 4208 Six Forks Rd. 919.784.0400 thecowfish.com

SOUTH AMERICAN Alpaca Peruvian Charcoal Chicken 4614 Capital Blvd. 919.713.0000 alpacachicken.com Guasaca Arepa & Salsa Grill 4025 Lake Boone Tr. 919.322.4928 guasaca.com Mami Nora’s 2401 Wake Forest Rd. 919.834.8572 maminoras.com Oakwood Cafe 300 E. Edenton St. 919.828.5994 oakwoodcaferaleigh.com Vinos Finos Tapas and Wine Bar 8450 Honeycutt Rd. 919.747.9233 vinosfinosypicadas.com

SOUTHERN

SEAFOOD

Beasley’s Chicken + Honey 237 S. Wilmington St. 919.322.0127 ac-restaurants.com/beasleys

42nd Street Oyster Bar 508 W. Jones St. 919.831.2811 42ndstoysterbar.com

Big Ed’s City Market Restaurant 220 Wolfe St. 919.836.9909 bigedscitymarket.com

Captain Stanley’s Seafood 3333 S. Wilmington St. 919.779.7878 facebook.com/captainstanleys

DriftwoodSouthern Kitchen 8460 Honeycutt Rd. 919.977.8360 driftwoodraleigh.com

Humble Pie 317 S. Harrington St. 919.829.9222 humblepierestaurant.com

Relish Café & Bar 5625 Creedmoor Rd. 919.787.1855 relishraleigh.com

Mandolin 2519 Fairview Rd. 919.322.0365 mandolinraleigh.com

Rye Bar & Southern Kitchen 500 Fayetteville St. 919.227.3370 ryeraleigh.com

NOFO @ the Pig 2014 Fairview Rd. 919.821.1240 nofo.com

State Farmers’ Market Restaurant 1240 Farmers Market Dr. 919.755.1550 realbiscuits.com Flying Biscuit Café 2016 Clark Ave. 919.833.6924 flyingbiscuit.com

Pam’s Farmhouse 5111 Western Blvd. 919.859.9990 facebook.com/pamsfarmhouse

The Mecca Restaurant 13 E. Martin St. 919.832.5714 mecca-restaurant.com

Poole’s Diner 426 S. McDowell St. 919.832.4477 ac-restaurants.com/pooles

The Remedy Diner 137 E. Hargett St. 919.835.3553 theremedydiner.com

STEAKHOUSE Angus Barn 9401 Glenwood Ave. 919.791.2444 angusbarn.com Brasa Brazilian Steakhouse 8551 Brier Creek Pkwy. 919.544.3344 brasasteakhouse.com

Vinnie’s Steak House and Tavern 7440 Six Forks Rd. 919.847.7319 vinniessteakhouse.com

VEGETARIAN/VEGAN DICED 1028 Oberlin Road 919.307.3613 dicedsalads.com

Fiction Kitchen 428 S. Dawson St. 919.831.4177 thefictionkitchen.com

Grabbagreen 4421 Six Forks Rd. #103 919.326.7799 Happy + Hale 443 Fayetteville St. 919.307.4148 happyandhale.com Irregardless Cafe & Catering 901 W. Morgan St. 919.833.8898 irregardless.com Living Kitchen 555 Fayetteville St. 919.324.3515 livingkitchen.com Raleigh Raw 7 W. Hargett St. 919.400.0944 raleighraw.com

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OUT ABOUT &

JANUARY / FEBRUARY TOP EVENTS | MIDTOWN MINGLES | NEW AROUND TOWN

Triangle Restaurant Week

January 21–27 Throughout the Triangle area Triangle Restaurant Week is a weeklong celebration of culinary excellence. Participating restaurants offer special three-course prix fixe menus. It’s a great opportunity for residents and visitors alike to indulge in the area’s finest cuisine! TriRestaurantWeek.com

VIVACE

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TOP EVENTS TRIANGLE WINE AND CHOCOLATE FESTIVAL JANUARY 26

TRIANGLE WINE AND CHOCOLATE FESTIVAL January 26, 1–4 pm, 5–8 pm 1025 Blue Ridge Road, Raleigh Wineries and wine enthusiasts from across the region will gather for an unlimited sampling of fabulous North Carolina wines of all styles and tastes. Enjoy a selection of tasty chocolates, cheeses, and sweets while shopping mini boutiques. VisitRaleigh.com

KRISPY KREME CHALLENGE February 2, 8 am 2011 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh 2,400 calories, 12 doughnuts, 5 miles, 1 hour. The Krispy Kreme Challenge is a student-run, charity- based race in support of the North Carolina Children’s Hospital. Participants begin at the Memorial Belltower on N.C. State’s campus and travel 2.5 miles throughout historic downtown Raleigh to Krispy Kreme. After attempting to consume one dozen original glazed doughnuts, they must run 2.5 miles back to the Memorial Belltower. KrispyKremeChallenge.com

Top Events in RALEIGH HONEST PINT THEATRE CO. PRESENTS: THE HERD January 25–February 10 7713 Lead Mine Road, Raleigh Honest Pint Theatre Company presents the regional premiere of The Herd by Rory Kinnear. Carol, a harried matriarch in suburban London, has arranged a small family party to celebrate the 21st birthday of her son Andy, who is severely disabled. But as everyone begins to gather, things go off the rails as two surprise guests pop up—one a newcomer and one all too familiar. Find out what happens next starting January 25th. HonestPintTheatre.org

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ASTRONOMY DAYS January 26–27 11 West Jones Street, Raleigh The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences partners with NASA and the Raleigh Astronomy Club to help you see the big picture—of the Universe! From comet crafts to solar observing, lectures to rocket launches, space enthusiasts of all ages will find something to do at Astronomy Days. NaturalSciences.org

NORTH CAROLINA SYMPHONY POPS SERIES: THE MUSIC OF BILLY JOEL

MICHAEL CAVANAUGH (Photo: TheComposersShowcase.com)

January 18–19 2 East South Street, Raleigh One of Broadway’s best joins the Symphony for an evening devoted to the legendary Billy Joel. Handpicked by the “piano man” himself for the starring role in the Broadway musical Movin’ Out, Grammy and Tony–nominated Michael Cavanaugh performs Billy Joel’s biggest hits—“She’s Got a Way,” “New York State of Mind,” “Uptown Girl,” “Only the Good Die Young,” and more! NCSymphony.org

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TOP EVENTS KRISPY KREME CHALLENGE February 2

CIRQUE DU SOLEIL: CORTEO February 7–10 1400 Edwards Mill Road, Raleigh Recognized throughout the world, Cirque du Soleil has constantly sought to evoke imagination, invoke senses, and provoke emotions. Discover this highly creative and artistic show as it comes to life at the PNC Arena February 7–10. CirqueDuSoleil.com

(Photo courtesy Cirque Du Soleil)

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MIDTOWN MINGLES

LUX SALON CLIENT APPRECIATION EVENT

Lux Salon hosted their annual client appreciation event, an Emerald Evening. Guests enjoyed an evening of giveaways, discounts, style bars, and bubbly!

(Photos: Stephanie Bryan Photography)

INVEST IN YOURSELF: WOMEN, WEALTH, & WINE

This first annual shopping and social event was held on November 8th at North Ridge Country Club. Sponsored by JoAnna Clark Mason of Mason & Clark Wealth Management Group and Skin Raleigh, this event highlighted many amazing women-owned businesses in Raleigh and educated attendees on a local nonprofit, RiverCross.

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(Photos: Kathleen Nolis Photography)

DEEDEE DALRYMPLE BOOK SIGNING AT NOFO @ THE PIG

NOFO @ the Pig celebrated local author DeeDee Dalrymple and hosted a book signing for her guidebook, Effortless Entertaining. Dalrymple presented guests with local items from NOFO @ the Pig and demonstrated practical suggestions and product recommendations on how to inspire and equip oneself to effortlessly welcome guests into your home.

GUESS WHOâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S COMING TO DINNER

The annual event featured three nights of unique and entertaining thematic dinners to choose from. This fundraiser provides support for the Artists in Schools program, a vibrant initiative that integrates arts and education and benefits 150 Wake County K-12 schools with 147,000 hours of programming each year. The Bridge Club, a downtown event venue, hosted the evening with special visual and performing artists from all over North Carolina as well as other shining stars with ties to our region. JAN/FEB 2019

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MIDTOWN MINGLES

FASHION WITH A FOCUS

On November 9th, E.A. Wells Hair Design hosted their fourth annual holiday charity fashion show and event to raise money for Alex’s Lemonade Stand and the fight against childhood cancer. Many local fashion bloggers and influencers took part in this life-changing night by letting E.A. Wells, Copper Penny, and GLOW Raleigh style them. Guests from all over came out to Creekside at Crabtree’s new, luxury apartments for a night full of fun and fashion. (Donations will be accepted through the end of January; to donate, please visit EAWellsHair.com.

FOOD BANK OF CENTRAL & EASTERN NORTH CAROLINA

The team from Richardson Private Wealth Advisors participated in a volunteer event for the Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina, where they provided 7,796 meals by packaging about 9,355 pounds of potatoes. Their efforts touched many lives and helped fill an immediate need.

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SIP AND SHOP HOSTED BY MARTA’S

Marta’s of Raleigh hosted a special “Sip and Shop” on Thursday, October 25th, benefiting WakeMed Children’s Hospital. The evening of shopping and styling featured the latest looks for fall, raffle prizes, and jewelry designer Beth Miller. A portion of proceeds were donated to WakeMed Children’s Hospital to support pediatric programs and services.

SAFECHILD LUNCHEON

(Photos courtesy of SAFEchild)

Hosted at the Hilton Raleigh North Hills hotel, the luncheon highlighted the importance of its prevention and intervention programs in transforming traumatic childhood experiences into hopeful lives. SAFEchild offers mentoring and support programs for new mothers, five group-based parenting programs designed to prevent abuse and neglect and to build strong families, a schoolbased prevention program for first graders called Funny Tummy Feelings, and the SAFEchild Advocacy Center, which provides comprehensive medical evaluations and advocacy services.

ST. TIMOTHYâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S ZAYTOUN ORTHONTICS FIELD TRIP Zaytoun Orthodontics hosted an on-premise field trip for the second-grade class of St. Timothyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s School. The children engaged in fun stations exploring oral health and learned how orthodontics can improve their smile.

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MIDTOWN MINGLES (Photos: Jennifer Haygood / JB Haygood Photography)

ST. DAVID’S VETERANS DAY COMMEMORATION

St. David’s School held their eighth annual Veterans Day commemoration on Friday, November 9th, in the school’s gymnasium. More than 50 veterans—from World War II to active duty-—joined their family members and the St. David’s community to commemorate the day and to be recognized for their service to our country. Speakers included Mr. Jule Smith, St. David’s Board of Trustees member and U.S. Navy Reserve veteran, and Lieutenant General Jerry Boykin, U.S. Army (retired). Among the many distinguished guests was Betsy Hutchison, a 98-year-old WWII veteran of the U.S. Army Nurse Corps who served our country in Europe.

NORTH HILLS & NCMA ART BOX

The Art Box at North Hills, a public art collaboration with the North Carolina Museum of Art (NCMA) along Six Forks Road in Raleigh, has a new installation: Uchee, by Chapel Hill artist Donald Martiny. The unveiling celebration took place at The Overlook at North Hills between the Bank of America Tower and Cowfish. The Art Box, a unique public art display case with annual installations, is part of an ongoing partnership to bring art to public spaces.

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Let me help you reach your real estate goals for 2018.

Call me for a FREE

market analysis of your home.

Valerie Troupe

REALTOR | RCA | SPS 919.607.6118 | vtroupe@fmrealty.com

Portraits, Wedding, Commercial & Lifestyle

PHOTOGRAPHY 919.389.5757 | f8photostudios.com

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NEW AROUND TOWN WARBY PARKER Warby Parker is excited to open its second North Carolina store location in Raleigh’s North Hills! Stop by to shop in-store eyewear offerings including eyeglasses, sunglasses, and our newlyreleased line of kid’s frames. Warby Parker accepts UnitedHealthcare and Spectera insurance. 919.355.5565 4154 Main at North Hills Street, Raleigh WarbyParker.com/Retail/Raleigh/North-Hills

AMAZING LASH STUDIO Opens in North Hills Amazing Lash Studio provides semi-permanent eyelash extensions in private lash application suites. They have a patented application process that enables a highly-trained staff of licensed estheticians and cosmetologists to complete the service in a fraction of the time required at traditional outlets. 919.999.2200 141 Park at North Hills Street, Suite #114, Raleigh AmazingLashStudio.com.

RALEIGH IMPROV Levity Live announced the opening of its newest improv comedy club on Friday, December 28th in Kite Realty Group’s Parkside Town Commons in Cary. For its grand opening weekend, Raleigh Improv will host comedic legend Ken Jeong, best known for his roles in The Hangover and NBC’s Community, as its headliner. The Cary location boasts a 15,044 square foot venue, which seats up to 525 guests and has a flexible capacity to accommodate public and private special events of all sizes. 919.589.8558 | 1224 Parkside Main Street, Cary Improv.com/Raleigh.com

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BLUEMERCURY Opens First Raleigh Store in Main District at North Hills Luxury beauty has come to Raleigh! Bluemercury, the beauty and spa retailer, has opened its first Raleigh location in the Main District at North Hills. Marla and Barry Beck created Bluemercury in 1999 to be the friendly neighborhood store carrying the very best in beauty with honest, expert advice. The new 2,259 square foot location will carry luxury skincare brands Crème de la Mer, RéVive, Darphin, M-61 Powerful Skincare, and Kiehl’s, along with cosmetics brands NARS, Hourglass, Lune+Aster, RMS Beauty, and more. Clients can also enjoy Bluemercury’s signature in-house spa offering facials, microdermabrasion, and waxing services. Bluemercury has performed more than 10 million spa treatments since the company was founded and was rated by O, The Oprah Magazine as having one of the best facials in America. 4321 Lassiter at North Hills Avenue, Suite 108, Raleigh | BlueMercury.com

GUEST HOUSE Guest House is an intimate eight-guestroom boutique inn in downtown Raleigh that was developed by husband-and-wife, designer/owner team Matt Tomasulo and Nicole Alvarez. Matt and Nicole consider Guest House a love note to Raleigh. Every detail has been considered in the thoughtfully designed spaces that are calm, soft, and flooded with daylight, and intended to be a downtown hotel that feels like home. 919.533.3052 | 420 S. Bloodworth Street, Raleigh GuestHouseRaleigh.com

JAN/FEB 2019

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KALEIDOSCOPE LIVING A RT I S T: D A R E C O U LT E R YOU ARE, ACRYLIC AND AEROSOL ON CANVAS, 48” X 36"

“One of my favorite things I ever read was a post that someone online addressed to all men: ‘Romanticize yourselves. You are a king. You are a warrior. You are an enchanter. You are an angel. You are a god. You are all of these things and more, you are the stuff of fairytales.’ It is important that men hear these things about themselves, because so often they don’t.

I created this piece at a time when I felt that black men in particular needed to hear it-— I wanted to reflect beauty and joy back to them ... This was the first in my series of positive imagery of people of color, which has now expanded to include children’s books, murals, and sculptures.”

Dare Coulter is an award-winning artist, muralist, and sculptor. She is the artist of three children’s books, the muralist of ACLU of NC’s #DareToDissent mural in downtown Raleigh, and she just completed painting the #CaptainOfYourFAYte mural, Fayetteville’s largest mural at 143 feet long. Dare wants a mural on every continent. Follow her on Instagram at @DareCoulter, and on the Dare Coulter page on Facebook, or visit DareCoulter.com.

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