15 reasons to plan your next visit there VISIT RALEIGH

aleigh’s 2023 outlook promises lots of new experiences from food and drink to outdoor adventure to arts and culture. This year, one of the fastestgrowing cities on the East Coast debuts the North Carolina Freedom Park dedicated to celebrating the African American experience, new restaurants from several Beardnominated chefs and exciting events like the NHL Stadium Series and Dreamville Festival.

Raleigh’s BBQ Renaissance: Midwood Smokehouse, a Charlotte-based barbecue joint known for its all-hickorysmoked ‘cue, arrives in Raleigh’s Smoky Hollow in the spring of 2023.

Midwood joins recently opened Longleaf Swine, named for the state’s signature pine in Raleigh’s historic Oakwood neighborhood, and The BBQ Lab in North Hills from scientists Jerry Stephenson and Roxanne Marley who have 40+ Kansas City Barbecue Society Championship awards. Other new spots include: Sam Jones BBQ, Prime Barbecue and Shady’s alongside long-time Raleigh favorites Clyde Cooper’s, Ole Time Barbeque and The Pit.

Local restauranteur Giorgios Bakatsias is opening three new restaurants in Raleigh in 2023. Just opened Giorgio Pizza Bar offers up thin-crust sourdough pizzas, handmade pasta specials, Italian wines and craft cocktails. Las Ramblas, a Spanish tapas bar named for the famed boulevard in Barcelona, opens later this month. Then East End Bistrot, a French steakhouse with a house butcher program, run by renowned executive chef William D’Auvray, arrives later this quarter.

Brodeto is a Croatian-Italian eatery featuring the restaurant’s namesake dish, a traditional fish stew with a rich tomato-wine broth. Acclaimed James Beard-nominated chef Scott Crawford will open his latest venture in Raleigh Iron Works with a menu inspired by his trips to the Adriatic region with his wife.

Raleigh Iron Works is a historic industrial site outside of downtown with offices, residential units and retail shops being developed to open later this year. Vendors include a third location for Ponysaurus brewing featuring pizza from local favorite Oakwood Pizza Box, Durham-based Eastcut Sandwich Bar’s second location, as well as Andia’s Ice Cream. Bond Brothers Brewing will open NOCO in the adjacent Salvage Yard development in 2024, joining the newest Triangle Rock Club as anchor tenants.

Award-winning chef and restauranteur Cheetie Kumar will open a new restaurant near the Five Points neighborhood in collaboration with Anisette Sweet Shop. Kumar’s new eatery will feature an indoor-outdoor area with bright, fresh Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dishes.

La Terrazza, from Samad Hachby of Mulino Italian Kitchen & Bar, is a terrace dining concept coming to The Dillion in Raleigh’s booming Warehouse District. The restaurant will focus on southern Italian and Mediterranean offerings, accompanied by a beautiful skyline view of the city.

Smoky Hollow, the “northern gateway” to downtown Raleigh, is a mixed-use urban district featuring several new local shops and restaurants including: a new Milklab location; Lights; New Anthem Beer Project, a Wilmington based brewery; Madre, a tapas place from Happy + Hale founder Tyler Helikson; and The Crunkleton, a third location of the classic cocktail bar.

Cary’s new mixed-use development Fenton debuted with tenants like Chef Mike Lee, a Durham food scene staple, opening his second location of the popular M Sushi. Additional tenants include Colletta (Italian food and wine), Dram & Draught (cocktail bar), Superica (Tex-Mex from chef Ford Fry) and more. Scott Crawford’s Crawford Brothers Steakhouse is slated to arrive in 2024.

The Test Kitchen will be Michael Lee’s sixth restaurant, opening in Cary’s Fenton development in March of 2023. It will serve as a laboratory for chefs, allowing them to try out new recipes, ingredients and out-of-the-box concepts.

North Carolina Freedom Park, located on State Government Grounds, is scheduled to open this spring. The park will honor the African American struggle for freedom and was designed by internationally recognized architect Phil Freelon.

Downtown Cary Park is slated to reopen this summer. The reimagined seven-acre public gathering space will have two food and beverage facilities, four interactive water features, a great lawn and an outdoor entertainment pavilion.

A master plan for the 308-acre Dorothea Dix Park–the city’s largest green space–proposes the area be transformed through six distinct landscapes. The first broke ground in late 2022, Gipson Play Plaza will focus on play space for visitors of all ages. Acting as a central gateway connection to the rest of downtown Raleigh, these 18-acres will receive new landscaping, fountains, gardens, a waterfall, amphitheater, civic plaza and playground with completion expected in 2024.

The third annual Dreamville Festival, a two-day, multistage festival at Dix Park will take place April 1-2 with a one-of-a-kind celebration of local culture, food and art from Grammy award-winning artist and NC-native J. Cole. A curated selection of music performers will blend some of today’s biggest national acts with exciting up-and-comers.

North Carolina Museum of Art People’s Collection is the museum’s permanent collection of art, which was completely renovated and reopened at the end of 2022. With 200+ new pieces added, the People’s Collection features a new, innovative flow for the museum with multiple accessibility and technology upgrades that bring the art to life.