Port City Small Bites: Bull City Ciderworks Heading Into Town, Buoy Bowls To Launch In New Year

SOUTH-EAST NC – There is a lot of movement around the port city regarding new openings and closings of restaurants, foodtrucks, bars and bottle shops, as well as the launch of organizational and food festivals and events and festivals. non-profit. While Port City Daily already covers the majority of this news, changes and smaller changes sometimes go under the radar.

READ MORE: Follow the other culinary news of the week

“Small Bites” fills gaps in coverage and lets readers know what to expect when it comes to extensions to existing establishments or menu changes, temporary closures and renovations, overtime or big openings. , pop-up events, or other newsworthy information that may be overlooked in the daily routine.

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Wilmington gets its first cider house

Bull City Ciderworks is heading towards the Cargo District.

A permit for 615 S. 17th St., formerly occupied by the Superior Millwork building, has been submitted to the City of Wilmington indicating “Bull City Cider” as the incoming company. The applicant is Rob Romero of Romero Architecture – the designer of the End of Days Distillery, one block from Castle Street. The general contractor is listed as LS Smith Inc., the developer behind the growing Cargo District, which encompasses a few blocks between Queen and Castle, and 16th and 17th Streets.

According to the permit, 3,193 square foot renovation plans are underway, including fitting out new bathrooms and a tasting bar.

Bull City Ciderworks launched in Durham in 2014, before expanding to Lexington in 2016 and Greensboro in early 2021. It announced on its website that a Cary location will open in January 2022.

The cider house was the first to open in the Triangle area and is also the largest in Southeastern North Carolina. and distributes in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.

An email to the company regarding the opening date of the cider house went unanswered; Port City Daily will update the article if a representative responds.

New açaí bowl food truck

A new açaí bowl food truck is launched in Wilmington. Buoy Bowls made his Apex, NC debut from former Port City resident Derek Sharpe. Sharpe launched the truck in 2016 and has grown with a new truck each year, winning numerous Best-of awards across the Triangle.

Buoy Bowls specializes in serving açaí bowls and pitaya bowls – eight in all – and five smoothies. Each item is made from fresh ingredients: bananas, strawberries, blueberries, cocoa nibs, goji berries, bee pollen and honey.

The purple food truck announced in April that it would be coming to the area and, on December 3, made its final hiring position. Sharpe said Buoy Bowls is considering an opening in early January, if all goes according to plan.

Hi-Wire + Bulleit = beer aged in bourbon casks

Hi-Wire Brewing on Princess Street will be hosting a special launch party on December 15th for its new beer, 10W-40. The Hi-Wire team has teamed up with Bulleit to produce an imperial stout aged in bourbon barrels (9.5% ABV), with notes of chocolate, coffee and vanilla. It is aged in Bulleit oak barrels which are charred with a caramel finish.

Wednesday night’s outing will feature samples, giveaways and live music from The Smokey Dunes. Admission is free and the party takes place from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

All four 10W-40 packs will go on sale for $ 20 and will be available for shipping starting December 17.

Beer Barrio renovates and reopens after 10 days

It’s been six and a half years since Beer Barrio started launching tacos and ritas at the corner of Front and Princess streets in downtown Wilmington. Owners Hayley Jensen and Stephen Durley decided it was time to renovate the restaurant after Thanksgiving and went out of business Nov.29 to Dec.10 to make improvements.

“We had problems with leaks and the floors were starting to wear out, so it was time for a service,” Jensen wrote to Port City Daily.

The restorers replaced the floors and some sub-floors, as well as rebuilt the bar, which included waterproofing and tiling. They also had the bathrooms renovated and “carried out structural work in the preparatory kitchen”.

In addition, the restaurant has new tables. The layout and capacity are the same, and the restaurant reopened on Friday .; its hours are Sunday to Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Friday and Saturday until 10 p.m.

Panacea expands and adds event space

Panacea opened in January 2020 with great fanfare, as the community gathered around one of the city’s only vegan restaurants.

“We were packed,” Robin Hill wrote to Port City Daily, “then COVID hit and changed everything. We fed the people on our patio in all weather, heating the outside all winter because people always wanted to go out, they just wanted their space.

Now that the restrictions have loosened a bit – and the pandemic has changed everyone’s perspective on personal space – Hill said she and her husband, Art, have started looking at their restaurant with new eyes. Even removing the tables or spacing them out a bit more, the restaurant seemed “cramped”.

“So we chose to expand the front unit to allow for more elbow room and casual space for eating and drinking,” Hill noted.

Located in Anderson Square, a 1,600 square foot space next to Pizzetta’s Pizza and connected to Panacea now has brasserie signage facing Oleander Drive. Along with having additional seating – 35 to 50 additional customers can now occupy the tables, handcrafted by Perry Steed of Legacy Craftworks – this also allows Panacea more storage space. Additional square meters also means more events, including private parties and special catering, as well as chef dinners, which can be customized to suit individual preferences and budget, from appetizers and light drinks to evening meals. ‘plate.

“There is a glass garage door between the two units so that private events can be held in the new space while the restaurant is open for regular business,” Hill explained.

The Panacea vibe is present throughout the new addition, with local artist Erica Nelson painting several large-scale murals, including “Mycelium Maiden,” inspired by the mushrooms of Terra Vita Farm, which the restaurant often uses in its dishes.

“We are really delighted with the completion of the final decoration piece,” said Hill, “the back of a Volkswagen bus which is being restored by Steve Martinez. When completed, it will be attached to the wall of the same way as the front of the bus in the original restaurant.

The Hills will officially celebrate the addition to Panacea in January with an inauguration party. For now, he’s using the area for overflow seating.

Carolina Green Provision holistic market opens

Green Lean Clean – a meal preparation delivery service and wellness operation in Ogden – has renovated and expanded its storefront to become a holistic marketplace. As well as serving their own healthy offerings – breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks, vegans and vegetarians also on offer – it launches Carolina Green Provisions.

Located in the Ogden Village shopping center, groceries will focus on local produce, such as all take-out from Green Lean, kombucha from Panacea, home-made breads from Wilmington Bread Company (read more here), mixers For the Love of Margaritas, and more.

New sandwich, new hours at Cheesesmith

The Cargo District’s grilled cheese hotspot, Cheesesmith, introduced a new sandwich earlier in the week. Served over marbled rye, the pocket-sized device – yet to be named – is topped with cheddar, NC pork belly, pickled red onions, honey Dijon coleslaw and Smith sauce .

In addition, the restaurant has new hours and now opens Tuesday to Sunday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

(Click here to read more about Cheesesmith.)

Classic European wine dinner

Sweet n Savory will be hosting a special European wine dinner on Thursday, December 16 at 6 p.m. Located at 1611 Pavilion Pl., The café will serve eight courses, each paired with a different wine.

While the chefs still prepare the meal, according to Sweet n Savory, the wine range will include:

• Champagne Jacquart in Reims France, Brut Mosaïque
• Patient Cottat, Sancerre Vielles Vignes, 2019
• Maison Vincent Girardin, Meursault Les Vielles Vignes, 2017
• Maison Louis Latour, Aloxe-Corton 1er Cru Les Chaillots, 2016
• San Polo (It), Brunello di Montalcino, 2016
• Château Nenin, Pomerol, 2016 $ 180
• Sartori di Verona, Estate Amarone della Valpolicella Collection, 2015
• Porto Cruz, 20 years old Port Tawny of Gran Cruz

Dinner is $ 85 and reservations can be made by calling 910-256-0115.

Holiday Farmer’s Market with Chef Dean Neff

On Sunday, December 12, from 10 a.m. to noon, local chef Dean Neff will be hosting a Holiday Farmer’s Market across from Seabird, the downtown seafood restaurant he opened earlier in the spring. Neff will host cooking demonstrations and offer a tasting at 12:30 pm In addition, a wellness dietician, Ana Zeller, will be on hand to discuss seasonal food and offer easy recipes. It’s free to attend.

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