Food Porn visits: Torii Noodle Bar
Today’s Food Porn excursion takes us to the home of Raleigh’s best dinner deal, Torii Noodle Bar. Torii sits next door to P.F. Chang’s at Crabtree, and at first blush was built to catch runoff from the neighboring restaurants’ long wait queues. In fact, Torii is more of a casual extension of the Kanki.
Torii offers multiple noodle dishes and sushi items. I am quite fond of the Wantan – Men Ramen bowl as well as the TonkoTsu pork noodle bowl. This is great cold weather food, especially the Katsu Curry (pork curry rice).
Recently, though, I discovered that the rice bowl dishes are almost exactly the same dishes that people are being served downstairs at the Kanki. The dish is a heaping portion rice, your choice of meat, and some broccoli. The rice bowl comes with a side of either Japanese soup or ginger salad, which are exactly the same dishes as those downstairs. The meat choices are Chicken, Steak, or Shrimp, but the prices are what blew me away: Chicken is $8 and the other two are $10. Yes, that dish pictured, with an appetizer salad with Kanki’s delicious ginger dressing was eight dollars. There isn’t a better deal in Raleigh, and given the recent changes for the horrible at Sarku (in the food court), there isn’t a more convenient way to get a quality serving of Japanese food for a modest price.
TTA Video Features Orange/Durham Light Rail Flyover
A video tucked away neatly at ourtransitfuture.com shows a flyover of the planned light rail system for Chapel Hill and Durham. The 14-minute video begins behind the parking decks of UNC’s hospital, and follows the route all the way to its eastern terminus near NCCU, east of downtown Durham.
What’s remarkable in the plan is the amount of elevated guideway that is planned, especially in thinly populated areas of Chapel Hill. Elevated guideways significantly increase costs because each span between stanchions must hold the weight of a train and its passengers for each direction of track supported. The elevated guideways allow the train to travel through the wetlands of east Chapel Hill and to traverse large roads, such as 15-501, where grade separation is required. The section near the Smith Center is, perhaps, the most perplexing.
There seems to also be a difference in opinion between Orange and Durham Counties regarding the mixing of modes on existing streets. Grade level crossings are avoided, at great costs, in Chapel Hill where the MLK area of Durham integrates the rail down the road’s median and with its large intersections.
As I stated in the previous post, the plan really does a nice job at connecting most of the high-traffic destinations on the line. The line includes the UNC hospitals, the Smith Center, and Friday Center. While the line does not access the older parts of UNC’s campus, passengers can freely transfer to Chapel Hill’s excellent bus service for access to the older parts of campus (same goes for Duke). In Durham, Duke is accessed via its hospital. The plan presents several redevelopment nodes in Durham County, especially the Duke Street area where the system connects to Amtrak. While some of the planned stations are not at current population centers or destinations, they are at gaps in the city which will be easily filled, unlike the layout of Charlotte’s Blue Line.
Food Porn visits: Bella Mia
Tucked in a shopping center across Harrison Avenue from SAS in Cary is the Triangle’s best pizza. Bella Mia has a refreshing pizza menu, complete with items like broccoli, fresh basil, and excellent prosciutto. The high-quality ingredients hit a delicious dough, and go into Bella Mia’s coal-fired oven to make a delicious final product.
Pictured is the Sausage, Broccoli, and Smoked Mozzarella Pizza.
Food Porn visits: Mami Nora’s
In 2007 Durham-based Mami Nora’s hit the scene and was an immediate success. The fast-food Peruvian Chicken outlet expanded over here to Raleigh in 2010, and was met with the same reception, and for good reason!
Mami Nora’s marinated rotisserie chicken is cooked with lump charcoal, and is one of the best quick bites in town. I recommend ordering a side of soft corn tortillas, rice, and beans and making little tacos. If this were one of those Southwestern places, they would have some tomato-based sauces. Alas this is not, but there is an extremely hot green chili sauce that is delicious.
I wrote about how Mami Nora’s could add some cheese and some salsas and take over the world. Diner have two options: bring your own bag of cheese and salsa, or better yet, just show up for Taco Tuesdays!
FTA Approves Light Rail Development for Chapel Hill/Durham
Triangle Transit Authority tonight announced that the FTA has approved the request to begin development of a 17-mile light rail line that would connect Durham and Chapel Hill. The line would serve UNC, east Chapel Hill, the 15-501 corridor to South Square, Duke, Downtown, and NCCU. The project would use no rail corridors west of Duke University, instead using existing highway right of way.
The development phase will likely take 2 years, followed by a 3 year engineering phase. If all goes as planned, service would begin as early as 2024, and will cost $1.34 billion.
* * *
Whah! 1.34 billion for a 17-mile project? That comes to $79million per mile, but expect costs to probably double if all goes as planned. For comparison’s sake, the Triangle Parkway toll road cost 137.5million for a 3.4 mile stretch ($40m/mi) and the Western Wake Freeway cost $446.5 million for a 12.6 mile stretch ($35m/mi). Those projects were completed in 2012.
Let the shouting match begin. People who oppose this are “backward”, “stupid”, and “living in the 50s” while those who are for it are “blowing all of our money” and “jacking up taxes”. Both sides have good points. A friction-free connector of the three universities and downtown Durham will really help all entities from a productivity standpoint. Perhaps if node-oriented development occurs, then fewer cars will be on the already congested, pathetic pair of roads that connect Chapel Hill and Durham.
On the other hand it isn’t prudent to ignore the costs and the state of technology. Light rail is a really expensive way to move people. One only has to look at Disneyworld to see a large transit system that has opted for bus transit for all expansion in the last 32 years. Also consider the prodigious number of transit systems that carry unsustainable costs. Are ridership projections accurate or would it turn out to be like Austin’s MetroRail which averages fewer than 2,500 riders a day? Granted, Austin’s routing execution was poor and it runs few trains per day, so it’s considered a $130 million flop in that city.
My prediction is that this line will get built, but the costs will more than double by the time it is built. Given the large number of college-oriented riders this system would have, it would probably be well-traveled, so we, the public, just have to figure out if we want to support its cost structure.
map of planned route at N&O
Food Porn visits: Firebirds
One of the best chains in America is the Charlotte-based Firebirds, a mid-level steakhouse. The 35-store outfit is priced to compete with the ubiquitous Outback Steakhouse, however the level of quality in every way is superior.
Today’s entry is the Chili-rubbed Delmonico Steak with a Loaded Baked Potato. This steak cut is a bit of a fatty one, however the chili rub on this piece of meat is outstanding, as is the quality of the bacon on that potato! While the hamburgers are disappointing, other sure-fired winners at Firebirds are the BLT Salad, the Grilled Tenderloin Salad, Colorado Chicken Salad, and the ribs (which are some of the Triangle’s best).
One of the best deals in Raleigh is the half rack of ribs from the kids menu. the $8 meal comes with two sides (nutritionally relevant choices include a salad, fruit, green beans, veggies, and mashed potatoes), milk/soft drink, and a small pack of Oreos. For about a dollar more you can get a baked potato as one of the sides. It’s one of my daughter’s favorite meals in any restaurant.
Firebirds has locations at North Hills, Morrisville, and Southpoint Mall.
Union Station Presentation Set for Thursday
The fourth public meeting regarding plans for Raleigh’s new train station, Union Station, will take place on Thursday from 6pm to 8pm. The public is invited to attend a brief presentation of updated plans at 6, followed by a review and comment session.
Union Station’s is a joint initiative project by the NCDOT Rail Division and the City of Raleigh. The project (site plan .pdf) aims to provide an adequate facility for current and future demands as well as offering an adequate platform size for longer trains. The current proposal calls for converting an abandoned warehouse at the end of W. Martin St. (behind Flanders Gallery) into a two story terminal. The building is the only structure in the triangular space, the “wye”, of a 3-way train intersection. The plan calls for putting a 39-car surface parking lot as well as passenger pickup/drop-off zones.
Food Porn visits: Taverna Agora
Today’s Food Porn tour takes us to Taverna Agora, the crown jewel of Lou Moshakos’ LM Restaurant Group. The Greek taverna sits in a former Miami Subs location out Glenwood Avenue, but you would never know it as their food stands up pretty well to Greek restaurants like the excellent Kyma in Atlanta and the incredible Stella’s in Richmond.
Featured in today’s photo is the Chicken Fettucini (lemon chicken fettuccini with sautéed spinach, garlic,tomatoes, and fresh herbs in a white wine lemon sauce with Manouri cheese, $14). This dish is a full-on winner. The grilled pork chops dish, however, is phenomenal, and one of my favorite items served in Raleigh’s great selection of restaurants.
A couple of other tips: The Greek Village Salad is excellent, but does not come with lettuce by default. Ask for lettuce if you want a Greek Salad like the ones served in most Greek restaurants. Avoid the Athenian Chicken.
Food Porn visits: Kimbap
Today’s Food Porn tour takes us to downtown Kimbap, a fast casual Korean restaurant in downtown Raleigh. Pictured is the Bibimbap, a mixed bowl of rice with bulgogi (beef), seasonal vegetables, kimchi, and a sunny side up egg. The sauces at Kimbap are excellent, but the pork dumplings are the best I’ve had anywhere.
Food Porn visits: Zoe’s Kitchen
Today’s Food Porn tour takes us to Zoe’s Kitchen, a Greek/Southern fast-casual restaurant. This particular item is one of their nicest, the Steak Kabobs. For $11.50, the dish comes with two steak kabobs (of pretty decent quality), red bell peppers, onions, grilled potatoes, and roasted vegetables. Other winners at Zoe’s include their Greek Salad, Pimiento Cheese, Rice, Chicken Orzo Soup, and Greek Chicken Marinara (on orzo) .
Zoe’s has three area locations: Oberlin Rd (at Wade), North Hills East, and Park West Village (Morrisville).
Vinyard Vines Coming to North Hills
Great news for the Raleigh clothing scene! Upscale casual clothing retailer Vinyard Vines will open their 32nd store in North Hills, in the 3,500 sq ft location where The Varsity and Acorn once were. The nautical-themed stores feature bright, preppy pastels in a classic Massachusetts nautical style. This will be North Carolina’s second location (the first is in SouthPark Mall in Charlotte).
Boaters will love the arrangement of sconces at the stores’ entrances; one green light, one red light. (true enthusiasts will know which light will be on the right when shoppers are returning…to the store).
Triangle Racks Up Beard Nominations
A hearty congratulations goes out to all of the area chefs named today to the 2014 Semifinalists list by the James Beard Foundation. Out of the 433 national nominees, 9 are in the Triangle area, joined by 3 others from the rest of North Carolina for a total of 12 in this state. No restaurants from Charlotte, the Triad, or Wilmington were nominated. Only 6 nominees went to each Virginia and South Carolina, while 11 went to Georgia. Austin, Texas? They got just 3.
The North Carolina-based nominees for 2014 are:
National Categories
- Outstanding Pastry Chef (20 nominations awarded): Phoebe Lawless, Scratch, Durham
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Outstanding Restaurant (20 nominations awarded): The Fearrington House Restaurant, Pittsboro
- Outstanding Restaurateur: Giorgios Bakatsias, Giorgios Hospitality Group, Durham (Kipos, Parizäde, Village Burgers, and others)
- Rising Star Chef of the Year: Katie Button, Cúrate, Asheville
Regional Categories
Best Chef: Southeast
- Colin Bedford, The Fearrington House Restaurant, Pittsboro
- Ashley Christensen, Poole’s Downtown Diner, Raleigh
- Scott Crawford, Herons at the Umstead Hotel and Spa, Cary
- Vivian Howard, Chef & the Farmer, Kinston
- Scott Howell, Nana’s, Durham
- Meherwan Irani, Chai Pani, Asheville
- Matt Kelly, Mateo, Durham
- Aaron Vandemark, Panciuto, Hillsborough
Honorable Mention
- Outstanding Restaurateur: Mike Klank and Eddie Hernandez, Taqueria del Sol, Atlanta
(Taqueria del Sol has a location in Crossroads Plaza)
The 2014 James Beard Awards will be held in New York City on May 2 and 5.
Food Porn visits: Casa Carbone
One of Raleigh’s great, old family joints is Casa Carbone. The family once owned the great Italian restaurant Villa Capri in Ridgewood Shopping Center. Eventually the family found a new home “out Glenwood Avenue” in Oak Park Shopping Center, where they have continued to build an extremely loyal, older, and quiet following.. Casa Carbone is one of the best places in the Triangle to get Italian veal dishes. Featured in today’s entry is Veal Piccata which comes with a side of pasta and a salad. I requested Fettucine Alfredo. One of Casa Carbone’s delicacies is the bread, which is delicious with that brown sauce!
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