For press, contact Sarah at [email protected]
"Best of Chapel Hill" - Chapel Hill Magazine - 2022
Blue Dogwood:
"Best of the Triangle" - Indy Week - 2022
Blue Dogwood:
Buckets at Chapel Hill:
HTOO Asian Fusion:
Vegan Flava Cafe:
"Best of Chapel Hill" - Chapel Hill Magazine - 2021
Blue Dogwood:
Big Belly Que:
"Best of the Triangle" - Indy Week - 2021
Vegan Flava Cafe:
Big Belly Que:
"Best of Chapel Hill" - Chapel Hill Magazine - 2020
Big Belly Que:
"WRAL Voters' Choice Awards" - WRAL.com - 2020
Blue Dogwood:
Vegan Flava Cafe:
"Best of Chapel Hill" - Chapel Hill Magazine - 2019
Blue Dogwood:
"Best of the Triangle" - Indy Week - 2019
Vegan Flava Cafe:
Left Bank Butchery:
"Top 5 Best Local Eats" - 919 Blog - 2019
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Eric Ndiaye of Bouquet Garni Foods - Wait! I'm Not Done Yet - March 3, 2022
"Chef Eric Ndiaye, who was born in Senegal, spent many years in France, and traveled the world learning various cuisines, has opened a restaurant and catering company in Blue Dogwood." Watch... Chapel Hill and Durham Black-owned businesses help meet various community needs - The Daily Tar Heel - February 15, 2022
"Vegan Flava Cafe's menu also features beverages, such as herbal sweet tea, West Indian sorrel beverages and a variety of fruit smoothies." "To bridge this gap, the duo decided to create Yumphoria just over a year ago. The boutique serves a variety of sweets like chocolate-covered strawberries, chocolate-covered Oreos and various types of Rice Krispie Treats." Read more... UNC student entrepreneur brings late night food options to Chapel Hill - Spectrum News - February 11, 2022
"William Gerstein is known as "The Wing King." In between classes, Gerstein can be found in business meetings or promoting his new late night food concept, Buckets at Chapel Hill." Read more... Dan Friedman of Chocolate Innovations - Wait! I'm Not Done Yet - February 2, 2022
"Dan Friedman owns Chocolate Innovations, a chocolate company that employs people with disabilities, making unique products including chocolate creations and natural beverages." Watch... UNC student's new wing spot eyes Chapel Hill's late-night food scene - Triangle Business Journal - January 31, 2022
"Buckets at Chapel Hill, opening February 11th, is bringing wings and chicken and waffles to Franklin Street's Blue Dogwood Public Market. The space is a mix of a food hall and a ghost kitchen - multiple vendors share the space, but customers can walk in and order." Read more... Goodness Cooks Nourishes the Community with Simple, Healthy Meals - Chapel Hill Magazine - December 4, 2021
"Goodness Cooks is eco-friendly, too. The small business is committed to regenerative practices and produces very little waste. Customers can opt to have their food packaged in jars that are returned to Goodness Cooks to be reused." Read more... Chapel Hill's Blue Dogwood Set to Add West African, French Restaurant - Chapelboro - November 15, 2021
"A new restaurant focused on bringing tastes of France and West Africa to the local food scene is set to soon open in Chapel Hill." Read more... The best Chapel Hill restaurants for a plant-based diet - The Daily Tar Heel - September 16, 2021
"Vegan Flava is a quaint restaurant tucked away in Chapel Hill that is all vegan and all good." Read more... Community Highlights: Meet Dan Friedman of Chocolate Innovations - VoyageRaleigh - August 27, 2021
"We make unique chocolate creations and fresh, natural juices for the wholesale market." Read more... Community Highlights: Meet Goodness Cooks - VoyageRaleigh - August 27, 2021
"Ordering from Goodness Cooks as part of your weekly rhythm is more of a lifestyle choice and very different than ordering take-out. There's so much more that sets us apart and makes us one-of-a-kind in our community." Read more... Community Highlights: Meet Britney Shalloway of Yumphoria - VoyageRaleigh - July 19, 2021
"What we are known for is our commitment to delivering the best customer experience. We've all been there when we've had that last minute gift that we needed for that special someone and seem to not have any options. That's where Yumphoria has been able to shine and to come through for those customers to create a special moment for their special person." Read more... 14 Delicious Vegan and Vegetarian Restaurants in North Carolina - Our State Magazine - December 14, 2020
"Chef Yah-I Ausar aims to serve any and all customers, no matter their dietary restrictions or preferences." Read more... Flavor of the Week: QueenWa Cafe - Chapelboro.com - October 25, 2020
"For Tonya Del Soldato, the owner of QueenWa Cafe, the restaurant had been a vision of hers for quite some time - she even created the menu years ago. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Del Soldato was given an opportunity to fully focus on QueenWa Cafe and opened the restaurant in August." Read more... Orange County Women in Tourism Entrepreneurs - Chapel Hill Visitors Center - August 19, 2020
"Entrepreneurial women are part of what makes our area special." Read more... Made in NC: The Sonder Market - Chapelboro.com - July 4, 2020
"At Sonder, sustainability starts and stays local. It makes frequent use of Farmer Foodshare’s wholesale market to purchase produce only from local NC farms, which Sonder uses to make baked goods for sale at Blue Dogwood and the Meantime Cafe." Read more... As black-owned restaurants and shops struggle, your business matters - The News & Observer - June 5, 2020
"In this moment of nightly protests against systemic racism in America, thousands throughout the Triangle have looked for ways to better support the black community." Read more... Here are some Black-owned businesses you can support in Chapel Hill & Carrboro - The Daily Tar Heel - June 4, 2020
"The systemic wealth gap can also be helped enormously just by helping small, Black-owned businesses." Read more... The Aaron Keck Show - WCHL - May 21, 2020
Aaron Keck of WCHL radio chats with Vegan Flava's Yah-I Ausar about his business and how they're faring during the pandemic. Listen in... The Triangle's first Black-owned vegan restaurant still doing business during COVID-19 - Scalawag Magazine - May 15, 2020
"When you reach nirvana, nobody tells you it's behind a Jimmy John's. I'm 20 minutes into a conversation with Yah-I Ausar about energy. Specifically, my energy. And about how the food we eat nourishes not just our stomachs, but our souls. For mid-afternoon, the conversation's heavy. But that's the thing about Ausar. He's convinced that his food can make a difference in Chapel Hill. And if you spend enough time with him, you might be too." Read more... Flavor of the Week: Big Belly Que - Chapelboro - January 25, 2020
"There hasn't been a lot of barbeque to be found on Franklin Street in recent years - but Garret Fleming is changing that at Big Belly Que. The wood-smoked barbeque restaurant is right off of West Franklin Street, located inside the Blue Dogwood Public Market." Read more... More than 'twigs and grass': Meatless options in Chapel Hill - The Daily Tar Heel - October 29, 2019
"Gardner said the menu at Vegan Flava Cafe sports flavors from many areas of the world, including some variances on Southern-style foods." Read more... Food Hall on Franklin: Blue Dogwood Public Market - Carolina Planning Journal - September 17, 2019
"Blue Dogwood is trying to create a community of small businesses who otherwise might find it very difficult to open a retail location. And in turn, share on finances and costs for everything from marketing to common area costs. We want to have a space to bounce ideas off each other and work together." Read more... All up in your business: Ice cream, barbeque, and biscuits - The Daily Tar Heel - June 27, 2019
"Blue Dogwood Public Market, an indoor year-round market that promotes small businesses, plans to add an ice cream shop and a barbecue place to their list of vendors this Summer." Read more... Chapel Hill's Blue Dogwood food hall nabs new barbecue project and Smitty's ice cream - The News & Observer - June 19, 2019
"Roughly one year ago, the Triangle's great food hall bonanza began in Chapel Hill. Blue Dogwood Public Market was the first piece of the national trend to open in the area, quickly followed by Raleigh's Morgan Street Food Hall and Transfer Co. Food Hall, together adding dozens of new small food vendors in a spectrum of culinary styles." Read more... 10 Places You Have to Go - Indy Week - May 6, 2019
"Rumi Persian Cafe serves up Persian cuisine with personality by the heaping paper plateful." Read more... The 10 Best Vegan and Vegetarian Spots in the Triangle - Indy Week - May 6, 2019
"The husband-wife team behind Vegan Flava Cafe craft much of their vegan soul food from raw or living ingredients." Read more... Vitamin O Artspace of the Month: Blue Dogwood - Orange County Arts Commission - February 28, 2019
"Blue Dogwood is different, even from other food halls, because of its relentless focus on local." Read more... A visit to Chapel Hill's Blue Dogwood Public Market: Our picks for what to eat and drink - The News & Observer - February 5, 2019
"The food hall scene has finally made its way to the Triangle, with two in downtown Raleigh, one in Chapel Hill, and another on the way in Durham. Each has its own character and personality but no shortage of tasty food options." Read more... Menu Hopping: Vegan Flava Cafe - Spectrum News - December 7, 2018
Spectrum News interviews Vegan Flava's Yah-I Ausar & Stephen Gardner about their vegan food and how they bring the flava. Watch... Durham couple brings 'flava' to allergen-conscious vegan food - The Daily Tar Heel - October 10, 2018
"From traveling the East Coast as caterers to opening a food truck in 2014, Amen and his wife have dedicated their careers to providing a new take on high quality and intentional food service. Now located in Blue Dogwood Public Market, a cooperative food hall focusing on local business, Vegan Flava Cafe begun expanding their dishes and establishing a home base." Read more... Satisfy your taste buds at a new attraction: Food halls - The Peace Times - October 8, 2018
"Imagine this: A place that is totally devoted to all things food. No clothing stores or gift stores. Just food. Have you got the image in your head yet? You do not have to imagine any longer because food halls are sweeping across the area." Read more... Domestic Violence Awareness Month - WCHL - October 2, 2018
Cordelia Heaney of the Compass Center for Women and Families sits down with WCHL radio to discuss Domestic Violence Awareness Month and Compass Center's upcoming fundraising event with Blue Dogwood. Listen in... How the food hall trend is revolutionizing The Triangle's food scene - Forbes - September 20, 2018
"Blue Dogwood seeks to celebrate local food and cuisine by featuring the area’s top vendors in an easy and accessible way to all. It currently features seven permanent food vendors including Pizzelle Bakery, a gluten-free Italian bakery; Rumi, a Persian café; Soul Cocina, a Latin American kitchen; Chocolatay Confections, a family-owned candy shop; Left Bank Butchery, a whole animal butcher shop; and Vegan Flava, a vegan soul food company." Read more... What is Blue Dogwood Public Market? - Chapel Hill Alliance for a Livable Town - September 19, 2018
"Blue Dogwood Public Market is the first public market in North Carolina to focus on locally and regionally-produced products. The year-round, indoor market features fresh food vendors, selling delicious cuisine suitable for everyone - both sweet and savory, for adults and kids, and offering those with dietary restrictions and preferences many vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options." Read more... The food halls are coming! The food halls are coming! But what makes them different from food courts? - Indy Week - September 12, 2018
"Niche businesses were also a focus for Blue Dogwood Public Market in Chapel Hill, the Triangle's first food hall, which opened in mid-June. Food halls are a way for small businesses to get started with less investment, and they can test new concepts with less risk. At Blue Dogwood, you'll find gluten-free baked goods at Pizzelle Bakery, peanut-free chocolates at Chocolatay Confections, vegan tacos and wraps at Vegan Flava, and plant-based tamales and arepas at Soul Cocina." Read more... Fesenjoon, arepas, and pizzelle: A look at Chapel Hill's new food hall - The Duke Chronicle - August 29, 2018
"Food halls provide high quality food without necessitating an hour-long sit-down dinner. The market’s focus on collaboration and locally-sourced food makes it unique from other places on Franklin Street." Read more... Sending summer off in NC style - North State Journal - August 1, 2018
"Closer to the capital, food halls are turning in towns around the Triangle, bringing a taste of the farm to the city. Food halls are generally in urban post-industrial buildings outfitted to be a mix of high-end grocery stores with small eateries inside. They are drawing crowds looking for lunch and the ingredients to create something fun at home." Read more... Now open: Blue Dogwood Public Market, The Triangle's first food hall - Offline Media - June 29, 2018
"It will also host retail vendors as well as pop-ups and is the first public market in North Carolina to focus on locally and regionally-produced products. In addition to the indoor market there are plans to add an outdoor beer garden in the coming months as well. Blue Dogwood is a must visit for any local foodie!" Read more... Tu for Two: Exploring Blue Dogwood - Chapelboro - June 25, 2018
Join Chela as she visits Blue Dogwood, the area’s first food hall, that just so happens to be in downtown Chapel Hill. Blue Dogwood is an indoor prepared food market with a varied and eclectic mix of small local businesses, where vendors collaborate and support each other. Listen in... Eating extremely local at Blue Dogwood - Chapelboro - June 22, 2018
"Food halls are direct descendants from the public markets of the pre-supermarket era and the food stalls that often stood side-by-side local goods. Blue Dogwood in Chapel Hill takes cues from raw, industrial interior design inside its 4,002 square feet of space. Exposed ductwork and a large shared-space kitchen give the interior a working-environment feel, and the local no-nonsense feel somehow comes off as friendly and welcoming." Read more... Way better than your high school cafeteria - Asheville Today - June 21, 2018
"ICYMI, a food hall includes a variety of locally-owned, artisan restaurants that often specialize in one type of food with a shared open space for dining. Some examples are Eataly (which started in NYC), Blue Dogwood Public Market, Pike Place Market in Seattle, and Swan’s in Oakland." Read more... Raleigh gets trendy with two new food halls - Eater Charleston - June 18, 2018
"Blue Dogwood Public Market celebrated its grand opening with an array of permanent food vendors spread throughout the indoor market space. Patrons got a taste of gluten-free items from Pizzelle Bakery, handmade sweets from Chocolatay Confections, Persian dishes from Rumi Persian Café, and more." Read more... Foodie News: Food halls are finally opening in The Triangle - WRAL.com - June 15, 2018
"Just on the heels (pun intended) of the opening of the Triangle’s first food hall over in Chapel Hill (Blue Dogwood Public Market - which opened this past week), the folks behind the Morgan Street Food Hall in downtown Raleigh announced their opening date." Read more... We got a peek inside Chapel Hill's new food hall. Here's what you can expect. - The News & Observer - June 15, 2018
"Most concepts going in these days have the UNC student body in mind. Pizza, burgers, beer and wings, universally beloved but collegiate necessities. The food hall makes for a different type of destination in the heart of Franklin Street." Read more... The Triangle's first year-round indoor "public market" launches in Chapel Hill - 919 Blog - June 14, 2018
"Unlike many other food halls, Blue Dogwood goes more against the grain. The market has modest stalls for smaller start-up, local vendors, to customize and maximize their stall space for less money, work with other small businesses in the community, and allow pop-up stalls for vendors to test out open spaces." Read more... Inside Chapel Hill's first food hall - WRAL.com - June 13, 2018
"Explore global cuisine, satisfy your sweet tooth, and check out local craft beer - all under one roof in Chapel Hill." Read more... This new food hall is bringing variety to Franklin - The Daily Tar Heel - June 12, 2018
"What started as a search for a bakery by now vendor and part-owner of Blue Dogwood, Kelly Taylor, ended up as an opportunity for local vendors to come together under one roof. Taylor owns a gluten-free bakery in Blue Dogwood called Pizzelle Bakery and her inspiration came from her own dietary needs." Read more... Long-awaited Morgan Street Food Hall sets an opening date - The News & Observer - June 12, 2018
"Blue Dogwood's roster includes vendors Chocolatay Confections, Left Bank Butchery, Pizzelle Bakery, and others. There also will be a bar with beer, wine, and cider." Read more... Food hall with plans for beer garden debts in Chapel Hill - Triangle Business Journal - June 11, 2018
"The indoor venue features 12 spaces for food vendors, retail vendors, and pop-ups." Read more... The Triangle's first food hall will open this weekend - Indy Week - June 6, 2018
"The intimate space, with a footprint of 4,002 square feet, boasts an open floor plan with whitewashed walls and eye-catching pops of color, lending it an airy, contemporary, playful feel." Read more... Blue Dogwood Public Market Soft Opening - Offline Media - June 5, 2018
"The Triangle's first food hall has its soft opening this weekend, and we couldn't be hungrier for it. Check out the new public market space in Chapel Hill for limited soft opening hours this weekend to enjoy local goodies." Read more... As diners turn to food as entertainment, the Triangle's food hall moment has arrived - The News & Observer - April 20, 2018
"Blue Dogwood, with its focus on small local vendors, is the coziest of the projects at 4,000 square feet." Read more... Forthcoming market to bring a tasting adventure to Chapel Hill - Eater Charleston - April 20, 2018
"The name Blue Dogwood gives a nod to the local and regional focus of the market, linking North Carolina’s state flower to the dominance of Tar Heel blue in the college town." Read more... These are the restaurants, food halls, and beer projects we can't wait for in 2018 - The News & Observer - February 14, 2018
"In Chapel Hill off Franklin Street, the Blue Dogwood Public Market will open this spring with 12 food stalls for local vendors." Read more... Sidewalk Scoop - Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership - February 6, 2018
"Blue Dogwood Public Market continues its buildout on the West End. The food hall will offer space to 12 local food retailers to direct market their product to consumers." Read more... If you can only eat three meals in Chapel Hill, make sure they're here - The Washington Post - January 25, 2018
"On the horizon: Chapel Hill is getting ready to open the Blue Dogwood Public Market (306 West Franklin St.), a new food hall on bustling Franklin Street that will include both permanent and pop-up food stalls." Read more... 2018 Outlook: Restaurant scene booms - Triangle Business Journal - January 5, 2018
"Local, niche and healthy. These are some of the restaurant trends that have emerged in the Triangle that industry and town officials expect to continue into 2018. And something new is on the horizon this year: food halls." Read more... 13 food halls that prove this trend's not dead yet - Eater - August 30, 2017
"The food hall phenomenon has officially transcended trendiness. These sprawling markets showcasing a variety of mini-restaurants and retail food vendors under one roof have spread like wildfire in recent years, and don’t expect it to slow down anytime soon." Read more... Cousins Maine Lobster joining Morgan Street Food Hall as more food vendors are announced - The News & Observer - June 9, 2017
"Meanwhile, Blue Dogwood Public Market is opening in Chapel Hill in a part of the former Fowler’s grocery store at 306 W. Franklin St. in downtown. Owners say the indoor market will have more than 15 fresh food vendors, retail vendors and popups." Read more... What's new on Chapel Hill's food scene - Chapel Hill Magazine - April 20, 2017
"Like avocado toast, food halls are having a moment. Cities are turning shipping containers or former warehouses into food stalls hawking artisan goods - the shop local spot of our dreams. So we couldn’t be more thrilled about Blue Dogwood Public Market." Read more... Say Yes to the Chef - WCHL - March 11, 2017
Chef Kelly Taylor discusses the food hall trend and the opening of Blue Dogwood Public Market, opening soon in downtown Chapel Hill on Franklin Street. Listen in... Three Coming "Food Halls" Will Give 90+ NC Food Makers a Home - WRAL - February 3, 2017
"Blue Dogwood Public Market's co-founder Kelly Taylor has a two-fold mission. She wants to build a space where Chapel Hill residents can congregate and enjoy products from local makers. She also hopes to create a food community that leans on one another and celebrates the uniqueness and ingenuity of the food they create." Read more... What's on the horizon for the Triangle's dining scene in 2017? Food halls, and much more - The News & Observer - January 10, 2017
"Chapel Hill's Blue Dogwood Public Market is closer to opening and will likely open this spring in a part of the old Fowler's grocery store between Franklin and Rosemary streets. Kelly Taylor, one of the owners, said the market will be home to several businesses, including her Italian bakery, Pizzelle." Read more... What's on Tap - WCHL - January 10, 2017
"Food Halls are the new hot trend happening in the Triangle. There are three in development. Morgan Street Food Hall is expected to open this spring in Raleigh. Others to look out for: Durham Food Hall and the Blue Dogwood Public Market in Chapel Hill." Read more... Fowler's old spot getting new market - Carolina Alumni Review Magazine - January/February 2017
"Generations of Tar Heels shopped at Fowler's Food Store for groceries, produce, seafood, and meat. Regarded as Chapel Hill's first supermarket, the store opened on West Franklin Street in the 1920s and soldiered on through the 1980s, when Fowler family members opened an eponymously named store in Durham's Brightleaf complex. So it's fitting that the partners behind Blue Dogwood Public Market - combining Tar Heels' favorite color with the state flower - chose Fowler's old space for a new food hall." Read more... Food entrepreneurs have more options with 3 food halls, markets brewing in Triangle - The News & Observer - October 6, 2016
"Modeled after European food markets, Blue Dogwood will host up to 16 food stalls, including a butcher shop, two bakeries, a seafood market, and beer and wine vendors, said Kelly Taylor, one of four partners in the project." Read more... No missing the meat: Durham's Vegan Flava Cafe is one of the Triangle's best new restaurants - Indy Week - December 9, 2015
"I take a bite, look down, take another and finally look up at Ausar while smiling incredulously. His grin is so wide now it seems to dip into the hairnet that's nestled beneath his beard. 'That's the reason we're in business,' Ausar explains, laughing. 'That's what started it all.'" Read more... |