Taylor ShookThe Fayetteville Observer
Tired of the same-old?
If you’re looking to mix up your lunches, dinners and desserts, we’ve got good news. There is almost always new food to try in the Fayetteville area, and the last couple of months are no exception. Restauranteurs and entrepreneurs have cooked up avariety of new food businesses.
Asubmarine sandwich place, Haitian restaurant, barbecue joint, Mexican seafood spot and soul food buffet and lounge all opened in October and November.
Here’s a look at seven newcomers to the Fayetteville area food scene.
Did you find one we missed? Let us know by emailing tshook@gannett.com.
Country Boys Grill
Country Boys Grill in Fayetteville opened Nov. 14. As owner Loquita Jefferson put it, the restaurant serves “a little bit of everything.” She said paninis, hot dogs, burgers and chicken sandwiches are on the menu, but the hot submarine sandwiches and shrimp and grits are the most popular.
The house-made fried cheesecake bites are also a hit, Jefferson said. Starting at $5.99 for three, the dessert comes in flavors like raspberry, kiwi lime, mango, chocolate and caramel.
Location: 2153 Valleygate Drive, Fayetteville
Hours: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday to Friday.
Phone: 910-500-9155
On the web: facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077208576065
El Cazador Mexican Restaurant
El Cazador’s third Fayetteville location opened Nov. 4. The Skibo Road location opened in 2002, and the Gillespie Street location opened in 2016. There are also locations in Carolina Beach and Cameron.
The house specialties include the birria estilo jalisco, lamb marinated in Mexican barbecue sauce; chicken and beef taquitos dorados; the Washington chimichanga, with beef, chorizo and refried beans; and the sincronizada vegetariana, a tortilla sandwich stuffed with mushrooms, spinach, cheese, onions, jalapenos, avocados and rice.
Location: 7835 Good Middling Drive, Fayetteville
Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Sunday.
Phone: 910-758-8026
On the web: elcazadormex.com
KitaDee's Soul Food Lounge
KitaDee's Soul Food Lounge in Spring Lake opened Oct. 22. During the day, the restaurant is a pay-and-weigh soul food buffet that features different dishes daily. On Sunday, “grandma’s favorites” like meatloaf, fried pork chops and hamburger steak are served. Thursday is for pasta and Friday is for seafood.
On Friday and Saturday nights, the lights turn down and the music turns upfor the lounge’s “Grown & Sexy” events, where attendees 25 and upcan enjoy a live DJ and house co*cktails.
Location: 1161 N. Bragg Blvd., Spring Lake
Hours: Restaurant hours are 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday-Sunday. Lounge hours are Friday and Saturday 8 p.m.-midnight. Closed Monday-Wednesday.
Phone: 910-339-4706
On the web: facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086932463140
Family CFGEL Fritay Lakay
Smoked Fresh barbecue restaurant in Fayetteville is now Haitian restaurant Fritay Lakay. Owner Myl Estephene is a Haiti native who used to run restaurants on the island nation. When the Person Street restaurant opened Oct. 1,it was his first eatery in the U.S.
Estephene said the menu offers chicken and rice dishes, salads, fish and turkey made in the authentic Haitian style and cooked to order. He said he hopes to create community through Haitian food. But he encourages people to stop by to say hello, even if they aren’t getting something to eat.
“It’s people-first,” he said. “Without people, you have nothing.”
Location: 821 Person St., Fayetteville
Hours: 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. daily
Phone: 910-496-5646
La Perla Cuisine of Nayarit
The former El Burrito Mexican restaurant retained its staff and owners, but got a name change and a new menu Nov. 1 when it reopened as La Perla Cuisine of Nayarit.
The restaurant serves dishes from Nayarit, a state along Mexico’s western coast. Grilled octopus, prawns, crab legs and lobster are just a few of the new offerings.
Location: 310 Glensford Drive, Fayetteville
Hours: 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday-Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday-Saturdayand noon to 9 p.m. Sunday.
Phone: 910-263-8825
On the web: laperlanc.com and facebook.com/laperlarestaurantnc
Mixed Sprinkle
Since opening in late October, Mixed Sprinkle food truck hasfrequented the Cape Fear Botanical Garden, where it has often sold out of cookies in less than an hour, owner Jessica Rich said.
Specializing in custom Italian sodas, candies and quarter-pound cookies, offerings change daily. A recent menu included frosted sugar and M&M chip cookies.
Throughout the holiday season, the truck is also serving gourmet hot chocolates in flavors like caramel hazelnut or “Santa’s Choice,” which Rich says tastes like a snickerdoodle cookie in a cup.
Location and hours vary, check online for updates.
On the web: facebook.com/mixedsprinkle
Some Ting’s Cookin’
Some Ting’s Cookin’ Asian food truck in Hope Mills opened Oct. 28. The veteran-owned truck serves egg rolls, chicken red curry, chicken pad Thai, Thai basil fried rice and Vietnamese noodle salad. It also offers Thai tea and Vietnamese iced coffee.
Location and hours vary, check online for updates.
On the web: facebook.com/profile.php?id=100085683050258
Food, dining and business reporter Taylor Shook can be reached attshook@gannett.com. Want food news in your inbox every Thursday? Sign up for theFayetteville Foodies newsletter.
