Special diet? No problem

Meal-preparation companies - which let you come in and prepare meals to take home and eat during the week - have been growing quickly over the past few years.

It seemed likely that the national cutback in consumer spending would hurt those businesses.

However, I don't think that will be the case for a new Raleigh business that has a unique spin on the meal-preparation idea.

It targets a niche in the Triangle's dining scene.

Rosie's Plate, which opened Thursday, caters to people with special dietary needs. The kitchen is gluten-free, shellfish-free and peanut-free.

Unlike traditional meal-prep companies, Rosie's prepares all the food to meet customers' dietary specifications.

You order over the phone or online and pick your food up the next day. Eventually, Rosie's will offer delivery.

Entrees will cost $6.50 to $9 a serving, and sides cost $2 to $3, depending on the ingredients.

The business idea came from Rose Waring, whose two children have food allergies.

"I realized that everything I had been giving them to eat was making them sick," she says on the Rosie's Web site. "It didn't take long to figure out that there was no help out there for people with food restrictions."

Not only is Rosie's addressing the need for food on the go, but it is tapping into the growing market for special-needs diets.

Sales of gluten-free products reached $210 million in 2001 and are expected to hit $1.7 billion in 2010, according to market research firm Packaged Facts.

Even with its emphasis on healthy dining, Rosie's can't escape America's obsession with sugar. Call to ask where the company is located, and more often than not, the answer will be, "701 N. Person St. -- a block north of the Krispy Kreme."

Customer service manager Sarah Heenan said the reference is unavoidable: "Everybody always knows exactly where that is."

In Apex, after a couple of delays, the independent coffee shop in Davis Drive Village is open.

Wake Zone Espresso, at 6108 Old Jenks Road, features a Caribbean theme.

In the same center, Kumon Learning Center will open this week. Other signed leases include music store Locals Guitar and Music, which will offer private lessons; Suncom; and Dixie Belle's Bar-B-Q, which will open in Davis Drive Village in July after closing its location on Laura Village Drive at the end of June.

In Raleigh, Revival Antiques & Accessories took the part of its building that was a warehouse and converted it into showroom space. The business, which has been open for 2 1/2 years, is at 1505 Capital Blvd.

Other items: In Cary Towne Center, children's salon Sweet & Sassy is open, and a new children's play area is open in the Sears wing. ... In Cary's Crossroads Plaza off Walnut Street, SAS Shoes is open. ... In Fuquay-Varina, Daniel's on Main opened at 818 N. Main St. The restaurant, a second location of Apex eatery Daniel's Restaurant, is open for dinner and will begin serving lunch in August.