Food truck owner brings taste of Honduras to Chapel Hill. Grand opening Friday.
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- The Latin Effect opens Friday in Chapel Hill with handmade Honduran cuisine.
- Owner Alberto Chedrani transitions from food truck to restaurant leadership.
- The kitchen highlights female chefs and authentic recipes from Latin America.
A food truck owner serving up fresh Latin cuisine and homemade Honduran recipes will hold a grand opening Friday at his new bricks-and-mortar location in downtown Chapel Hill.
Alberto Chedrani, 38, is the grandson of Lebanese immigrants to Honduras but grew up in Kinston, North Carolina, where his family moved when he was 7 years old. HIs father still owns a restaurant in Honduras, he said.
In 2011, Chedrani moved to the Triangle, where he and his wife Rebecca, a UNC Hospitals nurse, have made a life with their two children, ages 2 and 4.
Chedrani started cooking for other people when he worked for General Services Corp., a regional property management company. He found he loved the food and the relationships he was building with the community, he said.
“Money’s not everything for me,” Chedrani said. “I enjoy what I do, and I hope I’m successful here, but I enjoy watching people eat, and I enjoy the relationships.”
In 2020, he and his wife launched The Latin Effect food truck, which will continue serving the Triangle, he said. The opportunity to open a permanent restaurant appeared late last year when he helped his partner and another man open Terrace Kitchen in Durham.
The building at 504 W. Franklin St. previously housed Mint Indian restaurant, which closed in 2022, and The Beer Study, which moved in 2024 to South Green shopping center in Carrboro.
County records show Babaji Group Properties LLC bought the building that year for $1.7 million.
The Latin Effect will hold a grand opening event at 5 p.m. Friday, Sept. 5.
Women and family in the kitchen
Opening his own restaurant has taught him “a lot of patience,” Chedrani said last week between last-minute phone calls, directions to staff, and details. He smiled broadly as he talked about the grand opening and his hopes for the future.
“No matter what kind of business you’re in, if you give people good service, people will come back,” he said.
His mother, who is “an amazing cook,” could teach cooking classes in the future, “so she can live her dream through this place,” he said. His father’s restaurant provided some of The Latin Effect’s recipes, with classic dishes like pupusas, arepas and tacos from El Salvador, Guatemala and Venezuela.
The Latin Effect and its food truck will employ just under a dozen people, and the kitchen will be run by two “really good” female chefs — one his right-hand person — Chedrani said.
“In most restaurants, the male chefs are [in charge], but not here,” he said. “I’m a big believer in what they do, and in this kind of food, our women are the heads. They are the important ones in the kitchen.”
Everything is made by hand, he said.
Honduran food is rooted in its Spanish, Caribbean, Mesoamerican and African history, giving it a lighter hand with spices, an emphasis on proteins and fresh vegetables, and unique ingredients, such as plain or refried red beans, coconut, and pickled onions and jalapenos.
One of the country’s most popular dishes is baleadas, Chedrani said, describing a flour tortilla folded around eggs, meat or beans, and other toppings. Just don’t call it a quesadilla, he said.
The Latin Effect’s staff also puts a lot of care in how the food looks, Chedrani said.
“It shows you put a lot of love in it.,” he said. “We do.”
Other local restaurant news
- Even Dough in Carrboro opened to the public for the first time Tuesday. The business started as a home bakery in 2020 and moved to appointments and pop-up sales at 203 W. Weaver St. in 2024. The new cafe has an expanded menu and coffee drinks, and is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday-Friday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Pickup and delivery orders can be placed online.
- Brunches and Brews has joined Carolina Square retailers at 133 W. Franklin St. in Chapel Hill. Located in Suite 120, beside Roots Cafe, the growing, casual dining chain serves breakfast, lunch and brunch, plus signature cocktails, daily from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- A local caterer has opened a cocktail bar and event space in the former Piggyback bar space at Cedar Falls Courtyard. Little Gem is owned by Beau Catering, which also operates out of the 630 Weaver Dairy Road shopping center. Doors open at 5 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, and Little Gem also offers monthly mixology classes.
The News and Observer’s Inside Look takes readers behind the scenes to illuminate the people and places in our community.
This story was originally published September 4, 2025 at 8:50 AM.
