True Flavors Diner is ready to expand the biscuit-loving universe with Debbie Lou’s
The world is your biscuit at Debbie Lou’s, the upcoming sister restaurant of True Flavors Diner in Durham.
Debbie Lou’s plans to open this winter, next door to True Flavors’ Lakewood location at 2022 Chapel Hill Road, which chef Sidney Coves opened earlier this year. His original True Flavors Diner opened four years ago in South Durham, becoming something of a brunch sensation. It has also been named the best breakfast spot in the Triangle by dining critic Greg Cox.
As his third restaurant, Debbie Lou’s is built around biscuits, serving an extensive menu of sandwiches based on the South’s favorite carb.
For proteins, Coves is expanding the world’s idea of what is served on a biscuit, with meats like buttered cilantro lobster, jerk-flavored alligator and kangaroo, according to a menu currently written on Debbie Lou’s chalkboard. They’ll accompany more familiar options like barbecue-fried chicken, roasted turkey and sliced brisket.
Biscuit options will include honey butter, herb buttermilk, garlic cheese and chipotle honey butter. Biscuit sandwiches could get a kick from sauces like ghost pepper jerk and Carolina white sauce. Beyond biscuits, there are grit bowls and a menu of gravies and a side option of garlic cheddar fries.
Coves took over the former Davis Baking building in Lakewood last October. Previously, the building housed acclaimed baker Phoebe Lawless’ Scratch Baking and her restaurant The Lakewood, which closed in July 2018.
True Flavors’ Lakewood location has expanded Coves’ offerings, with recently expanded dinner hours and a cocktail program not found at the N.C. 55 location.
When Covers first talked about opening a second True Flavors Diner, Coves teased the eventual Debbie Lou’s.
“I’ll say this,” Coves said last year. “It’ll be bird-tastic.”
According to True Flavors’ Instagram account, Debbie Lou’s will open winter of 2019. A sign on the door of the restaurant says it will be open four days a week, Thursday through Sunday, starting at 9:30 a.m. but keeping hours open-ended, saying only “Until.”
To follow the biscuit-building progress, visit Debbie Lou’s and True Flavors on Instagram.
