Details on the new restaurant taking over the Humble Pie space in downtown Raleigh
A new voice in Raleigh’s dining scene will take over the space of a legend.
David Ellis, the most recent chef de cuisine of Poole’s Diner, will open his first restaurant in the former Humble Pie location.
The curtain fell on Humble Pie last month, ending a 30 year run as a downtown favorite.
Ellis’ new restaurant will be named Figulina: Pasta & Provisions, an Italian concept built around fresh handmade pasta and will include a small market of take-home prepared foods.
“It’s not going to feel like a classic Italian restaurant,” Ellis said. “We’ll try and take it and add a bit of Southern flair.”
Ellis, a British ex-pat who moved to the United States in 2019, has been at Poole’s for four and a half years, leading the kitchen for the last two and a half. Cooking in kitchens since he was 16, Ellis said he honed his craft on the job, working in British gastropubs and developing French techniques.
Building on his time at Poole’s, the famed restaurant from Ashley Christensen, Ellis said he hopes to use pasta as a way to highlight North Carolina ingredients and create thoughtful, comforting dishes. As an early menu contender, Ellis is thinking of a butter poached North Carolina shrimp for a rich take on low country boil.
“I like using pasta as a vessel,” Ellis said, “where a guest would taste it and know this is a North Carolina pasta dish.”
Figulina inherits a fairly large Humble Pie space, including one of Raleigh’s great patios. Ellis plans to build a pasta production room with a display window where diners can see pasta being made. The dining room will have space for around 100 people.
Renovations will be fairly light, Ellis said, with a January opening in mind.
This story was originally published October 3, 2023 at 9:29 AM.
