Here are 12 of the Triangle’s biggest new restaurants & bars of 2025
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Major food and beverage openings in the Triangle in 2025 span a range of cuisines.
- Some new restaurants and bars are from well-known Triangle chefs and restaurateurs.
- Several craft cocktail bars opened in the area, offering an alternative to breweries.
This year was a milestone in the Triangle’s culinary world.
The new Michelin Guide American South was unveiled in early November, recognizing 44 North Carolina restaurants, along with more than 180 others across six states in the region. Nineteen Triangle restaurants, ranging from a barbecue trailer to fine dining establishments in glitzy settings, made the list.
But amid the lead up to and aftermath of the announcement of the honorees, the Triangle welcomed a host of new restaurants and bars.
Here are a few of the most notable mentions.
Peregrine
One of the first major restaurant openings of the year was Peregrine.
Founded by chef Saif Rahman and filmmaker and artist Patrick Shanahan, the restaurant blends American and South Asian cuisines. Its design, featuring arches, columns and plaster walls, incorporates glass and raw wood and is meant to blend past and present.
Location: 1000 Social St., Raleigh
Trophy Five Points
Trophy opened its seventh and largest location in November in Raleigh’s Five Points area, near the popular restaurant Ajja.
Housed in the former Electric Supply Co. building, Trophy’s new spot serves pizza and beer, but will also include an events and game room with duckpin bowling, golf simulators, vintage arcade games and a giant projection screen.
Location: 207 Bickett Road, Raleigh
Lawrence Barbecue
After a stint at Boxyard RTP, chef Jake Wood brought his barbecue restaurant Lawrence Barbecue to a new, much bigger location in Cary.
Recognized by Southern Living, Texas Monthly and The News & Observer, Lawrence Barbecue’s expansive menu includes Texas-style brisket, oysters, birria tacos, smoked chicken, pulled pork and smash burgers — plus a host of sides as expected as slaw to as fancy as Fancy Boy Brussels Sprouts.
Location: 150 E. Cedar St., Cary
Mala Pata
Angela Salamanca and Marsall Davis of Gallo Pelón and Centro, and Eric Montagne and Zack Gragg of Locals Seafood and Standard Beer + Food collaborated on Mala Pata and its sister bar, Peyote.
The new concepts, which pay tribute to agave spirits and a masa-centered menu, opened in May at Raleigh’s Gateway Plaza.
Location: 2431 Crabtree Blvd., Raleigh
Boatman Spirits Co.
Meshing together a distillery, craft cocktail bar and restaurant, Boatman Spirits Co. is one of the newest dining spots to join downtown Raleigh’s Seaboard Station development.
Spanning 7,000 square feet, Boatman Spirits offers Mediterranean dishes and a cocktail menu featuring bourbon, single malt and rye whiskey, vodka, gin, brandy and arak, an anise-flavored Mediterranean liquor.
Location: 713 Seaboard Station Drive, Raleigh
Doc B’s Restaurant + Bar
Doc B’s opened its first North Carolina location at Cary’s Fenton development, joining restaurant concepts including Crawford Brothers, the steakhouse from chef Scott Crawford.
The restaurant serves a range of dishes including steaks, chicken, pastas, Asian-inspired bowls and handhelds.
Location: 25 Fenton Main St., Cary
The Crunkleton
In April, the North Carolina cocktail bar The Crunkleton opened a new location in Smoky Hollow in Raleigh, the first of its three locations to offer an upscale food menu.
Burgers, chicken sandwiches, salads and oysters accompany craft cocktails that made The Crunkleton famous.
Location: 403 W. Johnson St., Raleigh
Cuya Cocina
Inspired by the Caribbean, Mexico and South America, this restaurant opened in the former Cortez on Glenwood Avenue.
Charlie Ibarra, who also owned Cortez, partnered with chef Kevin Ruiz to open the restaurant, which serves dishes including carne asada al carbon and Baja-style fish tacos.
Location: 413 Glenwood Ave., Raleigh
Brewery Bhavana
The downtown Raleigh favorite expanded to a second location at Fenton.
Known for its extensive beer menu and dim sum, the restaurant’s new spot in Cary has an outdoor patio with dozens of seats.
Location: 850 Lower Garden Lane, Cary
Wedgewood Cheese Bar
Owners Stevie and Michelle Webb opened Wedgewood Cheese Bar in Carrboro, serving almost 100 varieties of cheese, butters and specialty meats, along with packaged foods such as jams, pasta, crackers and wine.
The Webbs closed their old business, The Cheese Shop, in April to focus on opening Wedgewood, which is bigger.
Among the cheeses are varieties from Switzerland, Canada, Britain and the Canary Islands.
Location: 100 Brewer Lane B, Carrboro
Dino’s Pizza
Durham chef Matt Kelly, of Mateo, Mothers & Sons and Nanas, teamed up with chef and partner Tom Cuomo, formerly of St. James Seafood, to open the casual pizza joint Dino’s Pizza.
The restaurant celebrates Italian-American cuisines, with pizzas, chicken parmesan, calamari, garlic knots, Italian chop salad and rigatoni alla vodka.
Location: 3109 Shannon Road, Durham
Mediterranean Deli
More than two years after it closed following a fire, Chapel Hill’s Mediterranean Deli reopened.
The restaurant serves more than 100 items from deli cases and has a dedicated gluten-free pita production space.
Location: 410 W. Franklin St., Chapel Hill
The News & Observer’s Drew Jackson and Tammy Grubb contributed reporting.
This story was originally published December 15, 2025 at 11:06 AM.
