Looking for dinner? Ladyfingers has you covered at new grocery store, eatery and cafe
A longtime Raleigh caterer is expanding its business with a flagship grocery store, eatery and cafe near North Hills.
Ladyfingers — known across many Southern and East Coast states for its “gourmet-to-go” meals — has operated out of a small storefront on East Whitaker Mill Road since 1985. The company’s “fresh-frozen meal solutions” are available in about 140 stores from Mississippi to New Jersey. But Ladyfingers never dabbled in groceries until now.
“We had been talking about opening a real-deal market of our own for a while,” said David Jackson, who bought Ladyfingers eight years ago with his wife, Tudi, his brother Daniel, and his father, Dan. “This new market will obviously sell our frozen meals but along with grocery-type and convenience items — North Carolina-made products and stuff you can’t get at your Harris Teeter.”
The 4,000-square-foot space at 3710 Exchange Glenwood Place, Suite 1000, will open Nov. 15. It will include a dine-in section where patrons can eat breakfast and lunch, or imbibe at the craft beer and wine bar.
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“We’ll have handcrafted deli sandwiches and all of our deli salads, that sort of thing, and grab-and-go stuff plus the beer and wine,” Jackson said. “So this new store will have three or four different concepts going on at one time.”
Jackson has hired 11 workers to staff the new location. If he can reach 18, the restaurant might grow to include a dinner menu.
“The challenge has been the labor market,” Jackson said. “We’ve struggled to fill positions, which I think everybody’s in that position right now. But I think we’ve found some good people and we’re going to do our best and work hard to get this place open, and then hopefully hire a few more.”
For those unfamiliar with Ladyfingers’ selection, Jackson recommends the chicken pot pie, lasagna, gumbo and their signature country ham rolls — the company sells about 100,000 of those per year.
“We had people driving out here from Charlotte to get those before we started selling them out there,” Jackson said.
Non-traditional grocery offerings will include locally sourced nuts, jams, sauces, grits and rice; organic soaps and detergents; and a wide selection of gluten-free products.
“I think people will be happy we’re here because we’re offering things you can’t get at your chain grocery stores,” Jackson said. “...I’m not trying to brag on our product, but I think it brags on itself.”
This story was originally published November 5, 2021 at 5:45 AM.
