Coquette restaurant reopens Sunday in North Hills after fatal shooting
A popular Raleigh restaurant reopened Sunday, a week after a fatal shooting shocked the community and led to a mass lockdown of the North Hills area.
Coquette Brasserie at 4351 The Circle at North Hills had been closed since Jan. 17, when Raleigh Police say executive chef George Colom walked into the restaurant and fatally shot a coworker. Colon turned the gun on himself and later died of his injuries.
On Saturday, Coquette announced reopening plans. For now, the restaurant said it will only be seating people who have reservations.
“With the strength of our Coquette family and the heartfelt support of our community, we will reopen for dinner service tomorrow,” on Jan. 26 at 4 p.m., Coquette said on a post on Facebook. “From all of us at Urban Food Group, thank you for your continued encouragement. We look forward to serving you again.”
Shooting not a random incident
Urban Food Group owns Coquette and several other restaurants, including Vivace, also at North Hills.
Police say Colom walked into Coquette shortly before it opened for lunch on Jan. 17. He fatally shot Jonathan Mark Schaffer, a manager for Urban Food Group.
A bystander was also shot but was released from the hospital after suffering non-life threatening injuries.
Police have not released a motive for the shooting, but said Colom and Schaffer knew each other and it was not a random incident.
Several schools were put into lockdown and businesses closed for the day as police flooded the area.
This story was originally published January 26, 2025 at 12:16 PM.
