Durham's Mint Market Offers Chefs and Farmers Thoughtful Online Solution

Dining in Durham is a great object lesson in the synergy between supply and demand in both a literal and tangible way. It also happens to be outrageously tasty. Chefs want local food and farmers want to move their product to people who will treat it with care - many would prefer to move that product the shortest distance possible.

Mint Market is a new Durham start up serving as an online marketplace for local food. As of Sunday, July 29 chefs and farmers can start saving a lot of time and get back to doing what they do best.

The new website will allow chefs in the Triangle to discover, purchase, and schedule delivery of food directly from area farms. Farmers must sign up by Saturday, July 28 to have their products included on opening day.

“We’ve been testing Mint Market with amazing local chefs and farmers. Now we’re ready to open the floodgates,” said Ricky Spero, Mint Market’s founder. “We can’t wait to see what they do with this powerful new tool.” Mint Market will showcase some of the area’s finest local vendors, including Maple View Farm, Hillsborough Cheese Co., and Dock to Door Seafood. 

The scheduling of this process is crucial for chefs and farmers alike. It allows them both to focus on the critical aspects of buying and selling. Balancing the two is no easy feat, and Mint Market gives farmers an efficient way to sell their products to restaurants using e-commerce. Farmers update their inventories on Saturday. Chefs shop on Sunday. Farmers harvest on Monday and deliver to restaurants on Tuesday. Listing products on Mint Market is free. When farmers complete a sale, Mint Market takes a 5% fee.

Spero sees a time when Mint Market will be available to retail consumers, but for now he's very much focused on the commercial aspect of this enterprise. "We think that the consumer market for  local food is really exciting, but right now we're 100% focused on getting wholesale right," he added.

Scott Howell, chef-owner of Nana’s Restaurant in Durham, was Mint Market’s first customer. “This is something the area really needs. From our earliest days, Nana’s has supported local farms. Mint Market is going to make that much easier.”

“Mint Market solves so many problems,” adds Sam Hummel, co-owner of Ever Laughter Farm in Hillsborough. “We love working with chefs, but everyone has to spend a lot of time on the phone. Mint Market makes it more likely that we’ll be able to connect with the right chef at the right time.”

Spero is clear about the role that Mint Market aims to play. “We love food, but we’re a technology company at our core. We ask ourselves how we think people will buy food five years from now. And then we build it, so everyone can start doing it today.”

Amanda Miller, owner of Dock to Door Seafood, aims to shift her existing business onto Mint Market’s platform. Said Miller, “We drive fish directly from the coast to chefs’ kitchens, so we have a very tight timeline. Mint Market can handle all of our ordering and logistics. It’s hard to imagine how we could scale without this.”

Noah Ranells, co-owner of Fickle Creek Farm and Agricultural Economic Development Coordinator for Orange County, said, "Mint Market is an elegant solution that makes the most of the busy schedules that farmers and chefs experience on a daily basis. I think that it will appeal to a growing number of farms in Orange County and the Piedmont Region." Ranells is also on the board of Piedmont Grown.

Aaron Benjamin, chef at Rue Cler Restaurant, used Mint Market during the testing phase. “I like the ease and usability of the website and I will definitely order more product as it becomes available.”

Those visiting the website are encouraged to sign up to learn more as the service rolls out. Spero will be updating people as news unfolds.

No More Reservations Available

On Wednesday, Durham's Magnolia Grill chef/owner couple Ben and Karen Barker announced their plans to close their restaurant as of May 31st.  The news came as a shock to decades of loyal fans, patrons and the vast family of alumni that had made their way through the restaurant over the years.

In an email to News & Observer food writer Andrea Weigl, the Barkers shared the information that no more reservations are available to dine between now and when the restaurant closes.  Walk in customers may be accommodated in the bar, but there is no assurance that a table will be available - it's a game of chance for those who wish to try their luck at this point.

The Barkers wrote to Weigl that the response to the announcement of their closure was "overwhelming."  Some tried for hours to get reservations; some successfully, others not.  The choice of words clearly echoed how those who heard it feel about the restaurant, and its impending closure.

For more on this story, go here and here.

Durham Culinary Powerhouse Magnolia Grill to Close 5/31

In a surprise announcement, Magnolia Grill owners Ben and Karen Barker say they are closing after nearly three decades in business.  The news will shock many loyal fans and patrons.

Known for blazing a culinary trail in North Carolina, the couple are both James Beard Award winners.  The honor is considered the Oscar of the food world.

“This is sad news for Durham.  Ben and Karen are two of the reasons Durham has a food scene.  They trained many, many chefs in their restaurants who went on to open their own establishments," said Shelly Green, Durham Convention & Visitors Bureau President and CEO.  "We promote Durham's prowess as a dining destination.  They have given us so much of the opportunity to do that."

Durham is widely known as a place with an intense food scene.  The accolades are numerous, but most recently the New York Times listed Durham as one of the Top 41 Places to Visit in the world and noted the food and dining offerings as a key reason.

Citing a desire to spend more time with friends and family, the couple will close the property on May 31.  Having written two books and being in demand within the national food community, this is likely not the last word from this duo. 

The Barker's were honored at Durham's Annual Tribute Luncheon in 2007, alongside other chefs here who helped shape Durham as a culinary destination and contributed to it's unique sense of place.  "We can't thank them enough for that," Green added.  Dare we say that tens of thousands of diners would say the same.

Resident Favorites Survey Begins Today

As in years past, the folks at the Durham Convention & Visitors Bureau would like a peek inside your head.  They gather a little ground-level research from locals to find out what they do and don't dig on the local dining scene.  Visitors are increasingly interested in local preferences, too, as they relate to food.  The goal of the survey is to provide empirically-informed selections upon which visitors can act when they visit.

Nary a social medium is without some manner of commentary on food, and those media drive the interest in this sort of information.  Since Durhamites get so excited about things in the place where great things happen, this survey is a great way to formalize that data.  So, those with an opinion (research shows that opinions are strongly-held in Durham) should follow this link to complete the survey. 

TAKE THE SURVEY 

"It's a short survey and folks can complete it through Monday, October 17th.  That's plenty of time for restaurants and food trucks to get their fans to go and vote," said Sam Poley, DCVB's Director of Marketing and Communications who hopes that residents will voice their opinions by the thousands.  "This survey is a real opportunity for businesses to rally their customers and social media followers to help them win.  I strongly encourage them to do so because those with the most votes get a year of promotion on our website...and the dining page upon which the survey winners are listed is one of the most popular on our site," he added.

The top vote-getting establishments are presented with a framed award and are announced publicly by DCVB.  The questions change annually, so it is possible that a place may have consecutive wins in a category that are years apart.  Last year's winners are posted here.

Results from the Resident Favorite Dining Survey

Attention.  Attention Please.  Please direct your attention this way.  The results of the 2010 Resident Favorite Dining Survey are tabulated and the winners are....  But before the winners are announced, there are a few tidbits worth sharing; c'mon, there's got to be a little suspense, no? 

The survey is a popular vote contest for people who live and work in Durham.  There were no limits on what places could win.  Voting was conducted online through a survey on the Informz platform and was open for 12 days from November 1 through 12.  The survey was promoted largely over social media.

Participation was up 61% over last year.  That size jump clearly indicates a strong desire by those who live here to be supportive of their local businesses and to direct visitors to them.  That's a great thing.

Folks spent an average of 5:19 per response.  That is up 18% from last year and it indicates that respondents truly care about making sure they choose the places that they believe most exemplify excellence in a category. 

Some categories were too close to call a single winner; only one or two votes separated some of the top contenders.  In those instances, multiple winners were awarded.  "The objective of this survey is to provide a window on the local culinary zeigeist that others can use to guide their decisions, and this year we had a heck of a response," said Sam Poley, DCVB's Director of Marketing and Communications.  "We were especially excited to see voting be so close, and to have multiple establishments genuinely be easily discernable as true 'favorites' by popular votes," he added.

So, without further adoo, the 2010 Resident Favorites Dining Survey winners are:

Favorite Place in Durham for BBQ:
The Original Q-Shack

Favorite Place in Durham for Brunch:
Watts Grocery and Elmo's Diner

Favorite Place in Durham for a Burger:
Only Burger

Favorite Coffee House in Durham:
Bean Traders, Inc., Beyu Caffe, and Joe Van Gogh

Favorite Place for a Guilty Pleasure:
Francesca's Dessert Caffe, Mad Hatter Bakeshop and Cafe, Guglhupf Café, and Scratch Seasonal Artisan Baking

Favorite Place in Durham with a Kids' Menu:
Elmo's Diner

Favorite Restaurant with Live Entertainment:
Broad Street Café

Favorite Mobile Food Vendor in Durham:
Only Burger

Favorite Place in Durham for Late Night Food:
Cosmic Cantina

Favorite Place in Durham for Vegetarians:
Toast, Sitar India Palace, Dos Perros, and Saladelia Cafe

Favorite Restaurant in Durham for a Date:
Revolution and Watts Grocery

Favorite Restaurant Value in Durham:
Chubby's Tacos and The Federal

Favorite Restaurant Wine List in Durham:
Six Plates Wine Bar