yoga

Yesterday the N&O was all doom & gloom about the DT condo market. Today we're apparently stable.

The buildings are definitely ugly with a capital 'U', but why in the heck cut down those beautiful old oaks??? They don't get that big in a week or a decade, even. Makes me mad.

^Waraji: yay!

^ Me too!!!

Pardon my dingbattyness, but doesn't retail include stuff like books and clothing? There needs to be more than just places to eat downtown.

What's the scoop on Poole's? Anyone been since it reopened?

Huh. I learn something everyday. Thanks!

What is daylighting? And thanks ChiefJoJo!

Sorry if this is already in discussion - I searched Hayes Barton and Harvey st but didn't find anything. What are they doing there where Harvey St is closed @ the light on Glenwood? Is it just routine improvements to the drainage systems? Moderators note: merged this topic with the Five Points topic.

There's a sign in the window of the passive solar building that used to house Brown and Jones architecture on north Person street, diagonally across from Conti's. (It was an old gas station, has a big water collection tank out front so lots of people thought it was a brewery.) Anyway, the sign says coming soon, Rosie's Plate, specializing in allergy free food (like no peanuts, gluten, etc). Their website (www.rosiesplate.com) is a placeholder, no other info than that. Doesn't look like much happening inside yet - here are still rolls of plans on the tables.

Thankya kindly, ncwebguy. And here I was, about to ask if anyone here wore clothes.

Has anyone used these guys? I stopped in yesterday to inquire about having some shirts made, the guy was really nice & price seemed reasonable ($60 plus material). Just wondering if any of you kids had used them before.

I'm looking forward to Waraji also, having been to Sushi Blues and the Progress Energy place. I hope it lives up to the reviews!

Probably not a quick lunch option (especially with the paving on Tryon Rd these days), but Mythos on the corner of Tryon and Cary Parkway is very good.

I doubt Peace will give up those courts anytime soon - they got a facelift this summer while school was out. They resurfaced & striped and re fenced them. It's possible they may wedge them in someplace else at some point. re: dress down: Seaboard cafe is a decent place, but isn't open for dinner & doesn't serve beer or wine. Finch's is a cool institution but the dust & accumulated gunk in all the corners and on every light fixture and shelf gives me the serious heebie geebies.

Tookie's Grill is now Open. They opened Thursday last week and have some long hours - 6am - 12midnight. Prices are reasonable (cheaper than Sunflowers, that's for sure), and their chicken salad is awesome. Sandwiches were in the $5 - $6 ish range. They also had hotdogs and a cold plate with chicken salad and pimento cheese - all homemade quality. We got 2 beers, 2 desserts, a sandwich and a cold plate for $24. All of it was fresh. Service was good. They also have beer & wine (also better than Sunflowers), & desserts that are very dangerous (banana pudding, chocolate sponge cake, daily special - in our case it was apple pie). There's booths and low & high tables, one private room with a long table that seats several, and lots of bar counter space as well as 3 TV's. They're also open for breakfast - something that fills a gap in that location as well. Usual fare like biscuits, pancakes, & a breakfast plate. IMO, Seaboard needed a dress-down place, & this fits the bill. One of the owners was there (Mrs. Tookie HA! don't know her real name, but she's married to The Tookie) - she didn't say exactly what took so long but she did say they were close to being bought out, but managed to straighten things out and open.

Bumping this one. I may have missed something but what is the story on Tookie's Grill? It's been sitting and sitting, with furniture, signage, and Now Hiring for months. Anybody know?

Ok I know you guys will think I'm obssessed, but I can't help it that we overlook Logan's etc from our living room and happen to have a pair of binoculars. There's a big truck loaded with gyp board parked at CCG's loading dock this morning. So between that and the CraigsList ads maybe they really will reopen and not get sucked into the black hole vortex of Businesses Gone Bad. Lemme know if anyone needs any other molecular details or hourly reports.

Cap City Grocery posted a couple of ads yesterday on CraigsList for a Grocery Department Manager and a Meat & Seafood Dept. Manager.

I really like Mosaic - it's a nice departure from plain vanilla Raleigh. It's got a great feel, cave-like, genuinely diverse, and a nice wine selection. More like something you'd find in NYC.

Terminal A is at least carpeted. I just got back from Toronto this week through Terminal C - now *that* is embarrassing! Like Terminal A, it's a hike from the last gate to baggage claim, but it sure seems like a lot of vendor holes in Terminal C and stretches of no activity except for just after the security checkpoint and then again at the gates furthest from the entry. The new terminal C does look like it's taking shape - curved roofs - maybe most of the steel is in place and it should be under roof in the near future.

Have to say I agree wholeheartedly with Subway Scoundrel. It does make a difference to a business traveler. Having been to a number of airports like Minneapolis, Denver, and Toronto, he's absolutely right about the mood an airport conveys, trivial as it may seem. Yes you're passing through the place, but when I'm looking at a 2 or 4 hour layover, the last thing I want to be immersed in is a loud, harsh place with CNN or Headline News blaring endlessly from every single seating area. Noise is a huge turn off in a public place like that - especially if there's no where to go to get away from it unless you have billions of frequent flier miles. RDU is one of the worst when it comes to terminal noise.

This is really small, but I think the best thing they could do without spending a trillion jillion dollars is to mute every TV in the place. Recently I've been in Toronto, Minneapolis and the Caribbean, and they were much more pleasant as a Joe Average traveler to spend a layover in because of the reduction of sound. Terminal C is a horrendous experience even more so b/c of all the hard surfaces in it. It's definitely showing its wear & tear. As far as the bigger fish to fry.....RDU is centrally located so it is a natural choice for a major ground *cough* rail *cough* transportation hub also - if it could quit focusing on paying for all its parking decks.... *plink plink*

^ hey us old crustys hafta play, too! Just kidding. I love Irregardless. I love that they have live music all the time. And a decent menu, always good wines, etc. I don't think I really appreciated it until I was out of my roaring 20's - mid 30's. Then I couldn't imagine why you would want to have a conversation over a meal, much les be able to hear the person!

I think they're still experimenting with te menu at 18 Seaboard. Watermelon and shrimp on skewers sounds creative to me. Yeah, Capital City Grocer's is in the smaller bldg closer to Logan's. The entrances faces the wine warehouse. I hope it opens Labor Day. I can't wait to not have to get in the car for a grocery trip. I don't care if it *is* more expensive than Harris Teeter. It's worth it, to me. In theory, anyway.