Went to Bowstring last weekend on what I think was opening day. Awesome space, great outdoor seating. Pricing is a little high, but probably more a sign of the times.
Personal pizza is $10 which is ok I guess, but $6 for a Modelo on draft seemed steep ($7 with tip).
As for Five Star, we’ve been twice now since they moved (once inside, once takeout)). New space has less character, but really is well done and in a good location. And yeah, smells better too.
Bishop’s salon has closed in the Dillon, but there is a new nail salon going into the space next to it.
I always wondered exactly how many barbershops/salons could survive in this area… seems like there’s one every 12 feet these days lmao
Arrow seems to be doing brisk business and constantly expanding. And they don’t even have free beer right now given the situation! Oddly, I saw a Bishop’s on my recent travels, and was like…oh, they’re a chain. Never really thought about it.
Not to mention in the current climate, it’s tough. The person who cuts my hair has her own (not shared) space in Sola Salons at Seaboard. It’s probably the lowest-risk situation to get a haircut during the pandemic, but she said clients are still stretching the time between appointments out more than they normally would. She had a huge rush of business right after salons/barber shops were able to reopen, but it has slowed down considerably.
And, as @GucciLittlePig said, Bishop’s is a chain so I don’t know if they keep stylists around or if its more transient. My husband got a haircut there once and said he wasn’t impressed. He had been going to Arrow, but now I cut his hair. 
The Pharmacy Cafe in Oakwood is closing for good. I wonder what the new business replacing it will be.
Very sorry about Pharmacy Cafe. One of my favorite restaurants in town. Everything I ever had there was good.
They haven’t been open for a while, and my wife and I were worried they were not going to reopen.
The owner took over the cafe over in Wendell.
https://www.farmhousecafewendell.com/
That spot is pretty amazing if you haven’t been out there. The building is a cafe that kind of doubles as the planned community’s ‘community center’. Also connected to the pool there and the little lake/pond walking loop. My guess is that he is/was doing pretty darn good over there.
Super sad to see them go, though.
I will give my 2 cents on what I’d like to see. Something that’s sort of similar food wise, but that has more of an old-school pharmacy vibe to it. Maybe a little less ‘farm house’ and a little more vintage neighborhood soda shop. Root beer floats, glass soda bottles and great food. (maybe some soft serve ice cream too).
I bet we get another barber shop or nail salon.
wait is the whole Pharmacy leaving or just the cafe?
If it’s just the cafe then I doubt it would make sense to rent that small space and puts tons of money into upfit for something like that.
It already has a fully functioning kitchen/hood etc
I liked the food at the now-former cafe, but often lamented that the price point was a little higher than what the folks who might be using the pharmacy could regularly afford.
Totally agree. They had some off menu stuff, but it wasn’t advertised. $5 got me bacon, eggs and toast.
Reuben’s Deli closing. If you don’t have a bar you pretty much have to struggle to survive these days is my thinking. That place was pretty good but requires A LOT more foot traffic to work is my guess.
Dang, I really wanted to try that place too. It’s sad how many places are going to go under by next year. It seems like a lot of restaurants on that street have had difficulty staying open over the years.
Restaurants struggle with a tremendous failure rate even in good times, and these are not good time, clearly. I read on CNBC a couple weeks back that upwards of 60% of restaurants will close nationwide. That doesn’t take into account the number that are not opening in the current climate. This is so sad because some many places, like Raleigh, were going through such a great culinary era, and restaurant tourism was a major source of revenue for many places. I am still planning to come to Raleigh just to eat and drink later this year, I hope there are some good places for me to visit left!! (I know there will be, but maybe not as many.)
Aw man… I loved Reuben’s deli. It filled a void in the downtown sandwich desert
So depressing.
My wife and I have a baby due in a couple weeks. After 3 week (when the baby’s immune system is ramped up), We’ve decided we are going to be going back to our normal routine. Playing basketball/working out, going out for dinner/drinks regularly, and enjoying downtown.
We know the risks. We’ll wear our masks. But we aren’t going to just stand by and let our city fall apart like this. I hope I’ll see those of you who are healthy and in a low-risk demographic out there doing the same.
Time to snap out of this collective psychosis we’ve found ourselves in and end the neurotic psychodrama that is Covid 19!
@Phil @Loup20 I’m sure you not wrong but COVID or not, I am pretty sure the fact that the DTR office population has dropped to 15-20% capacity has the biggest impact on spots that lean more towards lunch and office-type catering.
You can’t call it neurotic when people’s offices are closed and their kids are being taught from home. The people are just NOT here so it’s no surprise that the food scene is contracting. Once the numbers go up, it’ll bounce back.
That is sad…we need to save the businesses. What is the city doing? Hopefully not just giving out more tickets…