Hi. It’s me. If you could see me right now, you’d see that my head is down and shame is written all over my face. 🙈 I moved out of Boston and you haven’t heard from me since. First, I’M SORRY! Second, update: I’m alive! And well. 😄 Very well in fact.
The last three months have been nothing short of…insane! I’ve only spent about three weekends here in Raleigh since I moved (crazy, right!? My travel schedule has had me all over the country!) so the time that I have had in my new home has been spent exploring as much as humanly possible. That said, I’ve started to get a nice little bucket of content going and figured now would be the time to share!
Granted, let me preface by saying, I’m certainly not a “local” here just yet, but I’ve definitely done my fair share of bopping around and already have a couple go-to spots that I love (a few of my friends that have come to visit can attest! 😄). So, from a newly-minted…Raleighite? Raleighian? 😂🤷♀️, here are some highlights from the past couple months.
A great spot to grab a drink and some apps. Feels a little bit like an upscale (yet casual) gentlemen’s club (though not exclusive) with hundreds (!!) of small-batch whiskeys available. They even do whiskey flights! The overall atmosphere is sophisticated and sexy, and it’s marked with a bright, open kitchen concept that’s nothing short of stunning.
In Boston, I could walk to the Arboretum from my apartment – it was a selling point for me when I first moved. It’s something about having some greenery so close to my house makes me feel at home. Perhaps it’s the fact that I grew up in the country…? 😊 Here in Raleigh, I don’t have the massive spread like I did in Boston, but I do have Fred Fletcher Park! It’s about a four minute walk from my house and it gives me that same “homey” feeling. It’s beautiful! It’s incredibly well-maintained and has one of my favorite accessories — swings!
P.S. – If you haven’t hopped on a swing since you were a kid, you’re doing yourself a disservice! 😛
I think Oro is one of the spots that I’ve been to the most while living in Raleigh. I’ve eaten there once (which was great!), but what keeps me coming back is the cocktail program! 😍
Oro prides itself on creating innovative cocktail experiences – like the “Smoke & Mirrors” (below). The names are beyond adorable (LEFT above “Tweet Yourself”, RIGHT above “Bath & Boozy) and the presentation is so fun! Plus – they update their menu often, so I find myself wanting to keep coming back to experience the next visually-stimulating imbibe.
so·ca was one of the first restaurants that I experienced when I moved and it was love at first bite. 😋 I recently shared it as my pick for one of the top restaurants to experience when visiting Raleigh with NC Tripping, a local travel and food blog here in Raleigh/Durham.
What I love most about so·ca is that they celebrate all types of Latin cuisine by offering culturally-inspired dishes including Dominican Empanadas, Puerto Rican Pork Belly Mofongo, and Cuban Tostones – just to name a few. Mouth watering yet? 🤤
Durham Bulls at Durham Bulls Athletic Park
You often hear Raleigh/Durham as one when people talk about the area, so when I first got here, I figured they were side-by-side and shared all the same restaurants/experiences, etc. but I couldn’t have been more wrong. Raleigh and Durham – just 25 minutes away from one another – are actually very different and completely awesome individually. They each have their own vibe and are each filled with some of the most amazing restaurants, boutiques, breweries – you name it! That’s a blog post for another time 😉.
In Durham, they have the Durham Bulls! The Bulls are the minor league baseball team for the Tampa Bay Rays. A few weeks after moving, I attended a game with my Urban Axes fam in Durham and we had a total blast. VIP style!
Guys. I can’t even with this place. Two words: chicken and chicken. Yes. I said it twice. The fried chicken here is OUT. OF. THIS. WORLD. 🤯 One of their specialities at Beasley’s is the Chicken & Waffles (naturally) and all I can say about that is…I brought my friends here for brunch on a Saturday and we returned on Sunday – less than 24 hour later – for the exact same meal. 😂 So, yeah…it’s that good.
As you can see, a lot of my experiences include food and I can confidently say that there is absolutely NO shortage of that here in Raleigh. In fact, my must-visit list is about 20+ long between places here in Raleigh and in Durham that I still need to hit up. But don’t worry…I’m well on my way to doing so! ✔️
Now I know that it took me three months to check back in, but I promise that I’m back and you’ll be hearing from me again veryyy soon. 😉
