Valentine’s Day once again is quickly approaching and if you’re looking to go out on the town now is the time to make those reservations. Like last year, I thought it would be helpful to make a list of Durham restaurant offerings for February 14. Menus when available are linked. This list is in no way complete and I will continue to add to it.

604 at West Village
$49.95 per person for four courses
Includes champagne toast and a red rose

Blu
$45 for three courses

Broad Street Café
Lots of stuff going on:
Periodic Tables: Durham’s Science Café at 7 PM, Subject: Speed Dating
Speaker: Karin Pfennig, Associate Professor, Department of Biology, UNC-Chapel Hill
Dinner will feature special food and beverages
Foothills Sexual Chocolate on tap
Champagne cocktails and champagne by the bottle

The Cookery
Valentine’s Day for Food Lovers workshop

Dos Perros
Special menu and drink specials

Durham Spirits Co.
Hosting several Valentine’s Day themed cooking classes:
Couple’s Aphrodisiacs 2/10
Sweets for your Sweet(tooth) 2/11
Cocktails are for Lovers 2/12

Foster’s Durham
Pick up Valentine’s Day dinner
$75 for three course dinner for two
All orders must be placed by Saturday, February 11th for pick-up on Tuesday, February 14 between 4:00 pm and 8:00 pm

Four Square
$65 per person
Special menu

Gregoria’s Kitchen
$29.95 three course menu

Guglhupf
Special Valentine’s night performance with Dawn Michelle Williams on piano

King’s Daughters Inn
2/11 Sparkling Wine Tasting
Taste champagne, sparkling wine and Kings Daughters’ signature sweets
$18/person or $30/couple

L’uva
$35 for three courses
Special champagnes and bubbles

Piedmont
$45 for three courses

Revolution
2/13 Cocktails and Chocolate (two Valentine’s cocktails paired with truffles)
$45 per couple
2/14 Three course menu for $65 with a la carte selections available at the bar

Sitar Palace
Complimentary champagne or wine and chocolates with dinner specials

Taste Carolina Tour
A walking tour with stops at five locations in Durham
Includes dinner, cocktails, dessert, chocolate boxes

Washington Duke
$65 for five courses with chocolate-dipped strawberries to take home
Live piano music

Watts Grocery
$50 for three courses.

More low key options:

A box of goodies from Daisy Cakes

A collection of Big Spoon Roasters peanut butter

A collection of spices or a box of chocolates from Cocoa Cinnamon

Cheese plate from Reliable Cheese

A box of Monuts

A CSA from This & That Jam

Pick up some fresh oysters, scallops or your favorite seafood from Dock to Door at Fullsteam on 2/14.

A pie from Scratch

Non-edible option? You can adopt a lemur at the Duke Lemur Center in someone’s name.

Valentine’s Jazz at the Hayti Heritage Center, 15 for singles and $25 for couples

But for me – a giant glass of horchata, a plate of tacos at Super Taqueria and maybe a pint at Surf Club is the way to my heart.

Restaurants:

BLEND CAFE (807 E MAIN ST SUITE 2-150, DURHAM, NC, 27701)

THE SWEET TEA CAFE (1058 W CLUB BLVD, DURHAM, NC, 27701)

THE HOUSE RESTAURANT & CATERING (4310 S MIAMI BLVD, DURHAM, NC, 27703)

TOP’S CHINA (5324 NEW HOPE COMMONS DR. STE 301, DURHAM, NC, 27707)

CHOP STIX CHINESE RESTAURANT (2000 AVONDALE DR UNIT B, DURHAM, NC, 27704)

PIZZA MIA ITALIAN GRILL (2812 ERWIN RD. SUITE 103, DURHAM, NC, 27705)

BULL CITY STORE AND GRILL (1301 N ALSTON ST, DURHAM, NC, 27707)

BIG DADDY’S GRILL (608 N MANGUM ST, DURHAM, NC, 27701)

THE MAD BURRITO (1058 W CLUB BLVD SPACE 540, DURHAM, NC, 27701)

SPICEY GREEN GOURMET (2945 S MIAMI BLVD #126, DURHAM, NC, 27703)

EL COYOTE BAR AND GRILL (3801 WAKE FOREST HWY SUITE 102, DURHAM, NC, 27703)

*Presence on this list indicates that a restaurant has been inspected, not that it is necessarily open for business today (although it often is).

January 21st is a big day for Motorco. During the day, it will play host to the second Luchadoras competition, Durham’s own women’s Mexican wrestling extravaganza. We’ve been told this time there will be even more wrestlers and a tag-team match. The beloved Captain Poncho’s Tacos truck will again be out front (order early) and bikeCOFFEE! will be there with a special Counter Culture Luchadores coffee and a La Luchadora Tabla (a slab of dark Mexican chocolate, cayenne, cacao nibs and Mexican coffee). It’s $5 at the door (free for children under 12) and all proceeds go toward the NC Dream Team. During the last match, kids were allowed to interact with the wrestlers, climb in the ring and learn a few basic moves. Doors open at 11 am and the action starts at noon.

Then later that evening, Motorco will also host Durham’s first food truck mash-up. KoKyu, Pie Pushers, Chirba Chirba and Farmhand Foods will team up to serve “mashups” of their normal offerings and Parlour ice cream will be featured in Motorco cocktails. The trucks will each be serving three different dishes and none of their regular menu items.

To avoid the craziness that sometimes arises with food truck rodeos, this will be a ticketed event. It’s $25 advance/$30 at the door for all you can eat. Doors open at 4 pm and food will be served at 6 pm. There will also be music in the Garage from London Dungeon, Gary B & The Notions, and JOLO.

We have been told that there will be 12 “mashed” items for consumption.

 What we’ve heard:

From Pie Pushers: a Farmhand Foods garlic knot (local Farmhand Foods Italian sausage, Farmhand Foods pimento cheese and Farmhand Foods fennel chowchow) and a mini calzone pocket filled with Chirba Chirba edamame, noodles and mushroom soy veggies

From KoKyu: 5 spice rubbed Farmhand Foods brisket TaKo, citrus BBQ sauce & herby/crunchy slaw

From Chirba Chirba: A Pie Pushers pizza dumpling with pepperoni, spinach, fresh mozz served over marinara

From Farmhand Foods: A grilled cheese sandwich filled with the toppings from Pie Pushers’ winter veggie pie

Drinks (must be purchased):

The Cold & Stormy: Gosling’s rum, Motorco’s homemade ginger beer and Parlour’s lime sorbet

Orange Mocha Frappuccino – milkshake w/ Vietnamese coffee ice cream, orange syrup, and Godiva liqueur

Drop by Motorco to buy advance tickets for the food truck mash-up (avoiding the service charge) or purchase them through Motorco’s site. Both of these events are sure to be fun. January 21st – another good day to be a Durhamite.

For more information, head over to Motorco’s site. To keep up with any new menu announcements search for hashtag #FTMU on twitter.

The folks over at Triangle Meatless Mondays let us know about a contest they are running that features a few Durham-based goodies as prizes. We blogged about Triangle Meatless Mondays when they started up last year, and now they are seeking pledges to go meatless on Mondays in 2012. Going meatless one day a week is a great way to make a small difference in promoting more sustainable and healthier agricultural and eating practices.

Everyone who enters the Pledge-olution by 1/8/2012 will be entered to win the grand prize. The Durham-based prizes include two free tickets to the Fiction Kitchen’s monthly vegan brunches at the Pinhook, and one year’s worth of dues paid to the Triangle Veg Society and Triangle Veg Meetup groups, so you can participate in any of their local events.

Already pledged for Meatless Mondays? Refer someone else, and you’ll be entered to win the Karma prize. Durham-based goodies are a free cover charge and cocktail at the PInhook and a free massage session at Nataraja Healing Arts. You can find the rest of the prizes over at the Pledge Page, including cookbooks and a vegan dinner out in Raleigh.

Shop Independent Durham Week starts this Saturday, November 26. This now annual event is put on by Durham’s Sustain A Bull organization. Not just a clever tagline for bumper stickers and t-shirts, Sustain A Bull is Durham’s non-profit Independent Business Alliance – it’s local businesses teaming up to support the local economy.

According to Sustain a Bull’s site:
For every $100 you spend at a national chain, $13 stays in our community. Spend the same amount with an independent local business and you will be keeping $45 local–more than tripling the local economic benefits of your spending. Spend your $100 on-line and pretty much nothing stays here.

During Sustain a Bull’s Shop Independent Durham Week local businesses offer discounts, specials, etc. to entice Durhamites to keep their holiday shopping local. Find the full list of Shop Independent Durham Week deals on Sustain a Bull’s site.

Here are some examples of deals for food-focused shoppers:

Bountiful Backyards will be offering 50% off an initial consultation to design or install an edible landscape for folks in the greater Durham community.

Bull City Homebrew will be offering 20% off any equipment and recipe kit combinations.

Foster’s Market Durham will be raffling off a different item every day, and all entries will be entered for 1 grand prize of a week’s worth of prepared dinners for 2.

Guglhupf Bakery, Pâtisserie & Café will have three fun promotions including special offers from the bakery and a chance to win one of 10 ‘Golden Bull’ tickets.

Enjoy 15% off Joe Van Gogh’s artisan-roasted coffee beans.

Locopops will offer double stamps.

At Mad Hatters Bakeshop & Cafe get a free cupcake with any entree purchase after 4pm.

Nosh will be offering complimentary mini-desserts with any entree purchased after 3pm.

Triangle Raw Foodists will be offering $10 off any full weekly delivery order

Watts Grocery will offer 20% off bottles of wine and free hushpuppies or churros to those wearing Sustain-a-bull tee shirts.

Wine Authorities will offer 20% off a different item daily

Next week the Kiwanis Club will host their annual pancake fundraiser in the Armory downtown. Piles of pancakes and sausage, chocolate milk in cartons, OJ in small paper cups – it’s a Durham tradition we try not to miss.

Tickets are $7 at the door, which buys you all the pancakes and sausage you can eat. The pancakes are light, fluffy and churned out by friendly Kiwanis Club members. The sausage is always from NC-based Neese’s. Whole and chocolate milk, OJ, coffee and sodas are also included.

There is a take-out option, but don’t do it. For one, you’ll miss out on the endless refills – but more importantly – you’ll miss out on the great community vibe of sitting at long communal tables, passing the syrup with the rest of Durham.

The Kiwanis Club Pancake fundraiser has been an annual event in Durham since 1961, raising over $325,000 for local charities. This year’s event is Monday, November 7 from 4-8pm and Tuesday, November 8 from 6:30am-8pm.

Note: Children under 6 eat free with paying adult.
Durham Armory
220 Foster St.
http://kctdurham.org/

Awesome tacos, elaborate masks, exaggerated high-flying wrestling moves, theatrical story lines and a coffee bike – what more could you want? Even better, you don’t have to stay up late for the spectacle that Luchadoras is sure to be.

Thrown by Durham’s ultimate party host King Kenney and local food writer Victoria Bouloubasis, Luchadoras will take place at Motorco Music Hall on November 19. The festivities will kick off at noon.

In honor of Mexico’s famed free wrestling matches, Lucadoras will be a three hour event featuring only female wrestlers competing in both one-on-one matches and tag-team events. Many of the costumes and masks will be made of recycled materials from the Scrap Exchange and all of the proceeds will go towards grassroots food justice efforts in Durham.

Important to note for Carpe Durham readers is the fact that Captain Ponchos Taco Truck, usually found at Al’s Garage in Carrboro, will make a rare Durham appearance. Captain Ponchos –  with their homemade tortilla shells, sweet al pastor and rich carne asada – is my favorite taco truck in the Triangle. Yep, I said it. Even without over-the-top wrestling, Captain Ponchos would make this a not-to-miss event.

Luchadoras
Noon-3pm, Saturday, November 19th.
Admission is $5 (free for children under 12 years of age).

Motorco
723 Rigsbee Avenue

http://motorcomusic.com/luchadoras

On October 15, teams will gather at Central Park in Durham to compete in a non-perishable food build-off.  That’s right, a build-off  (really it’s a food drive, but build-off just sounds more fun).

Fifteen teams have committed or will commit (there seem to still be open team spots if you’re interested) to collecting 500+ items of non-perishable food. Then, on the day of the food drive, these teams will compete to see who can build the best sculpture out of their collected food. Their creations will be judged by  Sherry DeVries of the Durham Arts Council, Adrian Brown of the Durham Chamber, Michael Hining of MHAworks and Craig Posey of Stewart Engineering. Frank Stasio of NPR will be the emcee.

Once the contest is over, all of the food will then be donated to the Food Bank of Central & Eastern NC. Pretty cool idea, right?

Even cooler is that on the day of the event, organizers will have live music (Brett Harris, Lizzy Ross Band, and LiLa), a fleet of seven food trucks to feed participants and onlookers (Pie Pushers, Will & Pops, Farmhand Foods, Slippin’ Sliders, Daisy Cakes, the Parlour and Local Yogurt) and three awesome breweries (Bull City Burger and Brewery, Fullsteam and Triangle Brewing).

There will also be pumpkin and face painting for the kids as well as door prizes. Find more information on the C.F.D. website.

Creative Food Drive
Saturday, October 15th 2-6pm
501 Foster St.
Durham NC 27701

Again, submissions will be donated to The Food Bank of Central & Eastern NC located on 708 Gilbert Street, Durham, NC.

This Sunday is the 4th Annual Pittsboro Pepper Festival. Not too far from Durham, the pepper festival is a lovely event with two Durham chefs and breweries participating. There’s good food, good tunes and good brews – what’s not to like?

Durham chefs and breweries participating:
Mez, Dos Perros, Fullsteam Brewery and Triangle Brewery

For a full list of chefs and breweries:
The Abundance Foundation

Proceeds from the festival go towards their work on “environmental education, food security and sustainable agriculture research at Piedmont Biofarm.”

Tickets are $25 until October 1st and $30 at the gate.

October 2nd from 4-7pm at the Briar Chapel community park
16 Windy Knoll Circle, Chapel Hill, Chatham County, NC

Restaurants:

INTER KOREA HOUSE (4731 NCHWY 55, DURHAM, NC, 27713)

NANA TACO (2512 UNIVERSITY DR, DURHAM, NC, 27707)

Mobile:

EL PEQUENO ATORON

TACOS Y BURRITOS JIMENEZ

*Presence on this list indicates that a restaurant has been inspected, not that it is necessarily open for business today (although it often is).