A prominent restaurant in downtown Wilmington has ordered up a new location. Ruth’s Chris Steak House is moving south down Water Street from the Hotel Ballast to River Place, a 13-story mixed-use project overlooking the Cape Fear River.  Officials with River Place developer East West Partners and commercial real estate and development firm MoMentum Compani ...

In 1987, Paul and Martha Gregory bought a 113 acre blueberry farm in Currie, North Carolina, about a 15-minute drive from Wilmington. Over the years they not only grew blueberries but with the growth of their family, the farm grew to 251 acres, ponds were dug and an old tobacco barn was relocated and restored into living quarters. Gregory Farms became a place for family ...

When Panacea Brewing Company opened at its new location on Oleander Drive in January of this year, they grew from the area’s first kombucha brewery to a hotspot for vegan and vegetarian fare. The cultured kitchen and taproom, as owners Robin and Art Hill refer to it, utilizes local, organic ingredients and flavorings whenever possible to create a menu to appeal to ...

The GWBJ spoke with Shelly McGowan, owner of Michael’s Seafood Restaurant in Carolina Beach about how COVID-19 has impacted the business and how she is planning for the months ahead.  GWBJ: Now that the pandemic is in its eighth month, financially speaking, how much of an impact has COVID-19 had on your business?  McGowan: "In an eight- ...

Ashley Tipper, owner of The Blind Elephant, partnered with longtime bar manager Cabell Bryan to launch Vagabond Spirits Mobile Bar, specializing in customizable curbside cocktails for private events. Tipper embarked on this offshoot of The Blind Elephant last November when she purchased a camper to refurbish as a mobile bar. Tipper said she had a surplus of income from ...

Carolina Candy Company, a local, family-owned company that has been in business for 14 years, has recently rebranded as Carolina Candy Company & Gifts. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic caused the company, which previously specialized primarily in wholesale orders of homemade chocolaty confections, to look at ways to restructure. Restrictions on travel and large ...

Sweet n Savory Cafe has a new model for serving customers – one that no longer involves leaving tips for servers. Owner Rob Shapiro said earlier this year when the restaurant was closed for in-house dining, he saw how his employees who remained on staff and were paid hourly came together and worked as a team. No one was focused on how many tables they were getting ...

Now open for three months, J. Russo’s Eatery will celebrate a grand opening this Saturday, Nov. 14.   While business has been a bit slower than he would like, owner Joey Russo is hoping to spread the word that local small businesses need the community’s support during these difficult times. J. Russo’s, at 3536 Carolina Beach Road, specializes i ...

Bethany Hoffman started her licensed home bakery, The Buttery Bakery, just over a year ago and has already developed a loyal following in the Cape Fear region, particularly for her custom cakes with unique flavors such as bourbon vanilla, orange cardamom and boozy black forest. In addition to running the bakery, Hoffman is the mother of seven children, five of whom are ...

Peering into the future of the Wilmington-area restaurant industry, is the glass half empty or half full? It’s complicated.   These are strange days, after all, especially for an industry built around seating as many people as possible in fairly crowded quarters and, in some cases, for long periods – the exact opposite of social-distancing.   And ...