Most big touring acts that play the Triangle don't stick around for long, usually leaving either as soon as the performance is over or the next day. But Robert Plant spent another day in Raleigh after his Wednesday night show.

There were reports of a sighting at Poole's Diner, and rumors went around town that Plant was going to put in an onstage appearance Thursday night at Slim's. While that didn't happen, he and singer Patty Griffin took a shopping trip to Schoolkids Records, where Plant reportedly bought a compilation of African music and also did a bit of representin'.

"He came in around 6:00 and there were only a few people in here," said Schoolkids employee Kyle Rosko, who took this picture. "One of them left but then came back in and said, 'I've gotta go shake his hand.' But nobody was really bothering them. In fact, a group of three teenagers came in and didn't recognize him."

Blasphemy!

(Thanks to Robert W.)

Ashley Christensen, owner/chef of Poole's Downtown Diner, has announced that she will donate 100% of the profits from her restaurant's Valentine's Day dinner service to Cookies for Kids' Cancer.

Christensen was inspired by the story of Prince Liam the Brave, a precocious foodie who recently lost a four-year battle with cancer. She challenges other area chefs and restaurateurs to follow her example.

Fullsteam owner Sean Wilson has already accepted the challenge, and Christensen is hopeful that others will get on board. She notes that her challenge isn't cause-specific, and encourages anyone who is in a position to help to donate to the cause of his or her choice. 

Now that's what I call a big-hearted Valentine's Day gift.

A couple local businesses are donating 100 percent of profits from Valentine's Day - one of the busiest days of the year in the restaurant industry - to the Cookies for Kids' Cancer foundation.

Cookies for Kids' Cancer has raised $2.5 million for pediatric cancer research since 2007. The nonprofit was started by Gretchen Holt and Larry Witt after their 2-year-old son, Liam, was diagnosed with cancer. He died last week. Gretchen Holt is a Meredith College graduate.

Chef Ashley Christensen of Poole's Diner in Raleigh will donate 100 percent of profits from Valentine's Day dinner service. The restaurant is offering a three-course meal for $49. Reservations required. Call 832-4477.

Fullsteam Brewery in Durham also will donate profits from that day to the foundation.

For more information, go to www.cookiesforkidscancer.org or the family's blog about Liam's struggle with cancer: http://princeliamthebrave.blogspot.com/
 

Chef Ashley Christensen has been hosting a series of Stir the Pot fundraisers for the Southern Foodways Alliance and has just released details on the next two events on Jan. 23 & 24. The guest chefs are both from Nashville: Tandy Wilson of City House and Tyler Brown of The Capitol Grille at the Hermitage Hotel.

Same format as before: $150 dinner at Poole's Diner in Raleigh at 7 p.m. Sunday night, followed by a potluck at Ashley's house from 6-9 p.m. Monday night for industry folks.

Again, go HERE to read all about it.

The Southern Foodways Alliance' Stir the Pot events return to Poole's Diner in Raleigh this Sunday and Monday, Nov. 14 and 15.

The first event is a five-course wine dinner on Sunday night featuring chef John Currence of City Grocery in Oxford, Mississippi. Currence won Best Chef of the Southeast 2009. The dinner costs $150. Call 832-4477 for a reservation.

The second event is for those in the food business. It's a potluck at Poole's Diner chef Ashley Christensen's house. It costs $35 and you must bring a side dish that represents your sense of place. Call 832-4477 for a reservation.

For full details, go HERE.

The events are fundraisers for the Southern Foodways Alliance, a group based at the University of Mississippi that is devoted to preserving and documenting Southern food traditions and culture.

Here's a reminder about a few weekend events:

• Later today, Frank Bruni, former restaurant critic for The New York Times and a UNC alumnus, will be speaking in Chapel Hill. At 4 p.m. today  in Carroll Hall auditorium, Bruni will give a speech titled: "An Extraordinary Journalistic Adventure." Bruni's reporting career includes movie coverage, Vatican reporting, presidential politics and restaurant criticism. A book signing will follow. Bruni recently wrote "Born Round" about his struggles with his weight and an eating disorder and becoming a professional food critic.

• Try a Turkish cooking class Sunday at the Turk Evi house in Cary. The event is 3-6 p.m. Sunday. The menu includes tomato soup, zucchini dip, cheese-filled pastry, lentil kofte and baklava.The cost is $25 for adults and $15 for students. The Turk Evi house is located at 303 E. Durham Rd., Suite F, Cary. To register, please e-mail to turkishcookingclass@yahoo.com or call 219-2516.

• Poole's Diner is hosting a '"Q" for the Kids' event at 5:30 p.m. Sunday. The barbecue feast with sides, dessert and Fullsteam beer costs $75 for adults, $35 for children, ages 14 and under. All but $25 of each ticket goes to the Lucy Daniels Center for Early Childhood. Go HERE to purchase tickets. The dinner goes from 5:30-8:30 p.m. The restaurant is located at 426 S. McDowell St. Raleigh. If you have any questions, call Patti Wilt at 459-1611.

• Chapel Hill cookbook author Nancie McDermott has a new cookbook : "Southern Pies: A Gracious Plenty of Pie Recipes from Lemon Chess to Chocolate Pecan." You can show off your pie-making skills at her book reading at Quail Ridge on Saturday. If you pie is among the top three, you can win a copy of her book and a gift certificate. (You have to get your pie to the store by 2:15 p.m.) The reading is at 3 p.m. Saturday, Quail Ridge Books & Music, 3522 Wade Ave., Raleigh, 828-1588, www.quailridgebooks.com

Poole's Diner is hosting a '"Q" for the Kids' event at 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 7.

The barbecue feast with sides, dessert and Fullsteam beer costs $75 for adults, $35 for children, ages 14 and under. All but $25 of each ticket goes to the Lucy Daniels Center for Early Childhood and will help provide mental health services for children at the center.

Go HERE to purchase tickets.

The dinner goes from 5:30-8:30 p.m. The restaurant is located at 426 S. McDowell St. Raleigh. If you have any questions, call Patti Wilt at 459-1611.