Coming up this Saturday, Whole Foods stores in the Triangle will be handing out free eco-friendly cleaners in exchange for a conventional version from your cleaning cupboard.

In honor of Earth Day, the stores will be replacing your laundry detergent, dish liquid or all-purpose cleaner with a natural version from the GreenShield Organic line of products.

Your bottle can be new or nearly empty so if you've been contemplating a switch to green cleaning, this swap is a great way to try an organic product with no out-of-pocket expense.

The exchange runs from:

Go HERE to read Greg's review of Elements in Chapel Hill -- the latest restaurant by Michael Chuong, the former chef at An in Cary.

And I was off last Friday and so HERE is Greg's review from last week: he gave 3 1/2 stars to Inka, a Peruvian restaurant in Raleigh.

This is a post by N&O restaurant critic Greg Cox:

You know those nights when one of you is in the mood for sushi and the other is jonesing for a burger? You're not alone, judging by the already sold-out sneak peek events this weekend for The Cowfish (4208-100 Six Forks Road; 919-784-0400; thecowfish.com) in the Captrust Tower at North Hills.

The restaurant opens to the public on Monday, and will serve lunch and dinner daily. Burgers, made with a half pound of humanely raised Angus beef, are available with just about every topping you can imagine, from fried capers to grilled asparagus to black truffle cheese.

If beef is not your thing, choose from seven alternatives: veggie, ahi tuna, grilled chicken, turkey, grilled portobello, lamb and chipotle bison. And if your mind boggles at all the possibilities, a list of Cowfish signature burgers comes to the rescue with the likes of Granny's Southern Pimento Cheese Burger and The Jalapeño Popper Show-Stopper.

Sushi cravings are catered to just as assiduously with an extensive selection of sashimi and sushi in every form from nigiri to hand roll. House specialty rolls raise the ante on the usual selection with creations such as the The Motherload, which features a slice of every fish on the Cowfish menu (and is priced accordingly, at $24).

Torn between burger and sushi? Check out the Burgushi section, where you'll find an assortment of sandwiches, rolls and bento boxes that incorporate both into the same presentation. The Nature Boy's WOOOOO-shi BuffalOOOOO-shi Roll, for one, an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink tribute to Ric Flair, professional wrestler and favorite son of Charlotte, home of the original Cowfish.

Send restaurant news to Greg at ggcox@bellsouth.net. Be sure to tune in to Greg's radio show at 11 a.m. Saturdays on WPTF.

This is a post by N&O restaurant critic Greg Cox:

UPDATED: The OC Bar & Grill (1028 Oberlin Road; 919-322-9710; theocraleigh.com) opens TODAY (4/17) in Raleigh.

No, not that OC. This one is named for Oberlin Court, the retail and residential complex near Cameron Village where the upscale sports bar is located. The restaurant will serve lunch and dinner daily, remaining open until 4 a.m. Thursday-Saturday and until 2 a.m. the rest of the week.

The extended hours are just one of the ways that owners Ryan Faircloth (who formerly owned Ham's in Chapel Hill and was a partner in The Corner in Cary) and Ryan Reid have in mind to set their establishment apart from the competition.

From house-smoked beef brisket to signature two-day-brined, slow-cooked chicken wings, scratch cooking is the rule for The OC's kitchen. In addition to the usual pub fare, the extensive menu covers a wide spectrum from loaded Tater Tots to cedar plank-grilled salmon to pork belly mac 'n' cheese to pomegranate molasses pan-roasted chicken.

The bar is aiming higher than the sports pub norm, too, serving cocktails made with fresh squeezed juices, homemade mixes and fresh herbs. And rotating taps will feature brews selected by fan votes on The O.C.'s Facebook page. Winners for the opening taps include Goose Island Summertime Kölsch, Carolina Brewery Oatmeal Porter, and Angry Orchard Cider.

When 4 a.m. rolls around on a Friday night, I'm betting coffee would get a few votes.

Send restaurant news to Greg at ggcox@bellsouth.net. Be sure to tune in to Greg's radio show at 11 a.m. Saturdays on WPTF.

From John Frank, our Pintful columnist:

Lob questions at six local brewers with beers in hand and you’re sure to get a lively discussion about the craft beer industry.

As part of N.C. Beer Month, the Durham-based All About Beer magazine gathered such a panel last week to take craft beer enthusiasts behind the scenes.

North Carolina brewers are still riding a high from the national Craft Brewers Conference in March, where the state’s booming scene received quite a feting. “We were the stars,” said Brad Wynn, the brewmaster at Big Boss Brewery in Raleigh.

Find out the brewers' biggest surprises, answers to the saturation question, the scoop on North Carolina hops and the next big thing in this week's Pintful column here.

The fire that shut down the Hibernian Pub on Raleigh's Glenwood South earlier this year is not putting a halt to the pub's annual St. Baldrick's Foundation fundraising event.

The annual head-shaving extravaganza that raises money for pediatric cancer research will happen at 1 p.m. Saturday as a block party on North Street. That's the street next to the Hibernian, which hopefully will reopen next month.

The fundraising goal for the event is $300,000 with nearly 150 people already registered to shave their heads. Hibernian owner Niall Hanley will be among those who will go bald to raise money for charity. "It's really an amazing cause," says Hanley, adding. "I need a haircut."

In 2006, the Hibernian hosted its first St. Baldrick's event with 77 participants raising more than $75,000. Since then, Hibernian events have raised more than $1.4 million. To get involved, register to have your head shaved or sign up to volunteer, go to StBaldricks.org/events/RaleighHibernian
.

If you are looking for things to do this weekend, here are a couple ideas:

• If you are planning on attending tonight's First Friday art walk in downtown Raleigh, consider stopping at The Videri Chocolate Factory at 327 W. Davie St. The chocolate shop recently installed a coffee bar serving Stumptown coffee. Tonight, you can stop in and grab an espresso, cappuccino, latte, drip coffee, mochas made using their chocolate or hot sipping chocolate. (I can't wait to try their hot chocolates.)

• From 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, Ray Price Harley-Davidson in Raleigh is hosting a food truck rodeo with eight trucks. They are also offering a new rider bootcamp at the same time if you have ever wanted to learn how to ride a motorcycle. The trucks include Philly Cheesesteaks, Hibachi Express, Klausie’s Pizza, Captain Poncho’s Tacos, Sweet Stacey Cakes, Groovy Dogs, Italian Ice and possibly Only Burger truck. The dealership is at 1126 S. Saunders St.

This is a post by N&O restaurant critic Greg Cox:

Lafayette Village was built to look like a quaint European village, but the dining options at the North Raleigh shopping complex have taken on an increasingly international flavor. The newest addition to the roster is Sushi One (8470-100 Honeycutt Road; 919-615-3209), which adds a melange of Asian cuisines to a lineup that already included everything from French crêperie (Simply Crêpes) to Argentinean steakhouse (Pampas, which opened in December).

Owner/sushi chef Larry Yang, who has previously worked at Kanki and Sushi Love, describes the kitchen's offering as Asian fusion. "Other restaurants say they're Asian fusion," he says, "but they're really just Chinese and Japanese and Thai. We do real fusion."

Well, sort of. The menu does indeed include a few fusion creations, but for every Shinkai sea bass or Dynamite noodle there's a dozen or more traditional dishes. Teriyaki, chow fun, Thai curry - in short, pretty much anything you'd find at those other "fusion" restaurants - you'll find it here.

Naturally, that also includes Yang's specialty and the restaurant's namesake. Sushi One doesn't have a website yet, but you can find them on Facebook.

Send restaurant news to Greg at ggcox@bellsouth.net. Be sure to tune in to Greg's radio show at 11 a.m. Saturdays on WPTF.

Durham's The Cookery is hosting a fundraising dinner later this month for Pet-Tich-Eye, a collaboration between Triangle musicians, artists and photographers that will produce a 10-song record and a 24-page art book.

Raleigh chef Ashley Christensen, a James Beard finalist for best chef in the southeast, has organized the April 21 event. Among those cooking will be Christensen, who owns Poole's Diner, Chuck's and Beasley's Chicken + Honey in Raleigh, one of Matt Kelly's chefs at Mateo in Durham, Billy Cotter of Toast in Durham, Mike Hacker of the Pie Pushers food truck, Gray Brooks of Pizzeria Toro in Durham, Cheetie Kumar of the soon-to-open Garland in Raleigh, Sam Ratto of Videri Chocolate in Raleigh. (The event is being organized by Heather Cook of Shindigs. Cook is an event planner who helps plan weddings to fundraisers.)

UPDATED: Tickets were originally available via Pet-Tich-Eye's kickstarter page, which has since closed. The remaining tickets, which costs $85, will be for sale Wednesday (4/3) morning at goo.gl/XTcgo . (The link will not work until Wednesday morning when the page is no longer private.)

The Pet-Tich-Eye project has musicians work in groups of three to create original songs, artists create album art and photographers document the recording process. Ten community organizations, including Farmer Foodshare and the Frankie Lemmon school, will receive $1 from each single and record sold. The record will be released April 20.

To download the record, go to petticheye.com. To purchase the vinyl record and the art book, those will be available at Schoolkids Records in Raleigh, Bull City Records in Durham, All Day Records in Carrboro and CD Alley in Chapel Hill.

To celebrate its fourth anniversary, Taste Carolina food tour company is branching out from offering tours of the Triangle's foodie hot spots.

Owner Leslie Stracks-Mullem has organized a series of events highlighting how food artisans and chefs partner with local farmers.

The company hopes people will buy tickets to all multiple events. To attend all six, it costs $249. Five events cost $215. Four costs $180 and three costs $138. Remaining tickets for each event will go on sale one week prior to the event. Tickets can be purchased online at tastecarolina.com.

Here is the schedule:

• 6 p.m. April 18, a tour of Chapel Hill Creamery's farm followed by a cheese dinner at Acme Food & Beverage Co. in Carrboro.
• 6:15 p.m. April 23, a cooking demonstration and dinner featuring The Farmer's Daughter and Farmhand Foods with Piedmont Wine Imports at Eastern Carolina Organics.