Oro Restaurant and Lounge, a new tapas restaurant, should open this spring at the corner of Martin and Wilmington streets on the ground floor of the RBC Plaza.

Oro, which means "gold" in Spanish and Italian, is the work of a husband-and-wife team: Chris Hylton, a former chef at The Mint in downtown Raleigh, and Cara Zalcberg Hylton, who has an MBA. (She quips: "I realized if I wanted to ever see him, I'd have to go into the resaurant business." )

The couple met in Washington, D.C. and  moved to Raleigh three years ago. Chris Hylton, 38, is a native of Jamaica and became a U.S. citizen two years ago. He says he's wanted to be a chef since he took a home economics course in high school in Jamaica. In a weird small-world coincidence, Hylton ran into his former home economics teacher, Jennifer McPherson, on the streets of downtown Raleigh in December. She's now a student at Shaw University. And he was able to show her the space his new restuarant would occupy and what she inspired him to do.

The 3,000-square foot space will seat about 100 people, feature an open-air kitchen and a mezzanine with a fireplace. The restaurant will serve global cuisine in a tapas style from lobster mac-and-cheese to corn on the cob with miso butter and a seven-pepper spice. Nothing will cost more than $15. They also will serve 16 wines on tap and local beers.

The couple hopes to create a welcoming casual environment to repay the downtown Raleigh community that welcomed them three years ago.

"This communinty embraced us when we were nobody," Cara Hylton says. She added that they plan to commit their energy to several local charities, including Children's Flight of Hope, The Frankie Lemmon School and The V Foundation.

They will be open for lunch five days a week and dinner seven days a week.The address is 18 E. Martin St.

The annual Triangle Signature Chefs Auction featuring food from more than a dozen restaurants and caterers will be 6 p.m. Nov. 13 at the Carolina Club in Chapel Hill.

Among the Triangle restaurants serving up tasting-sized portions of their signature dishes will be Winston's Grille, Gravy, The Mint, Solas, Coquette, Il Palio and Revolution.

Tickets cost $150.  Proceeds benefit the North Carolina March of Dimes.

To buy tickets or for more information about the event and the auction items, go HERE.
 

The Raleigh City Council today approved a rent restructuring for The Mint restaurant located in the city-owned building One Exchange Plaza on Fayetteville Street.

The revised agreement between the city and Raleigh Restaurant Group reduces the rent by $1,159.63 per month for three years and then recoups much of that money with higher rents in the later years of the lease.

The restructuring reduces the overall value of the 10-year lease by $339.

The Mint opened in January 2008, shortly before the economy tanked and consumers severely cut back on eating out.

The Mint Restaurant in downtown Raleigh is offering a four-course wine dinner for $75 at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 15. The dinner will feature wines from Beaucanon Winery.

The menu includes:

• Sauvignon Blanc paired with white asparagus and green pea soup with hazelnut foam.
• Chardonnay paired with lobster and turbot with potato croquettes and vanilla beet sauce.
• Trifecta wine paired with pressed short ribs and seared foie gras.
• Cabernet Franc paired with passion fruit creme brulee.

For a reservation, call 821-0011.

Looks like we have another Carolina cook to root for on television. 

Born in Valle Crucis and raised in Wilmington and Mebane, aspiring chef Aaron Seelbinder's southern roots and love of good food paid off this spring when he was invited by Food Network to come to New York and participate in their show, "24 Hour Restaurant Battle."

It all started when Aaron's friend Baylor Ferrier landed a spot on the show and producers asked him if there was someone he'd like to open a restaurant with. He immediately thought of Aaron. Food Network contacted Aaron, flew him to New York City, and the rest? Well, the rest we'll have to watch when the show airs tomorrow night.

The Mint in downtown Raleigh is hosting monthly wine tastings. The next one is tomorrow: Wednesday, March 13. From 6-7 p.m., taste a sampling of Oregon wines.

The cost is $25 per person. Make your reservation at 821-0011. 

The next wine tasting will be 6-7 p.m. Wednesday, May 12 featuring Argentine wines.

Raleigh's The Mint restaurant is hosting a four-course wine dinner at 7 p.m. Monday.

The menu includes Asian pear salad, pan-roasted grouper, roasted duck breast and an artisanal cheese platter. The wines include a Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand and a Lioco Chardonnay from Sonoma Coast. 

The cost is $80 per person, excluding tax and tip. To make a reservation, call 821-0011.