Mystery Brewing's Erik Lars Myers won $50,000 in a reality TV show contest that aired Tuesday on CNBC.

The Hillsborough-based microbrewery owner competed against two other new companies in an effort to convince three judges and the audience of the new cable TV show Crowd Rules that his business plan is the most deserving of the cash prize.

In the end, Mystery Brewing tied the other finalist Sky Fitness, a Myrtle Beach, S.C.-based gym, at 50 percent. But when the judges votes were removed (two for Sky and one of Mystery), Myers won 49 percent to 48 percent. "All I need is this little push to make us fly," Myers said in his final 30-second plea to the crowd.

The judges criticized Myers decision to open a tap room in Hillsborough instead of buy more kegs. Myers told the judges that $50,000 in prize money to buy more kegs would increase monthly revenues by $20,000. "We need to get more beer out the door," he acknowledged.

The theme of the show -- the second in the series -- was "debt," an ode to companies in the red at the start. As Myers told me in recent Pintful column the first year was a challenge. But the prize money will surely help move his vision along.

A Raleigh magician is one of the contestants on this season of Fox’s “ MasterChef,” which airs at 8 p.m. Wednesday.

Shaun Jay, 22, who has been working as a professional magician since the age of 12, is one of the home cooks trying to prove their cooking skills to acclaimed chefs Gorden Ramsay and Graham Elliot and restaurateur Joe Bastianach. The show’s winner takes home $250,000 and a cookbook deal.

Jay will be watching the season premiere at a viewing party at Casa San Carlo Italian Restaurant at 9600 Falls of Neuse Road, Raleigh. The party is open to the public.

Info about Jay's magic company: shaunjaymagic.com

Raleigh’s Capital Club 16 is hosting its third annual Spargelzeit celebration featuring that spring treat: jumbo white asparagus.

Starting Wednesday and through Saturday or as long as the white asparagus lasts, the restaurant will be offering nightly specials featuring it in several dishes. Some of the dishes include a crepe called a “pfannkuchen” with sautéed white asparagus, shiitakes, spinach, brown butter and a poached egg; sautéed asparagus with shaved ham, boiled potatoes and hollandaise sauce; and other dishes, including soups, marinated salads and paired with seafood. They also will offer German and Austrian wines pairings that go well with the prized ingredient.

Jake and Shannon Wolf, the couple who owns the restaurant, described how white asparagus is different from green. It is harvested before the stalks pop out of the ground because the stalks turn green once the sun’s rays hits them. While it has the same earthy flavor of green asparagus, the texture is more tender and delicate.

The New York Times recently published a story about France’s obsession with white asparagus. To read the story, go to goo.gl/NIhsH.

To make a reservation, call 919-747-9345. The restaurant is at 16 W. Martin St. Info: capitalclub16.com

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

J.P. LaRussa and his wife, Gwynne, opened Acme Pizza Co. (204 Village Walk Drive; 919-552-8800; acmepizzaco.org) last week in the former All Aboard Pizza space. They’re still offering the New York style pies that were that restaurant’s calling card, but Acme’s specialty is Chicago-style deep dish stuffed pizzas.

The style fills an underserved niche in the Triangle, and is a natural for Acme’s owners. The LaRussas hail from the San Francisco Bay area, where J.P. worked for more than 20 years for a small chain called Zachary’s Chicago Pizza.

“They brought Chicago-style to the Bay area,” says LaRussa. “It’s like a real pie, baked in a two-inch deep pan with the filling between two layers of thin dough, and sauce on top.”

It’s a lot of filling, too, whether you opt for the Meat Head (pepperoni, sweet Italian sausage, sliced meatball, crumbled bacon and mozzarella) or something “lighter.” The Greek, say, with roasted red bell peppers, marinated artichoke hearts, green olives, feta and Monterey Jack. Novices are advised that these hefty pies take 30-35 minutes to bake.

Ordering ahead is encouraged, but you could also profitably fill the half hour wait with a glass of wine or a draft beer from a soon-to-be-expanded selection that already includes local brews from Aviator, Carolina Brewing and Natty Greene’s.

The menu also lists calzones, stromboli, grinders, half-pound grilled-to-order burgers and a modest selection of appetizers and pastas. Given LaRussa’s experience and the paucity of Chicago-style pizzerias in the area, though, it’s a good bet that transplants from the Windy City are already setting their GPS for Holly Springs.

Acme Pizza Co. is open for lunch and dinner daily.

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:

Last year it was Doolin’s in Durham and Doherty’s in Cary. Hibernian opened a new location in North Raleigh while, just up the road, Saints & Scholars gave the area its first half-Irish, half-Mediterranean menu. In Wake Forest, Pat Murnane’s opened in the old Oh’ Mulligans space.

Now Chapel Hill is riding the wave. Fitzgerald’s Irish Pub (206 W. Franklin St.; 919-240-4560; fitzgeraldschapelhill.com), which opened last week on Franklin Street, is the second location of a popular Charlotte watering hole.

The new pub builds on the winning formula of the original: 24 beers on tap, lots of sports TVs, and a menu that covers all the expected bases from Reuben to fish and chips. The unexpected, too, with options including a Hawaiian entree salad, chicken “Riggies” (grilled with sweet and spicy peppers) and a selection of six variations on the slider theme.

Fitzgerald’s serves lunch on Saturday and Sunday (opening at noon for the time being), and dinner nightly.

Elsewhere, Murphy’s Law (in the form of construction complications) has delayed a couple of other Irish pub openings.

Sprinkler system changes necessitated by an interior makeover have pushed back the opening of a second Trali in Morrisville. Originally slated for March, it’s now looking like early- to mid-June.

Work continues on bringing the original Hibernian on Glenwood South back from the ashes, too. Owner Niall Hanley hopes to reopen a bigger, better version of the pub with a rooftop patio later this year.

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.

Once a year at the N.C. General Assembly, beer and politics and the politics of beer blend like a summer shandy at the “Rush the Growler” party.

For me, it’s a can’t miss – combining my “day job” covering politics for the newspaper and my “night job” writing about craft beer. And the growler event showcases the evolving mindset at the Statehouse toward beer – particularly craft beer – since 2005 when lawmakers “popped the cap” and lifted the alcohol limit from 6 percent to 15 percent. Click here to read the column and get an update on beer-related legislation this session.

Go HERE to read the review.

Triangle chefs can now apply to compete in this year’s Fire in the Triangle cooking competition.

The single-elimination, Iron-Chef style competition will be held at 1705 Prime in North Raleigh from July 8-Aug. 19. Chefs have to apply by June 1 to being among the competitors. The chefs who will be competing will be announced June 24. For the application, go to goo.gl/MSdwh.

Fire in the Triangle is one of six culinary competitions held across the state and organized by the state agriculture department’s Got To Be N.C. campaign. The winners of each regional competition will compete in a final cook-off in Raleigh in November.

The public will not be able to make reservations to dine at one of the Triangle competition’s meals until mid-June. For more information and to eventually book a reservation, go to competitiondining.com.

Farmhand Foods, the small wholesale distributor of local, pasture-raised meats, has changed its name to Firsthand Foods.

When the Durham company filed its trademark application in 2011, it received a “cease and desist” letter from S.F. Investments, Inc, a subsidiary of Smithfield Foods. Farmhand Foods’s co-founder Jennifer Curtis said Smithfield claimed that her company’s trademark was too similar to Smithfield’s brand, Farmland Foods.

While Smithfield-brand pork products can be found in Triangle grocery stores, its Farmland line of pork products are not typically sold within 200 miles of Raleigh. (I have seen them in Missouri and Iowa.) Federal officials had given initial approval for Farmhand Foods to use its name and trademark but Curtis said Smithfield Foods still planned to sue over it. Curtis said her small company couldn’t afford the $60,000 to $100,000 in legal fees it would have cost to fight it.

Curtis’ co-founder, Tina Prevatte, said in a press release: “After a year of trying to protect the rights to use our name, we decided to embrace Firsthand Foods as our new name and focus on growing our markets, supporting the farmers in our network, and continuing to help build a robust local food system here in North Carolina.”

So what does Smithfield have to say about the dispute? Keira Lombardo, Smithfield’s vice president of investor relations and corporate communications wrote in an email: “There was a trademark dispute between Farmhand Foods and SF Investments, which was amicably resolved under a confidential settlement agreement and which involved Farmhand transitioning to a new name.”

As of May 1, Farmhand Foods is now Firsthand Foods. Their products are available at Weaver Street Markets, Chatham Marketplace, LoMo mobile market, The Raleigh Wine Shop and the MAE Farm Meats stand at the State Farmers’ Market in Raleigh. You may be more familiar from their products via their food truck, the Sausage Wagon.

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

A second location for Chocolate Boutique (3308 Village Market Place; 919-332-0960; mychocolateboutique.com) will open today, with Grand Opening festivities from 4-8 p.m. The original shop is in North Raleigh’s Lafayette Village.

Offering a wide assortment of truffles and other house-made confections, Chocolate Boutique hosts chocolate parties and caters weddings and special events.

The shop is is the newest entry in a lineup of restaurants and food shops clustered around the new cinema complex in Park West Village.

Which Wich and Lime Fresh Mexican Grill are already serving the before- and after-the-movie crowd. Scheduled to open in coming months are Bad Daddy’s Burger Bar, Firebirds Wood-Fired Grill and WG Kitchen and Bar - an Ohio-based chain offering wine shop, wine bar and bistro under one roof.

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.