It’s a good time to be in Little Rock, friends. With the tides of COVID-19 beginning to turn, the city is coming back to life, and nowhere is that more evident than the local restaurant scene.
If you’re having trouble keeping up, here are some of the highlights.
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Three Fold
Downtown’s resident noodles and dumpling joint is taking its authentic Chinese cuisine west with plans to open a new location in the former Panera space in the Pleasant Ridge Shopping Center. The Three Fold food truck in Riverdale helped the business stay afloat in 2020 by serving up favorite dishes, and owners are taking the hint by, for now, stepping away from previous plans to explore new concept restaurants and instead giving the people what they want: more noodles, buns and dumplings.
“In Chinese philosophy, there are three criteria that should be considered before making a decision: being in the right place, at the right time and with the right people,” owner and founder Lisa Zhang says. “For us, this expansion to west Little Rock was requested by our customers for many years. We’re also given a warm welcome by the owners of Pleasant Ridge Shopping Center. Meanwhile, our team has gotten stronger coming out of the pandemic. I see all of these factors coming together, so it’s time for us to bring a better version of Three Fold closer to our customers, Three Fold 3.0.”
Three Fold plans to open its west Little Rock location in late fall or early winter of this year.
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Cheesecake on Point
Dessert lovers, rejoice. This well-loved food truck that spun off from Matcha Norwood’s Cinnalightful bakery has finally opened a brick-and-mortar location. Housed at 9809 W. Markham St., the shop officially opened its doors on May 8 serving up its famous cheesecakes, with plans to feature specialty pastries like cinnamon rolls, baked donuts, eclairs and macarons on Wednesdays.
“I am so excited about the opportunities that moving into our own space will open up,” Norwood says. “We have been so blessed with the support from customers over the past few years. This will allow the Cheesecake on Point brand to grow in directions we never expected.”
The shop currently has seating for up to 12 people, and you can still expect to see the food truck pop up at local events.
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Capital Bar & Grill
The time has finally come. After closing down last spring, The Capital Hotel and its iconic restaurant are ready to welcome the public. Reopening day is set for Monday, May 17, and with an extra treat: Breakfast will now be served seven days a week at Capital Bar & Grill. Hallelujah and pass the pimento.
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Lili’s
Meet the new kid on the block. Serving up authentic Mexican street food, this food truck will host its grand opening at The Bernice Garden on May 14. We got a taste last week and we’re already counting the days until we can experience these tacos again.
lilicooks.com | Facebook | Instagram
Bonus: Click here to learn more about Lost Forty’s new East Village project Camp Taco.