May 21, 2026 — Thursday Edition

It's the big one — Memorial Day weekend, the unofficial first weekend of summer, three days off for most of us, and Durham is absolutely loaded. Anne's actually OFF this weekend for once (a Memorial Day miracle), so we've already got a plan: Taste of Soul at the park Saturday, a Bulls game in there somewhere, and a long, slow Sunday that hopefully involves a patio and a cold Dissolvr pour. Tried a protein sour this week, can only give it a try!

Also in today's issue: a new Korean spot just opened downtown from a chef we've been waiting on, a password-protected speakeasy is taking memberships, a beloved Food Hall bakery is saying goodbye, and the weekend calendar is stacked top to bottom.

Let's get into it.

• M Hansik is OPEN. Chef Michael Lee just opened his Korean concept in the former Plum space at 501 Washington Street downtown — his seventh restaurant, and the one we've been not-so-patiently waiting on. If it's anything like his track record, get a reservation before the rest of Durham figures it out. We're going this week and reporting back Tuesday. (WRAL)

• Red Phone Booth — a password-protected, Prohibition-style speakeasy — is opening in June at 125 Orange Street downtown, and they're taking founding memberships NOW. You enter through a restored London phone booth (yes, you need the password), and inside it's 400+ premium spirits, rare bourbon, Neapolitan pizza, and Italian small plates. It's locally owned by Dr. Ralph Mensah and Dr. Michael Thomas. This is exactly the kind of over-the-top fun Durham does well. (ABC11)

• Bittersweet one: Little Barb's Bakery is closing, with its last day May 31 at the Durham Food Hall. If you've got a favorite from their case, this is your two-week warning to go get it one more time and say thank you. The Food Hall stall life is hard — show them some love on the way out. (WRAL)

• On the radar: Pinheiro, a Portuguese wine bar, is still building out at 304 S. Driver Street in East Durham. Bottles from Portugal, small plates, the kind of place you wander into and immediately text three friends about. No firm open date yet — but paired with M Hansik opening this week, the international stretch of Durham's food scene is having a moment. (Axios Raleigh)

If you only do one thing this weekend, make it this. Taste of Soul lands at Durham Central Park on Saturday — a free, all-day celebration of food, music, and Durham community energy, and a genuinely perfect way to kick off the long weekend.

Here's the deal: the park fills up with some of the best food trucks in the area, local merchants set up under the Pavilion (shade, bless them) and along the street, a DJ keeps the whole thing moving, and there's live entertainment all afternoon into the evening. Bring the kids — there are games and a bounce house — and bring a blanket or some chairs, because the move is to grab a plate, find a patch of grass, and just settle in for a few hours.

Admission is free. You only pay for what you eat and drink, which means you can graze your way across a dozen vendors without committing to one big meal. Our strategy every time: do a full lap before you buy anything, scope what looks best, THEN circle back. Rookie mistake is filling up at the first truck you see. Pace yourself — this is a grazing event, not a sit-down dinner.

This is Durham Central Park at its absolute best — the same five-acre spot where the Saturday farmers market and the Food Truck Rodeo happen, doing what it does better than anywhere in the city: getting a whole neighborhood outside, eating good food, in the same place at the same time. On Memorial Day weekend, with summer basically here, it doesn't get much more Durham than this.

Parking's along the side streets around the park and at the Foster Street end. Or do what we do and just walk — it's a straight shot from most of downtown.

Saturday, May 23— 3:00 PM to 9:00 PM

Durham Central Park, 501 Foster Street, Durham

Free admission (pay for food & drink)

durhamcentralpark.org/taste-of-soul-nc

Durham Bulls vs. Nashville Sounds— Friday 5/22 & Saturday 5/23 at 6:45 PM, Sunday 5/24 at 5:05 PM, at the DBAP. Memorial Day weekend baseball is a Durham rite of passage. Fireworks nights are usually the move — grab a Blue Monster, sit on the grass berm, and don't leave early. (Durham Bulls)

Hamilton at DPAC— running now through May 31. Yeah, THAT Hamilton. If you've been waiting for it to come back around to Durham, this is the run — and DPAC is one of the best rooms in the country to see a touring Broadway show. Don't sleep on weekday shows if the weekend's sold out. (DPAC)

Cold at Motorco Music Hall— Friday, May 22. The post-grunge vets bring the loud to Rigsbee Ave. If your weekend needs a little catharsis before the cookouts start, here you go. (Motorco)

Jlin + Alec Lomami at Boom Club— Saturday, May 23. Jlin is one of the most acclaimed experimental electronic producers working right now, and catching her in a room this size is a flex. A real one for the heads. (Boom Club)

Food Truck Rodeo at Durham Central Park— Sunday, May 31, Noon to 4 PM. The next rodeo of the season rolls in just after the long weekend — 30+ trucks, inflatables, family fun. Mark it now so you don't miss it. (Durham Central Park)

Memorial Day weekend always sneaks up as the real start of summer — the first cookout, the first sunburn, the first "wait, it's already this warm?" And before the burgers and the pool floats, it's worth a quiet beat to remember what the Monday is actually for, and the people it's meant to honor.

Then go be fully present in this city we love. Eat at the park Saturday. Catch a few innings. Sit on a patio until the light goes gold. Durham in late May, with everyone finally outside again — that's the whole reason we do this newsletter. See you out there.

— Michael & Anne

Written from Trinity Park

Made with 💙 in Durham, NC