Happy Tuesday, Durham. The dogwoods have handed off to the azaleas, Round Rock is in town for the first time ever (six straight at the DBAP), and somewhere on Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd a chalkboard is being rewritten with whatever Chef Ricky Moore got off the boat this morning. It's also Cinco de Mayo, and there's a thunderstorm parked in the middle of the week before a 75° Saturday. Let's go.

A Durham origin story you might not have: in October 2012, a chef named Ricky Moore — Culinary Institute of America trained, ex-U.S. Army cook, raised on the NC coast — opened a 205-square-foot seafood shack in a former hot-dog stand on North Mangum, in what was then a quieter corner of Old Five Points. The chalkboard changed every day based on what the boats brought in, the line stretched into the street, and a generation of Durhamites learned that "whiting" and "porgy" are perfectly legitimate dinner words.

The Mangum hut closed in 2021 when the lease ran out, but the second, bigger Saltbox — Moore opened it at 2637 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd in 2017 — is still doing exactly what made the original a thing. Soft-shell crab when soft-shell crab is in. Triggerfish, when there's triggerfish. Always the Hush-Honeys, always the sweet-tea-brined fried chicken sandwich, always the hot-pepper vinegar that should arrive at every NC table by birthright. In 2022, Moore won the James Beard Foundation's Best Chef Southeast — and somehow the food got better afterwards, which is the trick.

The vibe is what makes it Durham. It's not a destination dining room; it's a counter-service spot where you order at the chalkboard, sit at a picnic table, and end up next to a contractor on lunch break and a couple from Chapel Hill who drove over because their friend wouldn't shut up about it. Tuesday is the right day — the chalkboard's been wiped clean from the weekend, fresh delivery in. Order the Hush-Honeys. Trust the catch of the day.

2637 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd, Durham, NC 27707
Tue–Sat 11 a.m.–8 p.m. · Closed Sun & Mon
$ – $$ · counter service, walk-in only
saltboxseafoodjoint.com

Red Phone Booth's downtown opening is finally close. The speakeasy-and-pizza concept at 125 Orange Street is still tracking to a May open — the kind of hidden-doorway joint that either becomes your new anniversary spot or the running joke of your group chat, depending on how seriously they take the bit. (NC Triangle Dining)

M Hansik's mid-May target is holding. Chef Michael Lee's Korean fine-dining concept is still aiming for a mid-May debut at 501 Washington Street, taking over the old Plum space and joining Timber Pizza and Atomic Clock Brewing in what's becoming the most fun food-and-drink block in town. (Axios Raleigh)

Cinco de Mayo, the Durham edition. It's also Cinco — Tataco's handmade tortilla station and Fonda Lupita are the two local-not-corporate moves we'd reach for tonight. (Past Cincos at the Glass Jug Beer Lab have featured frozen margs, watermelon N/A slushies, and Ex Voto pop-ups — check their socials for tonight's plan.) (Glass Jug socials)

🍓Durham Farmers' Market — Strawberry Peak Edition— Sat 5/9, 8 a.m.–noon, Durham Central Park Pavilion. Strawberries, asparagus, more chevre than you can reasonably eat in a week. Free. (Market)

🎭The Great Gatsby — Broadway at DPAC— Tue 5/5 through Sun 5/10. Closing week of the new musical adaptation; if you missed opening night, the Saturday matinee and Sunday twin bill are the easiest grabs. (DPAC)

🎤Skizzy Mars at Motorco— Thu 5/7, 8 p.m., Motorco Music Hall. The New York rapper-singer in our 500-cap room. (Motorco)

🌹Mother's Day Brunch at The Durham— Sun 5/10, 10:30 a.m.–3 p.m., The Durham Hotel rooftop & dining room. Family-style spread: NC crab cakes, slow-roasted beef tenderloin, rhubarb-ricotta pancakes. $45/adult, $20/kid 12 & under. Reserve early. (The Durham)

🎶David Byrne — Who Is The Sky? Tour— Mon 5/11, 8 p.m., DPAC. First record since 2018'sAmerican Utopia, first big tour in support of it, last show of his Durham run. (DPAC)

🎨Third Friday Art Walk & Gallery Crawl— Fri 5/15, 6–9 p.m., downtown galleries. Free. The longest-running art-and-friend-running-into-friend ritual in Durham; 10 days out, perfect to put on the calendar now. (Downtown Durham Inc)

Bulls open a six-game homestand against the Round Rock Express today through Sunday — Round Rock's first-ever visit to Durham — at 6:45 p.m. nightly except Sunday's 1:05 matinee. Bark in the Park, AAPI Heritage Night, Peanuts Night, and a Mother's Day game spread across the week. After a quiet stretch from the bats, this is the homestand to bet on a breakout.

Durham Bulls Athletic Park, 409 Blackwell St ·Tickets·Schedule

Front passing through, then a recovery. Tuesday 82°F & sunny (gusts to 23 mph — hold your hat). Wednesday clouds and a chance of late showers, high 83. Thursday is the wet one — showers, possibly thunderstorms, high 74, and a low near 48 behind the front. Friday clears out — mostly sunny, high 69. Saturday rebounds to 75°F partly sunny, Sunday 79°F mostly sunny. Translation: indoor plans Wednesday night, Bulls Mother's Day matinee in shorts. (National Weather Service)

"Neighborhood newsletters: filling a gap left by local newspapers' decline" — 9th Street Journal. A reported piece on the small, hand-stuffed-in-mailboxes neighborhood papers cropping up across Durham (looking at you, Parade), the volunteers running them, and the gap in local journalism they're trying to plug. Pairs nicely with — well, this. We're not above the wink.

Triple-A baseball has a specific kind of joy you don't get at higher levels: the players are getting closer to a dream every night, and the people in the seats are getting closer to a city they're trying to make their own. Round Rock has been around since 2000, the Bulls have been throwing first pitches at this park since 1995, and somehow tonight is the first time these two teams will share our infield. That's the gift of a long enough season — eventually, somebody new shows up.

If your Tuesday includes a margarita at Glass Jug, a Hush-Honey at Saltbox, or a seat behind the first-base dugout, all of the above counts. See you out there.

— M

Made with 💙 in Durham, NC
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