Relocate Triangle - An Insider's Guide About Moving To The Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill Area

Green Tip of the Week - 12/18/09

Burn A Better Fire

 

Java Logs are made entirely from coffee grounds and emit up to 78 % less global warming-causing carbon monoxide than old-fashion wood.

 

I’m Dreaming of a Green Christmas, Anna Getty

Triangle Still Among Tops in the Country

As 2009 draws to a close, the Triangle finds itself honored in many ways.  Here is just a sampling of our latest triumphs.

 

Triangle Among Forbes’ Best Bang for a Buck

 

The Raleigh-Durham Metropolitan Statistical Area finished 21^st among Best Bang for a Buck Cities listed by Forbes magazine.  The publication reviewed the nation’s largest MSAs and measured their foreclosures as a percentage of housing units; vacancies; unemployment rates; a three-year job growth forecast; a three-year home price forecast; housing affordability; median real estate taxes; and median travel time to work.  Factoring in other leading indicators, Forbes then averaged these scores to arrive at a final ranking of what provided the best investment.

 

Raleigh-Durham led all MSAs in North Carolina, outperforming Greensboro-High Point at #30 and Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord at #56.  What really helped the region was its #10 placement among job forecasts.

 

Durham and Raleigh Among Top 10 Best Performing Cities

 

In another economic ranking, last month the Durham MSA finished #6 and the Raleigh-Cary MSA #10 in the Milken Institute/Greenstreet Real Estate Partners Best-Performing Cities Index, which ranks U.S. metropolitan areas by how well they are creating and sustaining jobs and economic growth.  The components included job, wage and salary and technology growth, as well as includes both long-term (five years) and short-term (one year) measurements of employment and salary growth.  Both MSAs finished in the top five for at least one category surveyed. 

 

UNC Women’s Soccer #1 Again

 

For the 20^th time, the women’s soccer team at the University of North Carolina won the NCAA title game on Dec. 6.  This was also the third time out of the last four years where the Tar Heels claimed the championship.  Impressive indeed.

 

All of these accomplishments in basically a three-county area is worthy of note and celebration in this holiday season.  We look forward to adding even more honors in the Triangle in 2010.

Green Tip of the Week - 12/4/09

Wrapping Paper

The use of Christmas wrapping paper is wasteful. The average American household increases their trash output by 25%, for about 5 million extra tons of garbage, between Thanksgiving and New Year's. If every American family wrapped just three presents in re-used materials, it would save enough paper to cover 45,000 football fields.

Carnegie Mellon Green Practices

Winterfest Ready to Rock Downtown Raleigh

Winter entertainment is coming back to Downtown Raleigh for the 2009 AT&T Raleigh Winterfest.  Starting with a great kickoff event on Friday, Dec. 4, Winterfest will be a two-month long family-friendly celebration featuring Raleigh’s first outdoor skating rink with natural ice and other great activities.  The ice rink will be located in City Plaza situated on the southern end of the 400 block of Fayetteville Street.

 

Kickoff Event

 

Be sure not to miss Winterfest’s Kickoff on Dec. 4  from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m.  It will feature a variety of entertainment and activities including figure skating performances, the opening of the outdoor ice skating rink to the public, ice sculpting, sledding ramps, Mayor Charles Meeker’s tree lighting ceremony, and a special headlining performance from Grammy award-winning country artist Michelle Branch.  Not only will this night be filled with all of these great activities, but admission will be free.

 

AT&T Raleigh Winterfest Ice Rink

 

One of the highlights of Winterfest will certainly be Raleigh’s first outdoor skating rink with natural ice.  The rink will open during the kickoff event and remain open through Thursday, Jan. 31.  The price of admission will be only $6 and will also include your skate rental, which is less than a ticket at your local movie theater.  The rink will be open at varying times depending on the date, so be sure to check the schedule before making your way downtown.

 

Date and Skate Nights

 

For those looking for a romantic date idea with that special someone, look no further.  Winterfest is working in conjunction with some of downtown Raleigh’s most popular restaurants to offer dinner and entertainment.  All you have to do is dine at one of the participating restaurants and show your dinner receipt at the ice rink to receive a $4 discount for two to skate.  That means it will only cost $8 for two admissions and skate rentals.

 

So be sure to bundle up and don’t miss out on participating in the 2009 AT&T Raleigh Winterfest this season!

Green Tip of the Week 11/27/09

Buy A Potted Pine

 

You will be able to plant it in your yard or donate it to a local park instead of trashing it (as you would with a cut trees). If you can not give up your traditional fir, go to earth911.org at the end of the season to find a recycling program near you that will accept Christmas trees.

 

I’m Dreaming of a Green Christmas, Anna Getty

Tempting Reasons to Get Out of the Kitchen on Turkey Day

Thanksgiving is a time of giving thanks and tradition, a time to be enjoyed with family.  We say, why not start a new tradition this year?  Grab the family and ditch the oven mitts, because this Turkey Day, great Triangle restaurants are staying open to serve your Thanksgiving meal.

 

From elegant dining to home cooking, there is a restaurant for whatever feast you fancy.  Any place you choose though needs to be booked in advance, as with other holiday meals.  Also, you’ll find that many of these restaurants do not serve just the typical turkey fare, but have other tantalizing choices as well.

 

For Vegetarians, Try The Irregardless Café

 

The Irregardless Café in Raleigh, which is known for using local and organic food, is offering up tasty turkey with sage cornbread stuffing and fresh cranberry orange ginger chutney.  If meat is not your dish of choice, they have a couple of vegan options.  Stuffed butternut squash and meatless shepherd’s pie will satisfy even your most hungry veggie-eaters.  They have their full Thanksgiving menu posted online with more entrees and appetizers galore.

 

McCormick & Schmick’s Go Turkey Too

 

McCormick & Schmick’s next to Crabtree is usually all about seafood, but this Thanksgiving, they’re opting for a three-course fixed menu of the staple turkey dinner for $22.95.  But if you’re still lusting after their seafood, they also have a menu of some of their well-loved entrees available.

 

Buffet Choices

 

If your family is favors a buffet style dinner, the Angus Barn in North Raleigh and Heron Restaurant at the Umstead in Cary have just what you need. The Angus Barn offers a more traditional spread, with choices like turkey and gravy, honey baked ham, and prime rib.  Do not get throw off by the word “buffet,” though; both places are closer to fine-dining than Golden Corral.  The cost for the buffet is $45 per person at the Angus Barn, and $65 at the Heron.

 

Four Square In Bull City

 

To give Durham its fair shake, the celebrated Four Square Restaurant is opening its doors Thanksgiving Day to offer a three course meal for $55 with a wide range of options.  Choose from roasted pumpkin bisque with red crab to seared rare tuna for starters, and debate between dishes like stuffed sunburst trout and brown sugar cured little river ranch turkey for the main course.

 

Regardless (not Irregardless) of where you go, don’t forget dessert!  The classic pumpkin pie is available at all the above restaurants, and many others have a variety of pastries in store.  Here is a full list of restaurants open in the Triangle on Thanksgiving.

Green Tip of the Week 11/20/09

Wrapping Paper

 

Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, Americans produce an extra 2 billion lbs of garbage per week, much of which is gift packaging.  If 40% of U.S. households reduced their holiday paper consumption by just two sheets this year, the savings could gift wrap Manhattan Island.

 

 

The Green Book By Elizabeth Kendall Rogers, Thomas Kostigen

Alternative Transportation in the Triangle

Downtown Raleigh has been revitalized, and is alive and growing now more than ever.  With that growth, distances between shops, restaurants, and the like have started to spread as well. 

 

Walking from place to place downtown in Raleigh can be tiresome, so we propose an alternative.  Well, several alternatives actually.  Carry on in a carriage, ride along in a rickshaw, or soar through the streets on a Segway; any way you choose to ride, your feet will thank you. 

 

Not only do you get a reprieve from walking, but moving along at a trot or cycled pace allows you to sightsee the more historic parts of downtown, or enjoy the buzz of Raleigh’s restaurant and nightlife scene. 

 

Carriages and Rickshaws

 

Many of the rickshaw operators or carriage drivers are in the know about Raleigh’s history, and can act as tour guides in the Capitol.  The clops of hooves on pavement can be heard day and night while the riders enjoy the view of the city.  Carriages are available for reservations and special occasions, like JL Carriage. A wedding, special date, or prom downtown would not be fairy-tale perfect without a horse-drawn carriage. 

 

A much more common respite from trudging up and down the streets of Raleigh is taking a ride on a rickshaw. These hardworking cyclists could give Lance Armstrong a run for his money as they pedal up slanted hills with two or three people in tow.  They are great for short or long distances, and do not need to be booked in advance (although that option is available).  You will see them cycling up and down the town cruising for riders, much like their yellow counterparts in larger cities. 

 

One of the best things about the rickshaws is that they do not even charge a fare; they only work for tips.  Although after a ride with these guys, it would be hard not to give them a hearty tip after seeing them break a sweat putting the pedal to the metal.

 

Segways

 

Yet another option is hopping on a new innovation, the Segway.  Not a moped, and not quite a motor scooter, the Segway is a two-wheeled self-balancing electric vehicle.  If you’d like to rent one and troll around the city on wheels, Triangle Segway rents its Segways complete with narrated tours.  One hour is $35 per person, and two hours is $60.

 

Whether you’re riding or gliding, you are sure to love rolling around downtown in style.

Green Tip of the Week

Fur

 

Although synthetic fur is made from petroleum products, it takes only 1/3 of a gallon of oil to produce a faux fur jacket, while it takes 22 gallons of oil to produce the energy needed to make one from real fur.  If just 10% of the 3 million real fur garments sold in the US each year were replaced by an alternative non-fur garment, an average of 5 million gallons of oil and 5 million animals could be saved.

 

The Green Book By Elizabeth Kendall Rogers, Thomas Kostigen

Satisfying the Triangle’s Sweet Tooth

Oftentimes, the thought of dessert is an inner struggle with your conscience warring between the excess calories, and a small (or not so small) bit of sugary heaven. The trick is finding which delights are worth the calories. We have handpicked some of the Triangle’s best, so you do not have to make that decision alone. Whether your sweet thing of choice is candy, ice cream, or cupcakes, when you try these Triangle eateries, it will be love at first bite.

The Cupcake Shoppe

Black and White, You Mocha Me Crazy, and Pretty in Pink are just some of the made-from-scratch butter cream cupcakes you’ll find at Sara Coleman’s stylish downtown bakery, The Cupcake Shoppe. Each cupcake is topped with a swirl of velvety icing, some with traditional flavors (Black and White), and some more modern. Every week they feature a limited-time new flavor, this week’s being pumpkin with maple butter cream.

Perhaps even more impressive than her cupcakes, Sara Coleman introduced President Barack Obama during a Raleigh town hall about healthcare. When he took the stage, Obama even joked about how Coleman gave him a T-shirt, but no cupcakes. So if even the president is pining for her cupcakes, we are pretty sure you’ll enjoy them too.

Turkish Delights

Right down the street from The Cupcake Shoppe is what many people in Raleigh refer to as “the purple house.” Upon closer inspection though, this purple house is actually a bakery of sorts. Turkish Delights is a bakeshop selling exactly that: Turkish delights. They also have a variety of baked goods including all kinds of Turkish deserts like baklava and bourek. It is hard to say whether people come for the more ethnic deserts or their milkshakes and ice cream; either way, you are picking a winner. Though some may just be interested in the purple paint, we promise you what is inside is even more exciting.

For the chocolate lovers of the Triangle, a Godiva store is located in Durham. Instead of just buying a box of decadence, they have chocolate covered fruit and assorted Godiva truffles sold individually in store. Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, located on the Streets of Southpoint, offers a similar fare but more variety. Their fame comes not just from their chocolate, but their caramel apples. Dipped fresh, they can be covered in M&Ms, pecans, snickers, toffee, or apple pie crust.

Sunset Slush

If you’re in the mood for something a little lighter, Sunset Slush off Leesville Road has just the thing. They serve every flavor imaginable of Italian Ice, from fruity to just plain strange. OMG is one of their combination ices containing mango, peach, and orange. On the flip side of fruity, they have flavors like Cry Baby (extra sour) and Iced Coffee. Or if your taste buds are so inclined, you could try their own mish-mash of flavors called Zombie.

So go ahead, try one of the Triangle’s sweet spots, and indulge yourself a little.