The best restaurants that opened in the Triangle in 2024

Here is a list of some of the best restaurants that opened in 2024. We compiled this list by eating our way across the region and chatting with fellow diners.

• Don't forget to check out our story from this summer on the best restaurants across the Triangle.

Of note: We excluded from consideration restaurants that have opened in recent days or weeks.

Aaktun

Chef Oscar Diaz has taken full advantage of the notoriety he's gained since being nominated for a James Beard Award to turn his ideas into brick-and-mortar reality.

So far, it's been to Durham's advantage, first with the opening of the excellent Little Bull and now Aaktun, an all-day cafe that specializes in both breakfast and late-night bites.

What to expect: The restaurant continues Diaz's playful exploration of combining the Mexican-American staples of his youth with cooking techniques from around the world, especially Asian cuisines.

• The restaurant's cafe serves a daytime menu of coffee, sandwiches and pastries and a lunch menu that includes small bites like papaya salad, poke, sandwiches and burgers.
• In the evening, the menu evolves to include chicken skewers, ceviche, and Temaki rolls as well as jerk chicken, hanger steak and a range of seafood.

Location: 704 Ramseur St., Durham

Brodeto

Brodeto, one of the Triangle's most anticipated openings of the year, was worth the wait and the several trips Scott Crawford took to Croatia to refine its food offerings.

• Crawford's exploration of Adriatic cuisine immediately became one of the region's most distinct menus, and its dining room, featuring works from artist Thomas Sayre, feels like it transports you from Raleigh to an airy bistro near the coast of the Mediterranean.

What to expect: Brodeto's menu leans heavily on the seafood beloved by Croatians and Italians for generations — including squid ink risotto and Croatian lamb peka.

• The restaurant is named after an excellent fish stew that is popular in Croatia.
• The rest of the menu includes small plates, like sardine toast and coal-roasted mussels, pastas and rice dishes, a variety of house-made breads as well as desserts like olive oil cake and gelato.

Location: 2201 Iron Works Dr., Ste. 137, Raleigh

Daijobu

In our opinion, there could never be enough ramen spots in the Triangle, but Daijobu's addition to downtown Raleigh makes the case on its own.

• Daijobu was opened on the ground floor of the Red Hat building this fall by the owners of the popular City Market Sushi restaurant, offering a cozy bar and dozens of tables with seating you can sink into.

What to expect: The menu offers four ramen bases to choose from, including a creamy tonkatsu with tender pork as well as a variety of hand-roll sushi options.

• The menu adds several small plates to choose from, like truffle edamame and chicken katsu, and Asian-inspired desserts like a yuzu sorbet and a black sesame creme brulee.

Location: 170 E Davie St., Raleigh

Figulina

Following up a staple like Humble Pie is not an easy task, but Figulina's pasta-focused menu offers a nice refresh of a well-loved haunt in the Warehouse District.

• Figulina is the debut restaurant from chef David Ellis, who previously worked under Ashley Christensen at Poole's Diner, and is an ode to Ellis' British heritage and the great pasta styles of Italy.

What to expect: The menu is heavy on sharing — there's even a large community table — with half a dozen generously sized pasta dishes, including a soft, pillowy gnocchi topped with turnip pesto and a crab-infused bucatini.

• The pasta is all handmade and will rotate throughout the season. A window in the dining room allows guests to watch it being made.
• Ellis' British heritage can be found throughout the menu, including a starting plate that includes a delicious combination of lamb and grilled soda bread.

Location: 317 S. Harrington St., Raleigh

Flour and Barrel Kitchen + Bar

Driven by the ancient meaning of "hospitality" — love of the stranger —  Italian-inspired Flour and Barrel replaced Little City Brewing near downtown Raleigh's Glenwood South when it opened its doors this summer.

The details: Owner Anthony Rapillo tapped executive celebrity chef and "Top Chef" alum Katsuji Tanabe, Raleigh Magazine reported at the time, and he crafted a menu that features artisan cocktails, fresh pasta and bread and small plates and crowd favorites like the "big ass meatball."

• The moody, candle-lit eatery also still brews beer in-house, in a nod to the space's past life.

Location: 400 W. North St., Raleigh

Gussie's/Left Hook Coffee

The one-two combo of Gussie's, a cozy pub, and Left Hook, an energetic and quirky coffee shop, has been a delightful addition to the slow-paced area between N.C. State and downtown Raleigh.

Left Hook Coffee has been operating as a pop-up around town for years now but the semi-permanent spot inside Gussie's has let owner Kristin Kulik spread her wings creatively with small-batch beans and a unique menu that changes often with the season or turn of the weather.

• Gussie's provides a great accompaniment, serving a comforting array of dishes like breakfast sandwiches and burritos, smash burgers and a variety of salads.

Location: 927 W. Morgan St., Suite 116, Raleigh

La Terrazza

La Terrazza, by the team behind downtown Raleigh Italian eatery Mulino, has quickly become a go-to spot.

What to expect: Located on the premier rooftop terrace at The Dillon, the restaurant has three separate dining rooms and an outdoor bar. The restaurant's floor-to-ceiling glass walls showcase an unrivaled skyline of downtown Raleigh.

• The menu features southern Italian and Mediterranean dishes, including lamb skewers, fresh pasta, grilled octopus, charcuterie and pizzas.

Location: 223 S West Street, 9th floor, Raleigh

Neighborhood Good Time Bar

Neighborhood's owners, who also unveiled nearby restaurant Madre last year, opened this summer with a vision of a come-as-you-are neighborhood watering hole.

What to expect: That vision has been executed flawlessly. The bar provides a simultaneously upscale and unpretentious vibe, offering draft, frozen and shaken or stirred cocktails, along with beer, wine and light snacks.

• Drink prices include gratuity and tax.
• Pop-up pizza shop Pizza Party Pizza, run by Raleigh artist Tim Lytvinenko, also regularly serves some of the city's best pies outside the bar.

Location: 500 N. West St., Ste. 150, Raleigh

Próximo

Acclaimed chef Brandon Sharp's third restaurant in Chapel Hill brought the taste of Spain this year to the former home of a Franklin Street icon Ye Olde Waffle Shoppe.

• Próximo is both a big bet on rejuvenating Franklin Street, which witnessed a wave of business closures after the pandemic, and a heartfelt note to the simplicity of Spanish tapas-style cuisine.

What to expect: The 1,450-square-foot restaurant retains its intimate charm, with room for just 40 seats and the same open kitchen and griddles that Ye Olde Waffle used.

• The menu ranges from small staple items like warm olives, patatas bravas and jamón ibérico to garlic shrimp, yellowfin tuna, pork ribs and an aged New York strip.
• Just as critical is the curated wine list and wine-based cocktails that Sharp carefully curated to help Próximo's menu sing.

Location: 173 E. Franklin St., Chapel Hill

Tamasha

Perhaps the glitziest restaurant to open this year, Tamasha and its carefully crafted interior sought to bring fine Indian dining to North Hills this year.

• Owners Mike Kathrani and Tina Vora — who also own the Vora Salon & Spa in Cary — brought in chef Bhavin Chhatwani to craft a menu they saw as fitting for the swanky digs they created in the Advance Auto Parts tower.

What to expect: On the menu you will find classic dishes such as Hyderabadi dum biryani, butter chicken, dahi kebabs and tandoori paneer tikka.

• For less traditional diners, there's the Oyster 65, a southern Indian dish that typically uses fried chicken but has been replaced with fried oysters.
• There's also the flavor-packed pork belly boa featuring Kerala spices and chili shrimp.
• The standout chaat selection pairs ingredients like crispy okra and puffed flat rice or purple sweet potato and crunchy kale.

Location: 4200 Six Forks Road, Suite 130, Raleigh

Go deeper: 30 best restaurants in the Triangle