Transitions
‘Everything’” and “out of everything” Saturday and Sunday. MorningSide Bagels, 10848 Maumelle Blvd., North Little Rock, has been alerting its customers it will be closed those two days. The phone number is (501) 753-6960.
Bobby’s Cafe, 12230 MacArthur Drive, North Little Rock, is moving down the street into the former I-40/Morgan Cafe, 18505 MacArthur Drive, on or about Sept. 1. Until then, according to their Facebook page, they’ll be open their usual hours — 6 a.m.-7:45 p.m. Tuesday-Friday — at the current location (despite the “for rent” sign), and will keep those hours in the new space, with plans to open on Mondays in a couple of months. The phone number is (501) 851-7888.
Owner-chef Kiyen Kim says he’ll definitely open Kamikaito by Kiyen’s, Sixth and Main streets, North Little Rock, on Sept. 14. He has rebuilt the interior of the space, most recently occupied by Good Food by Ferneau, with hand-crafted woodwork, lighting fixtures and glass decor pieces. The menu will be very similar to the one he offers at Kiyen’s Seafood Steak and Sushi, 17200 Chenal Parkway, Little Rock, including sushi, hibachi dishes (prepared in a glass-fronted open area visible from every table in the place) and Asian-fusion entrees; just inside the front door he has a frozen yogurt-ice cream
bar and a grab-and-go kiosk. Hours will likely be 11 a.m.9:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-midnight Friday-Saturday, and Sunday brunch. No phone number yet; the number in west Little Rock is (501) 821-7272; the website: kiyens.com.
Franchisee Blake Lively says unusual summer rains have pushed construction past the original Saturday target for the opening of the DQ Grill & Chill, 6100 W. 12th St., Little Rock. He says, while it’s still a moving target, to now expect an opening in early September, confirming an Aug. 15 Facebook posting (facebook.com/DairyQueen-443916869334058): “Come to the DQ Grand Opening in September for a sweet time and the chance to get free Blizzards for a year.”
Google reports that Jason’s Burgers-N-More, 148 Amity Road, Hot Springs, is “permanently closed,” while a call to its listed phone number, (501) 525-0919, brings a “temporarily disconnected.”
In the fourth week of Little Rock Restaurant Month, the Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau is promoting restaurants and food vendors in “Airport” and “Southwest” districts, the former east of Shall Avenue, the latter south of Colonel Glenn, Roosevelt and Lawson roads. Visit DineLR.com to find the breakfast, lunch and/or dinner discounts.
A reminder: Donnie Ferneau Jr. will be cooking “live” for the Donnie Ferneau Pop-Up Dinner With Legacy Wine & Spirits, 6-9 p.m. Saturday at Wildwood Park for the Arts, 20919 Denny Road, Little Rock. The liquor store is providing wine pairings and signature cocktail demonstrations. Tickets are $50 in advance (tinyurl. com/ferneaupopup), $65 at the door.
Meanwhile, Ferneau, his wife, Meaghan, and sous chef Amanda Ivy landed in fifth place in the debut episode of the Food Network’s The Great Food Truck Race, which aired Sunday. Competing against six other food trucks to produce a New Orleans-worthy beignet, Ferneau created a chocolate cheesecake variety topped with strawberries and powdered sugar. The team and the food truck, The Southern Frenchie, will return to the air Sunday.
More food-connected events and benefits in coming weeks:
Rock Town Distillery will host a five-course whiskey dinner, 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at Table 28, 1501 Merrill Drive, Little Rock. Cost is $90; space is limited. Call (501) 224-2828 to make reservations.
Members of the area food community are putting together “Friends and Ben,” 6:30-9 p.m. Sept. 11 at the Capital Hotel, 111 W. Markham St., Little Rock, to help cover outof-pocket treatment expenses for the hotel’s beverage director, Ben Edwards, who is recovering from an early June swimming pool accident that left him paralyzed from the chest down. Top chefs, bartenders and food personalities will take part; the event will also feature a silent auction.
Single tickets are $100; a friends supporter package, which includes two tickets for the evening, is $500. Visit rockcityeats.com/event/ friends-and-ben.
Ten area chefs and two mixologists will join local artists, musicians and celebrities Oct. 16 at the Capital Hotel for the Thea Foundation’s Blue
Plate Special benefit. This year’s chefs: Matthew Bell,
South on Main; Jeff Owen, Ciao Baci; Payne Harding, Cache; Gilbert Alaquinez, Forty-Two; Marc Guizol, Capital Bar &
Grill; Brian Kearns, Simply the
Best Catering; Stephen Burrow,
Skye’s Bistro at Stratton’s Market;
Amanda Ivy, Old Mill Bread;
Mark Abernathy, Loca Luna and Red Door; and Kelli Marks, Sweet Love. The mixologists are Ben Franks of Petit & Keet and Luiggi Uzcategui of Big Orange Midtown. Presenter is Malvern National Bank. Sponsors are Ben E. Keith, Southern Glazers Wine and Spirits and the Capital Hotel. Tickets are $75, Call (501) 3799512 or visit theafoundation. org/blue-plate-special.
The Arkansas State Archives will host its fourth annual Arkansas Foodways symposium, theme, “Fruit of the Vine: Arkansas’s Italian Communities and Foodways,” 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sept. 16 on the University of Arkansas-Pulaski Technical College main campus, 3000 W. Scenic Drive, North Little Rock. Chris Dorer, Rebecca Howard, Regina Moyer and State Archives staff member Terra Titsworth will cover topics including “Little Italy, Arkansas: A Bootlegger’s
Oasis,” “Aren’t Grits Just Polenta?: Italians in the Ozarks” and “Sunnyside: Italian Tradition from Past to Present.” The event will also include a wine tasting and a cannoli-making demonstration. Cost, $12, includes an Arkansas Italian- fare lunch; register by Sept. 11 at italian-foodways. eventbrite.com. Call (501) 682-6900 or email events.archives@arkansas.gov.
The Downtown Association of Hot Springs and Central Avenue restaurant Vina Morita are collaborating on an Arkansas Wine &
Opera Experience fundraiser, 8 p.m. Sept. 29-30 on the second-floor balcony of the Springs Hotel, 135 Central Ave., Hot Springs. The evening will feature a five-course meal — appetizer by Antonio Gonzales of Vina Morita, salad by Brad Hudgens, beef entree by Casey Copeland of The Avenue, pasta entree by Anthoni Valinoti of DeLuca’s Pizza and dessert by Elias Trejo of Trejo’s — plus more than 30 “high-end wines” and performances from an international opera ensemble. Tickets are $79.99; proceeds benefit the Downtown Association. Visit tinyurl.com/wineandopera.