Best New Restaurant
Bep Vietnamese Kitchen
The Gyro Spot
Mamma Mia Italian Bistro
Best Food Truck
The Portable Portugy
Buoy Bowls
Medi Bites Food Truck
Best Appetizers
Vicious Fishes Tap & Kitchen Read More
My Way Tavern
The Mason Jar Tavern
Best Cocktails
The Blind Pelican Seafood House
The Mason Jar Tavern
The Brickhouse Bar & Grill
Best Bakery
Stick Boy Bread Co. Read More
Fera’wyn’s Chocolate Cafe
Bestow Baked Goods
Best Dessert
Stick Boy Bread Co.
Fera’wyn’s Chocolate Cafe
The Mason Jar Tavern
Best Barbecue
Daddy D’s BBQ
City Barbecue
Aviator Smokehouse
Best Breakfast
Eggs Up Grill
First Watch
Brus On Main
Best Burger and Fries
My Way Tavern
Vicious Fishes Tap & Kitchen
Town Hall Burger & Beer
Best Date-Night Restaurant
Osha Thai Kitchen & Sushi Read More
Garibaldi Trattoria
The Blind Pelican Seafood House
Best Coffee House
Cultivate Coffee Roasters Read More
Brus On Main
Sir Walter Coffee & Kitchen
Best Seafood
The Blind Pelican Seafood House
Vicious Fishes Tap & Kitchen
Osha Thai Kitchen & Sushi
Best Pizzeria
J&S New York Pizza
Anna’s Pizzeria
Acme Pizza Co.
Best Asian Restaurant
Osha Thai Kitchen & Sushi
Mei Wei Chinese and Thai Restaurant
Dan Sushi and Hibachi
Best Mediterranean Restaurant
Nil’s Mediterranean Cuisine
The Gyro Spot
Little Portugal
Greek Basma
Best Italian Restaurant
Garibaldi Trattoria
Vieni Ristobar
Bellini Italian Cuisine
Best Indian Restaurant
Zeera Indian Restaurant
Cilantro Indian Cafe
Himalayan Nepali Cuisine
Best Mexican/Latin American
Mi Cancun Mexican Restaurant
Aye! Toro Tacos & Tequila
El Lobo Mexican Restaurant
Best Healthy-Dining Options
Nil’s Mediterranean Cuisine
Little Portugal
Lovegrass Kitchen
Best Neighborhood Bar
My Way Tavern
The Brickhouse Bar and Grill
Vicious Fishes Tap & Kitchen
Best Craft Brewery
Bombshell Beer Co.
Oaklyn Springs Brewery
The Mason Jar Lager Co.
Best Outdoor Dining
Aviator Tap House
Vicious Fishes Tap & Kitchen
Osha Thai Kitchen & Sushi
Cultivate Coffee Roasters
Best Coffee House
It’s easy to tick off the popular features of Cultivate Coffee’s downtown Fuquay café: coffee beans freshly roasted on-site, delicious baked goods and ice cream, a giant garage door that creates an indoor/outdoor seating area, and a comfortable space to work and meet.
Owners Ben and Alexandra Somerville, pictured above, encourage lingering, wanting the doors unlocked, the lights on, and the space filled with connection as much as possible.
Last summer, Cultivate introduced an addiction recovery outreach program, offering their coffee to recovery group meetings throughout North Carolina.
“Addiction in many forms is causing chaos all around us, and we want to leverage what we are good at to help where help is needed,” states the Cultivate Coffee website.
Vicious Fishes
Best Appetizers
Honorable Mentions: Best Burger and Fries, Best Seafood, Best Neighborhood Bar, Best Outdoor Dining
Vicious Fishes Front of House Manager Tasia Ryan says she rarely has to ask guests if they want to order appetizers.
“They automatically tell me, ‘Let me get this; let me get that,’” she says.
The Brauhaus Giant Pretzel is the top seller, served with equally famous house-made spicy white pimento cheese and warm beer cheese, which is crafted with the brewery’s own Octopils lager.
Fill a table with several of the standout apps — like Scuba Shrimp, Chicken Wings, Black Bean Hummus, and Octofries — and don’t look back.
Stick Boy Bread Co.
Best Bakery, Best Dessert
Stick Boy Bread Co.’s Main street storefront has been a Fuquay-Varina mainstay since opening in 2008. From their rotating weekly bread schedule, to their evolving menu of savory breakfasts and sweet treats, customers always have a reason to go back.
The bakery recently introduced bagels to their lineup of house-made breads and pastries, after converting some of their storage space into a new kitchen and recipe testing for months.
“I’m excited for the new products,” says Katie Dies, owner. Bagel flavors will rotate weekly.
Watch for owners Katie and Josh Dies to appear in a web series by Truist and Visa spotlighting small businesses. The couple filmed with an Atlanta-based production company in February, and the resulting commercial will air on social media channels this month.
Osha Thai Kitchen & Sushi
Best Asian Restaurant, Best Date-Night Restaurant
Honorable Mentions: Best Seafood, Best Outdoor Dining
Since Osha Thai Kitchen & Sushi opened its doors three years ago, the restaurant has been a beloved spot for date-night dinners, patio lunches, and tempting takeout.
When pressed, co-owner Leo Chotitaveesaksri can’t pick a favorite dish — “I love everything” — but admits that Pad Thai, pictured above, is exceedingly popular.
“We’ve filled 200 orders in a night,” he says.
The kitchen closes between lunch and dinner service, and Chotitaveesaksri says there is frequently a line at 4 p.m. waiting for the doors to open again, a rewarding sight for the Thailand native.
The extensive dinner menu features impressively fresh sushi, flavorful curries, and a mix of Japanese and Thai specialties.
- 2023 Maggy Awards: Shopping
- 2023 Maggy Awards: Services
- Presenting the 2023 Maggy Awards: Best of Main & Broad
- Military Missions in Action
- 2023 Maggy Awards: Lifestyle
- Meet & Greet: Maverick Rose
- 2023 Maggy Awards: Restaurants
- Star Power: Stacey Lemons
- Star Power: Jen Marconyak
- Star Power
- Star Power: Paige King Johnson
- Bold & Bright
- Restaurant Spotlight: Nil’s Mediterranean Cuisine
- The FVM Awards You Didn’t Ask For
- See & Do: April to May 2023
