by Dean McCord The place is in a run-down mini strip mall scheduled for demolition in the not-too-distant future. It’s between a head shop and an old-school record store. It has the tiniest, most cramped parking lot, perfectly ripe…
by Liza Roberts photographs by Missy McLamb There’s nothing fancy about the windowless Teen Center Club gymnasium that sits in the shadow of Wake Med’s mega-campus on New Bern Avenue. Most days, it smells like sweat and sounds like basketball. But to…
Here’s a thought. A little bar-hopping in a great bar town just might do you good. After all, bars are in business for one reason: to make you happy. And if I learned one thing in the exhaustive investigative research…
by Andrea Wiegl photographs by Juli Leonard Summer is a time for backyard cook-outs, July Fourth picnics, and patio parties. It’s also when Southern cooks turn to their go-to sources for party food. If that’s a cookbook, it is likely a…
by Charles Upchurch photograph by Juli Leonard Yes, I am drinking a Pimm’s Cup as I write this. OK, I’m finishing a Pimm’s Cup. I recommend that you enjoy one while reading this summer issue of Walter. Out in the…
Don’t let the mint fool you. That lighthearted, summery herb, equally at home in iced tea and lemonade, is here on a mission. Mashed up with sugar, its oils and essence make what comes next suitable for a springtime afternoon….
Once ubiquitous in pharmacies across the South, soda fountains have waned with the advent of fast food. Today, it’s not easy to find the pressed sandwiches, milkshakes and drinks that made them so popular, but Pharaoh’s at North Hills and…
by Andrea Weigl photographs by Lissa Gotwals Stacey Jennings sets platters of mashed potatoes, roasted Brussels sprouts, spinach salad and coq au vin blanc on the dining room table and calls to her children. “We need to eat,” she says. “It’s on…
by Charles Upchurch photographs by Juli Leonard “In my mind I’m gone to Carolina – can’t you see the sunshine, can’t you just feel the moonshine…” I think we all know what Sweet Baby James was singing about. North Carolina…
by Charles Upchurch photographs by Juli Leonard Don’t look now, but Raleigh is sneaking up on Asheville for the title of craft beer capital of North Carolina. That calls for a cold pint of Hell Yes Ma’am. Hell Yes Ma’am…
by Andrea Weigl photographs by Missy McLamb Many families cannot get along. One sibling doesn’t talk to another; the daughters-in-law can’t be in the same room; someone has never forgiven another for a slight long ago. Tension crackles, and…
by Charles Upchurch The converts, they say, are always the worst. A couple of years ago, my wife had never even tried eggnog. Then everything changed. Soon, there were telltale signs of a love affair. Once a week became once…
by Charles Upchurch photographs by Juli Leonard Fall is woodsmoke. Football and oyster roasts. Leaves gone to gold. All of this nostalgia calls for a drink. Better yet, a cocktail. Something that captures the sublime and fleeting magic of the…
by Liza Roberts photographs by Lissa Gotwals Raleigh’s hottest chef has no back burner. Take one week in late July: Ashley Christensen’s cross-country commitments had her outside and up all night in Sonoma, Calif., cooking a pig for a…