Camp North End’s outdoor food stalls to open in time for a socially-distanced summer
Camp North End has aimed to create an innovative campus through adaptive reuse since its inception in 2016. And the addition of alfresco food and beverage stalls has pushed the campus one step closer to its goal.
The food stalls will open to the public Friday, June 26. The open-air dining area and food stalls line a pedestrian walkway at Keswick Avenue.
The three food stalls are Bleu Barn Bistro, La Caseta and Saru by Bow Ramen.
Bleu Barn Bistro
Bleu Barn Bistro is a farm-to-table food truck, and the Camp North End location will be its first brick-and-mortar spot. Featured items include a Farm House burger, Pork Belly tacos and seasonal favorites. “Supporting our community is really important to us, down to working with our farmers so that they can really turn a profit, selling food and really taking care of our team,” said Co-Founder Tara Ebersold.
Saru by Bow Ramen
Saru serves Nagahama-style Tonkotsu ramen, featuring hand-cut noodles cooked in pork bone broth. Saru is Bow Ramen’s first concept outside of New York City.
La Caseta
La Caseta is a new concept from Raydal Hospitality, the owners of Sabor Latin Street Grill and Three Amigos and Mexican Cantina & Grill. The menu represents four countries and features seven items, all handmade and “very mother-made,” said Dalton Espaillat, CEO of Raydal Hospitality. “It’s welcoming Charlotte into my family, into what we eat at home and what our employees eat at home,” Espaillat said.
Connecting to the area’s history
Camp North End has established itself as a creative hub built on a rich history. The Keswick walkway is next to two new buildings, including the latest project — the Gama Goat Building.
The Gama Goat Building gets its name from its history. The building was originally built by the U.S. Army at the start of World War II. The factory later transitioned to assembling the Gama Goat, a six-wheel, semi-amphibious military vehicle used in the Vietnam War, later replaced by the Humvee.
To honor its name, an original Gama Goat truck is situated outside of the building encased in glass, “just like a T-Rex in a science museum,” said Tommy Mann, development director at ATCO Properties & Management, the developers of Camp North End. Few Gama Goats are left in the country. The one displayed at Camp North End was found in Oregon.
The new buildings offer the best of Camp North End’s goal of adaptive reuse, Mann said. The buildings feature timber trusses, steel beams, exposed brick and wood decking that reuse the original materials while creating an appealing aesthetic.
Camp North End’s example
At a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday, Mayor Vi Lyles officially opened the building with a reveal of the Gama Goat model. Lyles said Camp North End’s latest developments have furthered its mission to create an inclusive community.
“This is what we mean by growing an inclusive, welcoming and diverse city,” Lyles said. “It’s not just the people — it’s what the people do that creates this opportunity.”
Lyles cited an op-ed she wrote, published in the Charlotte Observer, that discussed how Charlotte’s corporations should lead with action, “not just with funding, not just with messages of support,” she said. “And you can see that coming to bare in the ongoing redevelopment of Camp North End,” Lyles said.
Lyles also praised Camp North End’s respect for history while building the community. “And for once, we are not tearing something down, we are actually making it work,” she said.
This is only the beginning for the Keswick walkway. An extension of the walkway will connect the path to the center of campus, named the Mount, and is set to open in August.
Camp North End will connect not only two streets, but seven surrounding neighborhoods by opening as a public hub, said Lilias Folkes John, public private partnerships and economic development program manager for the City of Charlotte. John said the most rewarding part of developing Camp North End is seeing it connect people across the city.
“They are very intentional of getting groups of people together who may not naturally come together on their own, and having them co-exist,” John said. “And it works really well.”
To meet the needs of “the new normal” created by the COVID-19 pandemic, Camp North End offers other outdoor spaces, such as a quarter-mile walkway around the Gama Goat Building to encourage tenants and visitors to spend time outside.
Signs are posted throughout the outdoor dining area with safety precautions, such as encouraging customers to wear a mask, new handwashing stations throughout the campus and requesting customers to stay six feet, or “a goat’s length,” apart. Furniture in the dining area is purposefully set up so customers can stay six feet apart, according to the sign.
Camp North End’s other businesses will also operate with extended hours on Fridays and Saturdays beginning June 26.
“Provided masks are worn in the interest of public health, all are welcome to stroll outside from the moment HEX Coffee’s walk-up window opens at 9 a.m. until Leah & Louise’s patio closes at 10 p.m,” Camp North End’s community manager Varian Shrum said in a statement.
Gov. Roy Cooper announced Wednesday that North Carolina will stay in Phase 2 of the reopening plan and mandated that masks be worn in public places starting Friday at 5 p.m. Here are some places to buy masks while shopping local.
This story was originally published June 24, 2020 at 5:36 PM.
