Wine tastings

Fourth Street Wine Shop will hold a free specialty wine tasting with "Wines to Pair with Spicy Foods" from 5:30-7:30 p.m. each Friday. Fourth Street Wine Shop is at 330 Evans St. Call 758-6900.

The Beef Barn, 400 St. Andrews Dr., will hold its informal weekly wine tasting, "Drink Wine with Bob Thursday" from 5:30-7 p.m. each Thursday in the restaurant's bar. Light hors d'oeuvres will be provided. Cost is $10 for five, 2-ounce portions. Special by-the-glass and bottle pricing is available. Reservations are not required. Call 756-1161.

Pirate's Pub

A hot lunch buffet has been added to the mid-day offerings at Pirate's Pub, 1914 Turnbury Drive.

General manager Jake Bakker said the weekday buffet features such fare as chicken and pastry, beer-butt chicken, fried chicken, pork chops, pork tenderloin, meat loaf, fish and shrimp. On Sundays, the buffet includes such breakfast items as scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage and muffins. Dessert and iced tea are included in the price of $8.50 per person.

The lunch buffet is available from noon-2 p.m. Mondays-Fridays and Sundays.

Bakker said Pirate's Pub also has added fresh-baked bread bowls filled with soups and chili.

Call 355-7956.

Italian restaurant coming

Trattoria Di Gioia Italian restaurant is slated to open June 1 at the Greenville Mall, formerly Colonial Mall. It will be located in the space recently occupied by Eclectic Gallery and Desserts near The Gap mall entrance.

Owner of the authentic Italian restaurant, whose name means "homemade joy," is Francesca Di Gioia.

Restaurant Runners

Greenville's restaurant delivery service Restaurant Runners has added three new restaurants to its service: Christy's Euro Pub on Jarvis Street, Pirate's Den on East Fifth Street and El Picante Mexican Grill on Fire Tower Road.

In addition, Restaurant Runners owner B.J. Coggins said delivery will be expanded to the Winterville area, and customers may place orders online at www.lifeeasier.com. Orders also may be placed by calling 551-EASY (3279).

Coggins founded Restaurant Runners 10 years ago and currently delivers meals from 22 local restaurants including Ham's, Hooters, Mazatlan, Ming Dynasty, Tie Breakers, Shiki Express, City Bistro, Basil's and Pirate's Pub. He said he is in talks to add several other local restaurants.

Christinne's

Christinne's Seafood Grille & Chophouse at the Hilton Greenville has welcomed back Chef de Cuisine Shannon Foster and added his Asian-infused cuisine to the traditional chophouse menu. The restaurant now offers breakfast and lunch buffets, as well.

Foster was in the kitchen at Christinne's 16 years ago when the restaurant moved into the Hilton. He left Christinne's to attend the Culinary Institute of America in New York, graduating in 1997. Since then he has served as executive chef at the renowned Memphis Country Club and Extreme Events in Memphis, as well as stints at The Banyan Cafe & Ophelis in Sarasota, Fla.

Christinne's is in the Hilton Greenville, 207 S.W. Greenville Blvd. Call 355-9500.

Panera breakfast

Three new grilled breakfast sandwiches — egg and cheese; bacon, egg and cheese; and sausage, egg and cheese — have been added to Panera Bread's breakfast menu. They're grilled on ciabatta bread. The breakfast sandwiches range in price from $3-$4.

Panera Bread's breakfast offerings include a wide variety of bagels, pastries and egg souffles.

Greenville's Panera Bread is at 516 S.E. Greenville Blvd. Call 317-8787.

Lakeview Room at

Brook Valley

The Lakeview Room at Brook Valley Country Club, 311 Oxford Road, now is serving meals Tuesdays through Sundays to the general public and club members.

Lunch buffets are offered from 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays. A grill menu featuring sandwiches and lighter fare is available all day. A breakfast buffet is offered on Saturdays, and a family-style meal is available from 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Sundays.

Patrons may order dinner from the menu from 5-9 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays and from 5-10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. The Lake-view Dinner menu changes monthly and may include such fine-dining entrees as steaks, seafood and chicken. Prices range from $15-$25. A special buffet dinner also will be offered from 6-8 p.m. Wednesdays; the theme changes each week. A grill menu with sandwiches and lighter fare is offered from 2-10 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays.

A "Birdie Breakfast Buffet" will be featured from 8-11 a.m. Saturdays. It will include a variety of different breakfast items each Saturday, with juice and coffee included. Price for the "Birdie Breakfast Buffet" will be $7.95 plus tax for members, and $9.95 plus tax for non-members.

Nibbles

A new combination Wendy's/Trade Wilco is slated for a site on Fire Tower Road near Faith and Victory Church.

Pianist Wes Taylor is performing on Friday and Saturday evenings at Greenville's Plum Tree Bistro, 730 Red Banks Road in Arlington Village. Taylor, a native of eastern North Carolina, began playing the piano at age 7. Call 353-0088.

All the dining areas at the Chico's Mexican Restaurant in Winterville will be nonsmoking every day until 8 p.m., according to owner Lisa Eagles. Chico's is at 4054 Memorial Drive beside Pitt Community College. Call 493-0003.

A new Bojangles Chicken and Biscuits fast-food restaurant opened Tuesday on Martin Luther King Jr./U.S. 264 bypass in front of North Campus Crossing.

Pirate's Den, 113 E. Fifth St., is now open for lunch beginning at 11:30 a.m. Daily food specials are offered, along with a menu that features burgers, wings and ribs. Call 551-9020.

Hot Dish is a weekly column of restaurant and food news in The Daily Reflector. To submit items for consideration, call Jane Hudson at 329-9577, fax 754-8140 or e-mail jhudson@coxnc.com.