Three Ayden women, one of whom has more than 30 years experience in Baltimore restaurants, have joined with a local investment partnership to open the upscale Second Street Café in Ayden.

The restaurant, which offers lunch and dinner with Southern flair, is at the corner of Second and Lee streets in downtown Ayden. It's the former location of Sarah's Art Café.

Jenni Farrow/The Daily Reflector (ENLARGE)

The staff of Ayden's Second Street Café pose with owners Glendora Taylor, left, Bonnie Bell and Gwender Davis.

Owners are Glendora Taylor, who operated two restaurants in Baltimore, including one in the Inner Harbor, and her friend Bonnie Bell and her daughter Gwender Davis.

"We did this based on a dream, a blessing," said Taylor, who had intended to retire from the restaurant business when she moved back home to Pitt County. But she started making dishes for events at her church, Ayden's Zion Chapel, and was named the church's kitchen chairwoman. Before long, she was catering with Bell and Davis.

"We just dreamed wouldn't it be nice to have a little swank place to come in and listen to music and have coffee," Taylor said. "We looked at this building for a year, and then it became available."

With financing by the local South Ayden Investment Group, their dream to open a restaurant became a reality.

The menu includes "regional combinations with Glendora's twist," said restaurant business manager Henry Davis. "They took the very best from every place and brought it to Ayden — where there are no traffic jams."

Appetizers include Collard Green and Artichoke Dip ($5.50), fried mushrooms ($4.99) and Paradise Fruit Salsa ($3.25). There's soup of the day ($2.50 for a cup) and a variety of salads including green house salad ($4.95), grilled or fried chicken salad ($7.95) and specialty pasta salad with grilled chicken ($7.95).

Sandwiches include tuna salad, chunky chicken salad, smoked turkey, fresh shrimp salad, grilled ham and cheese, bacon steak burger, rib-eye steak sandwich and crab cake sandwich. Sandwiches range in price from $6.25-$8.95 and are served with a choice of chips, pasta salad, potato salad, cole slaw, fries or onion twigs.

Daily specials include fried chicken, smothered chicken, spaghetti and meat balls, salmon cakes, beef liver with onions and gravy, chicken and pastry and spare ribs.

Entrees, served from 5-9 p.m., include sirloin beef tips and Carolina catfish nuggets for $10.95; Lemon Delight Tilapia for $11.95; Low Country Chicken (chicken breast stuffed with collards, bacon and Swiss cheese) and Chicken Marsala for $12.95; jumbo fantail shrimp for $13.95; and Maryland crab cakes — The Second Street Café specialty — for $15.95.

Desserts include homemade bread pudding with fresh lemon sauce ($3), cheesecake and Key Lime pie ($3.25) and sweet potato squares ($3.50).

The children's menu includes a choice of peanut butter and jelly sandwich, chicken nuggets, grilled cheese sandwich or corn doggie with fries or applesauce and beverage for $2.49.

Beverages include lemonade, iced tea, hot tea, Coca-Cola products, bottled water and coffee.

The non-smoking restaurant seats 42 people at a wooden bar and tables with white tablecloths and cushioned chairs. The music played on the sound system is a mixture of traditional gospel and jazz known as "jazz-pel;" live music will be offered twice a month.

The Second Street Café employes nine people in addition to the management team, "a mixture of seasoned veterans and kids right out of high school," Henry Davis said.

Catered box lunches include a choice of cold deli sandwich, homemade cookie, chips and 16-ounce drink for $7.95; call ahead for large orders.

Hours are 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and 5-9 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays, 1-9 p.m. Saturdays and 1-7 p.m. Sundays. Reservations are suggested. Call 746-2234. Orders may be faxed to 746-7555.

Beef Barn

The Beef Barn, 400 St. Andrews Drive, is offering summer dinner specials beginning at 5 p.m. Mondays-Saturdays.

Specials include meat loaf with mashed potatoes and corn for $9.95; Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken Breast and Coconut Chicken, each for $10.95; Coconut Shrimp and Chipotle Pork Tenderloin, each for $11.95; Texas Smoked BBQ Beef Brisket, Steak Loin Medallions and Bacon Wrapped Scallops, each for $12.95; and Bourbon Teriyaki Sirloin Steak for $13.95.

Specials are served with a choice of baked potato, steak fries, mashed potatoes or vegetable of the day (unless otherwise stated) and garden or spinach salad.

Call 756-1161.

Farmers' market

Fresh produce available this week at the Pitt County Farmers' Market, 4560 County Home Road, includes: string beans, pole beans, bush beans, beets, cucumbers, broccoli, cabbage, collards, garden peas, lima beans, sweet potatoes, red potatoes, blueberries, peaches, cantaloupes, plums, tomatoes, green tomatoes, turnips, radishes, white onions, spring onions, red onions and a variety of squashes including kabachi, patty pan, bottleneck, zucchini, cushaw and Persian. Fresh herbs include basil, mint, cilantro, chives and thyme. The market also will feature local honey with the comb, pecans, fresh cut flowers, vegetable bedding plants, hanging baskets, hot horseradish, mustard, peppered vinegar, homemade granola, salsa, and preserves such as okra, plum, fig, strawberry, corn relish and habanero spread. Breads for sale include banana, zucchini, wheat, white, cheddar and egg.

A food demonstration featuring Chef Felix Fernandez from East Carolina University Dining will be held from 9 a.m.-noon Saturday. A kids' corner will be available. The demonstration is sponsored by the Pitt County Health Education Foundation, Pitt Partners for Health, local farmers and the Pitt County Health Department.

The Pitt County Farmers' Market is open from 8 a.m.-1 p.m. Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and from 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Fridays. Call 355-7612.

Benefit scheduled

A kickoff party for Riley's Army, a local nonprofit organization supporting pediatric cancer patients and their families, will be held during lunch and dinner today at Applebee's, 202 S.W. Greenville Blvd.

Applebee's will donate to Riley's Army a portion of the eat-in or carry-out meals ordered by patrons who present the ad in The Daily Reflector or the coupon which may be downloaded at www.rileysarmy.com.

Riley's Army is a charitable fund affiliated with the Greater Greenville Community Foundation.

Wine tastings

Beef Barn, 400 St. Andrews Drive, will hold its weekly "Drink Wine With Bob Thursday" wine tasting from 5:30-7 p.m. Thursday. Beef Barn owner and wine expert Bob Simon has selected five wines for the tasting: Rosenblum Zinfandel Contra Coast, Ferrari Cararro Siena, Campus Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon, Rosenblum Petite Sirah and Bogle Petite Sirah. Cost is $10 for the sampling and light hors d'oeuvres; special prices by the glass or bottle are available.

No reservations are required. Call 756-1161.

Dolce Vita, 3110 Evans St., Suite F, will hold a wine tasting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday with complimentary appetizers and samples of five different wines from New Zealand. Call 329-8500 or visit www.DolceVitaEntertaining.com.

Fourth Street Wine Shop, corner of Fourth and Evans streets in downtown Greenville, will feature "Wine Labels: Gimmicky or Goodness?" from 6:30-8:30 Friday. The tasting will feature three wines that have rather interesting labels, which patrons may taste to decide if they are worth the money that went into the advertising or if they are just eye-catching gimmicks. Wines for sampling will be Stump-Jump White, Marquis Phillips Cabernet and Boarding Pass Shiraz. Call 758-6900.

Pirate's Pub, 1914 Turnbury Drive, will hold a wine tasting from 6-8 p.m. Thursday. Call 355-7956.

Nibbles

Renovations are underway at the Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant at 600 S.W. Greenville Blvd. to remodel the location to house dual KFC and Long John Silver's fast-food seafood restaurants. The interior and exterior renovations are expected be completed by July 24. Both KFC and Long John Silver's are part of Yum! Brands Inc.

Texas Roadhouse is slated to open Aug. 18 at 720 S.W. Greenville Blvd., near the Greenville Grande theater.

A Bruegger's Bagels bakery is slated to open in September at 109 S.E. Greenville Blvd., in the shopping area currently under construction in the space that formerly housed Ragazzi's Italian restaurant.

Riverside Steak Bar, 2301 Stantonsburg Road, closed June 19, according to employee Lillian Berry, who had been acting manager since the May 25 death of owner Billie Terrell.

A sign on the door at Gilligan's Low-Country Seafood restaurant, 2903 E. 10th St., reads "closed until further notice," but the restaurant's signs have been removed and a message on the telephone answering machine states, "We are now closed. We would like to thank all of our guests for their patronage over the past year."

Big Apple Pizzeria also closed recently at 1898 S.E. Greenville Blvd.

To Bean or Not To Bean coffee house has closed in Greenville's Hardee Village.

The Chico's Mexican Restaurant at 521 Cotanche St. in downtown Greenville is offering a free child's meal for each adult menu entree and beverage purchase from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturdays and 5-9 p.m. Tuesdays, dine-in only. Kids under age 11 may choose from tacos, enchiladas, puppy dogs, chicken fingers, burritos or quesadillas, served with rice and beans or applesauce. Call 757-1666.

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