Winterville restaurateurs Scott and Kim Joyner, who have operated Wimpie's Steam Bar and Grill in Winterville since 1991, are ready to retire. So they're turning over the lease to their restaurant to their longtime friends — Donna Ware and her son Patrick Ware — who will open their own restaurant in the space.

“Running a restaurant is for a young person,” Scott Joyner said, “and I've found a young boy who wants to pursue his dream. He's been looking for a place for the last three or four years. I've known his family for years, and watched him grow up, and he and his mother asked if we would be interested in leasing to them. Kim and I are planning to turn it over to him. We're just a few days from getting the lease signed.

“Patrick was like a kid in a candy store when he walked through and you could see in his eyes that it felt right — and the timing feels right to us as well.”

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