This one, our 13th annual Best of Chapel Hill issue, is for the dreamers. First, there’s Scott Maitland, who served in the military and then attended law school at UNC. Here, he thought up the idea for Top of the Hill. He saved Franklin Street from a TGI Fridays and forever cemented Bell Tower Blueberry Wheat as a beloved beer that, for so long before it was served year-round, signaled the start of spring.
For years, Lisa Joyner taught English at Carolina Friends School. These days, the learning happens in her Fireside Farm garden beds as she’s accompanied by three fluffy Great Pyrenees. Lisa grows beautiful blooms, but her roots are never far – she sometimes crafts bouquets for her former students’ weddings.
When Karen Cunningham founded Simply Audrey, she fulfilled the lifelong dream that was printed inside her eighth grade yearbook – to own a clothing boutique. “It’s something I wanted to do my whole life,” Karen says.
Jemel Sutton sat at the feet of his grandmother as a kid, picking up cooking tips and preparing dinners for his siblings. As an adult, he’d bring plates of food to Ephesus Elementary School, where his wife, Danielle Sutton, was assistant principal. That soon snowballed into a full-fledged catering business that the duo runs together.
Breadman’s began with the hard work of the Piscitello family, who opened the doors 50 years ago. Now, Omar Castro, who started working at the beloved omelet joint when he was in high school, is continuing the legacy alongside his own family.
Read on for more stories of people who had a vision and stuck with it through ups and downs. They are the heart and soul of our community and our readers’ favorites businesses. – Jessica Stringer, editor
THE 13TH ANNUAL BEST OF ISSUE
38 Bringing Food to the Table
Table receives this year’s Best of Chapel Hill Social Impact Award
44 Made With Love
Healing a heavy heart with food and hospitality
50 Cooking Up Success
Jemel Sutton and Danielle Sutton’s journey from family meals to a flourishing catering company
56 Go With the Flow
Recess Yoga is the culmination of a lifelong passion
62 Staycation, All I Ever Wanted
Spend a night at one of our readers’ favorite hotels
66 Saving a Material World
The Consignors’ online estate sales serve as a sustainable model for creating less waste and more savings
70 Style and Substance
Simply Audrey celebrates five years of empowering through fashion
76 Celestial Celebration
Morehead Planetarium and Science Center observes its diamond jubilee
82 Purrfect Playtime
Cat Tales Cat Cafe offers a feline-friendly experience for the whole group
86 No Place Like Home
Four winning interior designers share a recent project
94 In Full Bloom
Fireside Farm has grown from an ambitious hobby to a bustling business during the past decade
102 Best of Chapel Hill 2024 Winners
126 The Bold and the Beautiful
The Ehrenfeld family built a dream house in Governors Club
DEPARTMENTS
8 About Town
Events not to miss
20 Noted
What we’ve heard around our towns …
26 What We’re Eating
News from our restaurant community, plus a dish we love
35 Once A Tar Heel …
Scott Maitland, owner and founder of beloved Chapel Hill institution Top of the Hill, talks law school, his go-to order and returning to UNC to teach
144 Animal House
A guide to area vets, animal hospitals, groomers, boarders, pet sitters, dog parks and rescue organizations
PEOPLE & PLACES
10 Women of Achievement
12 Public School Foundation 5K
14 Table’s Spring Fundraiser
15 Mama Dip’s 95th Birthday Celebration
16 Golden Horizon Gala
17 Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Recognition Celebration
18 Habitat CEO Build
19 Books on Break
