AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
The short-lived location of a legendary Triangle cafe will close this month after three decades in business.
Read more NC House says it will override veto on homeless camp ban when session resumes
This week Cafe Carolina & Bakery announced it would close its last remaining location in the Village District, ending a brand that at one point spanned four restaurants and fed immeasurable regulars.
“It is with a heavy heart that we share that Cafe Carolina will be closing permanently on Monday, August 31,” owner Ron Hines said in the closing announcement. “Many things have changed over the past six years that have made it difficult for a business like ours to survive. We’ve fought hard to pivot — making menu changes, moving location, focusing on delivery options — but in the end it was never quite enough.”
Hines originally founded Cafe Carolina in the Village District in 1995, opening at 401 Daniels St. But in 2023 Hines relocated from that longtime spot to 2130 Clark Ave., about a block away. The original Cafe Carolina building is now the Postino wine bar.
Over the years, Hines grew Cafe Carolina to four locations, including the ground-floor of the Wells Fargo building in downtown Raleigh, Cary and Chapel Hill. The massive Wells Fargo location closed in 2017, followed by the other two in 2021.
Read more UNC adds this 7-foot center as it continues to build its basketball roster
Now there are only three weeks left for Cafe Carolina and its popular offerings of pastries, breakfast sandwiches and lunch hour standards.
“This decision was not made lightly, but we know it is the right one,” Hines said in the closing announcement. “And while we’re extremely sad to close this chapter, we also look back on the last 30 years in the Triangle and beyond with infinite gratitude.”
When Cafe Carolina relocated in 2023, it took over the former SoCa restaurant space. But cafes depend on regularity and the new location asked regulars to alter their routines, parking in a garage instead of a parking lot and entering though an interior entrance.
Hines said what he’ll miss most is being a cherished part of customers’ lives.
“From chatting with regulars daily over coffee to seeing children who used to come to Cafe with their parents no drive themselves to see us, you’ve allowed us to be a part of your lives and that has been the greatest privilege,” Hines said. “Thank you, Cafe Carolina family, for everything.”
Read more Recalled jalapeños linked to salmonella outbreak sicken 3 in NC. What we know
This story was originally published August 7, 2026 at 1:03 PM.