The best gelato you'll ever eat is coming to Raleigh! This European gelato cafe, Amorino is opening on the street level of the Edison Lofts at 109 Davie St. If you are not familiar with Amorino, they have US locations in New York, Boston, Beverly Hills, Chicago...and soon, Raleigh!

Amorino gelato and sorbets are churned everyday day in typical Italian fashion under the very watchful eyes of their chefs. Their recipes take into account the needed for the gelato to mature, to allow each flavor to develop to its full potential. Using only the freshest free range organic eggs and the highest grade whole milk. Absolutely no coloring agent or artificial flavors will be found in this gelato - this is one of Amorino's fundamental principles.

Created in 2002 by two childhood friends, Cristiano Sereni and Paolo Benassi, Amorino was born in the heart of Paris on Ile St Louis. The two founders' passion is highlighted in their values of exacting standards of quality, consistency, pleasure and flavor, as well as the cozy atmosphere in their shops.

Their success allowed them to open more stores in many prestigious locations. The crowds in front of their shops are very much a part of the summer scene in various capitals. Cristiano Sereni says "the greatest satisfaction is allowing people to discover, through Amorino, the magic of authentic traditional Italian gelato... it's part of my home, my native culture".

In 2005, Cristiano Sereni and Paolo Benassi were able to centralize their gelato production which allowed them to combine their valuable know-how with new techniques from the drawing board to actual production of each flavor.

Get ready for the best European gelato cafe opening in downtown Raleigh's Edison's Loft on Davie Street.

The magic of authentic traditional Italian gelato....Amorino!

Amorino - Edison Lofts at 109 Davie St. Website.

Dram & Draught, a whiskey bar at the corner of Hillsborough Street and Boylan Avenue in Raleigh, opened the first of August and are going strong.

The bar, located in the former Tao Auto location, is the latest project by Kevin Barrett and Drew Schenck. Barrett managed Foundation, another downtown Raleigh bar for many years, where he met Schenck. Schenck is the owner of RallyPoint Sport Grill in Cary.

Dram & Draught (the latter is the English spelling of draft and pronounced that way) is intended as a neighborhood bar offering Raleigh's best whiskey selection, along with craft cocktails and beer. It is a private club and will not serve food but Barrett says food trucks are planned and there's always Snoopy's or Char-Grill across the street.

Doing Good - Devastating storms that dumped over two feet of rain in 48 hours in parts of Louisiana has led to significant flooding resulting in nine casualties and more than 10,000 people living in shelters. To assist with flood-relief efforts, RallyPoint Sport Grill in Cary and Dram & Draught in Raleigh teamed up to bring much-needed supplies to those affected.
 
Chad Michael McIntyre, owner of Eco-Tech Draft Systems, LLC in Raleigh, went to his hometown of Baton Rouge to deliver much-needed supplies. Volunteers loaded up a truck, and Chad departed for flood-ravaged regions Saturday, Aug. 20.
 
Owners of RallyPoint and Dram & Draught, had volunteered the two locations as donation drop-off points. "Chad is willing to drive down to Louisiana and help those affected by the flooding, so they wanted to help and fill up the truck."

Dram & Draught - 623 Hillsborough St. Raleigh, NC 27603. Hours Tues.-Sat. 5pm-2am, Sun.- 12pm-12am. Website.