Food & Drink · Restaurants
NOFO @ The Pig
About
NOFO @ The Pig
Tucked into one of the corners of Raleigh’s beloved Five Points, NOFO @ The Pig is that rare spot that defies a single label. Part Southern cafe, part specialty grocery and part wonderfully cluttered gift shop, it lives inside a former Piggly Wiggly in the Hayes Barton Historic District. Locals have folded it into their weekend routines for years, and first-time visitors tend to leave with both a full stomach and a shopping bag.
A Former Piggly Wiggly with a Story
The building at 2014 Fairview Road spent years as a neighborhood Piggly Wiggly before the grocery closed in 1998. Raleigh native Jean Martin saw potential in the empty shell and reimagined it as NOFO @ The Pig. The name is a nod to her first store, NOFO, short for North Fourth, on North Fourth Street in Wilmington, and the Pig affectionately tips its hat to the grocery that came before. Martin kept many of the original touches, and you can still spot preserved artifacts from the old market woven into the decor, giving the space a sense of history you rarely find in a restaurant.
Southern Comfort, Served All Day
The cafe is the heart of the operation, turning out unfussy Southern comfort food from lunch through dinner. Midday brings sandwiches and plates like the shrimp and grits, a fried green tomato BLT, the popular spinach burger and a basket of sweet potato fries. Come evening, the kitchen leans into heartier fare, with entrees such as pan-seared salmon, crab cakes, Ashley Farms chicken and a proper plate of shrimp and grits over creamy cheese grits. Daily specials round things out, and the pan-fried chicken on Wednesdays and meatloaf with gravy on Thursdays are longtime favorites that keep regulars on a schedule.
Weekend Brunch in Five Points
Weekends are made for brunch here. Saturdays and Sundays start late morning with Southern-leaning plates like country breakfast, pulled pork hash, steak and eggs, honey French toast and a lineup of Benedicts and omelettes. There is a kid-friendly Little Nofolks menu, indoor and outdoor seating, and an easygoing pace that makes it a natural gathering place for families and neighbors. It is the kind of brunch where you can linger over coffee and then wander the shop while you wait for a table to clear.
More Than a Cafe: Market and Gifts
What sets NOFO apart is everything surrounding the tables. The specialty food market stocks pantry goods and treats, many sourced from North Carolina artisans, while the gift shop is famously eclectic, a browse-worthy jumble of cards, books, kitchenware, toys and home goods with price tags reportedly running from a few cents to several hundred dollars. Owner Jean Martin refreshes the displays seasonally, so the shop feels different depending on the time of year and the holiday on the horizon. Plan to give yourself extra time to explore, because the shopping is half the fun.
Planning Your Visit
NOFO @ The Pig sits at 2014 Fairview Road, Raleigh, NC 27608, with easy foot traffic from the surrounding Five Points and Hayes Barton neighborhoods. The cafe is closed on Mondays and serves lunch Tuesday through Friday, adds dinner service Wednesday through Saturday, and pours weekend brunch on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Reservations generally are not needed for the casual cafe, though busy weekend brunches can bring a wait. Whether you are stopping in for shrimp and grits, hunting for a last-minute gift or simply soaking up a piece of Raleigh history, NOFO delivers a distinctly local experience you cannot get anywhere else. Call ahead at (919) 821-1240 to confirm current hours before you go.