Local Vendor Spotlight: Aviator Brewing Company

We are excited to feature Aviator Brewing Company as our first local vendor spotlight. We feature Aviator beers at our Raleigh and Durham locations. Aviator Brewing Company brings us delicious beers from right down the road, in Fuquay Varina.

Aviator Brewing Company has been flowing great local beers since opening their doors in November 2008. The original brewery located in an old airplane hangar (hence “Aviator”) housed the brewery, which at the time was brewing into two used dairy tanks. These 300 gallon tanks would soon not be able to hold the demand for Aviator, who began distributing to Triangle area bars within the first two months of existence. In fact neither would the hanger.

In April 2010 the brewery uprooted from its hanger at Triple W airport to a location four miles away. The past year has been a busy one for Aviator as they have moved distribution throughout the state as far west as Asheville, which boasts a big Aviator following at the local bars. They added three new fermentation tanks and a 22 oz. bottling system, making Aviator even that more attainable for the folks of the Triangle.

Through this change, one thing has remained the same, Aviator’s commitment to brewing delicious high quality beers. This commitment has won them the title of Triangle Arts & Entertainments Readers Choice Award for Best Brewery in the Triangle, as well as gold, silver, and two bronze medals in the NC Championship of beers in 2011; gold for their Saison, silver for their Belgian Tripel, and bronze for their Red and California Common Beers.

Look for Aviator’s beer selections at both our Raleigh and Durham stores, as they remain staples on our draft selection! Interested in having an Aviator beer, perhaps for the first time? Think about pairing it with these amazing dishes…

Saison de Aviator: 6.4% ABV- Spring Seasonal, A Belgian beer style with pilsner malts, mis-kilned malts, coriander and sweet orange peel. Unfiltered and golden in color this beer is slightly higher in carbonation and tastes of fruity Trappist yeast.
Suggested Menu Pairing: Tar Heel Lamb Wrap OR the Strawberry and Candied Pecan Salad

Devil’s Trampling Ground Tripel: 9.2 % ABV- A hearty Tripel Belgian ale. Golden in color with a fruity spicy flavor that finishes sweet. The Trampling Ground is light tasting from the addition of candy sugar, but don’t worry just the right amount of hops to balance out that sweetness.
Suggested Menu Pairing: Tuscan Chicken Sandwich or Greek Lemon Chicken

Check out the Aviator Brewing Company website for more info. Have a favorite local beer you'd like to see featured at Tobacco Road, just email us to let us know.

Entertainment Book Coupons Not Accepted

FYI we no longer accept Entertainment Book coupons. This marks the second year that Entertainment has issued them without our consent. Last year, we accepted them as a courtesy to our guests. Unfortunately, we will not be able to do that again, this year.

We encourage you to contact them with any questions or concerns: (888)-231-7283. Thank you for your understanding!

Table Tennis Media Tournament

In case you didn't know, Cary, NC is kind of a big deal in the competitive table tennis world. In fact, Cary will host the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials for table tennis from February 8-12 at Bond Park Community Center. These trials will feature the top 40 players in the US vying for a spot on the 2012 US Olympic Team.

That is pretty cool, but what does that have to do with Tobacco Road Sports Cafe, you might ask. Well, in anticipation for the event, 11 members of the local media (radio, tv, web and print) will be playing in their own table tennis tournament on January 13th. This media tournament will take place at our Raleigh location on Glenwood Ave. It begins at 7 pm and the public is invited to come out as spectators to this unique event.

Here's the list of the fierce competitors:

• Mark Armstrong, WTVD TV 11
• J. Mike Blake, Cary News
• Page Crawford, WNCN NBC 17
• Luke DeCock, News & Observer
• Penn Holderness, WNCN NBC 17
• Chuck Kaiton, Carolina Hurricanes
• Mike Maniscalco, 99.9 The Fan
• Derek Medlin, WRAL.com
• Joe Ovies, 99.9 The Fan
• Tisha Powell, WTVD TV 11
• Mark Thomas, 99.9 The Fan

Don't miss out on what is sure to be a competitive and certainly comical affair!

New Year's Eve Reservations

With so much focus on the holidays, New Year's Eve always seems to sneak up on us. Inevitably, the evening comes and we haven't made plans. Get a jump-start on your New Year’s Resolution to quit procrastinating, and book your New Year’s Eve dinner reservations today. In Durham, Tobacco Road Sports Café has an offer you cannot resist. We will have a four-course meal for just $30 per person. But don’t let this amazing bargain fool you, all four courses (described below) will be prepared with fresh, delicious ingredients.

We are accepting reservations for parties of 4 or more, and will have seatings at 6:30 and 9pm. Book your reservation in advance and you can pre-order a bottle of Domaine champagne for just $15 (that’s a 55% savings!) to properly toast the New Year, or upgrade to a bottle of Veuve for $60.

New Year’s Eve Dinner Menu

First Course (to share):

Buffalo Chicken Spring Rolls

Fried Green Tomatoes with roasted red pepper aioli and basil pesto

Pan Seared Scallops with arugula salad and vanilla black pepper syrup

Second Course:

Cup of soup

Caesar Salad

House Salad

Third Course:

Grilled NY Strip - Tomato Chutney, Roasted Fingerling Potatoes, Green Beans

Pan Seared Salmon - Peppered Cranberry Coulis, Asparagus, Sautéed Butternut Squash

Greek Lemon Chicken - Grilled Chicken with Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Spinach, Feta and Sun-dried Tomatoes

Fourth Course:

Chocolate Hazelnut Mousse Napoleon

Mango Crème Brulee

Call 919-449-4899 to make your reservation.

Toy Donations to benefit the United Way

Tobacco Road Sports Cafe has decided to spread the holiday cheer even further, so in addition to sponsoring the United Way in the Triangle Christmas Tree Challenge, we are accepting new, age appropriate, unwrapped toy donations. These toys will give kids in our community a very merry Christmas, which in itself is a great reward.

But to show our appreciate for your support of the United Way, we are offering a raffle for anyone who brings in a toy donation. For each toy you bring in, you will be entered to win 2 tickets to the Duke vs. Maryland game (for the Durham location) or the Duke vs. Florida State game (for the Raleigh location). As if that wasn't enough, you will have the opportunity to take the half-time, half-court shot for a chance to win $10,000!

So don your Santa hat and satisfy your inner child for the sake of putting a smile on a child's face this Christmas.

Triangle Christmas Tree Challenge

If you've been to downtown Durham lately, you may have noticed a plethora of Christmas trees adorning the Diamond View Park, right outside DPAC. In case you didn't know, these trees represent local non-profits, vying to win up to $5,000 to benefit their missions. Tobacco Road Sports Cafe is excited to announce our sponsorship of the United Way of the Greater Triangle's tree.

Working with the United Way we realized, not everyone will have a Merry Christmas this year. So rather than decorating our tree with glittering lights and festive ornaments, we decided to donate our tree to single mother and her 8 year old son.

This is just a small gesture when there are 206,941 individuals in our community who are living in poverty, and 68.142 of those are children. In order to help more of these people, we need you to VOTE for our tree and help the United Way win this contest, and in turn, give back to our neighbors. You can vote online, by visiting the contest's website or by texting TREE49 to 46988. Voting ends December 18th, so please get your vote in before time runs out!

In addition to the competition, we will be accepting toy donations at our Durham location. All toys will go to the United Way of the Greater Triangle for families with young children in our community.

Order $50 Tobacco Road gift card, get $10 card free

There's always that one person on everyone's holiday shopping list that is simply impossible to buy for. Rather than getting them another tie, candle, coffee mug or best-seller, try something new this year. This year, give the gift of fresh, delicious food, exceptional service, and infinite sports. Now you can wrap up that experience and put a bow on it by purchasing a Tobacco Road Sports Cafe gift card.

For every $50 order made online between December 8th through the 22nd, you get a $10 card FREE! Just to sweeten the deal even more, all gift cards are mailed out the following day, and there is no charge for delivery/procession, and absolutely no expiration date. Click here to order a gift card online.

So breathe a sigh of relief, because this holiday season you can put up your feet and enjoy the eggnog, worry-free.