Sustainable eatery to replace Zoca in Lenoir

This semester at Lenoir Mainstreet, expect to find food from your backyard.

A new dining establishment, called 1.5.0., will serve primarily sustainable foods with help from local farmers. It will replace Zoca, which served Tex-Mex food.

The idea for the restaurant came from an initiative by Carolina Dining Services to place a focus on using sustainable foods and building relationships with farmers.

First week’s menu includes: 

Hand-cut sweet potato fries with honey butter dressing.

Wild Alaskan salmon over organic lentil salad

Grass-fed beef lasagna

Organic Indian dal masala

That’s where the restaurant gets its name: Usually food is considered sustainable if it comes from fewer than 150 miles away.

The restaurant is getting food from many farmers nearby, including cheese from Chapel Hill Creamery and grass-fed beef and organic vegetables from Cane Creek Farm.

“We ask what they have and we’ll work with it,” said Paul Basciano, executive chef for Carolina Dining Services. “The menu sort of has a life of its own.”

The restaurant will feature a chalkboard menu that will change weekly based on which ingredients are in season. Basciano said he hopes to create a rustic, globally inspired menu.

Sweet potatoes, of which North Carolina is the number one producer, will be a common staple on the menu. The first week’s menu will feature sweet potato fries as well as an apple and sweet potato bisque.

“It’s been great for us to have that creativity,” Basciano said.

Side items, entrees and desserts will be served. Prices could typically range from $2 to $9, depending on the type of food being served and the amount of food ordered, Basciano said.

Some on-the-go items will also be available, including organic yogurts and iced teas.

Scott Myers, director of food and vending, said while seasonal and geographical constraints will require some foods to come from distributors, Carolina Dining Services will work to remain as sustainable as possible. When ordering seafood, for example, national standards will be used to determine the most sustainable options.

While developing the idea for 1.5.0., organizers also worked with on-campus groups, including Fair, Local, Organic Food, which promotes the use of sustainable food systems.

Buying local and organic food is often more expensive than getting food from a distributor, Myers said, and he hopes to discover whether the 1.5.0. could succeed as a viable retail option.

“We’re trying to keep in touch with the student base,” Myers said. “We have to see if people are willing to pay more than for fast food.”

Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.