"What an amazing recognition," said Benchwarmer's owner Joshua Bellamy. "It's awesome. It's completely unexpected."
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In Raleigh, Benchwarmer's scrumptious, savory bagels complete with a schmear of specialty cream cheese, and the perfectly steeped tea or crafted latte at Heirloom are making the cut in the culinary competition.
In the Durham area, Sister Liu's Kitchen prides itself on authentic Chinese food.
If you want to dine on the dumplings or slurp cold noodles, just know there's are no tables. People are cramming into the corner store to take-out.
"It's a great find. I'm a foodie so I love eating up places like this," said customer Bill Harrison.
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M Tempura, which serves up crispy katsu and citrus soaked crudo, also wowed the magazine's judges.
Bellamy said the multiple nominations are a win for the entire region and it shows we're home to a cornucopia of spots sure to tantalize the taste buds.
"The culinary scene is so much more fleshed out and vibrant and there's so many awesome leaders and trailblazers and it's just moving in such a wonderful direction," he said.
Bon Appetit is going to be whittling down its top 50 list and announcing its top 10 in the country next week.