A beloved Triangle tea house has closed, but a food truck hot spot will return

The picturesque Honeysuckle Tea House in Chapel Hill, which became an outdoor refuge for some in the pandemic, has closed to the public.

Built as something of a tree house oasis and garden on Orange County farmland, Honeysuckle has been an artisan beverage destination in the Triangle since its opening 2014 by Tim and Megan Toben. Honeysuckle specialized in teas and herbs grown on the farm.

Current owner Jeff Fisher said Honeysuckle Tea House will remain available as an events space, but that its days as a cafe are over — at least for now. He said he knows the community will miss the space, but that the weekend cafe wasn’t profitable, especially tied to the whims of the weather.

“We were losing a lot of money there, which is one of those things you that you can’t do for so long,” Fisher said. “Everyone loved the place, we knew people would be disappointed.”

Fisher and Honeysuckle announced the closing on social media on Monday.

“We draw so much joy from the great atmosphere our grounds provide, and we know you do too,” the owners posted on Instagram. “We know this may cause sadness for those of you who frequent The Honeysuckle Tea House each weekend. We hope that by focusing on making the business more sustainable, we can ensure that you have a better experience when you join us in the future.”

In the early uncertain days of the pandemic, Honeysuckle offered an airy outdoor space for customers looking for a safe way to go out. Fisher said that role was meaningful to the shop.

“Being able to be open during COVID was special for us,” Fisher said. “I remember seeing blankets throughout the field as far as you could see, a picnic oasis.”

But more recently, Fisher said he’s seeing less flexibility and forgiveness in hospitality, which he said contributed to the closing, though he didn’t offer specific incidents.

“People are nastier, more self-entitled (about hospitality,)” Fisher said. “It’s a farm, it’s imperfect, it’s hard to keep staff, it’s a lot of work. When it feels like people are always not happy, it’s hard to keep doing it while always losing money.”

During the pandemic, the Honeysuckle brand expanded to Durham, turning the former food truck rodeo County Fare into the Honeysuckle at Lakewood. Instead of hosting a variety of food trucks, Honeysuckle at Lakewood morphed into a restaurant, bar and meadery, Fisher said.

But after a brief shutdown, now it’s changing back.

“We’re migrating back to (the food truck) idea,” Fisher said. “We’re going to look at that model again.”

The new Honeysuckle at Lakewood will reopen Oct. 19 with a reconfigured bar and serving food from the Honeysuckle food truck. Eventually, Fisher said other local food trucks will rotate through the space and also serve diners.

“People are going to more of the counter service and order model, instead of the full wait staff,” Fisher said. “A lot of things have changed since (Honeysuckle bought County Fare), we feel like this is a good fit, we’re trying to simplify.”

In moving to a counter service model, Fisher acknowledged layoffs at Lakewood, which had been the subject of a post on Reddit earlier in the month. Fisher declined to address specifics regarding the restaurant’s staffing, but said the restaurant tries not to engage on social media.

“People have gotten so nasty,” Fisher said of the tone he sees on social media. “You’re always bad and evil.”

Fisher said Honeysuckle has partnered with Cary’s Fortnight Brewing and its management team on the reopening.

Honeysuckle at Lakewood is located at 1920 Chapel Hill Road in Durham.