Chef Vivian Howard opens Viv’s Fridge in Raleigh. Here’s where to find her food.

After years of clamoring for a local concept, Triangle diners can now taste Vivian Howard’s food without making the drive to Kinston.

The acclaimed chef has expanded her smart fridge concept Viv’s Fridge to the Triangle, setting up a location outside Wine Authorities at 211 E. Franklin Street in Raleigh.

Howard launched the meal service over the summer, offering chilled take-home dishes 24 hours a day. It’s as if an ATM could give you chocolate cake or beef short ribs.

Now there are five Viv’s Fridges set up statewide, with locations in Kinston, Emerald Isle, Goldsboro, Raleigh and New Bern.

The fridges feature ready-to-reheat dishes made famous in Howard’s Kinston restaurant, Chef & the Farmer, and in her cookbooks. Foodie fans will find favorites like Blueberry BBQ glazed chicken and Chocolate Candy Cake.

For her Raleigh location, Howard said she sought out a natural pairing: an easy meal and a spot to pick up wine.

“We found that the relationship between a wine shop and Viv’s Fridge is symbiotic,” Howard said in a release. “We wanted to expand to new locations. In the Triangle, Wine Authorities is a wine shop that I go to when I’m in town. In New Bern, Galley Stores also sells wine and focuses on North Carolina products. They both seemed like a great fit.”

Holiday menu items

With the holidays here, the fridges are stocked with dishes that are ready to party, including a cheese ball, sausage biscuits with rosemary gravy and a breakfast casserole sure to star at homes on Christmas morning.

“The holiday menu is not only designed to help with Christmas breakfast or Christmas Eve dinner,” Howard said. “It’s also designed to offer great gifts. There’s nothing better than a last-minute consumable gift.”

Howard is the acclaimed chef of multiple restaurants in Kinston, Wilmington and Charleston, SC. Viv’s Fridge is her debut of sorts in the Triangle market.

Born from the pandemic, Howard said Viv’s Fridge leans into diners’ familiarity with restaurant quality take-home meals.

“Before, you either cooked or you went out,” Howard said over the summer. “Now I think we have a whole other way of eating, where restaurants pivoted to meal kits. Maybe we don’t want to make a full meal, but I think we understand how to put shortribs in the oven.”

To christen the Raleigh location, Howard will be at Wine Authorities in Raleigh on Wednesday, Dec. 21 from 4 to 6 p.m., offering bites to sample.

Learn more about menu offerings and prices at vivsfridge.com.