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A bartender at Crafted: The Art of the Taco, grabs a drink to serve a customer during the restaurant’s soft opening Sunday night for friends and family of the owners. Crafted officially opens for dinner service this week at 119 Clay St. in downtown Mebane.
A bartender at Crafted: The Art of the Taco, grabs a drink to serve a customer during the restaurant’s soft opening Sunday night for friends and family of the owners. Crafted officially opens for dinner service this week at 119 Clay St. in downtown Mebane.
Crafted: The Art of the Taco opens this week in Mebane. In this time of a pandemic, variants, supply chain woes, labor shortages, and construction demands, a portal opened just long enough to finally allow the restaurant’s owners to put the necessary pieces in place to begin serving burgers, beer, and — of course — tacos.
About 10 months after placing the ‘coming soon’ sign in the front window of what used to be the Downtown Mebane Table, Clay Street’s much-anticipated, newest addition has completed its makeover of the space and is now ready to open, even if only for dinner.
If you had ever eaten at The Table, you might be stunned by the changes. Walls were torn down and its bar was completely removed. The concrete floor for about half the front area of the space was dug out to add plumbing for Crafted’s 24-foot bar. The walls were painted and decked out with stylish wallpaper; bathrooms updated, kitchen equipment expanded, point-of-sales system updated; and the exterior spruced up. And, to top it off, three hand-painted, original murals and a neon light that says, “Tacos.”
“When we first decided we wanted to open [a restaurant] in Mebane, the first thing we noticed was there was a true sense of community,” said Tate Roby, who has worked in the industry for nearly a decade, and met her husband, Pat, while working at a restaurant in Greensboro. “Everyone was super-welcoming and ready to lend a hand, whether it was advice or someone from across the street giving us a doorstopper to prop open the front door when we first started moving stuff in and out. Simple things like that made a difference, especially when you’re new to the area.”
Ten months later, the Robys feel like they’ve become a part of the community and even more, recognize the strength of it.
The Mebane Crafted is an offspring of the original Greensboro location, founded by Burlington native Kris Fuller, who is also a chef, and something of a divining rod for niche and unique food destinations. The restaurant has earned a reputation for being one of the hottest dining spots in the Triad, and regularly attracts taco lovers from out of town. Even though the Robys have handled much of the heavy lifting involved with getting the Mebane location open, Fuller has been closely involved and provided guidance throughout the process. And she is confident and excited for the new restaurant owners.
“I am thrilled to be at a place where they can finally get their doors open and I’m thrilled to be a part of a new community,” Fuller said. “And I’m thrilled to expand the brand in a way that offers opportunity for other people who want to get into this industry and want to be small-business owners, but work with a concept that’s already in place. I think it’s exciting times for for me, for Crafted as a company, and for Pat and Tate. I couldn’t have asked for two better people to be the first venture into a licensed location where they own and operate it themselves. I think they’re the perfect team to do that for our first go-round.”
The Robys purchased the 2,775-square-foot space at 119 W. Clay St. in mid-2021. The location was formerly home to the Downtown Mebane Table, a formal dining destination that closed for good during the Covid-19 shut down. Once they had keys to the space, the couple, who moved from Greensboro to Haw River, began expanding their vision for their restaurant.
“When we purchased the building, it was fairly turnkey,” said Pat Roby, who is a long-time veteran of the restaurant industry. “Once we got in there and saw its full potential, it helped expand our vision and we took advantage of the fact that we were not yet open, made a lot of changes, updated a lot, and turned it into what it is now.”
The building dates to 1905. As is often the case with renovating spaces with that kind of age, tackling one project often leads to unexpected issues and expenses. Throw in with that a pandemic that repeatedly forced delays on starting and completing work, carrying out inspections, and receiving supplies, it wasn’t uncommon for the owners to wonder if they had gotten in over their heads.
“There have been several moments, especially after every setback we’ve been through, that we’ve asked ourselves, ‘Was this the right time? Was this the right move?’” Tate said.
“I told people, ‘If they were going to hit a hurdle, (Tate and Pat) hit every hurdle,’” Fuller said.
Despite those challenges, the Robys pushed forward and kept an optimistic outlook for their business venture and future.
“We’re finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel for being ready to open, and we feel like we would not have done it any differently,” Tate added. “Every setback led us to where we are now. Every challenge we faced led us to something or someone new that helped to shape what the restaurant is now. We are so thankful for everyone we’ve met along the way who has helped get us to where we are.”
But when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. And soon, it’ll make margaritas.
One example of turning a challenge into a victory was with the new bar that is a central feature to the restaurant. The surface of the base is covered with alternating shades of rich, green-colored tiles. Beautiful wood shelving was installed behind the bar, and boho-chic lighting was hung above the bar’s base, but the owners were struggling to get the bar top completed, without which much of the bar equipment could not be put in place and inspections could not be carried out. And time was ticking away.
The Robys found Wild Edge Woodcrafters, which operated out of Rougemont in Orange County. About a month later, an incredible 24-foot live-edge bar top was carried in three pieces and assembled on-site by Wild Edge owner Avery Earwood and his crew. As an added design touch, Earwood filled openings, nooks and crevices in the bar top with an epoxy resin to match the green tiles on the bar’s base.
Crafted has about 30 full- and part-time workers now on staff, which is enough to operate the restaurant for evenings only, Tuesday through Saturday. The business will be open 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesday through Thursday, and 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Crafted will be closed Sundays and Mondays. The owners said the restaurant would need to reach a staff level of around 40 to be able to offer lunch hours.
“I think once they actually are open, even if it’s for limited service, that’ll help get more staff in the door,” Fuller said. “To see that they’re there, that they’re finally open. It’s hard to ask people to come work, but have to tell them it might be another month before they’re open. People are looking for jobs and they need those jobs now.”
Also getting familiar with downtown Mebane have been Pat and Tate’s young daughters, Eleanor and Georgette. The two have spent a lot of time in the space at nearly every stage of the process to get to opening, and have gotten to know the neighboring businesses, particularly Muffins Ice Cream. For months, a sign behind the bar at Crafted said, “Eleanor’s restaurant.” How do they feel about the restaurant opening?
“Eleanor’s excited that there’s actually food here,” Tate said. “She ate four tortillas the other night. Georgie had some, too. We’re excited to raise them in a restaurant.”
Owning and operating a restaurant is an almost 24-hour-a day commitment, that demands energy, flexibility, and dedication. The Robys realize the last 10 months of hard work and overcoming hurdles has essentially set them in position to begin the next level.
“It’s a huge sense of relief that we have completed the first phase of this ongoing journey, and at the same time, we’re starting another tremendously challenging phase on the other side of it,” Pat said. “We’re excited and nervous. All the emotions rolled into one, basically.”
DISCLOSURE: Dale Edwards is related to members of the Roby Family.
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