Peck & Plume Now Open at The Mayton
Cary, NC — Peck & Plume has opened as the new restaurant at The Mayton, (formerly The Mayton Inn), a 44-room boutique hotel in downtown Cary.
The Mayton’s new owners renovated and revamped the restaurant, previously known as The Verandah, to reflect their vision of creating a gathering place for all occasions in downtown Cary.
The management team behind the transformation is Early Bird Night Owl, the same hospitality company that is a managing partner of The Durham Hotel, a mid-century modern 53-room boutique hotel in downtown Durham.
“We are delighted to bring our passion for hospitality to downtown Cary, where exciting things are happening, including the development of this seven-acre park that will be the crown jewel of downtown Cary and right next door to The Mayton,” said Craig Spitzer, founder and chief executive officer of Early Bird Night Owl.
“We hope to become an extension of the park where people can enjoy a cocktail on the outdoor terrace, a breakfast meeting in the cozy study or celebratory dinner in our dining room.” The Town of Cary is investing $69 million in the park that will be completed in 2023.
A Polished Yet Casual Atmosphere
Peck & Plume — a nod to the restaurant’s view of the park and its avian inhabitants — is a polished yet casual restaurant offering a menu of modern American classics taking inspiration from near and far.
Whether diners want a peck of plates to share with friends or the plume of a special occasion dinner, Peck & Plume is open for breakfast, lunch, dinner and weekend brunch. The bar program focuses on premium cocktails, approachable wines and North Carolina craft beers.
Modern American Food Influences
Menu highlights include Indo chile shrimp with sambal, roasted cauliflower with harissa hummus, Karaage chicken, a grilled pork chop with tamarind baked field peas, creme brulee French toast and an English breakfast. Ingredients are sourced from Locals Seafood, Joyce Farms and Blue Sky Farms among others.
The restaurant team includes chef Steve Zanini and general manager, Whitney Gilliom. Zanini has long culinary roots in Wake County; his family bought the beloved Brothers Pizza Palace on Raleigh’s Hillsborough Street in the 1980s where Zanini got his start. He also cooked at Jimmy V’s Steakhouse and Tavern in Cary and Midtown Grille in Raleigh. Gilliom worked as a manager at Raleigh’s Coquette for eight years.
Aesthetics & Design
The Early Bird Night Owl team brings their design aesthetic and attention to detail with the restaurant’s transformation extending to the decor.
Peck & Plume has new tables, flooring, seating and lighting to create warm, inviting spaces — both inside and outside — where diners will want to linger over their meals. Like at The Durham, the Early Bird Night Owl team sought out local artisans to elevate the interiors.
The dining room and bar are anchored by custom wallpaper designed by Hillsborough artist Katie Hayes featuring North Carolina plants and animals native to the hotel’s locale. The wallpaper was produced by Durham-based Spoonflower and is available for purchase. The custom wallpaper is playfully echoed in the mirrors behind the restaurant’s bar where artist Joseph Giampino of SPCL Signs hand-painted the Latin names of the North Carolina flora and fauna shown on the wallpaper.
Extensive Hotel Renovations
Guests also will notice extensive renovations and artistic touches throughout the hotel. The front desk is anchored by a moss wall and a sculpture by Asheville artist Isabelle Coppinger, whose ethereal, organic installations recall leaves, coral or wings and are made of hand-carved unglazed porcelain. Also in the works, Sally Nicols of The Cary Cottage will curate a lobby gallery wall of vintage finds, including two original landscape paintings by the late artist Thelma Marsh, a longtime Cary resident.
In 2020, several developers active in downtown Cary came together to buy the hotel out of bankruptcy. They include Bill Zahn of Triangle Real Estate and lead developer of The Walker project across the park; the Yarber and Knier families; and George Jordan III of Northwoods Associates and Jordan Gussenhoven of Chatham Street Commercial whose projects have transformed Cary’s East Chatham Street.
For more information, visit themayton.com or follow @themaytoncary on social media.
Story from staff reports. Photos by Baxter Miller.
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