IRREGARDLESS CAFE turns 42 YEARS on Saturday, February 4, 2017!
To celebrate 42 years of serving all of you characters, we will be serving complimentary birthday cake on Saturday night!
Irregardless Over Time:
Feb 4, 1975 | Irregardless Cafe Opens
Raleigh welcomes its first vegetarian restaurant. The Cafe also introduces the community to progressive, sustainable ideas including a commitment to buying locally sourced ingredients and waste recycling.
1985 | Irregardless Bans Smoking
Twenty-five years before North Carolina mandates a no smoking policy for all food establishments, the Gordon family implements one for the Cafe.
1994 | Irregardless Cafe Burns
A fire badly damages the Irregardless Cafe forcing an 11-month closure. To save his employees, Chef Arthur strikes an unusual deal: all employees will be paid throughout the rebuilding period, if they agree to spend their “paid for hours” volunteering with local non-profits.
2009 | 1st Farm to Fork Picnic
Irregardless pairs with local farmers, creating fresh meals that celebrate sustainable food and raise money in support of the Center for Environmental Farming Systems (CEFS). This is the start of an annual tradition.
2012 | Irregardless Goes Solar
Ten rooftop, thermal solar panels provide renewable energy to heat water for the Cafe needs.
2012 | Sowing the Well-Fed Community Garden
Irregardless Cafe takes local food to a new level by cultivating a one and a half acre garden, 3 miles from the Cafe, to feed both the restaurant, catering needs and to serve the community. In October, 2013, the community garden was finally approved by the City of Raleigh. Jenn Sanford Johnson is the Garden’s Manager.
2017 | Irregardless Cafe turns 42!!
