Every Wake Forest dining list in one place: wings, pizza, Mexican, breakfast and coffee, burgers, sushi and Asian, ice cream, bakeries, patios and brunch.

Last checked Oct. 12, 2026. Refreshed every three months.

These are Wake Forest Journal’s dining lists, one page per kind of food. Each one is alphabetical and gives every place we could confirm in Wake Forest with its address, phone and the hours it publishes on its own website. Downtown’s White and Brooks streets, the Capital Boulevard and Retail Drive strip, South Main Street and Rogers Road near Heritage turn up on most of them.

How we made these lists. The places come from OpenStreetMap records inside Wake Forest’s town limits, the same data behind our local directory, checked against each place’s own website. Where a site would not load, or a place has no site, we used a 2026 record in Wake County’s restaurant inspection data. The lists are not rankings or recommendations, and nobody paid to be on them. Run a restaurant? Write to us to correct your entry.

The lists

Where to get wings. Eleven places, mostly pubs and pizza shops. Three are downtown on Brooks Street, including Norse Brewing Company and Strike & Barrel, and Buffalo Brothers on Retail Drive puts wings beside pizza.

Where to get pizza. Fourteen places, from Domino’s and George’s Pizzeria downtown to Il Bacio, MOD Pizza and Paco’s Pizza on Rogers Road and Mellow Mushroom on South Main Street.

Mexican and Tex-Mex restaurants. Thirteen places. Las Mas, the downtown cantina that ran for 26 years as Las Margaritas, and Lil’ Hombre are on White Street; Gonza, Torchy’s Tacos and two Mamacita restaurants are farther out.

Breakfast and coffee. Eighteen places, with independent coffee shops downtown and sit-down breakfast at Brigs, Flying Biscuit, First Watch, Stewart’s Bistro and Waffle House.

Where to get burgers. Twenty places. Most are chains on Capital Boulevard, Retail Drive and Durham Road; The Burger Shop on Wait Avenue and Norse and Over the Falls on Brooks Street are downtown.

Sushi and Asian restaurants. Sixteen East and Southeast Asian kitchens, most on Capital Boulevard, including all-you-can-eat sushi and hibachi at Okome House and Korean Kitchen on South Main Street.

Ice cream and desserts. Nine stops, including Lumpy’s Ice Cream downtown, Two Roosters at The Factory, Dairy Depot on Rogers Road and Goodberry’s frozen custard on Retail Drive.

Bakeries. Six stops: Plant Cakes Bake Shop, the all-plant-based bakery downtown, plus Krispy Kreme, Panera Bread and three Dunkin’ stores.

Patios and outdoor dining. Four places whose own sites show a patio: Bodega and Norse downtown, Mellow Mushroom and Dairy Depot.

Barbecue. We could confirm fewer than four barbecue restaurants in town this quarter, so there is no barbecue list yet. Smithfield’s Chicken ‘N Bar-B-Q on Capital Boulevard has a 2026 county inspection record, and The Forks Cafeteria downtown lists slow-cooked barbecue pork and smoked beef brisket.

More on eating out

Related: downtown Wake Forest, live music and nightlife and dog-friendly places.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I find a list of restaurants in Wake Forest?

Wake Forest Journal keeps alphabetical lists by category: wings, pizza, Mexican and Tex-Mex, breakfast and coffee, burgers, sushi and Asian, ice cream and desserts, bakeries, and patios. Each gives the address, phone and the hours each place publishes.

Are these Wake Forest restaurant lists rankings?

No. Every list is alphabetical. It is not a ranking or a recommendation, and nobody pays to be on it.

How often are the Wake Forest restaurant lists updated?

Each list is checked against the restaurants’ own websites and refreshed every three months. The current lists were checked Oct. 12, 2026.

Is there a barbecue list for Wake Forest?

Not yet. We could confirm fewer than four barbecue restaurants in Wake Forest on Oct. 12, 2026. The Forks Cafeteria downtown lists slow-cooked barbecue pork and smoked brisket on its daily menu.