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ALLISON POTTER
www.wrightsvillebeachmagazine.com WBM
ALLISON POTTER
ZEKE’S Beans and Bowls
5 3 4 C AU S EWAY D R I V E
There’s a line out the door at the cute blue and white stucco building next to Surf City. It’s
Zeke’s Beans and Bowls, which draws customers from on and off the island.
“We have little kids that love our food and 70-year-olds that come every day, so that’s
really cool, I like that, I want there to be something for everyone,” says the owner, Nick Cole.
Nick moved to Wrightsville Beach with his wife, Jenna, and their two sons in 2017 and
opened Zeke’s just after Hurricane Florence. Its large variety of gluten- and dairy-free acai
and poke bowls were an instant hit.
Zeke’s bowls are Hawaiian, Puerto Rican and Costa Rican inspired. There’s the “Brazil” acai
bowl with kiwi, mango and honey. The “Madison’s Princess” acai bowl is covered in Nutella.
The “beans” part of the name stands for coffee beans, of course. Cole recommends the nitro
cold brew.
“It’s on another level,” he says. “It’s a 24-hour process of grinding, letting the grinds soak
overnight, putting them into a keg of nitrogen and then it creates this creamy smooth, not
bitter, just sooo good coffee.”
Breakfast egg bowls and pitas are served with Lizano salsa, imported from Costa Rica.
“When you go to Costa Rica, Lizano salsa is like ketchup is here in the U.S., it’s the best
thing ever,” says Cole.
Two of Cole’s friends started Zeke’s in Virginia Beach, then opened a second location in
Norfolk, Virginia. The Wrightsville Beach franchise is number three. Zeke’s also serves a wide
variety of smoothies, pressed juices, coffees and teas.
“I spend a good majority of my time shopping for fresh produce to ensure the best taste
and quality,” says Cole.
ADAPT Kitchen and Juice Bar
32 N . LU M I N A AV E . ( I N S I D E R O B E R T ’ S G R O C E RY )
It’s OK if you don’t know what adaptogens are or what nutritionally
dense means. Chris and Elie Curry, the husband-and-wife owners of
Adapt Kitchen and Juice Bar, love telling their guests about the incredi-ble
benefits of the ingredients used in their recipes.
“’How do you say that word and what does it do?’ is a question we
get a lot,” laughs Chris Curry.
Located inside Wrightsville Beach’s iconic Robert’s Grocery on
Lumina Avenue, Adapt has a bright, modern, tropical style that contrasts
nicely to the historic strand, blending old with new and providing an
elevated level of healthy food and beverage.
“We have people who visit from out of town, from bigger cities who
seek us out,” Chris says. “They will say, ‘We’re so glad we found you,
we’ll see you tomorrow.’ I love hearing that, never gets old.”
Adapt’s most popular items include their “So Fresh n’ So Green” superfood smoothie made with spinach, fruit, moringa and
MCT oil. “The Alkalizer” pressed juice has rainbow chard and spirulina. The “Majik Mylk” elixir is named after its key ingredient,
E3Live’s blue majik, good for the joints. Sourdough is used for the avocado smash toasts because it’s good for the gut.
“Nutrition is where to start, it’s what feeds your body and your cells and your microbiome gut health. Once you get those things
in check, your body starts to respond and you feel better,” says Elie.
Chris and Elie Curry are surfers, have fathers who surfed competitively, and both grew up traveling to tropical locations, tasting
the foods of the islands and learning about nutrients and how they work for the body along the way. The Currys brought Adapt to
their home island of Wrightsville Beach in 2018.