Since 1992
Rooted intradition
A seasoned chef is not unlike a skilled fly fisherman. Both read the water, trust the season, and understand that great results take great patience.
Rooster's is an expression of simple, wood-fired cooking. Familiar ingredients, thoughtful preparation, and food made to satisfy.
The craft
Simplicity, perfected.
We cook over live fire because it asks more of us: more attention, more timing, more respect for the ingredient. Oak and hickory, a turning rotisserie, a hot hearth. Salt and patience. The result is food that tastes like exactly what it is.
The Sulphur Dun
Patience, tied by hand
The fly on our wall is a Sulphur Dun, drawn from the artistry of Jeff Wilkins, a fly-fishing guide Chef Noble knew and fished beside, who passed in 2021. Tying a fly asks the same things cooking does: patience, adaptation, experimentation, and a deep respect for tradition.
The water changes every day. The craft never does. That's why our menus shift with the season while the traditions stay intact, so our guests can dine here for life.
The family
From one dining room to many
It began in 1992 with Chef Jim Noble and a single Winston-Salem dining room, A Noble Grille. From that table grew Rooster's Wood-Fired Kitchen and a family of Carolina restaurants under Noble Food & Pursuits, all built on one conviction: that dining is a form of restoration, and service extends well beyond the table.
That belief carries into everything we do, from the farmers we partner with to the millions of meals shared with neighbors in need. Good food, given generously, is the whole point.
Forty years at the fire
How we got here
1983High Point
Jim Noble opens J. Basul Noble's: the first dining room, and the start of forty years of service.
1992Winston-Salem
A Noble Grille opens on Knollwood Street on March 2. The wood-fired philosophy is written here.
2006SouthPark
Rooster's Wood-Fired Kitchen brings the hearth to Charlotte.
2010The King's Kitchen
A not-for-profit restaurant opens Uptown, and "we give to restore" becomes a place you can eat.
2012Uptown
The chef's counter comes to North College Street, steps from the Light Rail.
2020Copain Bakery
The breads on every Rooster's table get a hearth of their own.
2024Ballantyne
Our newest room opens at The Bowl at Ballantyne, the fourth Rooster's table.
Come sit at our table
Forty years on, the fire's still lit and the welcome still warm.