If you lived near Oakwood or Mordecai this summer and wanted breakfast on the 700 block of North Person Street, where did you go? From late March through late August, both corners at 701 and 702 N. Person St. were closed. One had been the street's burger-and-patio spot. The other had been its breakfast-and-lunch deli.
Both are open again, run by new businesses with a new split of the day. The morning shift moved across the street to 701. The 702 corner now sells lunch, an afternoon glass of wine and a quart of sauce for dinner at home. The two spaces cover more of the day now than they did when The Station and Ish Delicatessen were open.
Five months with both corners closed
The timing explains why the block felt so quiet this spring. Here is how 2026 went at the two addresses:
- March 8. The Station closed at 701 N. Person St. after opening in 2014. Its owners, the Hibernian group, told the News & Observer that a full renovation would start March 9 and that a new concept with a new name would follow.
- March 29. Ish Delicatessen served its last day at 702 N. Person St. It had opened in summer 2021 in the former Pharmacy Cafe space and served breakfast and lunch, according to the News & Observer.
- August 28. Cora Kitchen and Bar opened in The Station's old space.
- October 8. Gallicchio's Market & Eatery had its first day in the old Ish space after several pop-ups. A local openings tracker lists an October 1 soft opening and an October 9 full opening.
The 701 corner was closed for about five and a half months, and the 702 corner for a little over six. For five of those months, from the end of March to the end of August, both were closed at once. These two sit across the street from each other, 109 feet apart by the Downtown Raleigh Alliance's count, so losing both took out the middle of the block.
The morning moved across the street
Under The Station, 701 was known for a large, breezy patio facing Person Street and a burger that News & Observer readers named one of Raleigh's best in 2021. When it closed, Hibernian owner Niall Hanley said the new concept would be built with the neighborhood in mind. The owners' farewell note, as quoted by the paper, put it this way:
"We are closing for a full renovation and will be returning with a new concept designed with this neighborhood in mind."
Cora is that concept, and its biggest change is the morning. This Is Raleigh describes it as two places in one day: Mexican-inspired breakfast and lunch, then Spanish tapas and cocktails at night. Chef Sarah Frey already had a following from Mr. Burro, her breakfast and coffee truck, and the Mr. Burro breakfast burritos are on the menu every day. Other dishes include chilaquiles, chicken tortilla soup, croquetas, ceviche, mussels and tostadas. The room now has stone and warm earthy tones, and the patio The Station was known for has been redone with tropical plants. Cora is part of Hibernian Company, the same group behind Hibernian Pub, Watts & Ward, Raleigh Beer Garden and Morgan Street Food Hall.
So 701 has gone from an evening place to an all-day one. Breakfast on this block used to happen at Ish, across the street. Now it happens at Cora.
702 now sells dinner you cook at home
With breakfast gone from 702, the corner took on a different job. Chef and owner Stacy Gallicchio Murphy based Gallicchio's on the Italian delis of New England, Axios Raleigh reported. She previously cooked at Emeril's in New Orleans and at Blue Ginger and Armsby Abbey in Massachusetts. Everything is made in house.
The lunch counter serves sandwiches, salads and pasta. Axios tried the roasted pork with broccoli rabe, which costs $16. The muffuletta and meatball sub fill out the deli lineup.
The bigger change is the market case by the door, which makes 702 a weeknight dinner stop as well as a lunch spot. According to The Raleigh Local, Murphy has talked about stocking:
- House-made pastas, plus vegetables like broccoli rabe
- Full take-home meals, including lasagna to bake at home
- Sauces by the pint or quart
- An antipasti case with about a dozen options, among them marinated vegetables, olives, salads, eggplant and house-made sausage
Lunch is meant to be quick. Later in the day, the room turns into a slower wine-and-antipasti spot, with about 12 wines on the list, European beers and seats for about 30. Special dinners are planned, and the restaurant's Instagram, @gallicchiosmarket, is where those will be announced.
The building is still home to Person Street Pharmacy, which shares the address with the restaurant space.
How a weekday splits between 701 and 702
Taken together, the two corners now hand the day back and forth. Here is the shape of it, based on what each business has published:
| Part of the day | 701 N. Person: Cora | 702 N. Person: Gallicchio's |
|---|---|---|
| Morning | Mexican-inspired breakfast, Mr. Burro burritos | No breakfast service described |
| Midday | Lunch menu | Lunch counter: sandwiches, salads, pasta |
| Afternoon | Monday through Thursday break listed between lunch and dinner | Wine, antipasti and European beer later in the day |
| Evening | Spanish tapas and cocktails, dine-in | Take-home sauces, pastas and lasagna from the market case, hours not yet posted |
Treat the clock times as provisional. A directory listing on Visit Raleigh shows Cora open Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and again from 5 to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to midnight, and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Cora's own menu page says breakfast can stay listed after it stops being available and points diners to its Toast ordering page for what is served at a given hour. Gallicchio's hours are still settling, and The Raleigh Local suggests checking gallicchios.com or Instagram before you go.
Even with the hours still settling, the pattern holds. Monday through Thursday, the 701 corner breaks between lunch and dinner, and 702 is set up to fill that afternoon gap.
Everything else within 300 feet of the corner
The two openings also fill the middle of a stretch that was already busy. The Downtown Raleigh Alliance places the Gallicchio's door this close to its neighbors:
- Person Street Pharmacy, 702 N. Person St., 53 feet
- Jolie, 620 N. Person St., 92 feet
- Pelagic Beer and Wine, 300 Pace St., 104 feet
- Cora, 701 N. Person St., 109 feet
- Crawford and Son, 618 N. Person St., 113 feet
- Sugar Euphoria, 606 N. Person St., 203 feet
- Courtland & Cait Fabrics, 713 N. Person St., 267 feet
The News & Observer also counts Oakwood Pizza Box, Standard Beer and Two Roosters as close by. The nearest listed parking is the lot at 800 N. Person St., about 471 feet northeast of Gallicchio's. Nearby parking is mostly on the street, so give yourself a few extra minutes at lunch.
The next dates that bring a crowd to Person Street
The first big test of the reopened block comes in December, when two neighborhood events land on the same weekend.
The Historic Oakwood Candlelight Tour runs Saturday, December 12, and Sunday, December 13, from 1 to 7 p.m. each day. Check-in is at the Tucker House, 418 N. Person St., a few blocks south of the 700 block.
On the Saturday morning, Merry & Bright, a North Pole market for kids with crafts, food, vendors and holiday photos, runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Mordecai Historic Park. Registration is free and not required. That puts a morning event at Mordecai and an afternoon tour starting on Person Street on the same day, with the 700 block between them. Breakfast at Cora before the market and something from the Gallicchio's case after the tour fits the way the two corners now divide the day.
Before then, the Downtown Raleigh Alliance's tree lighting and holiday vendor market is set for Friday, November 20, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. in Moore Square, a short trip south of Person Street.
When a corner like 701 or 702 sits empty for six months and then reopens, it changes how a block feels to the people who live around it. At Greenwood Residential, we follow those changes block by block across Raleigh. If you live near Oakwood or Mordecai and want to know how this year's Person Street openings might shape your home's value, ask us for a free home valuation. We'll give you a fast, honest answer based on local sales.
