"As the saying goes, 'All good things must come to an end.'" Zest Cafe & Home Art posted that line on December 27, 2025, the day it served its last meal on Six Forks Road. The family had opened the cafe in 1995. Its farewell said restaurants and retail had been "increasingly difficult since the pandemic" and that rising costs and tariffs made "it necessary for our family to make a change."
Since then, Six Forks Station has been changing faster than at any point in recent memory. Kimco owns and leases the center, which sits at Six Forks and Strickland roads with a listed address of 9517 Strickland Road. Two more food tenants have closed. One local favorite has opened. A national chain has a new outparcel on the site plan, and a bakery franchise has signed for Zest's old storefront. The pattern is the same throughout: the new arrivals are taking buildings that weren't restaurants a year ago, while the space Zest held for three decades sits waiting.
Ten Months at the Corner of Six Forks and Strickland
Laid out in order, the changes look like this:
- December 27, 2025. Zest serves its last day after 30 years. A closing sale followed on January 6.
- June 19, 2026. WRAL reports that the Taco Bell at 8801 Six Forks Road has closed. In the same column it says Panda Express is coming to the center, and that Arepa Culture is moving into the former Discount Tire building.
- June 21, 2026. Arepa Culture's last day at its old location.
- September 26, 2026. Arepa Culture holds its grand opening at 9320 Forum Drive.
- October 2, 2026. Triangle Food Blog reports that Crumbl at Six Forks Station has closed. The same roundup reports that Paris Baguette will take the former Zest space.
That's three food closings in under a year, plus one confirmed opening. The other two arrivals have no confirmed opening date.
The Tire Shop That Became an Arepa Kitchen
The one new restaurant actually serving food went into a building that had nothing to do with food. Arepa Culture NC's new home at 9320 Forum Drive, next to Target, used to be a Discount Tire. Kimco's tenant roster lists the space at 2,816 square feet.
Arepa Culture is no newcomer to North Raleigh. The family started with one food truck in 2014, working Raleigh, Apex and Pittsboro. It opened its first restaurant at Pleasant Valley Promenade on Glenwood Avenue in 2021. That location closed in June. Over the summer, The Raleigh Local reports, the truck parked daily at the old Glenwood Avenue spot so regulars could still get an arepa.
The grand opening on September 26 brought live music, desserts and giveaways. CEO Marcel Jara called the move a new beginning for the family business. The menu centers on arepas made fresh every day from white cornmeal. The dough has just three ingredients and is gluten free, and the fillings run to shredded meats, black beans and plantains, with vegetarian and vegan options. The bigger kitchen has the team talking about a weekend brunch and breakfast menu. That hasn't been announced as a launch yet, so for now it's something to check back on.
Panda Express Gets a New Outparcel
The second arrival shows the pattern even more plainly. On Kimco's site plan, Panda Express occupies Space 38, 2,200 square feet, labeled "Outparcel development for Panda Express," with a schematic plan attached. In other words, Panda is getting a new freestanding parcel, not an existing storefront.
Kimco's Space 38 page says the space is "currently occupied by Panda Express." Panda Express's own Raleigh store locator, though, still shows only its Wake Forest Road restaurant. WRAL's June report called this the chain's third Triangle-area location. As of early October, the sources disagree on whether the restaurant is open, and no published report gives an opening date. No published report places it on the former Taco Bell pad at 8801 Six Forks Road, so that site's next use is still an open question.
The Zest Storefront Has the Longest Wait
Zest's old space at 8831 Six Forks Road has a tenant lined up. According to a Triangle Business Journal report summarized by Triangle Food Blog on October 2, Paris Baguette is taking it over. The franchise sells French pastries, cakes, savory dishes and coffee. This would be its second Raleigh location, and it also has a store in Cary.
The target opening is summer 2027. If it holds, the storefront Zest occupied for 30 years will have gone about a year and a half between tenants. Over the same stretch, a family restaurant will have moved into a former tire shop and a national chain will have been given a brand-new outparcel.
There's a second empty food space on the property as well. Kimco's site plan lists a 4,500-square-foot unit as "Available," described as a "Former Restaurant." Crumbl's old spot is a smaller question mark. The October 2 roundup reports the bakery closed but gives no last day, and notes it still has three other Triangle locations. Kimco's roster still lists Crumbl at 1,875 square feet, a reminder that landlord listings can run behind what's actually happening at the storefront.
What Hasn't Moved
Most of the center's food lineup is unchanged. Kimco's current roster still lists Char-Grill, Milton's Pizza & Pasta, Starbucks and Papa Johns along the front of the property, plus Ton Ramen and Ni Asian Kitchen. Milton's takes up 7,052 square feet. Char-Grill takes up 2,400.
The anchors that bring in most of the traffic are also in place: Target at 113,849 square feet, Home Depot at 117,424, Hobby Lobby at 55,600 and Food Lion at 44,213. Kimco puts the center at 468,314 square feet of leasable space. Placer.ai data on the leasing page counts 5.2 million visits across calendar year 2025 and ranks this Home Depot fourth among the chain's 40 North Carolina stores.
The rest of the roster covers the weekday errands that keep the lot busy outside meal times. That includes PetSmart, Aqua Tots Swim School, Sharkey's Kids Cuts, Oak and Iron Fitness, Oak City Vision Center, PM Pediatrics, The Musicians Learning Center and Lloyd & Lady Boutiques.
Where the Corner Stands in October
As of October 5, 2026, the food changes at Six Forks Station sort out this way:
| Location | Status as of early October 2026 |
|---|---|
| 9320 Forum Drive, former Discount Tire | Arepa Culture, open since September 26 |
| Space 38, new outparcel | Panda Express, outparcel development, opening not confirmed |
| 8831 Six Forks Road, former Zest | Paris Baguette, targeting summer 2027 |
| 8801 Six Forks Road, former Taco Bell | Closed, no successor reported |
| Former Crumbl | Closed, no successor reported |
| 4,500 sq ft former restaurant | Listed as available |
Of everything announced since Zest closed, Arepa Culture is the only one confirmed open, and the next date anyone has given for the old Zest storefront is summer 2027.
At Stephen Wall, we keep track of how changes like these play out along Six Forks Road, from a new outparcel to a storefront waiting on its next tenant. If you live near Chelsea or Baytree and want to know what this corner means for your home's value, request a free Home Valuation Report or schedule a private consultation with Steve and Sallie.