The ground-floor space beneath the AC Hotel Raleigh North Hills sits empty this month after CO, the Charleston-based pan-Asian restaurant that had operated there since 2018, quietly closed its doors. There was no farewell post, no press release — just an Instagram account updated to read “permanently closed” and a listing scrubbed from the restaurant's own website.
The closure, which happened in June, ends nearly eight years of business for CO at 101 Park at North Hills Street, according to The News & Observer. The restaurant group made no formal statement explaining the decision, and both the CO and North Hills websites removed references to the Raleigh location. The Hoodline story announcing CO's arrival in 2018 described a modern industrial interior and a pan-Asian menu that included gluten-free and vegan options — a far cry from the silent exit eight years later.
CO originally signed a lease for 3,680 square feet of ground-floor retail inside the AC Hotel building, according to Kane Realty Corporation, marking the company's first restaurant in Raleigh. The name CO translates to “feast” in Vietnamese, reflecting a menu that leaned into banh mi, pho, ramen, dumplings and sushi alongside curry laksa, dumplings, fried rice and noodle bowls. Restaurant critic Greg Cox awarded CO three stars in a 2018 review and singled out the curry laksa's spicy coconut broth, chicken and fresh herbs for praise, per the same account.
A Familiar Complex Undergoing Rapid Change
CO's departure leaves a notable vacancy in a building that also houses Level7, a rooftop lounge overlooking North Hills, and sits next to Kings Bowl America, according to Raleigh Realty. Kane Realty Corporation, which owns North Hills, transformed the property from a failing 1960s enclosed mall into a 165-acre mixed-use district starting in the early 2000s, per Wake Forest Magazine.
The district is currently in the middle of dense new construction. Kane Realty broke ground in January on the 332-unit Tributary apartment project and filed plans in April for a 15-story residential tower at 4000 Center at North Hills Street, Hoodline previously reported on the tower filing. Retail demand at North Hills hasn't slowed either — D.C.-based bowl and smoothie chain South Block announced in July that it will open its first Triangle location near bartaco in early 2027, as Hoodline covered in its report on South Block's North Hills plans.
Part of a Broader Wave of Triangle Closures
CO's exit wasn't an isolated event. The shutdown coincided with a string of mid-2026 restaurant closures across the Triangle, including Durham's 10-year-old Durty Bull Brewing Co. and 6-year-old Annexe lounge, along with Raleigh's 30-year-old Cafe Carolina and Bakery in the Village District, according to Triangle Food Blog. The closures reflect a rough summer for long-running dining concepts across Wake and Durham counties.
Triangle Business Journal also reported on CO's Raleigh closure, and the restaurant group's broader footprint shows it still operates six locations across North Carolina and South Carolina, including Charleston, Columbia and Myrtle Beach, plus Charlotte and Durham. CO expanded into the Triangle market before ultimately closing its Raleigh outpost, opening a Durham restaurant in 2024 at The Streets at Southpoint mall. That location runs an outdoor patio setup along the shopping center's Main Street lifestyle section, giving CO a continued presence in the region even without its original North Hills home.
What Happens Next Remains Unclear
It's not yet known what tenant, if any, Kane Realty has lined up for the vacant ground-floor space, nor whether rising commercial rents or shifting foot traffic played a role in CO's quiet departure. Neither question has been publicly addressed by the restaurant group or the developer. For now, the space that once served CO's pan-Asian menu beneath Level7's rooftop views sits empty, another entry in a Midtown retail scene that keeps turning over even as apartment towers rise around it.
