Before Chapman's: The Story Behind 157 New Hampshire

How experience, a risky partnership and a lot of hands-on work built a neighborhood restaurant.

For nearly ten years at Sysco, I had built my reputation on seeing what restaurants needed beyond the food order. I could look at a menu, a dining room or a kitchen and spot what needed attention. I could offer advice, but the owner had to decide whether to use it.

Then Pete asked me to look at 157 East New Hampshire Avenue. I thought I was helping him explore an opportunity—and expecting to add another Sysco account. I didn't know I'd end up putting my own money and judgment behind what I believed a restaurant could be.

Pete was ready to return to Moore County after running French Leave in the Bahamas. He wanted to come home only if he could build something of his own. The equipment was for sale, and the lease could be negotiated. I filmed the rooms and equipment, then returned with the fire and health inspectors to see whether the building needed major work.

The space had two walk-in coolers, a great beer draft system, a brand-new Micros POS, tables, chairs and flatware. What it didn't have was atmosphere. The inside and outside looked tired, the first impression was weak, and at night it was so dark guests could pass right by. I could see what needed fixing. I could also see possibility.

In October 2015, I helped Pete negotiate to buy the equipment and take over the lease. We set December 29 for the equipment closing. Pete had saved enough for the purchase and his move home, but we didn't know how much more it would take to build and open the restaurant—or where that money would come from. We had a few months before closing, so I got to work on a business plan.

I was doing well at Sysco. After losing a large country club account, I'd rebuilt my territory and earned my way back to the top as a sales performer. I had a six-figure job, commissions and excellent benefits. But I was frustrated. I'd spent years helping owners with menus, kitchen layouts, cleanliness, staffing, training and opening plans. I'd helped local women business owners negotiate leases, grow their restaurants and solve problems, sometimes before I'd earned a dollar from them. My work had never been just about selling food. I wanted to help restaurants succeed—and I often saw what an operation needed before its owner did.

My experience went beyond Sysco. I had worked in independent restaurants, country clubs and catering, spent time at Outback, and managed a local service business. I knew Moore County: its restaurants, operators and customers. We had Mexican, pizza and Asian restaurants, fine dining and plenty of sports bars. I thought Southern Pines needed a place with good food and a warm, inviting atmosphere—a place women would choose, too. I wanted it open every day, with the same menu throughout the week, so golfers, military families, downtown workers, young families and visitors could count on us.

Pete and I talked often. He described what he wanted to build, and I played devil's advocate. We worked through the menu, hours, prices, kitchen flow, equipment and staffing. I projected how many guests we'd need each day to break even. Those conversations became a business plan for what I first called Hamm's Kitchen & Tap. I outlined the competition, the culture we wanted for employees and the systems we'd need. I kept the projections conservative and took the plan to lenders, the Small Business Administration and SCORE at the Chamber of Commerce.

I received encouragement and useful advice, but no one offered a way to secure the funding. One SCORE leader told me Hamm's Kitchen & Tap sounded like a kitchen store. That made one thing clear: the name had to go. We still needed a new name—and the money to open.

As the deadline got closer, I began to see that Pete didn't just have a funding problem. The plan needed me in it.

I hadn't considered becoming his partner. I had a secure job, and I knew the risks. My first restaurant had failed. I knew how hard it was to build a business while raising a small child. Pete had a three-year-old to consider, too. A child and a business both need your attention; I knew one could end up coming second.

I laid out what we still had to pay for: repairs, paint, reupholstering, supplies, hiring and training, food, and the work before opening day. Pete also needed to move home, find a place to live and support his household while we built the restaurant. We still didn't know where all the money would come from.

I asked Pete to consider a partnership. He knew the back of the house; I knew the front. We could bring our strengths together. I told him I'd put my money where my mouth was. I pushed all my chips into the center and went all in.

We outlined a partnership agreement and submitted the corporation paperwork, but we still needed a name. We'd spent three months trying to find one. Now the lease payment was due in 24 hours, and the bank needed a DBA name.

Out of nowhere, Pete said, "I don't know why Chapman's won't work." I looked at him. "What? We've talked for three months, and you've never mentioned Chapman's."

"Chapman's Food & Spirits," he said. I asked where Chapman came from. "My middle name."

"I thought your middle name was Clark." My voice was full of excitement. Chapman's was the name.

I'd thought I might stay at Sysco while we opened the restaurant, but I knew I couldn't do both well. I gave my notice. At Sysco, I could point out what I thought a restaurant needed; at Chapman's, Pete and I would have to make every decision ourselves.

My family joined the work. My brother-in-law, a talented woodworker, designed the liquor display and helped us enlarge the bar. When Pete arrived, my brother-in-law put him to work laying out 16,000 pennies for the bar's distinctive surface. My in-laws came every day to prepare walls, bring supplies, climb ladders, tape trim and clean.

We chose the wall, trim, wainscoting and ceiling colors: Bungalow Blue, Yellow Sunrise, Tawny Port, Warm Cream Cloud, Barn Red and Bronzine Brown. We tore out the old fireplace and made that dining room wall a focal point. We added warm mood lighting, brighter lights for late-night cleaning, and outdoor lighting bright enough to make the building visible from the corner.

My 85-year-old mother helped wallpaper the three bathrooms with pages from old Life magazines. Sitting in her walking chair, she tore page after page for me to decoupage onto the walls. There was laughter and plenty of cocktails. The tired space was starting to look—and feel—like the restaurant we had imagined.

Pete connected the equipment, figured out what worked and what didn't, and deep-cleaned the kitchen. As the layout came together, we shaped the menu: chef-driven American fare, high-quality ingredients, and recipes and sauces we developed ourselves. Pete's Lobster Fries became an early favorite, ordered at nearly every table. We also made the burger a signature. We became a Certified Angus Beef brand partner and chose a blend no one else in the area was using: brisket, short rib and ground chuck.

We opened Tuesday, April 12, 2016—my mother's 86th birthday. Guests started coming back during our first week. Pete's pork shank, lasagna, beef stroganoff, curries, soups and seafood became favorites, too. In our first year, the burger won its first Best of the Pines award, and Chapman's won awards in ten categories.
We began with many inexperienced employees, including high school students. One staff member's daughter worked weekends beside me. She was barely old enough to work and became one of the best hostesses I've ever seen. We watched her graduate high school, become a nurse and get married.

Another young man came to us after high school, scared of his own shadow. He learned every front-of-house position and worked with us while earning his college degree. He grew into a confident, skilled salesperson and met his fiancée at Chapman's. This November, we'll be at their wedding. Over the years, we've watched many young people we hired and trained take those skills into work they care about, graduate, marry and start families of their own.

In 2026, our burger won Best of the Pines for the tenth consecutive year, earning Chapman's a place in the Hall of Fame. Pete and I are proud of the awards, but what makes us proudest is how Chapman's became part of people's lives. New customers tell us every day that someone recommended us. Some guests come every weekday; others come weekly or twice a week, often bringing someone new. We see every age group, and we hear our name passed from one guest to another.

Chapman's brought together Pete's years in the kitchen, my decades in foodservice—including ten years with Sysco—and a lifetime of noticing what I value as a restaurant customer. After ten years, we feel confident in what we've built, yet humbled by the trust our guests place in us. We're grateful and blessed to be a successful neighborhood restaurant and a vital part of this community. Thank you for being a part of our journey! 

157 East New Hampshire  •