Where do you take visiting family for a special-occasion dinner in Pinehurst when the Carolina Dining Room has been closed since May?
Through the end of the year, that question has a different answer. Two of Pinehurst Resort's best-known indoor spaces are being renovated. Meanwhile, the newest places to go in the village all lean toward people who live nearby: a resort restaurant that sources from the Sandhills Farmers Market, two shops built around women and girls who play golf, and a craft festival that sets aside part of Tufts Memorial Park for young entrepreneurs.
The resort announced that the Carolina Dining Room would close on May 6 for a full renovation, with a reopening planned for "late December." The Spa at Pinehurst closed on June 15 and is expected to stay closed through December 2026. The resort's September update gives no firmer reopening date for either one, so plan on "late December" as a target rather than a promise.
The resort has spread out the dining room's usual work instead of moving it to one place:
| Usually at | Now | Where it's happening |
|---|---|---|
| Carolina Dining Room breakfast | Hotel guest breakfast | Cardinal Ballroom |
| Carolina Dining Room breakfast | Southern-style breakfast buffet | PL8TE at Pinehurst No. 8 |
| Carolina Dining Room breakfast | Expanded breakfast for No. 10 players | Station 21 at Pinehurst Sandmines |
| Carolina Dining Room dinner | Dinner seven days a week | 1895 Grille at The Holly |
| The Spa at Pinehurst | A selection of treatments | Adapted guest rooms in the Carolina Hotel's East Wing |
Breakfast at The Holly Inn is running as usual. The East Wing treatment menu is a temporary one, so look it over before you book a favorite service.
The biggest change to dinner plans this fall is Wiregrass, which opened in the Main Clubhouse on April 29. It is open to the public. The resort's Wiregrass page lists dinner daily from 5 to 9:30 p.m. and the bar from 4 to 10 p.m. Reservations are at 866-966-5685, option 6. Its address is 80 Carolina Vista Drive.
The menu is what ties it to the village. Executive Chef Geoffrey Kenney, who works under Director of Culinary Thierry Debailleul, writes a rotating menu around North Carolina producers. A September feature in Our State, sponsored by the resort, names Shipley Farms in Vilas, Chapel Hill Creamery and Pamlico County's Tidewater Grain Company. It also says Kenney often visits the Sandhills Farmers Market to meet new growers and that the bar's beer comes from Pinehurst Brewing Company, "located less than a mile away." The opening menu featured Brasstown short-rib croquettes, Joyce Farms chicken, Cheshire pork and North Carolina seafood.
For October, the dish to ask about is the fall fig salad with Chapel Hill's Lady Edison country ham and a local-honey vinaigrette. The menu also lists a seafood muddle of Inner Banks shrimp and clams served with crusty sourdough. Dishes change from week to week, and each menu features a "farm of the week." The resort's own dining page calls its posted menu a sample, so the croquettes may not be on the menu the night you go.
Debailleul summed up the kitchen's approach in a line from Our State:
"One of our chefs said the other day, 'Why would we buy scallops from Nova Scotia when we have the Outer Banks?' and I think that conveys how we feel about Wiregrass. We want to celebrate what is around us."
Village retail grew this summer, and both newcomers serve golfers who aren't the classic resort guest.
Malbon, the golf and streetwear brand founded by Stephen and Erica Malbon, held its grand opening on Friday, July 31, at 395 Magnolia Road. The Pilot ran its story on the shop on July 29, 2026. The Pilot reported that the store is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday. General manager Sara Bryant explained the store's focus this way: "Women's golf has really grown in the last few years. The women's side of fashion in golf is growing as well, and we have definitely made an impact in that."
Marie Birdie is at 105 Market Square. It is a woman-owned golf brand based in West Palm Beach that designs clothing for kids, tweens, teens and women. Founder Rebekah Alfond launched it in 2023 and opened her first store in 2024. She told The Pilot she chose Pinehurst for her second store after several pop-ups in the area, and that her daughters' junior tournaments had already brought the family here often. Sizes run from a 4-year-old up to women's extra large. Every skirt, dress and pair of shorts has pockets. A Teen Design Council, led by Alfond's twin daughters, gives input on prints and new ideas. Hours are shorter than at most village shops: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday.
The Titleist Shop at the resort's Padgett Center isn't new this year. Pinehurst Resort announced it was open in September 2025.
The Village of Pinehurst's October events fill the weeks before the resort's rooms reopen, and all but one are in the village's public parks and green spaces.
The Holly festival is the date to plan around because of what's new this year. The Village lists PineyFest, "a new kid-created & run marketplace," inside Tufts Memorial Park, "celebrating the next generation of young entrepreneurs in our community." Pinehurst Parks & Recreation sponsors the festival, and the Pinehurst Business Partners present it. Market Square is part of the village center where the festival takes place, so it's a good day to stop in at Marie Birdie.
You can do all of this in one weekend. Hear the Live After 5 finale at the Arboretum on Friday, October 9, and stop at Malbon's Magnolia Road storefront along the way. The following Saturday, spend the morning at the Holly festival and PineyFest, browse Market Square while the shops run their festival specials, then book an early table at Wiregrass, which opens for dinner at 5 p.m.
If a visiting relative is set on the Carolina Dining Room, the resort's target is late December, which may be in time for a holiday visit. Until then, 1895 Grille at The Holly serves dinner seven days a week.
When this month has you thinking about how close you'd like to live to Tufts Memorial Park, the Arboretum or Magnolia Road, Jamie McDevitt knows the village streets around them and is glad to talk through what living near them is like. Let's Connect.
Jamie will take the time to understand your goals and will work tirelessly to help you reach them. Whether you are moving to the Pinehurst, Southern Pines area to play golf, swing a tennis racket, or simply run or walk through your neighborhood, let Jamie work for you.
