Hungry? Stop By This ‘Roadside’ Food Hall in Selma, NC

Enjoy outstanding variety, great grub and good times at the Old North State Food Hall.

By Amy Antonation on February 28, 2024

Forrest Mason

Family road trips are great – until everyone gets hangry. Suddenly you have a car full of loud, opinionated passengers. Some want burgers, some want pizza; no one wants to wait in line. Split-second decisions that satisfy everyone must be made or chaos ensues. Enter the Old North State Food Hall in Selma to the rescue. General manager Todd W. Pifer calls this unique destination the country’s first “roadside” food hall. 

Plenty of Parking and Eating

“Most food halls out there are generally in urban locations,” Pifer says. In contrast, Old North State Food Hall, which houses 10 food vendors and a tavern under a single roof, is tucked into the intersection of Interstate 95 and U.S. Highway 70. And unlike many of those urban locations, there’s no jockeying for metered street parking; the large lot (complete with electric-vehicle chargers!) makes for an easy in and out. 

Once inside, diners order from food stalls serving everything from hot dogs and burgers to international cuisine. There are no big chains, says Pifer, just local, independent operators (a few with more than one location). One notable aspect of the mix of vendors is the strong showing of international food, with Peruvian, Indian, Thai and Cuban dishes available. 

“We have some flavors that you wouldn’t find normally in a small town,” Pifer says. 

I-95: Exit for Neapolitan-style Pizza

One of those is Luna Pizza, a traditional Neapolitan-style pizzeria owned by Richard Williams and business partner John Jefferson. Williams was a college professor for almost two decades before taking a Neapolitan-style pizza-making course in Italy. 

“It was like living in a movie for 40 days. I learned how to make the dough, stretch the dough, everything about making pizza,” he says. “I was just smitten.” 

Back home, Williams drew up a business plan and teamed up with Jefferson to launch a full-service restaurant in Greenville, North Carolina. When Old North State opened its doors in August of 2022, the pair decided to expand. 

“The best part of a food hall is that the cost of entry is relatively low,” Williams says. 

The Greenville location’s date-night atmosphere (there are no TVs, and the soundtrack is bossa nova and jazz) had to be tweaked a bit for the Old North State spot, but the crust is still cold-fermented for up to five days and the pies are baked in exactly the same Neapolitan brick pizza oven as they are at the Luna’s original spot. 

“We get that in reviews all the time, people saying, ‘I can’t believe I get Neapolitan-style pizza on the side of I-95,’” he says.

Forrest Mason

Locals Love It Here

Old North State isn’t only popular with travelers; both Pifer and Williams give props to local customers. 

Williams credits that in part to Old North State’s many events, like kids’ Halloween celebrations and a Dr. Seuss-themed Whoville holiday village. For locals and travelers alike, Old North State is the place to hit for variety, good grub and good times. 

“Johnston County locals – those are our bread and butter,” Pifer says. “They’re coming in once or twice a week for lunch, or coming in and doing karaoke at the tavern.”