Blue Ridge Parkway

I second Knife and Fork. One of the best restaurant experiences I've had in the NC mountains. With Magnolia Grill in Durham closing, Knife and Fork is probably the closest restaurant to me distance-wise that does farm-to-table right.

mikeh in Southeast

Farm to Fork 2012 [Triangle, NC]

So, anyone from here actually go this year?

mikeh in Southeast

Shalimar in Sunnyvale

Sounds like someone with an axe to grind. I haven't been to the "original" Shalimar, but I can tell you that the food at the Sunnyvale Shalimar, with its complexity of spices and ingredients, has frankly spoiled me for Indian food almost anywhere else. I find that a lot of Indian food is so one-note compared to the interesting layers of flavors that the Sunnyvale Shalimar offers up. A typical order for me (with leftovers, obviously) was always murgh boti tandoori, chicken tikka masala, okra, palak paneer, mixed vegetables, eggplant, and rice. Even the rice is interesting with the cardamon pods and other whole spices still in there (as is the case with the dishes as well). Sure, you have to sift through it, but it imparts a depth of flavor that you just don't get anywhere else.

Great - I'm in the Bay Area this weekend, and I just talked myself into a meal.

mikeh in San Francisco Bay Area

DNC barbecue sauce competition

The fact that they focused on bbq "sauces" as opposed to the actual barbecue that will be represented at the DNC does a bit of a disservice to what NC bbq is. BBQ is not an adjective modifier of sauce, it's a noun. If you want to focus on "sauce," go to Kansas City or Arkansas. The DNC should've picked Skylight Inn, Allen&Son, and Lexington #1 to be the 3 official barbecues for the convention and be done with it.

mikeh in Southeast

Magnolia Grill in Durham is Closing

I wonder how this might cut into the Farm to Fork Picnic further as those who appreciate food are now budgeting out Magnolia Grill instead.

Ouch.

mikeh in Southeast

Pizza in Charlotte

Anyone try the new Pure Pizza in Uptown Charlotte yet? It's a farm-to-fork pizzeria. Their dough is made from a "variety of ancient grains" such as quinoa, amaranth, buckwheat, whole wheat, and millet.

http://www.purepizzaclt.com/

mikeh in Southeast

Magnolia Grill in Durham is Closing

Confirmed here:

http://blogs.newsobserver.com/food/no-more-reservations-available-at-magnolia-grill

mikeh in Southeast

Lers Ros - Yum

This is exactly how I would have described the green curry at the Tenderloin location as of about a month ago on my last trip out to SF. It was spot on. I'd tried the curry at Hayes once and it was lacking in the aforementioned complexity.

mikeh in San Francisco Bay Area

Magnolia Grill in Durham is Closing

It took me about 30 tries early yesterday afternoon, and at that point I think it was legitimately ringing off the hook. Now, it's probably booked. I did notice that the person who took my reservation said she would call me to reconfirm (opposite to their usual policy of having the patron call in), so maybe they already are or will be leaving it off the hook at some point, which would make sense if they're booked solid. Apparently people stood in line yesterday to get reservations in person.

mikeh in Southeast

Magnolia Grill in Durham is Closing

This would've been a fantastic idea, although I think Chip and Tina are doing regular monthly dinners at Celebrity Dairy right now and a recent article suggested that they bought out the B&B portion of the operation out there and were trying to get permitting to open up a full-time restaurant in the space (a la Inn at Little Washington) within "three or four months" of that March article. Still, it's way out in the middle of nowhere, so I wonder how they would swing a steady clientele, or whether they would need to given cost differentials. I wonder if Chip and Tina would consider rethinking things with this news or whether they are too invested in the process out at Celebrity Dairy already. If nothing else, the available space and kitchen equipment, wine stock (although Tina's collection was far more thoughtful) and some continuity of staff, of the soon-to-be-former MG location would be mighty appealing. I also think that the baseline atmosphere of the place is more approachable even if Chip and Tina keep the menu/style of cooking exactly the same as it was at Bonne Soiree.

mikeh in Southeast

Magnolia Grill in Durham is Closing

I've just been unlucky in my txakoli foraging, I suppose. Even traditional Spanish places like Curate in Asheville only serve it by the bottle, which is sort of counter to its role as an aperitif unless you're with a large group. I had read somewhere (SF Chronicle maybe) that expense had something to do with it.

mikeh in Southeast

Nothin’ Fancy Cafe in Edenton

Thanks for the reminder of what a wonderful meal you had there. I had bookmarked this place on my calendar hoping to make it out for the Edenton Tour of Homes, but I guess that tour only takes place every 2 years. Quite a haul from Charlotte if I'm not otherwise headed out that way.

mikeh in Southeast

BBQ Charlotte?

I did a takeout lunch of pulled pork with collards, green bean casserole and mac&cheese from Queen City Q last Friday. The pork was decent enough, although it lacked the complexity of any of the true top NC bbq joints. I wouldn't even put it in the same category as The Pit in Raleigh. Just too uniform, not enough smoke or crunch in the caramelized parts, but not objectionable either. I don't know whether I would put it above or below Midwood. The sides were good too but pretty unhealthy. Anything with a lot of pork stock, butter or cheese is going to taste alright, but they were a bit heavy.

Still, there's no way I'd ever choose Queen City Q if I were otherwise going to Bridges Barbecue Lodge in Shelby or Lexington #1. As something in CLT itself though - maybe the occasional visit. I still think it's the sort of place that is focusing as much on atmosphere as execution, but maybe you have to if you're Uptown.

mikeh in Southeast

Magnolia Grill in Durham is Closing

Karen Barker's vanilla bean buttermilk pie was a taste that I will remember forever.

Not to mention the spring rabbit dish I had last year - it captured the essence of spring better than any other dish I've had anywhere.

The ceviches were always otherworldly.

It's still the only U.S. restaurant I've experienced that had the cleverness and insight to serve txakoli by the glass.

I know of no other restaurant to time and again pull off using such complexity of ingredients in perfect harmony, without being overbearing, without having to resort to molecular gastronomy, doing farm-to-table before it was "in", etc. That combination of execution and soul is something that was unique to the Barkers, and I'm just glad I had the opportunity to be in the right time and place to savor it. I have my reservation for one more time, in time for our anniversary dinner.

mikeh in Southeast

Farm to Fork 2012 [Triangle, NC]

Tom -

I moved back to NC last summer. It's good to be back. I'm currently in Charlotte, but anything in the Carolinas has been and is fair game for my travels.

mikeh in Southeast

Magnolia Grill in Durham is Closing

To put it quite simply - in my opinion this is the biggest loss in North Carolina's culinary scene since Edna Lewis stopped cooking at Fearrington House. From start to finish as a complete meal, it is probably mine and my wife's favorite restaurant in the country. This includes any of the Michelin-starred places in NYC or San Francisco or Napa/Sonoma. Wow.

mikeh in Southeast

Difficultly of French Laundry Reservations?

Just wondering why this reservation is still so impossibly difficult compared to other Bay Area restaurants. TFL has fallen off significantly on most "best of" lists, Keller's specifically-devoted attention has largely been at Per Se, one can experience actual former chefs de cuisine of TFL at their own restaurants (i.e., same guy cooking your food) and the quality differential between TFL and other top area restaurants has become negligible, if not having a slight deficit. So how does TFL still maintain the "call in at 10 a.m. sharp, ride the busy signals, and hope you get through before 10:15 a.m. or you are SOL" buzz?

Count me as one feeling I missed my chance to have this effort validated by not having taken the opportunity...back in the late 90s.

mikeh in San Francisco Bay Area

Farm to Fork 2012 [Triangle, NC]

At that TerraVita event in Chapel Hill last fall, there were different-colored bracelets for people who bought non-alcohol (cheaper) tix versus food + alcohol tickets.

I also wonder whether Farm to Fork is running afoul of any regulations by selling tickets with alcohol included and selling them to minors. If they are required to only sell tickets including alcohol, I would think the same regulations would require they limit the event to 21+ (I know this is why the Charleston Wine + Food Festival limits their Salute to Charleston Chefs opening night to 21+). I don't think you can have your cake and eat it too.

mikeh in Southeast

Thai / Korean in or near Mountain View?

This is correct. The only decently authentic Thai in close proximity to the Sourh Bay is what they cook at that Buddhist temple in Fremont on Sundays.

mikeh in San Francisco Bay Area

Glass Onion ---Weaverville,NC

Does this Glass Onion have anything to do with the well-known farm-to-table Glass Onion in Charleston, SC?

mikeh in Southeast

BBQ IN NC

Lexington #1 isn't on the list because the owner opted out (he used to be but didn't need the publicity). Even if a NC best of list were limited to top 5, Lexington #1 should be on there.

That said, I think I like Bridges Barbecue Lodge in Shelby more for Lexington-style. You just can't beat that outside brown anywhere in the entire state.

mikeh in Southeast

Chez Pierre, Tallahassee, R.I.P.

Honestly I never thought much of the place after Pierre Vivier stopped running the kitchen. It became more and more a place to see and be seen, with an increasing emphasis on booze and "special events" where they could mark you up on most things.

Then when Albert Ughetto opened up Provence, well Chez Pierre lost all culinary relevance in that genre.

Still, I have some grand memories of the Vivier days on North Adams street downtown. It was the first "upscale" lunch I ever had as a kid, and his pastry chef made me a birthday cake for my first birthday, which I believe is the first bite of food I ever remember consuming.

mikeh in Florida

Airstrip Airport and Barbeque restaurant (Raleigh)

Does Log Cabin still use wood? There's been some rumors that they're are gas nowadays.

mikeh in Southeast

Airstrip Airport and Barbeque restaurant (Raleigh)

How would you describe the style of the pork and sauce compared to Piedmont v. Eastern style? I notice that the pork is pulled, which is different from the normal chopped style. How was the brunswick stew?

Trying to decide whether to eat here tomorrow v. Whispering Pines BBQ in Albemarle (another place I haven't tried) on my way out to the Sandhills.

mikeh in Southeast

Farm to Fork 2012 [Triangle, NC]

One thing I had really appreciated about the local food movement in NC is that it did not take on a "1%" identity like the San Francisco Bay Area farm-to-table movement that I had previously experienced. Walk through the Ferry Building Farmer's Market in San Francisco on Saturdays and everything is priced so luxuriously. There, the cost profile is conventional supermarket < Whole Foods < Farmer's Market, whereas here it was that Farmers Markets are where you get the best deal. But it seems that now the attitude is changing since apparently enough wealthy patrons have "bought in" that they can ignore the masses. Well if the entire point is to reconnect common dining practices back to ingredient sourcing and slow food, and away from the knee-jerk default of a mass-produced chain experience or unconscious shopping practices, then there needs to be a more "this is for everybody" attitude. I think in comparison, the local movement in Charleston, SC, for all the wealth and tourist dollars down there, has taken on a more honest direction. While Sean Brock, Mike Lata and co. are written up worldwide as some of the best chefs in the country now, their efforts to promote seafood from Mark Marhefka or reintroduce certain grains like carolina gold rice or Sea Island peas that had been lost to a couple generations can be approached and used in simple cooking. A recent interview with Sean Brock on Charlie Rose had him stating that his goal is to make a simple bowl of hoppin' john, rice and peas, have the flavor profile that it used to, and this is eminently translatable to cooking practice in all homes, not just the wealthy. His favorite place to dine is Martha Lou's, a meat-and-three that sources locally just because that's how the family has always done it, and he uses it as a guidepost and anchor to remind him of what his life's motivation is. It's from this chef- and restaurant-driven leadership that fundraising events down there are priced $40-70, depending, even if they're held on historic plantations and in a higher cost-of-living and overhead environment. In the future, I'll vote with my wallet to support the "right" direction in farm-to-table.

mikeh in Southeast

Farm to Fork 2012 [Triangle, NC]

Thanks for posting that. All I can say is a splurgy meal at Magnolia Grill for myself and the wife where we each order an app., entree, dessert, and a glass of wine barely pushes over $100 TOTAL. So the organizers are exaggerating the price comparison just a bit.

I think they are missing their best promotional opportunity of the year to make farm-to-fork approachable, which is to show people how good it tastes on the palate. Events and workshops - you have to already be seeking those out to begin with and have some appreciation in the movement. But when something tastes good, it opens up a new world to folks. But they've priced out casual eaters from this.

mikeh in Southeast

Farm to Fork 2012 [Triangle, NC]

The $100 really is crazy and tone deaf in this economy. Even the lux Atlanta Food & Wine Festival tasting tents are priced at $100 right now (and they had been $75 if you bought tickets early). An "In the field" fundraiser/food event like Farm to Fork, the Lowcountry Local First Chef's Potluck taking place at Middleton Place in Charleston, SC this Sunday, is priced at $70. Farm to Fork had been in line with these sorts of events . . . until now.

mikeh in Southeast

Charleston: Fisherman Mark Marhefka doing a pop-up fish fry at Butcher & Bee this Saturday (4/21)

Just caught this one upon a random glance at the upcoming Charleston food events:

Sat., April 21, 3-9 p.m.

"Join "guest chef" fisherman Mark Marhefka for the first Abundant Seafood pop-up dinner. Your choice of grilled or fried fish, all of it caught and cooked by Marhefka, along with family-style sides and hushpuppies. $22. "

For those of you who are unfamiliar, Mark Marhefka runs Abundant Seafood and supplies most of the top area restaurants with their local product. Apparently he''s the #1 go-to guy for quality and freshness. I cannot say it better than this recent feature on him:

http://www.charlestoncitypaper.com/charleston/mark-marhefka-connects-chefs-to-the-local-waters/Content?oid=4016758

I was going to take a day trip down to hit up some other places, but this might call for a change in plans.

mikeh in Southeast

Farm to Fork 2012 [Triangle, NC]

It's earlier this year (normally isn't it in June or July?). I guess that makes sense since the weather should be a lot better for standing around in a field, but I've already made plans to be away that weekend. My streak continues of not ever being able to make it to the event.

mikeh in Southeast