GotGarlic
Chef Extraordinaire
I thought this would be a good place to describe the wonderful dinner we had at Chef & the Farmer Friday night. The chef, Vivian Howard, and her husband, Ben Knight, have a documentary/cooking show on PBS called A Chef's Life, about the making of the restaurant, and its sister the Boiler Room Oyster Bar. She uses traditional ingredients from eastern North Carolina in innovative ways, supporting local farmers and participating in the rebirth of Kinston, where she grew up.
We started with cocktails. I had an Esoteric Monk with Absolut Citron, lemon, egg whites, Jägermeister, and jalapeño simple syrup. So good! DH had a vodka tonic with a twist of lime.
We shared the appetizers. DH ordered the Tom Thumb, which is an old-timey recipe for spicy pork sausage stuffed into the appendix. They slice it and grill it on the flat top. It was served with a cabbage pancake, shredded cooked apples and a drizzle of Duke's mayo. It has a funky flavor that took me some getting used to, but DH loved it from the first bite.
I ordered the chilled sweet corn soup with pickled shrimp, basil chili oil and chervil. It was creamy and corny with a pop from the shrimp. Really good.
For mains, DH ordered North Carolina flounder served with stewed tomatoes, charred okra and squash and basil pesto. He thought he didn't like okra till he tried this
I ordered the pork chop. It was cooked to medium - nice and juicy, yum - with great charred flavor on the outside. It was served with braised carrots, charred green beans (picked a little too late, my only quibble - they were tough) and a delicious blueberry mostarda.
We decided to go to the Boiler Room Oyster Bar, their more casual restaurant across the street, to have a savory finish instead of dessert.
Nightcaps: I ordered My Pear Lady with St. Germain and pear purée. I don't think I've ever had St. Germain before. I loved it ? DH had some kind of IPA [emoji38]
DH got a dish called the Rooster from the oyster bar. House-made pork rinds topped with house-made tartar sauce, spicy cocktail sauce, a steamed oyster and a pickled jalapeño pepper. I tried one and it was really good.
And finally, I had the Southern Poutine with pulled pork, brown gravy and cheddar cheese curds over the fries, and a vinegary dipping sauce. Yum yum yum
Highly, highly recommended. We will be back next year, maybe in August or September to see what they offer during another part of the season.
For more info:
- http://www.achefslifeseries.com/
- http://www.achefslifeseries.com/recipes/
- http://www.vivianhoward.com/deep-run-roots/[/
We started with cocktails. I had an Esoteric Monk with Absolut Citron, lemon, egg whites, Jägermeister, and jalapeño simple syrup. So good! DH had a vodka tonic with a twist of lime.
We shared the appetizers. DH ordered the Tom Thumb, which is an old-timey recipe for spicy pork sausage stuffed into the appendix. They slice it and grill it on the flat top. It was served with a cabbage pancake, shredded cooked apples and a drizzle of Duke's mayo. It has a funky flavor that took me some getting used to, but DH loved it from the first bite.
I ordered the chilled sweet corn soup with pickled shrimp, basil chili oil and chervil. It was creamy and corny with a pop from the shrimp. Really good.
For mains, DH ordered North Carolina flounder served with stewed tomatoes, charred okra and squash and basil pesto. He thought he didn't like okra till he tried this
I ordered the pork chop. It was cooked to medium - nice and juicy, yum - with great charred flavor on the outside. It was served with braised carrots, charred green beans (picked a little too late, my only quibble - they were tough) and a delicious blueberry mostarda.
We decided to go to the Boiler Room Oyster Bar, their more casual restaurant across the street, to have a savory finish instead of dessert.
Nightcaps: I ordered My Pear Lady with St. Germain and pear purée. I don't think I've ever had St. Germain before. I loved it ? DH had some kind of IPA [emoji38]
DH got a dish called the Rooster from the oyster bar. House-made pork rinds topped with house-made tartar sauce, spicy cocktail sauce, a steamed oyster and a pickled jalapeño pepper. I tried one and it was really good.
And finally, I had the Southern Poutine with pulled pork, brown gravy and cheddar cheese curds over the fries, and a vinegary dipping sauce. Yum yum yum
Highly, highly recommended. We will be back next year, maybe in August or September to see what they offer during another part of the season.
For more info:
- http://www.achefslifeseries.com/
- http://www.achefslifeseries.com/recipes/
- http://www.vivianhoward.com/deep-run-roots/[/
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