Triad City Bites — September 2018

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

SEPTEMBER 2018

Mozelle’s

Fresh Southern Bistro a West End classic

Curated By:

Also featured in this month’s Issue:

1618 Midtown $$-$$$

Dinner Guest

Guys in the Kitchen

J

im Early, an attorney of my generation here in WinstonSalem, is quite a good cook and, in addition, a cookbook author. In the preface to one of his books he explained how

by Carroll Leggett it all started. Apparently as a boy he had an independent streak, and promised himself that, once he was grown, he would never be dependent on anyone for anything.

To accomplish that, he decided he had to learn to cook and feed himself. So he watched the women in his family in the kitchen, asked lots of questions and developed culinary skills that have served him well all his life.

I think about Jim when I look around this city and I see huge apartment complexes sprouting from the ground. There will be a lot of single folks in those units, including young, professional men — many of them just starting careers and thinking they now have total control of their lives and destinies. But are they fooling themselves if they can’t cook? How independent can one actually be if at every meal time you are obliged to turn to someone else for simple sustenance? Not very, I would say.

Men cooking in restaurant kitchens and barbecue pits have long been the norm. In fact, we are now applauding the emergence of women chefs and restaurant owners and the increasingly important and visible roles they are playing in the culinary world. Men coking at home, however, other than firing up the grill on weekends, have been a rarity. But when I was

PULLLOUT

1618midtown.com 1724 Battleground Ave. GSO 336.285.9410 a younger man, in my own personal world, it didn’t seem out of the ordinary.

Beloved Campbell University Dean Alex Burkot, the father of one of my childhood buddies, did all the cooking at his house. I hung out there and often had my feet under his table. He would stop at Mr. Dixon’s store on his way home and pick up a few essentials and head straight for the kitchen when he hit the house. It was his domain and nobody messed with him. And if I lingered long enough around suppertime — as I was apt to do — I often would get asked to join the family meal.

I particularly remember his pork chops. Always served with chunky apple sauce!

Although my stepfather never donned an apron, he had his own culinary expertise. At hog-killing time, this tough, outdoorsy fellow was the sausage-, souse- and liver pudding-maker; the kitchen was his personal atelier. An oilcloth saved from year to year just for the purpose was spread on the kitchen table, and at the end of the day pans of souse meat and liver pudding lined the counter tops as and countless yards of plump pork sausages hung in the smokehouse to air-dry. Unfortunately his recipes were all in his head, and he took them to his grave.

Then, as now, the “complete” man must be able to cook and be comfortable in a kitchen.

I hasten to add this applies not just to single men. Partnerships, whatever form they may take, are more viable when each is equally comfortable planning and executing the necessary, fundamental task of preparing food.

FOOD+DRINK 2

Triad City Bites

1618 Midtown’s General Manager and Certified Sommelier Stacey Land met with “grape expectations” when the restaurant was honored by Wine Spectator magazine with a 2018 Award of Excellence. Land earned the distinction of Certified Sommelier from the Court of Master Sommeliers in 2017 and is currently studying for her Advanced Sommelier exam. She is also a Certified Sake Advisor and winner of the 2016 Domaine Serene Somm Select challenge. The Award of Excellence identifies restaurants whose wine lists feature a well-chosen assortment of quality producers along with a thematic match to the menu in both price and style. It’s a reflection of the restaurant’s mission to deliver an outstanding beverage program around Land’s growing talents. Midtown carries 120 carefully chosen selections, and keeps an inventory of 1,500 bottles. “I look for balance when creating the list,” says Land. “For every off-the-wall blend of Greek indigenous varietals there needs to be something comfortable and easily recognized, like a New Zealand sauvignon blanc.” 1618 Midtown, along with sister restaurants 1618 Seafood Grille and 1618 Downtown, is home to several celebrations of wine including winemaker dinners, tastings, culture classes and the 1618 Book* Club (by “book” we mean “wine”).

September 2018

Kitchen + Market $$-$$$ nattygreeneskitchenandmarket.com 2003 Yanceyville St. GSO 336.656.2410

Burger Batch $-$$

burgerbatch.com 2760 NC 68 HP 336.875.4082 237 W. 5th St. WS 336.893.6395

The Kitchen+Market continues its evolution at Revolution Mill with the opening of the upstairs Board Room, featuring a limited menu of share-ables curated at the Board Station (Pictured above: shrimp ceviche, steak tartare, charcuterie board, deviled eggs + libations). The smaller space and bespoke menu offer a peek inside the mind of Kitchen+Market owner Kayne Fisher on a more intimate scale. Together with the main restaurant, the Deck outdoor tavern, the downstairs Market and the rolling grounds and towering stacks of Revolution Mill, the Board Station brings another facet of the Kitchen+Market experience.

Melt Kitchen & Bar $-$$ meltkitchenandbar.com 1941 New Garden Road # 116 GSO 336.763.5445

Melt’s big space on New Garden Road pushes beyond the panini — and was listed as one of John Batchelor’s 10 favorite restaurants in Greensboro. A long list of burgers, sandwiches and wraps maintains the quality — including the awardwinning BAT, a baconarugula-tomato sandwich that relies on Rudd Farms tomatoes, local bacon and the peppery bite of arugula. A short slate of tacos keeps it simple with fish, steak, shrimp or avocado.

All the salads are signature items, unique to Melt. They still carry the Sunrise salad — with portabella mushrooms, artichoke hearts, roasted peppers, bacon and a fried egg — that became a favorite among the regulars at the old location. They’ve still got the duck-confit flatbread and duck fries, the pulled-pork nachos and the almost-famous sprouts too. And, of course, everyone loves the panini.

September 2018

Sweet-toothed novelty seekers can’t look away from Burger Batch’s playful milkshake menu. These aren’t the shakes of romantic Norman Rockwell paintings; the decadent concoctions tower over classic milkshake glasses like charming parodies of 21st Century intemperance with ingredients as far ranging as Nutter Butters, caramel corn, fudge, Froot Loops, Graham cracker and marshmallows.

The It’s a Surprise shake is the belle of the ball: a cake-batter shake rimmed with rainbow sprinkles and topped off with cotton candy and a slice of birthday cake. Customers looking for something slightly more traditional will find Banana Time, a banana pudding shake sporting Nila wafers and Captain Crunch, and the Black & White, a classic Oreo shake donning a crown of cookies. Looking for something sweeter than the brunch crew? Try the Breakfast Club, featuring just about every multicolored cereal on the market and a Rice Krispy treat. There’s something for everyone, even the peanut butter devotee in the group.

Triad City Bites

3

Mozelle’s Fresh

A new face in a historic pl

Mozelle’s Fresh Southern Bistro sits on the corner of Brookstown Avenue and Fourth Street, the heart of West End, where there’s been a restaurant on each corner as far back as anyone can remember. The building that houses Mozelle’s has been a restaurant for at least 50 years.

West End locals have stories of cruising by at night after dropping of their dates, or sobering up on coffee and eggs at the counter before church.

As a first-time restaurateur, Jennifer Smith had no idea that the community would embrace Mozelle’s as much as they have, and that’s been the case these last 10 years. In this “little restaurant that could,” it is not uncommon for conversations to break out between tables, because so many diners know each other from their loyal patronage or because they are neighbors or colleagues in this close-knit enclave.

At first blush, you might not catch what distinguishes Mozelle’s from other restaurants around the Triad that sling Southern vittles. The intimacy of the open kitchen, the daily specials showcasing local ingredients and the carefully curated wine list conspire to elevate your experience. The bimonthly wine dinners are so popular that there are always

4

Triad City Bites

September 2018

h Southern Bistro

Mozelle’s Fresh Southern Bistro $$ mozelles.com 878 W. Fourth St. WS, 336.703.5400

lace at West End’s hot corner

two sold-out seatings, often before the menu is finalized.

Most online reviews tend to focus on Mozelle’s singular tomato pie and creamy succotash, the classic fried chicken with peach chutney or the gourmet meatloaf nestled atop collard greens and grits, which have been featured on the menu since day one. You would not be remiss to choose one of those fine offerings. But there’s more to the story.

The casual, yet attentive, service is competent and comforting. Snagging a coveted sidewalk table in the early autumn requires a good deal of luck and persistent planning, as folks like to linger through the twilight. If there is a chill in the air, the staff will even provide a warm blanket, colorcoordinated, of course.

Oftentimes, the missing component in many restaurants is the human warmth of true hospitality. First-time diners know that they are in a special place soon after allowing their senses to take in the surroundings: the vibrant sidewalk umbrellas, the tasteful decor with colorful flourishes. There are fresh-cut flowers on every table, and pink Hawaiian sea salt in the grinders nestled beside them. There’s a lot more going on here than a sidewalk café.

September 2018

As downtown Winston-Salem is experiencing a renaissance, Jennifer can’t resist restlessly refining the Mozelle’s experience — changing the look of the physical menus, tweaking the table settings, and hiring a new chef.

Jay Pierce has been around the block a few times, revamping Lucky 32 in Greensboro before decamping for Charlotte to launch ROCKSALT, then returning to the Gate City to helm Traveled Farmer. With that restaurant’s untimely demise, he was a chef without a stove, until Jennifer tapped him to lead her team into the next 10 years. His arrival was trumpeted in these pages and he has not failed to bring his signature grin to the Twin Cities. As he stirs up excitement about what is to come, his fantastic flavors are already on display daily, and his vow to stay true to Mozelle’s classic dishes has quickly garnered a following in his new home.

One thing to remember: the space is cozy. That means planning ahead is necessary to secure a table, especially when the weather is perfect for al fresco dining. Check out the website for happenings and follow them on Instagram for perfectly timed posts about lunch specials and reminders of upcoming wine dinners.

Triad City Bites

5

The Quiet Pint $$

Find them on Facebook.

1420 W. First St. WS, 336.893.6881 Gather at the Quiet Pint for pub trivia hosted

by Geeks Who Drink every Tuesday evening at 7:30 p.m. This is team trivia and winning teams will be awarded prizes in the form of Quiet Pint gift cards and craftbeer schwag.

Follow the beer menu in real-time with the TapHunter App and receive notifications when new beers are tapped. Live music season will be starting soon — follow the Quiet Pint on Facebook to see the schedule.

Jerusalem Market $$

jerusalemmarket.com 310 S. Elm St. GSO, 336.279.7025 5002 High Point Road GSO, 336.547.0220 Since 1989, the Triad’s favorite Middle Eastern Grocery built a loyal following near Adams Farm with its international market and sandwich counter in the back. Jerusalem Market specializes in imported groceries and ingredients, and the most unusual soft-drink cooler in town. It’s newest location, downtown on South Elm Street, carries a full board of specialty sandwiches using ingredients like Italian mortadella and salami, Turkish dried sausage and in-house butchered lamb and beef. Fresh-made baba ghanouj, tabouleh and “the best hummos in the world” every day, with organic produce and locally-sourced ingredients whenever possible.

Open for lunch and dinner. “You will be pleased.”

Mary’s Gourmet Diner $$

Mission Pizza $-$$

Mary Haglund owns breakfast in Winston-Salem.

Her first venture, Mary’s of Course!

Which opened in 2000, was the original farm-tofork restaurant in the city. There she solidified her relationships with local purveyors and her commitment to real, local ingredients, as well as her biscuit recipe. Her egg dishes are legendary, her pancakes sublime. And the specials board always has something interesting. Open only for breakfast and lunch and the sweet spot in between, Mary’s Gourmet Diner is a WinstonSalem original.

Finally, a reason to stop eating commodity pizza.

marysgourmetdiner.net 723 Trade St. WS, 336.723.7239

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Triad City Bites

missionpizzanapoletana.com 707 Trade St. WS, 336.893.8217

Proper pizza Napoletana.

Classic Italian pastas. Fresh salads and wood-fired veg.

NC craft beer.

Italian wine.

Local food, handmade with integrity. That’s all there is to it.

September 2018

Flash in the Pan:

Hurry, hurry, chimichurri

T

his time of year, I like to ask my vegetable farmer friends what they are making for dinner. These hardworking producers are the supreme authorities on how best to use produce, and each meal is an opportunity both to enjoy the harvest and to get rid of surplus.

One friend feeds a large, hungry table of family and farmhands every night. As a farmer, he’s thrifty, has no time and must quickly whip up a dinner that contains as much free food (produce) as possible. This is why I love farmer recipes, because they are a

by Ari LeVaux recipe for satisfying, veggie-centered food.

That evening’s menu, he told me on the phone, would include massaged-kale salad, cucumber-feta salad, a bacon plate and roasted potatoes with chimichurri.

Perhaps the platter of bacon from homegrown pigs caught your attention, and deservedly so, but it was that last entry, chimichurried roast potatoes, that excited us both. He was excited because of a potato trick he’d learned from a fellow farmer that he wanted to share, and I was excited because of chimichurri — and farmer chimichurri no less — which promised to be a delicious way to eat lots of parsley.

I’ve since confirmed that his potatoes with that famous Argentine condiment and marinade, golden on the outside and puffy like tater tots on the inside, are indeed something. In addition to parsley, it contains olive oil, garlic, salt, vinegar and other herbs like oregano. These rather pedestrian ingredients team up to cover nearly all of the flavor bases — salt, bitter, sour, umami, fat and heat — with the only exception being sweetness. Chimichurri is a sauce for those who don’t mind it rough, or an occasional burst of adrenaline at the table. Compared to the cloying homogeneity of ketchup or the smooth, yearning mediocrity of ranch dressing, chimichurri is a salty bareback ride across the Pampas.

While most chimichurri is green, it has a lesser-known relative in red chimichurri, which contains ripe tomatoes and peppers, while green does not. My farmer friend’s dish had green chimichurri, with added cilantro. I, however, was intrigued by the idea of red on potatoes. And with tomato season upon us, it seemed like all the more reason to savor that side of chimichurri while it’s at its best.

The red and green sides of chimichurri recall those two hues in other great condiments, like the New Mexican chile or Mexican hot sauce. But the red and green historical parallels to chimichurri that stand out to me are the Italian red and white clam sauces, so beloved by pasta enthusiasts. The so-called “white” version is actually green, and like chimichurri, both red and white clam sauces are parsley-based.

The rest of the ingredients in the two sauces are similar as well, which is probably no coincidence. The Italian population in Argentina is large, and its influence is strong.

Argentine chimichurri, thus, is a New World evolution of a Mediterranean invention.

Regardless of its origins, when you have chimichurri, you find yourself looking for things to put it on, or in. Marinate meat in it, stir it into beaten eggs before scrambling, toss it into salad or a bowl of linguine.

Or better yet, put it on potatoes that have been soaked and roasted, farmer-style.

Whichever flavor and hue of chimichurri you ultimately concoct, the next day it will be even better, and the world will be yours to explore through the lens of chimichurri. You will cover a lot of miles before the ride is through. And you will eat a lot of parsley.

Farmer’s table chimichurried potatoes Cut potatoes to inch-chunks or thereabouts, and soak in cold water for an hour.

For a recent batch (pictured), I soaked thickly sliced purple carrots as well, which are more earthy and bitter than sweet carrots, and great for cooking.

Let the roots soak for 45 minutes. Meanwhile, make some chimichurri (see other recipe).

Turn the oven to 415 degrees Fahrenheit. Drain the potatoes, add them to a baking pan, and toss with olive oil, salt, garlic powder and a little black pepper.

It doesn’t matter that the potatoes are wet at first; they will dry off. The carrots behave similarly to the potatoes, developing exterior crisp and molten interiors.

Toss with the chimichurri of your choice and serve.

And here are some chimichurri recipes. The first comes from my Argentine friend Diego Grant, owner of Gauchito Catering in Albuquerque, NM. His buddy brought this chimichurri to my birthday party eight years ago, and my wife still hasn’t gotten over it.

September 2018

Gauchito chimichurri 1 bush flat leaf parsley 1 head of garlic 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon pepper “All together, chop,” he instructs. “Then…”

1 cup olive oil 1/2 cup red wine vinegar “After that, let rest all together for 15 minutes. When you have the flavors out, add …”

1/2 cup oregano 1/2 cup red chile flakes You have now made chimichurri verde. To make it roja, add chopped tomatoes.

Blender churri Dissolve one teaspoon of coarse salt into a half-cup of water. Set aside.

Chop a head of garlic, two cups fresh parsley and 1/4 cup fresh (or dried; the same amount works fine) oregano or marjoram, and add it all to a blender, along with 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper.

Blend. Then add 1/4 cup red wine vinegar and then 1/2 cup olive oil.

Finally, blend in the salt water. To make a red version, add tomatoes, but don’t over-blend it to a pink sludge. Visible tomato chunks should remain.

Chimichurraise, or farmerchurri Is it any surprise that combining mayonnaise with chimichurri further improves the potatoes, or anything else to which you might add it? I mean, what’s not to love about two of the greatest condiments in the world combining to make something greater than the sum of their parts?

This culinary fact certainly wasn’t lost on my farmer friend: Garlic Parsley Vinegar Salt And, in addition to those usual suspects, he added cilantro and mayonnaise. Because farmers know how the game is played.

Triad City Bites

7

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Burke Street Pizza $

Local 27101 $

Burke Street Pizza has gone green at all its locations. No more plastic straws, Styrofoam take-out containers, plastic bags or foil and plastic trays, with a pledge to eliminate most of its plastic waste in the coming months.

They’ve installed high-efficiency LED lighting and switched to pizza boxes and napkins made from recycled materials. In celebration, BSP has partnered with A/perture Cinema for a screening of A Plastic Ocean, about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a miles-wide mass of free-floating plastic garbage in the North Pacific. Showtime is Tuesday, July 10 at A/perture at 7 p.m. Find the event on Facebook. And visit Burke Street Pizza at its original location on Burke Street, or the one Robinhood Road.

Local 27101, located in the heart of downtown Winston-Salem, balances a casual ambiance with local classics re-imagined by Executive Chef Patrick Rafferty, and with the savvy of the management behind the Millennium Center. They feature fresh food made fast, and there’s fare for everyone: Burgers with seasoned crinkle cut and sweet potato fries. A legendary hot dog. Fresh shrimp and oysters for po-boys — grilled, fried or sautéed — and made-to-order salads that go beyond the basic house with Caesar and a Cobb. Local 27101 has local wine and beer, free delivery throughout downtown Winston-Salem and the West End. And they cater, as well — either on location, on site at Local 27101 or one of the many chambers of the Millennium Center. Closed Sundays.

Uncle Buzzy’s Fried Food $

Bites & Pints Gastropub $

Uncle Buzzy’s specializes in creative carnival food: fried, smoked mac and cheese, porchetta meat cones and turkey legs as well as burgers, hot dogs tacos and the sort of deep-fried experimentation for which the genre is becoming famous: funnel cakes, fried Oreos, ice cream tacos on waffles. Owner Dave Hillman partnered with Chef Brian Duffy, best known as the kitchen guy from the television show “Bar Rescue,” to flesh out the carnival-food concept and add classic American street food.

A Nashville chicken sandwich. Disco fries. Poutine. There’s a smoker in the kitchen for pork shoulder and anything else the guys want to experiment with. Beef gets roasted in house and served four ways: Italian-style, a Chicago favorite with a jus-soaked bun; shaved into a Philly cheesesteak; served on a salty kummelweck roll for the Buffalo, NY favorite beef on weck; and done exactly like Dave remembers it from the original Buzzy’s in Boston, the First Street Bomber. Uncle Buzzy’s is open now on First Street for takeout only.

Chef Kris Fuller, queen of the Crafted empire in Greensboro and WinstonSalem, joined with longtime Westerwood Tavern owner Mike Bosco to create Greensboro’s only true gastropub. Fuller’s menu takes bar food to the next level, with an eclectic slate of delectables suitable for sharing or grubbing down solo: boiled peanuts, shrimp tempura, chicken and waffles, melts, salads, a full component of burgers and hot dogs and even a kids’ menu. Bosco’s bar has all the necessary accoutrements. Open every day in the Lindley Park section of Spring Garden Street.

burkestreetpizza.com 1140 Burke St. WS, 336.721.0011 3352 Robinhood Road WS, 336.760.4888

Find them on Facebook.

1510 First St. WS

thelocal.ws 310 W. Fourth St. WS, 336.725.3900

bitesandpintsgastropub.com 2503 Spring Garden St. GSO, 336.617.5185

Don’t see your business? Call Brian at 336.681.0704 to get listed.