Ever since Vivian Howard opened The Chef and The Farmer in Kinston, NC eleven years ago I have been dying to have dinner there. Yesterday I finally had my chance thanks to my friend Jen who discovered that Walter Magazine was featuring an event, A Day With Vivian Howard. Jen and I signed up early and were among the 80 guests who were lucky enough to get tickets (There were 40 folks turned away).
Our first treat was making biscuits with Lillie over in Vivian's Test Kitchen. Three volunteers from the crowd under Lillie's supervision made biscuits using Lillie's recipe. As an hors d'oeuvre before dinner (in the south where I grew up, the noon meal was called dinner and the evening meal was called supper) we had a taste of biscuit with various kinds of jams and preserves.
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| Making biscuits with Lillie and Vivian in the Test Kitchen (Photo by Jen Salisbury). |
A short walk back over to the restaurant and dinner was ready.
The four at our table shared Vivian's Party Magnet with Mimosas served from the bar.
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| The bar with a reflection of Jen in the mirror above the bar. |
Next came the crispy apple salad topped with shaved Calavander cheese.
Until now I have not been a fan of collard greens, but that changed once I tasted the Vegetable Collard Chowder. It was my
favorite course of this meal. There is no photo, because I was so taken with the soup that I forgot to take one. I hope the recipe is in her book, because I will make that. The main course was a melt in your mouth pork with field peas and potatoes and garnished with cress. Yum, yum, yum!
What better than an apple fritter with buttermilk creme fraiche to top of this unbelievably delicious meal!
Vivian Howard is bringing Kinston back to life! The Chef and The Farmer is as outstanding as the superb reviews it has garnered and awards it has won! I'll be back.
This event sponsored by Walter Magazine was a day long event, so I will be posting a second blog later about our afternoon and evening fun. Stay tuned.
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