Two for one
Mark your calendar for Friday, May 3, as two acclaimed Virginia chefs, both nominated for the James Beard Award of Excellence, come together to create a dinner to remember. Lee Gregory is the chef and owner of The Roosevelt restaurant in Richmond’s historic Church Hill neighborhood and has been featured in magazines such as Garden & Gun and Southern Living. A South Carolina native, Gregory’s cooking speaks of the South, yet is slightly modernized.
Ian Boden, of Glass Haus Kitchen, hails from Virginia. Formerly the mastermind behind the now-defunct Staunton Grocery, his latest venture was recently reviewed favorably and featured by Tom Sietsema in The Washington Post and Megan Headley in C-VILLE Weekly.
The dinner takes place on the lawn at Blenheim Vineyards and will consist of five courses, mostly family-style, and be paired with Blenheim wines. The event begins at 5:30pm. Tickets are $100 (all inclusive) and details can be found at blenheimvineyards.com/events.
Ch-ch-ch-changes
Things are changing at Hamiltons’ at First & Main—in the very best way. Curtis Shaver has taken over as executive chef; manager and co-owner Daniel Page has created a new cocktail list; and the restaurant has added Sunday brunch to its hours. A recent visit revealed cocktails such as the “Apples and Oranges,” with Albemarle Ciderworks Royal Pippin Cider, orange bitters, a splash of Blanton’s bourbon, a raw sugar cube, and an orange twist (yum!). For those with more traditional tastes, the “Sicilian Dirty Martini” is a spin-off of the original, with Bombay Sapphire gin, Dolin dry vermouth, caperberry, and caper brine to give it that added savory saltiness.
As for the newly added brunch offering, you’ll find hickory-cured pork belly with poached eggs, and a house-made bacon-pecan cinnamon bun on the menu. Brunch hours are from 11am-3pm on Sundays.
To market, to market
For food- and garden-loving locavores looking for something new, the Market at Grelen in Somerset will scratch the itch. The 600-acre farm is home to the biggest nursery in Orange County, and is the largest tree nursery in the state. You’ll find gardening tools, outdoor furniture, and planters on offer, plus a pick-your-own berry patch, local honey, and (coming mid-summer!) a full café serving fresh local fare. In the meantime, try some berry ice cream, a peanut butter and honey sandwich, or pack a picnic lunch and a bottle of wine to enjoy the sweeping views of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Visit themarketatgrelen.com for more information.