|
Farm-Fresh, Affordable, and
Kid-Friendly: Dining Local with Children
By Peter
Marks |
Guadalupe Café, Sylva •
The Scoop: With food that fuses Caribbean, Spanish, Mexican, Middle
Eastern, modern, and hippie influences, Guadalupe can take you
around the world while you sit in the heart of downtown Sylva, a
quintessential American Main Street if ever there was one. By
ordering from the taqueria section of the menu, diners can feed
their kids simple beans-and-rice fare while building their own
creations of smoked gouda, greens, farm bacon, roasted garlic, and
dozens of other top-quality ingredients. A full menu of composed
plates and smaller tapas also shines. Guadalupe is the kind of
casually-managed place that will run out of a few ingredients every
busy night, but it doesn’t matter because everything’s good.
The Four-Year-Old Test: Strangely, it’s again the
alcohol-friendly environment that helps make this restaurant
kid-friendly. The building once housed Hooper’s drug store, and tall
stools still line what was formerly a lunch counter and now serves
as a bar. Regardless of the time of day, businesspeople and WCU
students line the counter sipping beers and creating that hum of
background noise that parents cherish. Not that it’s a quiet place
to begin with. The décor melds tiki bar with art café with diner
with hip night spot, and everything about it says “fun.” The kitchen
and the service can each get bogged down, so bring the markers and
paper.
What’s Amazing: The use of local ingredients
is spectacular here. Owner Jen Pearson has built relationships with
just about every Jackson County small farmer capable of selling
direct to her kitchen. Featured ingredients include goat meat and
goat cheese from Dark Cove Farm, local pork, local produce from
Vegenui Gardens and Pomme de Terre farm, and more. All meats on the
menu come from ranged, hormone-free animals.
The
Basics: Located at 606 W. Main Street, Sylva. Open Monday to
Saturday 5 p.m. to 11 p.m., 2 a.m. on weekends.
828-586-9877.
Ask your average three-year-old
who grew the potato, pickle, lettuce, or pork on her dinner plate,
and she’ll likely name her neighborhood grocery store. Many parents
are eager to raise kids who know and value the producers of their
food. Visiting u-pick farms and shopping at farmers’ tailgate
markets can help. Another way to hit kids’ taste buds with the
message is to eat at restaurants that buy food from local farms and
that have staff and menus that tell diners where it all comes
from.
I recently dragged my four-year-old to several area
restaurants in search of places that met my kid-friendly criteria.
They had to serve delightfully-prepared local farm-fresh food; they
had to mix low-priced items in with higher ones; they had to offer
simple-flavored dishes along with more palate-challenging ones; and
they had to comfortably absorb the typical level of noise and
activity generated by a reasonably well-behaved child. Two shined on
all counts; interestingly enough, neither is a typical “family”
place.
Enoteca, Asheville • The Scoop: After
the 2004 flood put Rezaz under water, owner Reza Sateyesh not only
rebuilt but also added Enoteca as a more casual annex in the former
Biltmore Coffee Traders location next door. The menu is a fun and
delicious mix of cold and grilled sandwiches, build-your-own
antipasto plates, salads, hot “small bites,” larger meals, and more.
The chef seeks local farm food when he can find it in enough
quantity—recently he’s been running specials utilizing yogurt cheese
from Fullam Creamery, a fourth-generation dairy farm in Henderson
County. A retail counter offers takeout wine bottles, gelato, and a
stunning dessert case with everything from cinnamon-basil chocolate
truffles to a pistachio-lime tart.
Enoteca has long hours and
can be a stop for breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, drinks, or
coffee. The simple wooden tables and ample natural light contrast
with the dimly-lit, white cloth serenity of Rezaz next door.
The Four-Year-Old Test: You wouldn’t think a place
whose name roughly translates to “wine bar” would be the perfect
place to bring a child, but it is. The high ceilings, bright
surroundings, and social nature of the place make kids fit in just
fine. The diverse menu allows a little-of-this, little-of-that
ordering style that works well for sharing with picky eaters.
What’s Amazing: The menu, desserts, fine coffee,
and spirits can easily draw you in to a $20 lunch. But restrained
orderers will find prices shockingly low given the handcrafted
cuisine. A $5 chicken salad sandwich holds chunks of grilled meat
mixed with bits of celery and a delightful dressing that tastes of
saffron. The bread is hearty and fresh, and a side salad is
included. Meanwhile, diners across the street at the faux-tudor
Biltmore Village McDonald’s were spending the same $5 on a Big Mac
Super Value Meal—are they crazy?
The Basics: Located
at 28 Hendersonville Road. Open Monday to Saturday 9 a.m. to late.
Phone 828-277-1510.
Peter Marks is Local Food and Farm Coordinator for Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture
Project (ASAP). ASAP’s Local Food Guide is available in area
retailers or online at www.appalachiangrown.org.
Back to
New Life Journal.. |
|
|
|
Your guide to
health practitioners and sustainable businesses in Asheville,
NC, Atlanta and Athens,GA, Greenville, SC and the Southeast
NATURAL
HEALING massage, acupuncturists, energy
medicine, herbalists, yoga centers, natural medicine, healers,
alternative therapies, healing workshops NATURAL
FOODS health food stores, restaurants,
nutritionists, whole foods chefs, natural foods lectures &
programs, organic farmers, caterers MIND
& SPIRIT therapists, churches, workshops,
retreat centers, support groups BUSINESSES
sustainable businesses in the Southeast |
|
| |