Foodies who love a gourmet farm-to-table dinner enjoyed in a beautiful country setting are probably already familiar with Bop & Nana’s “Sunday Supper Series” hosted by former Café Cimino owners Melody & Tim Urbanic at their farm in Calhoun County.
What you may not know, however, is that this year’s offerings also include three different seven-course meals featuring an all-vegetarian menu of dishes made from ingredients gathered within a four-mile radius of the farm.
What exactly will be served on those days remains to be seen – since Tim and his son, Eli, build each menu based on the freshest and best-looking produce they can find at that time – but Melody says guests are always in for a treat.
“We raise sweet corn right in the garden near the picnic shelter, as well as all of the herbs, tomatoes, zucchini, squash and more,” she told me. “The eggs are local from some chickens right down the road from us and the blueberry ice cream dessert Tim makes from the blueberry patch that overlooks the pavilion.”
All pasta is handmade and the pesto that tops them is spiked with their own garden-grown basil.
“We also grew the green beans and garlic we’ve served in the past,” she added, “and the spanakopita from last year was made from our neighbor’s spinach.”
In addition to these special vegetarian dinners, this year’s series also includes a fancy ramp supper, special Mother’s Day dinner and two “Classic Café Cimino” buffets along with other farm dinners featuring meat and seafood.
Three local artists will also set up shop at each event, offering unique clothing, jewelry and crafts.
Although several dinners have already sold out, limited tickets are still available for the May 11 Mother’s Day dinner for $115 per person, plus the vegetarian dinners on July 27, Aug. 3 and Aug. 10 for $100 each. Tickets include a full seven-course meal, plus tax, gratuity and a welcome beverage upon arrival to the farm at 85 Valentine Rd. in Chloe, WV.
Dinners run from 1-3 p.m. For more information, call or text Melody at 304-532-5560.
Restaurant openings and closings
It was a busy weekend for Charleston restaurant news, with the new Albuquerque Southwest Bar & Grill opening Friday at 207 West Washington St. on the West Side and Hagy’s Irish Pie Pub officially opening Monday (St. Patrick’s Day) on the corner of Quarrier and Dickinson streets downtown after a soft opening that ran this past Thursday through Saturday.
In more somber news, Appalachian Tea at 613 Ohio Ave. on Charleston’s West Side announced in a Facebook post last week that it would be closing for good on March 30.
“It is with a heavy heart that we are announcing our closure on March 30 of this year. It's been a wonderful dream, meeting all of you and sharing the love of good company with tasty drinks and food.”
The post said the owners do hope to keep hosting game nights and a book club at other locations in the future, so fans can email them at appalachiantea@gmail.com if they’d like to stay in the loop.
“Meanwhile, we’ve got a lot of furniture, books and dishes to send on to good homes,” the post continued. “If there’s something in particular you’d like or you’d like to browse, swing on by!”
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Steven Keith is a food writer and restaurant critic known as “The Food Guy” who writes a weekly column for the Charleston Gazette-Mail and has appeared in several state, regional and national culinary publications. Follow him online at www.wvfoodguy.com or on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest. He can be reached at 304-380-6096 or at wvfoodguy@aol.com.